RKT News February 2013 - University of Portsmouth

Research 

& KT News 

Issue 7 February 2013 

Open Access – research in the public domain 

In July 2012, the UK Government accepted the recommendations of the Finch Report that the UK should 

adopt an Open Access (OA) approach to research outputs. 

The principle of OA is that the outputs of 

publicly-funded research should be made 

freely available in the public domain. OA 

literature is digital, online, free of charge and 

free of most copyright and licensing 

restrictions. 

There are currently two main routes to 

providing OA to research outputs: 

• Green route, in which authors publish 

in the traditional way but make a 

version of the full text openly available 

in an institutional or subject repository 

(such as PARADE). 

• Gold route, by which authors pay 

publishers an Article Processing 

Charge (APC) upfront for immediate 

and unrestricted online OA to their 

articles on publication. 

In both cases quality is ensured by the 

conventional peer review process. 

The Finch Report (http://goo.gl/bZS4G) 

recommends the adoption of the gold route 

and mandates that, from April 2013 onwards, 

all publications from publicly-funded research 

should be made OA. Subsequently, the UK 

Research Councils issued an OA policy which 

must be followed by all researchers receiving 

funding from them. Other funders, such as 

the Wellcome Trust, already have OA policies 

in place. Most significantly perhaps, the 

Higher Education Funding Council for 

Inside this edition: 

England (HEFCE) has indicated that it will 

consult on admitting only OA articles as 

evidence of research excellence in the 

Research Excellence Framework (REF) for 

2020. It is important to note that whether this 

policy will require the green or gold route is 

yet to be made clear. 

Despite current regulations relating only to 

certain externally-funded research outputs, 

the implications of the Finch Report to the 

sector, and to the University, are significant. 

OA will undoubtedly shift publication 

behaviour and incentives for researchers 

over the next five years. Given that the 

average APC is estimated at £1,600, there is 

also a significant associated cost for UK 

universities, especially for those such as 

Portsmouth, where researchers publish 

extensively (nearly 900 peer-reviewed articles 

in the last two years), yet the majority of 

publications are not generated from research 

Athena SWAN Charter – progress so far............................................Page 3 

Research Development Fund – Round 3 results...............................Page 7 

Focus on Health..................................................................................Page 8 

Award-winning publications...............................................................Page 11 

Focus on a researcher – Brad Beaven...............................................Page 14 

that is externally funded (APC charges being 

eligible expenses on many research grants). 

So, what are we doing to address this 

new agenda? 

Firstly, Dr Alan Thorne (Associate Dean 

Research, Faculty of Science), has been 

nominated as our Open Access Champion. 

He will continue to monitor developments in 

external policies and recommend to faculties 

and Vice-Chancellor’s Executive ways we 

might best respond to these challenges. 

Secondly, to support the excellence and 

impact of research at Portsmouth, we need 

to make provision for a central, strategic 

APC fund, which has to be rigorously 

managed and monitored. This will require 

strategic investment and we have been 

working with colleagues in the Library to 

present a case for this funding and resource 

to support it. 

Finally, we need to help researchers 

understand what it means for them. Alan is 

developing guidance on assessing potential 

publication in journals with different levels of 

status and of APCs, whilst still upholding 

the principles of academic freedom. This 

will be available in February, and is 

supplemented by an online database from 

the Centre for Research Communications 

on journals which do (and do not) comply 

with the UK Research Councils’ OA policy. 

We are holding an OA awareness event – 

see page 10. 

Research and Knowledge Transfer newsletter • February 2013 

1 

www.port.ac.uk/research

Update from the Director of Research – 

Professor Taraneh Dean 

As I am writing this I have a PhD student who is undertaking her viva and I must admit I feel like an 

expectant parent. The external examiner flew in early this morning and as we walked to the Graduate 

School, she commented how nice it was to have a University-wide graduate school with a dedicated viva 

room, and how impressed she was with the whole campus. 

Her comments resonated with me, as one of the many people 

who have said we don’t shout about what we do well. There are 

many things we do well in very difficult circumstances. Looking at 

the February 2012 R&KT News I realised we have had a threefold 

increase in the income we reported then. This is a remarkable 

achievement and, although I am fully aware that this trend cannot 

be sustained, it is pleasing to see growth when many are 

experiencing a reduction. This increase is a reflection both of the 

level of activity and of our internal review processes to ensure 

high quality applications. So, my heart-felt thanks go to all those 

who have actively pursued external funding opportunities. 

So what has been occupying me? The Research Excellence 

Framework (REF) is featuring prominently in my day-to-day 

activity. By December 2013 we will have submitted our REF 

documents and will have to wait a year for the outcome. Will I 

have ‘empty nest syndrome’? More likely it will be a posttraumatic 

stress syndrome! The one reassuring theme throughout 

this period is that my colleagues at other institutions are facing 

the same challenges. In my recent REF Update session to staff, 

I spoke about how important our preparation for the next REF will 

be and that we need to engage with this now. 

much of this is driven by a real demand for information and how 

much of it by a moral case for publicly-funded research to be 

freely available. It is certainly going to have both financial and 

operational implications for us. I would encourage you to come to 

the Open Access Awareness session advertised on page 10. 

I am very pleased to see we are organising our first Athena SWAN 

Conference (page 10) after recently submitting our application for 

the Bronze Award. Signing up to the Athena Swan Charter has 

been an important step for us. It demonstrates a commitment to 

take all necessary actions at University, Faculty and Departmental 

levels to monitor progress towards an organisational culture 

where all can thrive, are equally valued, and experience equality of 

opportunity for career progression. 

On a final note, this newsletter is getting longer and, by all 

accounts, is well received. The last issue was read around 1,500 

times! We are receiving many more contributions, and informal 

feedback is very positive. I hope you find this issue informative. 

PS. The student passed her viva with minor corrections. 2.5 

hours long. Student and Supervisor happy and both doing well! 

The front cover article in this issue highlights the ‘Open Access’ 

publication movement within Higher Education. Time will tell how 

For Women in Science 

fellowship programme 

The University is committed to the advancement and 

promotion of the careers of women in science, technology, 

engineering and mathematics, as part of our membership of 

the Athena SWAN Charter. 

To support this commitment, we are encouraging applications for 

the 2013 L’Oréal-UNESCO UK & Ireland For Women in Science 

fellowships. 

L’Oréal UK & Ireland, the UK National Commission for UNESCO 

and the Irish National Commission for UNESCO, with the support 

of the Royal Society, have joined together to provide a dedicated 

UK & Ireland For Women In Science Fellowship Programme for 

women scientists at postdoctoral level to enable and/or facilitate 

promising scientific research in the life or physical sciences. 

Four fellowships will be awarded in 2013 to outstanding female 

postdoctoral scientists to assist them with their research. The 

fellowships, each worth £15,000, are tenable at any UK or Irish 

university or research institute to support a 12-month period of 

research. 

The fellowship money can be spent in any number of innovative 

ways to enable women scientists to further their careers and 

facilitate world class research - such as buying equipment, paying 

for childcare or funding travel costs to an overseas conference. 

Applications close on Friday 15 March, with shortlist publication 

on 3 June and an award ceremony on 20 June. 

Visit www.womeninscience.co.uk to apply. 


2 


The Athena SWAN Charter 

Dr Jan Shute, who has been leading on Athena SWAN for the University, 

reports on progress so far. 

In November 2011, the University became a member of the Athena 

SWAN Charter (http://www.athenaswan.org.uk/) and in November 

2012 became a member of the Athena SWAN South East Regional 

Network, along with 10 other institutions from across the south east. 

In joining the Charter, the University committed itself to achieving 

the aims of Athena SWAN, which are the advancement and 

promotion of the careers of women in science, technology, 

engineering, mathematics and medicine (STEMM) in higher 

education and research, and the achievement of a significant 

increase in the number of women recruited to top posts. 

Bronze award application 

A self-assessment team was formed of staff from across science, 

engineering and technology (SET) departments and the Department 

of Human Resources. The team has met on a monthly basis since 

February 2012 to facilitate the first important goal - an application 

for an Athena SWAN Bronze Award. This award recognises that the 

University has a solid foundation for eliminating gender bias and 

developing an inclusive culture that values all staff. The team 

analysed quantitative staff data and qualitative data in terms of 

policies, practices, systems and arrangements already in place that 

support an equal gender balance in SET departments. In this way, 

the team identified the challenges and opportunities for 

improvement and developed an action plan for the next three years. 

In November 2012 the University submitted its application for the 

Bronze Award and the result will be known in March 2013. The 

application and action plan can be found at the Athena SWAN 

website at www.port.ac.uk/research/athena. 

Information online 

The website also covers a wide range of topics in the area of 

women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics 

(STEM), including links to Government strategy pages, various 

committees aimed at advancing the development of women in the 

areas of STEM, recognised societies and blogs and a wide array of 

funding opportunities available to women. Opportunities include 

bursaries for final year post-docs, grants for early career 

researchers and other financial assistance available to women 

The Athena SWAN committee 

undertaking research in the area of STEM. To help keep the website 

vital and up-to-date, please send useful links and notification of new 

awards and bursaries in your disciplines to rkts@port.ac.uk. 

Support for silver awards 

The Vice-Chancellor has provided support for Athena SWAN in the 

form of a 0.6 FTE Athena SWAN coordinator working in the 

Department of Human Resources. The appointee will help 

departments as they prepare for departmental Athena SWAN Silver 

Awards. The silver awards are given to departments that have 

assessed where the department is in quantitative and qualitative 

terms on gender equality, has highlighted particular challenges and 

planned activities for the future. The department should 

demonstrate that action has been taken in response to previously 

identified challenges and the impact of the actions implemented. A 

University silver award is made when the majority of the institution’s 

STEM departments hold departmental silver awards. 

WISE award short-listing 

In November 2012, Dr Karen Masters, a Research Fellow in the Institute of 

Cosmology and Gravitation, was short-listed for a WISE (Women Into Science, 

Engineering and Construction) Excellence Award. This award recognises 

inspiring organisations and individual women demonstrating a high level of 

commitment to their chosen profession and to actively promoting science, 

engineering and construction to girls and young women. Dr Masters was one 

of five women to be shortlisted for the WISE Excellence Award for women 

working in the early stages of their career in STEM subjects. Dr Masters was 

shortlisted for her dedication to promoting careers in STEM to young women. 

She is an ambassador for stemnet.org.uk, a network promoting STEM 

subjects in schools, and regularly makes school visits to talk about astronomy 

and science. An active user of Twitter, she frequently tweets on the topic of 

women in science and has more than a thousand followers. 


3 


Graduate School Update 

New Graduate School facilities get the 

thumbs up 

The Graduate School finally moved into its new base at St 

Andrew’s Court in September 2012. The move had been long 

awaited but universal feedback from research students, 

supervisors, Graduate School Development Programme tutors 

and external visitors has been that the facilities were worth 

waiting for. 

Darren Van Laar, the Director of the Graduate School said: ‘The 

Graduate School team are all delighted with the reaction to the 

new facilities, which represent a significant investment by the 

University to develop and support the research environment 

needed to enable research students to flourish and develop 

their research and career orientated skills. Students and 

supervisors have been taking advantage of the state-of-the-art 

teaching accommodation which is maintained with the unique 

needs of research degree students and supervisors in mind. 

The new viva room is already proving popular for events such 

as major review meetings, vivas and other research-related 

meetings.’ 

The new facilities were officially opened on 23 January by 

Professor Jim Al-Khalili – theoretical physicist, author and 

broadcaster. Professor Al-Khalili said: ‘Having a graduate 

research culture is vitally important for universities and for 

students. It helps universities maintain a strong reputation for 

research and teaching, and gaining a PhD degree gives 

students a major boost when seeking employment. 

Every research student needs skills training and courses and a 

Graduate School is well placed to provide this.’ 

Our first fifteen months 

Time flies and it only seems like yesterday that the new 

University-wide Graduate School Development programme 

(GSDP) was launched back in October 2011. Fifteen 

months on and 320 research students have attended over 

125 GSDP workshop sessions; 200 new research students 

have completed the Graduate Schools ‘Getting Started 

with your Research’ workshops and our inaugural Research 

Students Conference: ‘Research Matters; Impact Matters’, 

held at the New Theatre Royal in October 2012 was a great 

success. 

Valerie Anderson, the GSDP Coordinator paid tribute to all 

those colleagues from different departments and subject 

groups around the University who contributed to the 

success of the GSDP events: ‘Students consistently tell us 

how much they are learning from the insights, expertise and 

experience of our workshop tutors – they really are 

excellent role models for the research and development 

culture the University seeks to sustain and enhance’. 

New Research Degrees Coordinator for the 

Faculty of Science 

Dr Sally Kilburn (right) has 

taken over from Professor 

Darek Gorecki as the 

Faculty Research Degrees 

Coordinator (FRDC) for the 

Faculty of Science. Sally is 

an experienced PhD 

supervisor who has been 

a key member of the 

Professional Doctorate 

team. 

The FRDC ensures the recruitment, admissions, 

supervisory and training processes are working smoothly 

within the Faculty and contributes to the quality assurance 

and enhancement of research degrees. Sally said: ‘I am 

fortunate to take on the role from Darek, who achieved a 

huge amount by setting up processes to support both 

research students and staff across the Faculty, and to have 

the administrative support of Holly Shawyer and Jody Salt. 

My background is in microbiology and immunology and my 

current research interests are within health services 

research and looking at methods of diagnosis, systematic 

review and food allergy. I am looking forward to working 

with the Graduate School and my colleagues across the 

Faculty of Science to ensure that postgraduate research 

students gain the most from their time at the University.’ 

Professor Jim Al-Khalili at the opening of The Graduate School 


4 


Funding update 

Successful grants awarded between 24 September 2012 and 9 January 2013 

Where the income awarded to the University is a portion of the 

main grant, the University’s income is indicated in brackets. 

Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries 

David Brown 

Knowledge Transfer Partnership – Datum Electronic Ltd 

Technology Strategy Board – £48,000 

Edward Smart 

Knowledge Transfer Partnership – Prosig Ltd 

Technology Strategy Board – £48,000 

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences 

Mark Button 

True Cost of Inside Fraud 

CIFAS (The UK’s fraud prevention service) – £19,500 

Dan Finn 

Innovation and Welfare Reform 

Centre for Economic and Social Inclusion – £40,000 

Portsmouth Business School 

Shabbar Jaffry 

Portsmouth Harbour Branding Study 

Portsmouth Habour Renaissance Ltd – £5,000 

Pierre Failler 

Valuation of Coral Reef and Associated Ecosystems in 

Guadeloupe 

Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique – £27,780 

Lisa Jack 

Development of a Cost Benefit Model for EZH Broccoli 

Staples/Monsanto via University of Lincoln – £11,550 

Maebh Harding 

How do County Courts share the care of children between 

parents? 

Nuffield Foundation – £106,453 


Liz Twigg 

Estimating Census Health Geographies: using synthetic 

estimation with secondary survey and census data 

Economic and Social Research Council (via Southampton) – 

£155,000 (£17,063) 

John Allen 

OSMOSIS: Ocean Surface Mixing, Ocean Sub-mesoscale 

Interaction Study 

Natural Environmental Research Council in collaboration with 

National Oceanography Centre – £62,459 

SEATS: Submarine Estimates of Arctic Turbulence Spectra 

Natural Environmental Research Council in collaboration with 

National Oceanography Centre – £13,288 

Richard Teeuw 

Use of satellite remote sensing for detecting, mapping and 

monitoring artisan oil refining in the Niger Delta 

Intergrix Consultants Ltd – £39,800 

Anthony Butcher 

Bid for Synchrotron time 

European Synchrotron Facility – €80,000 

Humphrey Southall 

GIS Partnership knowledge exchange with the University of 

Pittsburgh 

University of Pittsburgh – £3,125 

Alex Ford 

Comparing the transcriptomes of normal and intersex crustacea 

induced by parasitism 

Natural Environmental Research Council – £39,327 

Mridula Chopra 

Biological actions of lycopene in relation to tumour inhibition and 

bladder health 

H J Heinz Ltd – £4,000 

Carina Venter 

Does following a special diet in infancy for cow’s milk allergy 

have a long term effect on diet in later childhood? 

Nutricia Ltd – £36,000 

Anastasia Callaghan 

Investigating Metabolite-RNase Communication 

Biotechnology and Biological Services Research Council – 

£337,000 

Jerome Swinney 

Characterisation of the anxiogenic and depressive behavioural 

profile of mice exposed to early life stress in response to 

clinically used therapeutic agent 

Royal Society – £15,000 

Darek Gorecki 

Peptide Research Network of Excellence Claim 1 

EC – Interreg – £423,333 

Tara Dean 

Systematic review of the prevalence of food allergy in Europe 

European Food Safety Authority – £79,439 


5 


Martin Barwood 

Scottish Sea Farms II Immersion Suit and Lifejacket R&D 

Scottish Sea Farms Ltd – £5,600 

Mike Tipton 

The Impact of ‘Riding Up’ on Lifejacket Performance 

Royal National Lifeboat Institution – £59,890 

Aldert Vrij 

Comparing Malevolent and Benevolent Creativity and 

Innovation: An Experimental Approach 

BAE Systems (Operations) Ltd – £18,830 

The effective use of two interviewers to facilitate cooperation 

and detect deceit 

University of Texas at El Paso – £73,528 

The effect of using interpreters on rapport, eliciting information 

and cues to deceit 

The High Value Detainee Interrogation Group (FBI) – £147,059 

Joerg Zinken 

Linguistic Relativity of Situated Action 

Universitat Konstanz – £56,357 

Bridget Waller 

Adaptive function of facial displays in crested macaques 

(Macaca nigra) 

