Science meets X-Factor: welcome to the S-Factor

The DTC Research Students' NobelPrize series of talk/discussions blossomed into a X-Factor-style competition in the Devonport High School for Boys yesterday. With dry ice and dodgy 1970's music, and Head of SoBHS Neil Avent as Simon Cowell, despite heroic performances by Sarah Rustage and Laura Pettit on behalf of the Higgs Boson and DDT respectively, first prize went to Emi-Jo Mawson, an undergraduate currently doing a placement project at Derriford. She presented the 1962 Prize for the structure of DNA. The event was covered by the Herald and is part of our drive to get more young people interested in scientific research as a career.

Research Bursary helps undergraduate become an author in leading scientific journal

Our new Research Bursary scheme allows students to spend eight weeks at the end of their second year assisting staff in their research. This helps them learn more about how large research projects are carried out and to develop their skills. Work done this summer by one such Bursary student, