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23 September 2010 |
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 News
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• It’s cards in and cash out at LSE
as sQuid allows electronic payment
Staff and students will soon have a simple way to buy food and drink
without using cash, following the introduction of the new LSE card, which
incorporates sQuid technology.
An ePayment system, sQuid stores credit electronically on the LSE card,
which can be tapped on an automatic reader at the School’s cafés and
restaurants to pay at the till.
Once it has been registered, the LSE sQuid card can be topped up by bank
transfer or debit/credit card to allow faster payment, which should cut down
queues for customers and reduce the burden of cash-handling and banking for
catering staff.
Customers will also be able to see a statement of their spending online,
helping them to monitor their expenditure closely.
Students starting this term are already being issued with the
new LSE card which includes the sQuid technology. Existing students and most
staff will get the chance to upgrade their card during the coming months.
LSE catering outlets, including the Garrick, Plaza café, 4th Floor
Restaurant, Senior Dining Room and Café 54, will accept sQuid payments from
the beginning of the scheme (as well as traditional cash payments). It is
hoped that premises run by LSE Students’ Union will soon decide to follow
suit with sQuid. Other local businesses are also being encouraged to adopt
it.
For more details, please visit
www.squidcard.com/LSE and
sQuid on your card.
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• Goodbye
from LSE
Two of LSE’s well known and much loved staff members will be leaving the
School at the end of this month. On 30 September, Gus Stewart, director of
the Research Division, who has been at the School for 30 years, will retire;
and Alison Johns, director of staff communication and engagement is also
leaving then to pursue other career interests.
Gus joined LSE in 1980 and was one of the first people recruited
specifically to help manage and develop LSE's funded research.
‘Helping academic colleagues and their researchers develop new ideas and
projects has always seemed to me a very satisfying way to make a living, and
doing that at a place like LSE has been a privilege,’ explained Gus.
‘I've done some odd things over the years in the cause of furthering the
School's research. I've bought hundreds of condoms and a double bed for a
project in South London on HIV/AIDS and prostitution, and an estate car in
Dar es Salaam (sight unseen, by phone) for a health policy project in
Tanzania. Procurement rules were simpler in those days, obviously!
‘One of the main attractions for me though has always been my great
friends and colleagues in the division and elsewhere, some of whom I have
had the pleasure of knowing for many years now. I'll miss the School, of
course, but aim to stay involved in various ways on a very part-time basis.’
Alison joined the School in August 1997 as head of personnel services and
since then has seen a big change in how support staff are viewed and
appreciated. She has been instrumental in the development of the Staff
Consultative Council and recently introduced the staff surveys.
Alison said: ‘As Gus says, it is the people who make LSE and I have been
fortunate to have worked with so many pleasant, bright and, in some cases,
inspirational colleagues. I always enjoyed the opportunities to find
creative and flexible solutions to LSE people issues. Seeing staff you have
worked with develop and take on more responsibility, has also been a source
of great satisfaction. There are some things I won’t miss however, such as
the mice invasion of Tower Three!’
We wish them both well with their future plans.
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• The results are in - LSE in university league tables
The latest Times Higher Education (THE) World University
Rankings, published on 16 September, shows major changes in position for
almost all British universities. LSE maintains its position as the 11th
UK university in the global table, but as a consequence of the general
downward pressure its ranking has fallen from equal 67th to 86th. Only
three British universities now feature in the top 10 and only five in
the top 50.
This year's table uses a new data provider, Thomson Reuters, and a new
methodology. Part of THE's aim in making these changes was to correct a
perceived past bias in favour of UK institutions caused by the use of a
relatively small and UK-heavy sample of academic peer opinion. THE and
Thomson Reuters also described the changes earlier this year as designed
in part to reflect better the strengths of small and specialist
institutions such as LSE. LSE cannot hide its disappointment that the
changes have not had the desired effect.
At the beginning of September, both QS and the Sunday Times
published their league tables. The QS World University Rankings 2010
ranked LSE as one of the best universities in the world for social
sciences and management. LSE ranked fourth in these, its specialist
areas - up from fifth in 2009. Overall LSE was positioned 80th in the
full table. High rankings for research excellence, academic opinion and
graduate employment, and improved ratings for student satisfaction,
helped propel LSE to fifth place in the Sunday Times league table
of UK universities.
For more information, visit the
LSE in university league tables web page.
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• 10 years at CARR
A special edition of Risk&Regulation has been published to
celebrate the tenth anniversary of CARR.