The Leakey Foundation – £12,285 

Development and evaluation of interactive exhibits promoting 

comparative psychology in a zoo environment 

British Psychological Society – £19,340 

Geoff Pilkington 

Application of a 3D ‘all human’ blood-brain barrier model in 

evaluating nanoparticle-facilitated drug delivery system 

Dr Hadwen Trust for Humane Research – £151,877 

Toronto Medulloblastoma Collaboration 

Brain Tumour UK – £12,700 

Jan Shute 

Reducing inflammation in cystic fibrosis lung disease by 

targeting expression of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane 

conductance regulator in the endothelium with a coppertobramycin 

complex 

The Dunhill Medical Trust – £74,593 

Faculty of Technology 

Ivan Jordanov 

Development of adjoint states for geometrical modelling routines 

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council/ 

Technology Strategy Board (managed by: The Smith Institute for 

Industrial Mathematics & System Engineering) – £11,800 

Professor and Reader 

appointments 

Successful PhD and Doctoral students 

The following appointments 

were made between 15 

September 2012 and 14 

January 2013: 

Dr Mark Button of the 

Institute of Criminal Justice. 

Appointed to the position of 

Professor of Criminology. 

Dr Valerie Anderson of the 

University of Portsmouth 

Graduate School. Appointed 

to the position of Reader in 

Human Resources. 

Dr Alex Ford of the Institute 

of Marine Sciences. Appointed 

to the position of Reader in 

Biology. 

Dr Sue Bruley of the School 

of Social, Historical and 

Literary Studies. Appointed to 

the position of Reader in 

Modern History. 

Between 2 October 2012 and 9 January 

2013 the following students completed 

their research degrees: 

Faculty of Creative and Cultural 

Industries 

Marina Hauer - A Game-Based Learning 

Approach to Building Conservation 

Education in UK Undergraduate Built 

Environment Degrees 

Faculty of Humanities and Social 

Sciences 

Maren Kleiven - ‘From Mission Idealism 

to Operational Realism’: A Study of the 

Norwegian Contribution to International 

Police Reform Missions 


Aderemi Adelugba - The Assessment of 

Reticulocyte and Erythrocyte 

Haemoglobin Contents, and their use in 

the Evaluation of Iron Status in 

Hospitalised Patients 

Katherine Brown - Utility of the 

Calliphora vicina (Diptera: Calliphoridae) 

Pupal Stage for Providing Temporal 

Information for Death Investigations 

Penelope Delf - A Research Project to 

Design, Implement and Assess the 

Effectiveness of a Sole eLearning module 

to Prepare Non-medical Healthcare 

Practitioners to Report Nuclear Medicine 

Bone Scans 

Sharon Glaysher - Molecular Basis for 

Sequential Chemotherapy: the Effect of 

Chemotheraphy on Survival Pathways 

Clare-Louise Sandell - A Study of 

Self-reported Surgical Site Infection Post 

Total Hip or Total Knee Replacement 

Faculty of Technology 

Colm Mulhern - Collective Induced 

Phenomena in Systems of Coupled 

Oscillators 


6 


RDF Round 3: Successful projects 

On 8 November 2012, the Research Development Fund (RDF) panel met to consider the 

applications that were submitted in round three of the RDF competition. As a result, RDF awards 

have been made to support the following projects: 

1. Assessing human 

exposure to carcinogenic 

fibrous zeolites in the 

environment 

Principal Investigator 

- Derek Rust 

(Faculty of Science) 

Co-Investigators - Dean 

Bullen, Andy Gibson, 

Mike Fowler (Faculty of 

Science) 

Collaborators - 

Department of Geological 

Engineering, University of 

Ankara, Turkey, Department 

of Geological Engineering, 

Hacettepe University, Turkey, 

Department of Environment 

and Geological Sciences, 

University of Milan-Bicocca 

Derek Rust 

2. Establishing an 

expression system for 

serum amyloid P 

component in a human 

cell line 


- Simon Kolstoe (Faculty of 

Science) 

Co-Investigators - Sassan 

Hafizi (Faculty of Science) 

Collaborators - University 

College London, University 

of Oxford 

Simon Kolstoe 

Jana Ries 

3. ORIBUS – a research 

network to develop and 

apply the science and 

technology of 

operational research to 

build advanced and 

innovative business 

processes 

Principal Investigator - 

Jana Ries (Portsmouth 

Business School) 

Co-Investigatorss 

- Ashraf Labib (Portsmouth 

Business School), David 

Brown and Edward Smart 

(Faculty of Creative and 

Cultural Industries), Xiang 

Song and Dylan Jones 

(Faculty of Technology) 

Karen Thorpe 

4. Preliminary study on the 

biological impact of 

conventional and 

degradable plastics in 

the marine environment 


- Karen Thorpe (Faculty of 

Science) 

Co-Investigators - 

Zhongyi Zhang (Faculty of 

Technology), Graham Mills 

(Faculty of Science), 

Collaborators - University 

of Exeter 

These projects represent exciting new research avenues and collaborations, both within and outside the University. Many 

congratulations to the successful applicants. For more information about the successful projects please see: 

http://www.port.ac.uk/intranet/rkts/researchsupport/rdf/. 

Corrections 

In the last edition of R&KT News we incorrectly stated that Mark Field and Chris Huggins were the organisers of the Centre for 

European and International Studies Research conference. The correct organisers of the conference were Karen Heard-Laureote and 

Wolfram Kaiser. We apologise for this error. 


7 


On Wednesday 28 November 2012, academics, healthcare practitioners, support organisations, 

schools and interested members of the public took part in the University’s first collaborative public 

outreach lecture. The lecture, entitled ‘Focus on health – Asthma and allergy in your family’, 

delivered a progressive series of talks aimed at engaging the audience with the University’s 

research on both a personal and practical level. 

Chairing the event, Professor Taraneh Dean said: ‘We aimed to 

reach out to local families who suffer with asthma and allergies 

and help them realise they can have more control over their 

condition and their treatment plan and that their voice can be 

heard.’ 

