Urban Age 10 Global Debates

To celebrate ten years of the Urban Age programme, these debates will discuss five core themes that have been the focus of research and debate at the Urban Age since 2005.

Act of Remembrance

Come and remember all who have lost their lives in war and particularly alumni of LSE. Join us on Wednesday 11 November at 10.50am in the Shaw Library, Old Building.

Lord Myners

Lord Myners, Chair of LSE's Court of Governors and Council, once applied to be an undergraduate student at LSE but was rejected.

LSE has been awarded £565,000 by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) for a three-year programme to investigate the links between poverty and inequalities.

The partnership was announced by LSE alumna Ms Julia Unwin CBE, Chief Executive of the JRF, at an LSE public lecture on Monday 2 November.

The donation establishes a new early career fellowship within the LSE International Inequalities Institute (III) as well as a programme of research on the connections between inequality, diversity and poverty which will be led by LSE’s Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion (CASE).

Two LSE academics awarded Philip Leverhulme Prize to fund future research

Dr Laura Valentini (pictured) of the Department of Government and Dr Dominik Hangartner of the Department of Methodology, have been awarded Philip Leverhulme Prizes.

The £100,000 prize, awarded to ‘outstanding researchers whose work has already attracted international recognition’, is to be spent on activities to promote the winners’ future research. Founded in 2001, the prize is awarded to up to 30 scholars each year, across a range of academic disciplines.

LSE comes top of civil service poll

LSE has come first in a survey of how research from Russell Group institutions influences work in the civil service.

In the Higher Education Index, conducted by Dods, the parliamentary publisher and data platform, LSE came top with an overall score of 9.7 out of 10.

Professor Conor Gearty FBA, Director of the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA), said: "Many LSE academics have long been closely engaged with the civil service as these impressive survey results reveal, and the relationship is now set to deepen further with the launch of a new Civil Service and LSE Executive Master of Public Policy specifically aimed at the senior leadership within the civil service. We go to Whitehall to influence policy and the best of Whitehall comes here in order to learn how to do policy better. No university in the country matches this level of symbiotic prosperity." More
 

LSE BrexitVote is a multi-disciplinary, evidence-based blog which aims to inform the debate surrounding the referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union with accessible commentary and research.

Anti-smoking messages can backfire and make it harder for people to quit

New evidence shows that public health policies targeted at smokers may actually have the opposite effect for some people trying to quit.

A review led by LSE Research Fellow Dr Sara Evans-Lacko indicates that stigmatising smoking can, in some cases, make it harder for people to quit because they become angry, defensive and the negative messages lead to a drop in self-esteem.

Britain needs a new approach to class if inequalities are to be addressed

Politicians and policy-makers must take a new approach to class if the unacceptable rise in inequalities that have characterised the opening decades of the 21st century are to be addressed.

This is one of the calls made in a new book by academics from LSE, The University of Manchester and University of York. Social Class in the 21st Century charts the rise of a new class system in Britain and examines why existing thinking about class, which tends to focus on the divide between middle and working classes, is outdated.

The book draws on data from the Great British Class Survey of 2013 conducted by LSE and The University of Manchester for the BBC. One of the largest studies of its kind, the survey elicited 325,000 from the British public and charted the emergence of a new class system.

People are more likely to have a lower weight if they regularly engage in high impact walking compared to doing another vigorous activity like going to the gym, according to new LSE research. The results are particularly pronounced in women, people over 50, and those on low incomes.

Dr Grace Lordan, a specialist in health economics who led the research, examined reported physical activity levels from the annual Health Survey for England (HSE) from 1999 to 2012. In particular, she focused on activities which increased heart rate and caused perspiring.

Week 6 podcasts with Helen Green available now on the Teaching and Learning Centre website

New for 2015-16 and designed to help you refresh and consolidate some core skills at the mid-term point, podcasts will be uploaded every day this week.

Follow us on Twitter @LSETLC for updates.
 

Did you know? Renowned statistician Arthur Bowley cycled to LSE from Leatherhead to teach his weekly Wednesday afternoon class.

2015 marks the centenary of his first appointment as Professor of Statistics - although he had taught at LSE since it opened in 1895. Find out more about Arthur Bowley, renowned statistician and keen cyclist, in LSE’s first statistician.