As well as reflecting on CARR’s achievements over the decade, the
magazine contains articles from both CARR and guest researchers exploring
issues such as:
- New risks of regulatory capitalism
- Corporate risk appetite and tolerability: observations from
organisation theory
- Risk and regulation: one size doesn’t fit all
- Risk, regulation, and the UK Civil Aviation Authority
- Is it possible to create fewer rules?
The magazine can be downloaded from the
CARR website. Bridget Hutter, director of CARR, and Sally Lloyd-Bostock,
CARR visiting professor, have also been awarded residency at the Rockefeller
Foundation Bellagio Center. They will be working on a project on risk
regulation and crisis, which will explore key dilemmas in contemporary
regulation through the lens of disasters and crises.
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• Personhood in a neurobiological age
Are we in the midst of a move from ‘soul to brain’, a restructuring of
our understanding of human ‘psychology’ and the rise of a ‘neuronal self’?
If so, in what ways, and with what consequences for individuals and for
society, and for our ways of governing ourselves and others?
On Monday 13 September, 150 participants gathered at LSE’s Wolfson
Theatre to discuss the changes that are occurring in our understandings of
ourselves as human beings, which are arising from new knowledge of the
brain, and of the neural correlates of human mental life.
The conference heard presentations from a distinguished, international
group of neuroscientists, social scientists and philosophers, and debated
the ways in which 'the new brain sciences' are reshaping our understanding
of human subjectivity, identity and selfhood; and the consequences of this.
This is the closing discussion of a three year research project, ‘Brain,
Self and Society in the 21st Century', directed by LSE professor Nikolas
Rose (pictured) and funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. For more
information about the Brain, Self and Society project, including a number of
working papers and other material, visit the
website.
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• SSCR releases first Annual Report
The first Annual Report from the NIHR School for Social Care Research
(SSCR) is now available online.
The report provides an overview of the School's activities to date, its
plans for the coming months, and 'hints at the important new challenges
facing the social care community,' as Professor Dame Sally C Davies,
director general of research and development for the Department of Health,
explains.
A PDF of the report can be found on the
SSCR website. If you have any thoughts or comments, please email them to
sscr@lse.ac.uk.
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• Work
with LSE Enterprise and Duke Corporate Education
LSE Enterprise's joint venture partner,
Duke Corporate Education, is interested in hearing from experienced LSE
staff who can create and teach customised executive education programmes.
Proven skill in connecting practical and theoretical knowledge to client
outcomes is essential. Monica Hill, director of Duke CE's global learning
resource network, explains: 'We are interested in senior staff, committed to
undertaking highly customised, collaborative work within Duke CE's business
model'.
Dr Dina Dommett from the Department of Management has worked with Duke CE
for three years: ’Whether we were coaching real-life business projects,
developing a case study on risk in the oil industry or teaching about
corporate culture by playing competitive sports, the work was always
rigorous, and the outcomes life changing.'
For more information, visit the
LSE Enterprise website, or email Monica Hill at
monica.hill@dukece.com or Joey
Uppal at joey.uppal@dukece.com.
For the latest opportunities with LSE Enterprise, visit
http://twitter.com/lseenterprise.
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• LSE
student runs to help children in Western Kenya
Claudia Mollidor, a PhD student in the Institute of Social Psychology at
LSE, will be running the Berlin Marathon on Sunday 26 September to raise
money for WVP Kenya, a charity supporting children and youth affected by
poverty and disease in Western Kenya.
The charity, set up by a former LSE student, works in partnership with
local community based groups to organise a number of health and
life-opportunity enhancing activities for children and young carers in the
area.
Claudia explained ‘Every penny that I raise will remind me how some
people have to walk 26 miles every day just to get some semi-fresh water in
order to survive. I should be able to run the same distance in the knowledge
that everything I have raised will be going to a good cause. My fundraising
target is set at £1,250 so I really appreciate all of your support and thank
you for any donations.’
To donate, please visit Claudia’s fundraising page at
www.virginmoneygiving.com/claudiamollidor
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• Academic abroad
Professor Jude Howell, director of the Centre for Civil Society at
LSE, visited Hong Kong this month under an ESRC fellowship.
She was hosted by the Department of Politics and Public Administration at
the University of Hong Kong, where she gave a seminar entitled 'Civil
society, aid and security post-9/11.'
During her visit, she also gave a seminar entitled 'Reforming China's
Trade Unions: constraints and challenges' at the City University of Hong
Kong.
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• Addictions: social and cerebral
On 9 and 10 September, a group of anthropologists, historians,
neuroscientists, psychologists and policy makers, met in Helsinki to discuss
the theme of 'Addictions: social and cerebral'.