Speakers at the event included Dr Carina Venter, senior 

research fellow at the University of Portsmouth and registered 

dietician who specialises in food hypersensitivity in children; Dr 

Tom Brown, who works in the Asthma Research Team at Queen 

Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth and is currently researching 

ways to better predict asthma attacks; Dr Charlotte Wade, a GP 

in Somers Town Health Centre; and Hazel Gowland, who has a 

severe nut allergy and works for Allergy Action. 

After the speakers had presented, the audience were given an 

opportunity to ask questions of the experts. This led to an active 

debate that looked at future treatments, dispelled myths about 

individual conditions and gave a practical view of how medical 

science was progressing in the lab, in hospitals and with 

patients. 

Three children from local schools received prizes at the event for 

winning an art competition to design a poster showing what it 

looks or feels like to live with asthma and allergies. As part of the 

event’s schools element, Dr Heather MacKenzie, a researcher 

specialising in food allergies, had visited the schools involved and 

talked to pupils about living with asthma and allergies. 

The event finished with a networking session at which academic 

posters and artwork from the schools and charities were 

presented. 

Professor John Craven presents a prize to Charlotte Larder for her poster design. 

Attendees ask questions of the experts. 

Dr Heather MacKenzie discusses her research with an attendee. 


8 


Our researchers 

organise international 

conferences 

LARC Neuroscience Network 

On Friday 9 November 2012 the University 

hosted the 16th Annual Meeting of the 

LARC‐Neuroscience Network. 

The network was originally created by neuroscientists working in 

the universities of Lille, Amiens, Rouen and Caen (LARC). Over 

the years the network extended to Brest and Rotterdam and 

currently involves over 40 research teams from universities and 

institutes located in northern France, Belgium and Holland. 

Portsmouth was the first UK institution to join LARC in 2008. 

The network promotes collaboration between member 

laboratories, the training of young neuroscientists and the 

exchange of staff and knowledge, resulting in numerous 

successful joint projects. Recent successes include three large 

Interreg EU grants - the Advanced Microscopy Network, the 

Trans Channel Neuorscience Network and the Peptide 

Research Network - involving dozens of institutions with a 

combined budget of over €13 million. These ongoing projects 

have already produced several important findings and 

publications. 

The LARC network (http://larc-neurosciences.org) organises 

various scientific meetings as well as events to promote 

neuroscience research amongst the public, the most important 

being the annual LARC Neuroscience Network meeting. These 

meetings are open to all, thus showcasing LARC’s achievements 

and creating opportunities for new collaborations. The meetings 

promote networking at all levels and allow young researchers 

(PhD students and post-docs) to present their results alongside 

distinguished keynote speakers. 

This year’s meeting in Portsmouth was the first to be held outside 

France. The local organising committee included Professor Darek 

Gorecki, School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, Dr Frank 

Schubert, School of Biological Sciences and Mr Andy Mew, 

Research and Knowledge Transfer Services, all supported by Dr 

David Vaudry and Mr Alexis Lebon (Rouen, France). The meeting 

was held in Action Stations at the Historic Dockyard and thanks 

to the support from the Trans Channel Neuroscience Network 

grant (EU, Interreg) it was free to all participants. 

The meeting was attended by 120 participants, with 78 

researchers from France, 37 from Britain, two from Poland, two 

from the Netherlands and one from Spain. 

Professor John Craven welcomed the participants and the 

programme included keynote speakers Professor Graham 

Collingridge FRS, Director of the MRC Centre for Synaptic 

Plasticity, Bristol University and a former president of the British 

Neuroscience Association, and Professor Peter Somogyi FRS, 

Director, MRC Anatomical Neuropharmacology Unit, Oxford 

University. 

The award for the best oral presentation was sponsored by 

Scientifica and the best poster and the runner-up poster awards 

were sponsored by Tripple Red and Roche respectively. The 

winner of the best oral presentation was Ms Madga Hamza, 

INSERM Unit 982, Mont-Saint-Aignan, France. The poster 

prizes went to Nicole Bellefontaine, INSERM Unit 837, Lille, 

France and Alexandra Spittle, Bristol University. 

The 16th Annual Meeting was received with great enthusiasm by 

all participants. The strong presence of scientists from Portsmouth 

demonstrated the vibrant research culture of our University. 

Attendees at the 16th Annual Meeting at Action Stations, Portsmouth. 

Channel 4 30th Birthday Conference 

Researchers based in the University’s Centre for Cultural and 

Creative Research celebrated Channel 4’s 30th birthday on 2 

November 2012 with a two-day conference at BFI Southbank 

in London. 

The event brought together media historians and key personnel 

from the film and television industries to review Channel 4’s 

contribution to British film culture over three decades, and to 

debate the future of public service broadcasters’ support for the 

UK film industry in the light of the Government’s Film Policy 

Review, published in January 2012. 

The conference marked the highpoint of a four-year study funded 

by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) entitled 

‘Channel 4 and British Film Culture’ (2010-2014), led by Dr Justin 

Smith, Reader in British Film Culture (www.c4film.co.uk). 

A conference report by Dr Leuan Franklin, Research Assistant on the 

project, is published in Viewfinder, the magazine of project partners 

of the British Universities Film and Video Council, and can be 

accessed at: http://bufvc.ac.uk/articles/channel-4-thirty-years-later. 


9 


Upcoming events 

Athena SWAN Conference 

Wednesday 6 March 2.00pm – 5.00pm 

Portland Building 

The first University Athena SWAN conference will 

look at past, present and future progress regarding 

the Athena SWAN objectives, which are to promote 

the advancement of women in science, technology, 

engineering and maths (STEM). The conference will 

put them into context for the University and provide 

an opportunity for female academics in STEM 

departments to share their career successes in 

poster form. 

The Chancellor, Sandi Toksvig, will open the 

conference followed by a keynote speech from Dame 

Jocelyn Bell Burnell DBE, FRS, FRAS, a British 

astrophysicist, who as a postgraduate student 

discovered the first radio pulsars with her thesis 

supervisor Antony Hewish. Other speakers include Dr 

Esther Sonnet, Head of School of Creative Arts, Film 

and Media, who will be talking on the brains behind 

the beauty of Hedy Lamarr, Professor Taraneh Dean 

who will talk about the challenges she faced on her 

road to a successful research career and Professor 

Paul Hayes who will talk about how departments can 

aspire to achieve the Athena SWAN Silver Award. 