Tyres getting flat? Need to top up on campus?

Well now you can!

Check out LSE’s new bike type pumps located outside the Library on the John Watkins Plaza for all your cycling needs.
 

The Programme for African Leadership (PfAL) has a few places remaining for PfAL@LSE 2015-16 and will be closing applications at 12pm on Thursday 5 November. Graduate students at LSE who are of sub-Saharan African nationality are invited to apply.

The programme, now in its second year, consists of monthly events that aim to educate, challenge and inspire students and to provide an opportunity for them to reflect on their own development as future leaders of African organisations and communities. Regular social events are also included to develop and strengthen new friendships amongst the group.

Act of Remembrance

Come and remember all who have lost their lives in war and particularly alumni of LSE. Join us on Wednesday 11 November at 10.50am in the Shaw Library, Old Building.
 

Submissions for the 2015 Creative Competition are now open.

LSE staff and students are invited to submit a painting, drawing, photograph, poem, music, sculpture - whatever creative way you want to express how you understand climate change.

Prizes will be awarded to the winner and runner up of the three categories - Undergraduate, Postgraduate, and Staff - at the exhibition event on Monday 16 November. Visit the free exhibition where your creative works will be displayed, sustainable food will be served, plus performances from poets Inua Ellams and Rachel Long.

How to use feedback

On: Wednesday 11 November from 2-3pm

This session, for UG and MSc students, will help you to learn what to expect from your teacher's feedback, and how to put it to good use.

For more information and to book your place, click here.
 

MSc workshops

For the discussion of all questions and concerns with staff and other MSc students. Every Thursday during term-time, beginning again on 12 November.

For details on the next session, check the website.
 

LSEUPR call for submissions

LSE Undergraduate Political Review (LSEUPR) aims to provide an online platform for undergraduates to engage in political discussion via our blog and to see their research published in a peer-reviewed academic journal.

The LSEUPR blog will be a space to engage with specific issues, debates or current affairs. Articles can be between 750 and 1,250 words or can be presented in an alternative format. With weekly uploads we hope to produce a creative and dynamic platform for debate.

The journal (a monthly publication) will provide undergraduates, who have taken on more extensive research, to publish their work. We are looking for original insight and academic rigour in pieces between 4,000 and 6,000 words.

To submit work, email lseupr@lse.ac.uk. For more information, visit the Facebook page or Twitter @lseupr.
 

LSESU Student Action for Refugee Society is organising a book drive initiative in Week 7 (9-13 November) to collect as many children's books (of all literacy levels) as possible to then send onto the Jeb Janine Refugee Education Centre in Lebanon.

The Centre teaches basic Arabic literacy as well as English, Maths and Science and their goal is to prepare the children to successfully enrol in the Lebanese public school system, once places become available. In total, there are 750 students and 26 teachers at the Jeb Janine School and this book donation will help to stock a library for their students.

LSE Perspectives

The November edition of LSE Perspectives is now available online.

Each month the Arts team selects 12 striking photos taken by staff and students to feature in the gallery; photos range from scenes of London to trips within the UK and globally.

Have you got some impressive snaps that you’d like to share? Email them to perspectives@lse.ac.uk. For more information, click here.

Did you know that many LSE roofs are covered in solar panels?

For more images like this, visit the Photography Unit or check out the School's Instagram page.

LSE Choir and Orchestra Christmas Concert

Buy your tickets now for this year’s Christmas Concert in St Clement Danes church on Tuesday 8 December.

The choir will perform music from Handel’s Messiah and a selection of Christmas carols. The LSE Orchestra will perform Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture, Nielsen’s Flute Concerto and Dvorak’s Czech Suite.

Tickets are £7 and can be purchased via the LSE online store.
 