At a time when the scope of neuroscientific research on 'addiction' has
widened to include gambling, shopping and the internet, and the model of
addiction as a brain disease has become dominant in accounting for all these
problematic forms of conduct - what role is there for interdisciplinary
research and collaboration between social scientists, neuroscientists,
clinicians and others involved in treatment?
This two day workshop which was supported by the European Neuroscience
and Society Network (ENSN), which is founded by members of LSE's BIOS centre
and chaired by Professor Nikolas Rose, examined the latest brain research,
discussed recent research that has placed 'addiction' in its historical and
cultural contexts, tried to overcome the hostility between the different
camps, and explore possible interdisciplinary reconciliation.
For more information about the ENSN and its upcoming events, visit
www.lse.ac.uk/collections/ENSN/ |
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 Notices
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• Important
fire information
As a result of the re-development of the St Philips site for the New Student
Centre, the emergency and fire assembly points for the following buildings
have changed:
If the fire alarm sounds in your building you must evacuate immediately
and go to the designated fire assembly point for your building. Please check
the Health and
Safety website for information on the new locations of the
fire assembly points.
If you have any queries please email
Health.And.Safety@lse.ac.uk
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• The
HEIF4 Bid Fund: final year for bids
The Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF) competitive Bid Fund aims to
support engagement in a range of knowledge transfer activities; which
convert knowledge, expertise and skills into innovative goods, services and
policy.
Over the past two years, the HEIF 4 Bid Fund has supported activities,
both locally and internationally, which engage with audiences and partners
from the public sector, NGOs and commercial backgrounds.
This is the final year for funding so the Knowledge Transfer
Working Group is now seeking to increase the range and impact of these
activities and to encourage new ways of undertaking them.
The fund is intended to encourage knowledge transfer proposals from all
parts of LSE: academic departments; research centres; and central
administrative units. The Group is particularly keen to receive proposals
that undertake knowledge transfer at institutional, as opposed to research
centre or departmental level; that promote interdisciplinary links; or that
contain examples of collaboration between academic and administrative groups
within the School.
The deadline for the 2010-11 Michaelmas term call is Friday 8 October.
For more information on the application process, visit the
Corporate Relations Unit website or email Natalie Woods at
n.woods@lse.ac.uk to discuss your
ideas.
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• The
Single Equality Scheme online survey - have your say
LSE is preparing its first Single Equality Scheme (SES), which will involve
setting out how the School intends to tackle discrimination and harassment
and promote equality for its staff, students and service users. It will also
explain how the School will meet its statutory duties to promote equality
across all areas.
An online survey has been devised to give staff and students an opportunity
to share their views and contribute to the consultation process. The survey
will be available until the end of October and all contributors will be
entered into a prize draw with the opportunity to win £25 worth of Amazon
vouchers. The survey can be accessed at
www.survey.bris.ac.uk/lsewebsite/ses_survey
If you would like to find out more about the Single Equality Scheme
and/or the online survey, contact LSE’s diversity advisor, Carolyn
Solomon-Pryce at c.solomon-pryce@lse.ac.uk
for more information.
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• The
search is on – tell us about your new books
Do you have a new book out or one that is awaiting publication? Would
you like to publicise it through the LSE website? If so, then the Press
Office want to know about it.
LSE’s Press Office is always on the look out for new or forthcoming books
by academics, which we then post on the publication pages and ‘New books’
homepage tab of the website.
Academic authors who would like their book advertised, should contact
Nicole Gallivan, LSE Press Office, on 020 7955 7582 or email
n.gallivan@lse.ac.uk
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• Blinds cleaning - St Clement's Building
From Monday 27 September, the School's blinds maintenance contractor,
Grosvenor Contracts, will be conducting annual maintenance in the St
Clement's building.
During this time all blinds will be removed for off-site cleaning and
will be refitted as soon as possible. The Estates Division would like to
apologise for any inconvenience that may be caused.
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• Regional
champions sought for Middle East, Latin America, USA or India
Do you have expertise in any of these regions? We are seeking academic
staff to help promote the School and its work.
You might be able to suggest opportunities overseas which the School
should follow up, for example, or play a role in representing the School to
visitors from a region. This could help you gain institutional experience
which would be valuable if you aspire to take on a head of department role
or one with School-wide responsibility. You could gain visibility among your
colleagues in a leadership position, and perhaps find leads and make
contacts which would directly help your research and other academic
interests.
For more information, see
Regional Champions.
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• LSE
public events now CPD certified
Since May 2010, those public events which are part of the LSE public
lecture programme have been certified for CPD purposes by the CPD
Certification Service, in an effort to attract wider audiences and enhance
the amount of knowledge transfer activities undertaken at LSE.
CPD or Continuous Professional Development is the term given to the
continuation of learning through knowledge enhancement and is a mandatory
requirement or recommended for many professions.
CPD certification can be granted to departmental public events. If your
department has a public event coming up and would like it to be CPD
certified, please contact Sooraya Mohabeer, knowledge transfer events
executive in the Conferences and Events Office, at
s.b.mohabeer@lse.ac.uk.
Please note you cannot advertise any event as CPD certified until you
have had confirmation from the Conferences and Events Office. |
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 Research
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• New
research shows that high-speed rail does deliver economic growth
High-speed rail lines bring clear and significant economic benefits to the
communities they serve, the first thorough statistical study of the subject
has discovered.
Economists discovered that towns connected to a new high-speed line saw
their GDP rise by at least 2.7 per cent compared to neighbours not on the
route. Their study also found that increased market access through
high-speed rail has a direct correlation with a rise in GDP - for each one
per cent increase in market access, there is a 0.25 per cent rise in GDP.
The findings, from LSE and the University of Hamburg, may be used to support
arguments for high-speed networks which are already being planned in the UK,
US and across the world. Until now, no one has demonstrated that high-speed
rail brings clear economic gains along its routes.
More
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• Ageing
Societies: challenges and opportunities
Who do you think should look after you when you are old? What illnesses do
you fear the most? And how old do you have to be to feel 'old' anyway?
BUPA Health Dialog's new survey explores reactions to these questions across
twelve countries. Its findings have been analysed by Dr Jose-Luis Fernandez
and Dr Julien Forder, Principal Research Fellows at LSE's Personal Social
Services Research Unit, in a report commissioned through LSE Enterprise.
The BUPA Health Pulse Report 2010 finds that the 'informal care
network', where families look after their elderly relatives, is
disintegrating.
'Across the world,' says Dr Fernandez, 'a combination of societal and
economic factors - including demographic changes, the breakdown of the
extended family and the rise in divorce rates, migration and women in the
workplace - are eroding the family-supported structures that have
historically provided the bulk of the care for dependent older people. With
state social care systems also under huge financial strain, a global
challenge is emerging about how to support dependent older people in the
future.'
More
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• Research opportunities
Latest funding opportunities include:
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Joseph Rowntree Foundation - Forced
Labour in the UK: understanding the interaction between legal,
regulatory and policy frameworks
Deadline: 20 October 2010
A call for a series of three linked papers on the different factors that
intersect to cause forced labour in the UK.
More
-
Joseph Rowntree Foundation - The Future UK Labour Market: an
international review of skills, job and poverty: how lessons might be
applied in the UK
Deadline: 27 October 2010
This is the second project in a new joint programme between the JRF and
the UK Commission for Employment and Skills looking at the future of the
UK labour market. More
Candidates interested in applying for any research opportunities should
contact Michael Oliver in the
Research Division at
m.oliver@lse.ac.uk or call ext 7962.
The Research Division maintains a regularly updated list of
research funding opportunities for academic colleagues on their website.
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• Research e-Briefing
Click
here
to read the Summer edition of the Research Division newsletter. To sign up for
research news, recent research funding opportunities, research awards that
are about to start, and examples of research outcomes, click
here. The next issue is out
at the end of October 2010.
More
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• Latest opportunities from LSE Enterprise
LSE Enterprise offers you the opportunity to undertake private teaching
and consultancy work under the LSE brand. We help with bidding, contracts
and other project administration, enabling you to focus on the work itself.
To see the latest opportunities click
here or visit
http://twitter.com/lseenterprise.
If you would like us to look out for consulting opportunities in your
field, email your CV and summary of interests to
lseenterprise.consulting@lse.ac.uk
Email exec.ed@lse.ac.uk to be
added to our Executive Education database. |
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 Events
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• Michaelmas term Events Leaflet
The September to December 2010 edition of the LSE Events Leaflet is
now available online. Speakers include Professor Simon Schama, historian
Professor Niall Ferguson, the vice president of Bolivia Álvaro García Linera,
and best-selling biographer Anthony Seldon.
You can download a PDF copy of the leaflet
here.
• Upcoming LSE events include....
Please note that staff and students must now collect
their event tickets from the SU shop in the New Academic Building, rather
than the SU reception, East building.
The Financial Crisis: who is to blame?
On: Tuesday 28 September at 6.30pm in the Old Theatre, Old
Building
Speakers: Howard Davies, LSE Director, and Robert Peston,
BBC business editor.