To book a place, visit 

http://athenaswanconference.eventbrite.co.uk/. 

Open Access 

Thursday 7 March 

On 7 March 2013 at 2.30pm, all academic staff are 

invited to an Open Access awareness raising event. 

This event will outline the Open Access agenda in 

the UK, explain what this means for all researchers 

and update you on the plan for addressing Open 

Access at the University. 

To register, please visit 

http://openaccess.eventbrite.co.uk/. 

Research Excellence Framework 

(REF) update 

July 2013 

Where are we with the REF? How will it affect 

funding for my research now and in the future? The 

event aims to provide vital information and an 

opportunity to ask questions regarding REF. It will 

address what the REF means for you and what you 

can do to prepare for the next REF. To book a place, 

visit http://refupdate.eventbrite.co.uk/. 

For further information or enquiries about 

any of these events, please contact 

Research and Knowledge Transfer Services 

on ext 6191 or email rkts@port.ac.uk. 

New Grants Officer 

The University has appointed a new Grants Officer, Colin Waring, who will 

support researchers in applying for research funding from an increasing range 

of sources. Colin joined Research and Knowledge Transfer Services in 

November 2012 and will work with individuals and research groups in all 

faculties, and with our University Network facilitators Amy Drahota (UPAN), and 

David Hutchinson (UPEN) (see page 13), to provide relevant and value-added 

information on research funding opportunities and to support the submission 

of timely and high-quality bids. 

Colin initially graduated in zoology from the 

University of Aberdeen, and then studied 

for a PhD at Heriot-Watt University. He 

previously worked as a Principal Lecturer in 

the School of Biological Sciences here at 

the University of Portsmouth. He wrote and 

reviewed grant proposals, publications and 

supervised 12 PhD and MPhil students, 

and brings this breadth of experience to a 

vital research support role at the University. 

If you have some research ideas and want 

help identifying potential funders then 

please feel free to email colin.waring@port.ac.uk or call on ext 6195. 

Professor Jim Smith’s inaugural 

lecture a great success 

Wednesday 6 February saw the inaugural lecture of Professor Jim Smith 

from the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences. In front of a packed 

audience, Jim took the crowd on a guided tour of his life’s work. 

Jim started life as an astrophysicist, but 

his search for a PhD coincided with the 

worse radioactive disaster in history - 

Chernobyl. He explained how difficult it 

was to use mathematics to understand 

and predict change in the natural 

environment. He used examples from his 

own work modelling the movement of 

radioactivity through lakes and their 

associated ecosystems to expertly make 

his point. Jim clearly demonstrated the 

importance of scientific rigour, which in 

turn ensures a sound evidence-base that 

enables you to make predictions for policy 

makers and practitioners. 

Jim explained that very often scientists have their ‘arch-enemies’, with 

arguments fought out through peer reviewed journals. In Jim’s case, his 

arch-enemies were two scientists from France and USA. Jim explained 

why he did not agree with their research findings and took us through the 

evidence to solidify his argument. All this was taken in the light-hearted 

way it was meant, and the assembled crowd clearly enjoyed his lecture. 

Professor Paul Hayes, Dean of the Faculty of Science summed the 

evening up, saying: ‘I am both pleased and proud to have Jim as a 

member of our Faculty.’ 

The next inaugural lecture ‘Mapping the Universe’ will be delivered by Will 

Percival, Professor of Cosmology at the Institute of Cosmology and 

Gravitation on Thursday 21 March 2013. 


10 


Award-winning publications 

Two of our researchers have won awards for their recent publications: 

Professor Lisa Jack - British Accounting and Finance Association prize for most outstanding article 

What was the award? 

With co-author Omiros Georgiou, now at the London School of Economics, the paper, ‘In pursuit of Legitimacy: A history behind fair 

value accounting’, was awarded this prize at the annual conference in April 2012. The same paper also won the Neil Rackham Prize 

for best paper published in 2011-12, awarded at the Portsmouth Business School’s Annual Research and Knowledge Exchange 

conference in June 2012. 

Why did you win this award? 

The prize is awarded to the authors of the article that is assessed by members of the Editorial 

Board and the Board of Associate Editors as being the most outstanding of the articles published 

in The British Accounting Review during 2011. 

How does this award benefit your career? 

Both awards bring us greater recognition in our discipline, creating opportunities for further 

research projects. 

Is there anything you’d like to add which may be of interest? 

The paper evolved from a Master’s dissertation and was originally sparked by a discussion in class. 

It’s a great example of how research informed teaching can lead to successful research projects. 

Professor Mike Tipton - best paper award from the 

International Journal of Health Promotion and Education 

What was the award? 

It was the paper on the work of the International Task Force on 

Drowning. I was the UK member. We came up with two groups of 

eight messages for the prevention of drowning. The World Health 

Organisation estimates that 1.2 million people drown each year - it 

is the first or second most common cause of accidental death in 

many countries. More children drown than die from either malaria, 

TB, HIV or polio. 

Why did you win this award? 

The panel thought the paper would make a significant contribution 

to reducing the number of people who drown across the world. It 

was good to see drowning recognised for the problem it is amongst 

all of the other topics that could potentially have won the award. 

For more information, visit 

http://www.worldconferenceondrowningprevention2011.org/. 

Globally, many organisations have attempted to address the risk of 

drowning associated with aquatic recreation by promoting a diverse 

plethora of drowning prevention messages. The goal of this work 

was to establish, through international consensus, a minimum 

number of simple drowning prevention guidelines targeted at 

parents, other care-givers and individuals for non boating-related 

recreation around open water. The guidelines were developed to be 

useful in open water settings around the world. 

How does this award benefit your career? 

Such awards reaffirm that what you are working on is important and 

that you are doing it well. They are a form of peer review. They also 

help reaffirm the reputation of the group, the Department of Sport 

and Exercise Science, and the University as a centre of excellence, 

and support things like impact cases for the Research Excellence 

Framework. 