Towards a Feminist Foreign Policy
On: Monday 9 November at 6.30pm in the Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New Academic Building
Speakers: Zainab Salbi (pictured) and Margot Wallström

What is the Future of Visual Arts Philanthropy in the UK?
On: Monday 9 November at 6.30pm in the Wolfson Theatre, New Academic Building
Speakers: James Lingwood and Alex Sainsbury

Nigeria's 2015 General Elections: giving democracy a chance
On: Tuesday 10 November at 6.30pm in the Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New Academic Building
Speaker: Professor Attahiru Jega

Sociology and the Digital Revolution - the Transformation of Everything
On: Tuesday 10 November at 6.30pm in the Old Theatre, Old Building
Speaker: Professor Lord Giddens (pictured)

Margaret Thatcher - Everything She Wants
On: Wednesday 11 November at 6.30pm in the Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New Academic Building
Speaker: Charles Moore

Lunchtime Concert
On: Thursday 12 November at 1.05pm in the Shaw Library, 6th floor, Old Building
Performers: Michael Petrov (cello) and Alexander Ullman (piano)

Have you visited the LSE Library’s Foundations Exhibition yet? Why not come along to one of our lunchtime gallery talks? You are guaranteed to find out something new, even if you have already had a look around.

Foundations: LSE and the Science of Society is a fascinating exhibition that tells the story of the early days of LSE. It also showcases some of the achievements of its staff and students throughout its 120 year history, both at the school and as pioneers of social changes.

Eleanor Payne, Education Officer, and Gillian Murphy, Assistant Archivist, will highlight some gems from the exhibition in a talk no longer than half an hour - perfect for a visit in your lunch hour. Talks are taking place from 1-1.30pm on:

• Tuesday 10 November
• Tuesday 24 November
• Wednesday 2 December

On: Tuesday 10 November from 6.30-8pm in room 9.04, Tower 2
Panellists: Diarmuid Torney (pictured), Olivia Gippner, and Fergus Green

In this policy forum, Dr Diarmuid Torney, author of European Climate Leadership in Question: Policies toward China and India (MIT Press, 2015), presents the findings of his systematic assessment of Europe’s relations with China and India on climate change.

On: 19, 23, 25, 26 November and 3 December in the Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New Academic Building

LSE Cities and Deutsche Bank’s Alfred Herrhausen Society, in association with Guardian Cities, is holding a series of public Global Debates to celebrate ten years of the Urban Age programme. The debates will discuss five core themes that have been the focus of research and debate at the Urban Age since 2005.

• Confronting Climate Change: can cities be the solution?
  On: Thursday 19 November from 6.30-8pm
  Tickets will be available here from 12noon on Monday 9 November
• Steering Urban Growth: can planning and architecture manage?
  On: Monday 23 November from 6.30-8pm
  Tickets will be available here from 12noon on Thursday 12 November
• The Politics of Equity: who owns the city?
  On: Wednesday 25 November from 6.30-8pm
  Tickets will be available here from 12noon on Friday 13 November
• Designing Urban Infrastructure: investing for now or tomorrow?
  On: Thursday 26 November from 6.30-8pm
  Tickets will be available here from 12noon on Monday 16 November
• Narratives of Inclusion: can cities help us live together?
  On: Thursday 3 December from 6.30-8pm
  Tickets will be available here from 12noon on Monday 23 November

Speakers include leading environmental and urban experts, mayors and policy-makers, architects, writers, sociologists and urban thinkers who will offer a global perspective on the social and spatial dynamics of 21st century urbanisation.

50 Years of Worrall: Science, Structure and Rock ‘n’ Roll

This conference, on 18 March 2016, will celebrate the 50 years of philosopher of science, structural realist and rock guitar extraordinaire Professor John Worrall at LSE.

The conference will include cutting-edge work on the philosophy of science, structure, and of course rock-n-roll, with rumours afoot of a possible appearance by The Critique of Pure Rhythm in which Professor Worrall shreds the electric guitar. This is not an event to be missed.

Podcasts of public lectures and events

Europe 2.0: The new challenges of the European Union
Speaker: Xavier Bettel
Recorded: Tuesday 27 October, approx. 55 minutes

Anthropology and Development: challenges for the 21st century
Speakers: Professor Katy Gardner, Professor David Lewis, and Professor David Mosse
Recorded: Wednesday 28 October, approx. 80 minutes

Shaken but not Stirred? The Banking System Seven Years after the Crisis
Speaker: Dr Andreas Dombret
Recorded: Thursday 29 October, approx. 32 minutes