'It's My Body and I'll Do What I Like With it' - Bodies as Possessions and
Objects
On: Wednesday 29 September at 6.30pm in the Old Theatre, Old Building
Speaker: Professor Anne Phillips, professor of gender theory at LSE.
Lloyd George - the Great Outsider
On: Thursday 30 September at 6.30pm in the Old Theatre, Old Building
Speaker: Lord Hattersley, writer and historian.
Hong Kong’s Changing Financial Landscape
On: Monday 4 October at 5.15pm in Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New Academic
Building
Speaker: John Tsang Chun Wah, financial secretary of the Hong Kong
special administrative region.
This event is free and open to all however a ticket is required. One
ticket per person can be requested from 10am on Monday 27 September.
Seizing the Opportunity of the Cloud: the next wave of business growth
On: Tuesday 5 October at 8.30am in the Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New
Academic Building
Speaker: Steve Ballmer, chief executive officer of Microsoft
Corporation
This event is free and open to all however a ticket is required. One
ticket per person can be requested from 10am on Thursday 30 September.
Brown at 10
On: Thursday 7 October at 6.30pm in the Hong Kong Theatre, Clement
House
Speaker: Professor Anthony Seldon, biographer of John Major and Tony
Blair and Britain's leading writer on contemporary premiership and No.10
Downing Street
This event is free and open to all however a ticket is required. One
ticket per person can be requested from 10am on Wednesday 29 September.
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• Podcasts of public lectures and events
The Case of the Pope: Vatican accountability for human rights abuse
Speaker: Geoffrey Robertson
Recorded: Wednesday 8 September, approx 76 minutes
Click here to listen
Employment, Labour Markets, and Development
Speaker: Dr Heiner Flassbeck
Recorded: Monday 13 September, approx 88 minutes
Click here to listen
The future of IT in India
Speaker: S D Shibulal
Recorded: Tuesday 14 September, approx approx 63 minutes
Click here to listen |
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 60
Second Interview
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• with..... Charlie Beckett
I'm the director of POLIS, the
Media and Communications
Department's journalism and society
think-tank. I'm a south London born
journalist living in north London
with two Camden students and a west
London international charity
director, supporting East London's
foremost football team. I'm
passionate about media change and
journalism's part in local and
global politics.
If you were marooned on a
desert island, which LSE
department/centre/division/student
society would you find most useful
to have with you?
Apart from catering or travel, I
would have to say Philosophy - time
to think.
Name a company you would like
to own and run and explain why?
Apple because it would save me a
fortune not having to pay for their
products.
What would you save from a
fire?
A cat called Loki and my signed
West Ham shirt.
What was the first news story
you remember really catching your
attention?
The Moon landing and then the
1974 election. The first I covered
was the BNP marching in Leicester.
If you met the UK prime
minister and could ask him only one
question, what would it be?
When did you first consciously
want to be Prime Minister?
What are your hobbies?
Running and swimming on Hampstead
Heath all year around, playing
football badly and watching West Ham
play badly, galleries, museums,
walking, and reading history. |
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 Training
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• Academic,
personal and professional development courses for staff
Courses on offer next week include:
- Wednesday 29 September
Moodle basics training
For a full listing of what is available and further details, including
booking information please see
www.lse.ac.uk/training.
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• Positive retirement conferences
The transitions from employment to retirement can seem daunting,
exposing many personal, social, domestic and financial uncertainties.
LSE's HR division runs one day positive retirement conferences, designed to
be of benefit to those who are within five years of their retirement date.
The next conference will take place Thursday 11 November. To book a place/s,
fill in a conference booking form and return it by Thursday 30 September.
For a booking form and for more information, visit the
HR website.
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 Media
bites
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• Kathimerini
(22 September 2010)
Νέα μέλη του Εθνικού Συμβουλίου
Professor Kevin Featherstone, LSE, has been appointed to the National
Council for Research and Technology in Greece. Following a change in the
law, he is the first non-Greek to be appointed to the Council.
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• BBC
News (21 September 2010)
Kashmir's
summer of discontent is now an autumn of woe
Continuing unrest in Indian-administered Kashmir is largely due to the
failure of successive Indian governments effectively to tackle one of
their most pressing domestic problems, argues Sumantra Bose, professor
of international and comparative politics at LSE.
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• Financial Times (20 September 2010)
Spin doctor: the life and times of Robert Owen
'Robert Owen was an exceptional man of his time. During the late 18th
and early 19th centuries, when technology was transforming business and
trade was shrinking the globe, he was a hugely successful innovator, but
it is his vision for integrating business goals with a social purpose
that still speaks to us today.'
Professor Saul Estrin, head of the Department of Management at LSE,
writes a column on Robert Owen.
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