2012 was a good year for awards. With Hitoshi Wakabayashi, 

Martin Barwood and Clare Eglin, I also won the best paper award at 

the meeting of the Japanese Society of Human-Environment 

System for a paper on human acclimation to cold. With Flora Bird, 

Jim House and Heather Lunt I won the Cameron Award for best 

presentation at the Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA) 

sports medicine conference in Istanbul for a paper on 

acclimatisation in cross channel swimming children. 

Is there anything you’d like to add which may be of interest? 

If anyone would like to find out more about the research we do in 

the Department of Sport and Exercise Science or have a look 

around our facilities, please get in touch or visit our website 

www.port.ac.uk/departments/academic/sportscience/research/. 


11 


An update from 

Knowledge Services 

New Director of Knowledge 

Services 

In October 2012 Dr Alistair 

McDermott took up the position of 

Director of Knowledge Services. 

Over the last few months Alistair has 

been working with Vice-Chancellor’s 

Executive and Deans to look at the 

University’s knowledge services 

strategy in tandem with faculty 

strategies to determine the areas of 

strength and commonality that will 

allow us as an institution to focus our resources. 

Knowledge Transfer Partnerships secured by 

University Academics 

In recent months the University has seen an increase in 

opportunities to apply its knowledge base to Knowledge Transfer 

Partnerships (KTP). The following awards were made in the latter 

half of 2012: 

Ivan Jordanov – Industrial Mathematics Shorter Knowledge 

Transfer Partnership with Airbus Operations Ltd 

Sarinova Simandjuntak – Shorter Knowledge Transfer Partnership 

with Magma Global Ltd 

Edward Smart – Shorter Knowledge Transfer Partnership with 

Prosig Ltd 

David Brown – Shorter Knowledge Transfer Partnership with 

Datum Electronic Ltd 

David Brown – Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Printed Motor 

Works Ltd 

Jim Briggs – Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Lane 

Telecommunications 

Djamel Azzi – Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Smart-e Ltd 

If you would like to know more about KTP funding, contact 

Research and Knowledge Transfer Services on ext 6191, email 

rkts@port.ac.uk or visit: http://www.port.ac.uk/intranet/rkts/ 

knowledgetransfer/ktp/. 

Innovation Space 

In November 2012 the University took the decision to develop 

Halpern House into a centre for business innovation. This innovation 

space will house companies in a dynamic and vibrant community 

that delivers a culture of support and growth. The University is 

partnering with the hugely successful Innovation Warehouse project 

in London to deliver three themes for the space: 

• A dynamic incubation environment for companies looking 

at digital media business. 

• A collaborative working environment for academic staff 

and research students to work alongside external 

companies to explore new research possibilities together. 

• Facilities to host networking and support events that add 

to the vibrancy of the space. 

The project is key to 

supporting our strategic 

aims within the University 

and will provide 

opportunities and support 

for student entrepreneurs, 

linking companies and 

academics together. 

Lorraine Farrelly, from the 

Architecture Projects 

An artist’s impression of Innovation Space 

Office at the University, has 

been instrumental in developing a vision for the space that will 

deliver and support the project’s goals. Scheduled to open 

in April 2013, this project is an exciting development in the 

University’s continued commitment to valuable partnerships 

and the growth of our role in delivering economic prosperity for 

the region. 

Featured website 

The University recently began subscribing to InCites. InCites is a 

new research analytics tool produced by Thomson Reuters which 

enables citation based evaluations in relevant subject areas – 

mainly Health and Sciences. 

Incites gives you the ability to compare research performance 

against other institutions; pinpoint influential and emerging 

researchers of research trends; showcase strengths and identify 

areas for growth; support accreditation activity; and plan a 

research strategy with metrics that can be tracked over time. 

counts exclusively from the Web of Science database, as well as 

rank the value of publishing journals. 

If you are interested in further information and useful 

documentation on the use of InCites please email ref@port.ac.uk 

or visit http://goo.gl/7tWpa. 

Subscription to the software has been provided to key 

stakeholders across the institution (a list is available here: 

http://goo.gl/7tWpa). InCites will support stakeholders by 

adding to the tools available to measure the strength of relevant 

academic publications for the Research Excellence Framework 

(REF) 2014 submission, and support other activity outside of the 

REF, such as peer review and external assessment exercises now 

and in the future. 

InCites users at the institution will benefit from the ability to 

assess academic publications against comprehensive citation 


12 


University of Portsmouth Environment 

Network (UPEN) 

The University of Portsmouth Environment 

Network is looking to the future. The 

suggestion is to continue the journey 

through themes: 

The networks mirror the priorities of the 

University, so it is the intention that the 

themes will engage education, research 

and knowledge services. 

• ecosystem complexity and 

environmental change 

• environmental hazards and 

engineering 

• sustainable society 

Cross-thematic interest groups are also 

suggested for those whose work may 

support the development of the themes. 

These interest groups could include 

‘Measuring, monitoring and modelling’, 

‘risk and decisions’ or ‘communication 

and engagement’. 

To take these ideas further, three half-day 

events will be held before Easter to finalise 

how we, as a network, take this forward. 

To read more about the themes and to sign 

up, visit www.port.ac.uk/upenthemes. 

To find out more about our recent activities 

please have a look at our latest newsletter 

at www.port.ac.uk/upennews. 

David Hutchinson, UPEN Facilitator 

University of Portsmouth Ageing Network 

(UPAN) 

New year, new website! Keep your eyes peeled for the 

Ageing Network’s new website at www.port.ac.uk/ageing, 

bringing you the latest news, opportunities and activities from 

across the Ageing Network. Some highlights from UPAN’s recent 

activities include: 

Research: Jerome Swinny 

from the School of 

Pharmacy and Biomedical 

Sciences has been 

awarded £80,000 from the 

Alzheimer’s Society. This 

PhD studentship will be 

exploring an important 

region of the brain which, 

as well as helping to 

develop strategies to cope 

with stressful life events, 

also produces a chemical 

called noradrenaline, 

which is important for 

cognition and emotion. 

The studentship will 

explore the mechanisms 

behind emotional 

disturbances in 

Alzheimer’s disease, such 

Amy Drahota, UPAN Facilitator 

as depression, anxiety, 

and aggression, which are thought to be different to those found 

in people without Alzheimer’s disease. It is hoped that by 

studying these mechanisms, we may uncover potential points for 

improved therapeutic intervention in the future. 

community groups and residents, members of Portsmouth City 

Council and researchers from across the University. A series of 

PhD posters on ageing-related topics were also presented on the 

day, which helped raise the profile of the ageing research we are 

doing with our local community. The day included a participatory 

tai chi demonstration over the lunch break and a sing-a-long live 

band to wrap things up. 

Community outreach: We’re working with the Students’ Union 

and Age UK Portsmouth on a creativity project to inject some 

colour into the decor of Age UK’s Bradbury Centre in Fratton. 

This is an intergenerational project with funding awarded from 

Dulux’s ‘Let’s Colour’ funding stream, involving the older people 

who use the centre and student volunteers. The project is running 

from January to March. Student social workers will also be 

getting in on the action and will be working creatively with the 

older people at the centre, to generate artefacts, as they work 

towards demonstrating their fitness for practice. 

Sign up at http://paintingageuk.eventbrite.co.uk/. 

Education: As part of the Ageing Network, we’re compiling a 

running list of student projects, for undergraduate and postgraduate 

levels, to include questions in need of answers, projects 

in progress and completed projects. We are working with the 

Joint Strategic Needs Assessment group at Portsmouth City 

Council to generate and distribute new project ideas across many 

disciplines. Keep an eye on the website for updates, and please 

get in touch if you have projects of your own you’d like to 

advertise. 

Contact: amy.drahota@port.ac.uk. 

Knowledge exchange: The PEOPPLE Project (Putting Evidence 

for Older People into Practice in Living Environments) hosted a 

celebratory end-of-project conference, bringing together local 


13 


Focus on a researcher 

Brad Beaven 

Principal Lecturer in the School of Social, 

Historical and Literary Studies (SSHLS) 

Current project titles: 

I am a social and cultural historian who focuses on British 

society in the nineteenth and the early twentieth centuries. I lead 

one of the Faculty’s strategic research projects; ‘Port Towns and 

Urban Cultures’ exploring the social and cultural impact of ports 

on the urban hinterland from the eighteenth century to the 

modern period. We have developed this project in collaboration 

with the National Museum of the Royal Navy (NMRN). My own 

research focuses on the social and cultural context to 

‘sailortowns’ between 1800 to 1939 and I have begun 

examining over 200 sailor diaries of all ranks. 

Why did you become a researcher? 

History is not a static subject but one that is constantly reinterpreting 

and challenging orthodox viewpoints. You can go 

for days without finding relevant material and then stumble upon 

a fantastic set of archives that alters your whole perception of 

an event. It is that piecing together of fragments from the past 

and shedding new light on a long-standing historical 

controversy that makes research an enjoyable experience. 

Describe a typical day at work: 

I am currently organising an international conference titled ‘Port 

Towns and Urban Cultures’ with our partners at the NMRN for 

July 2013. I am also writing a paper for a social and cultural 

workshop on maritime history in Aland Islands, Finland. The 

diaries that I have been researching will hopefully provide a nice 

contrast as they reveal the sailor’s actual experience of sailor 

town life. With this project, the advantage is that there are a 

huge number of sailor diaries on my doorstep. 

Who has influenced you most in life and why? 

My parents brought me and my brother up in a very happy 

household in Coventry between the late 1960s and 1980s, a 

period which saw great changes in the city’s industrial 

landscape. My whole family – grandparents, Dad and brother 

worked in the declining car industry. My grandfather used to 

take me to play snooker at some of the large, elaborate social 

clubs complete with ball rooms, bars and snooker tables. These 

have long since been demolished but I think it inspired me to try 

to capture ‘club life’ in my research on working-class leisure. 

More recently it has been my wife Becky, and our sons George 

(eight) and Sam (two) who can always be relied upon to help me 

keep work in perspective. 

What are your interests outside of work? 

At every opportunity I will try to watch a Coventry City game. 

Despite their slow decline to the lower reaches of League 1 and 

being under the constant threat of liquidation, I still can’t help 

myself from becoming wildly optimistic after they win a couple 

of games. I have also started learning the ukulele and have 

mastered four chords, which according to some musicians, 

allow you to play a whole range of songs. This theory is 

somewhat disputed by my wife and children. 

If you could invite any three people to dinner (past or present) 

who would it be? 

It would have to be Champagne Charlie, the music hall star of 

the 1870s who used to drink pints of champagne on stage – if 

anyone could start a party I’m sure he could. I’d also invite a 

working-class man and women who lived in the 1870s and just 

simply ask them; ‘did I get it right?’ 

Pick five words that you associate the most with research: 

Port towns, social and cultural history, leisure, social class. 

One of the increasingly important aspects to research now is 

‘impact’ and my diary is beginning to be filled with meetings 

with museum curators and arranging collaborative projects with 

the heritage sector. 

What do you perceive to have been the biggest challenge you 

have ever undertaken? 

It would have to be my last book, Visions of Empire: Patriotism, 

Popular Culture and the City, 1870- 1939 (Manchester 

University Press, 2012). This book took six years to research 

and write as I covered a fairly long chronology and investigated 

three cities representing the south, midlands and the north of 

England. That, and trying to keep my two year-old son in one 

place for more than 30 seconds. 

What is your greatest achievement? 

For a historian I’m perhaps surprisingly reluctant to dwell on 

past activities and prefer to look forward to the next big task. I 

would like to develop and strengthen our relationship with 

external partners such as the NMRN, the Imperial War Museum 

and the Portsmouth City Museum. In this era of ‘impact’, it 

would be great to have Portsmouth historians routinely fostering 

community contacts and getting recognition for their research 

beyond the narrow confines of academia. 


14

RKT News February 2013 - University of Portsmouth

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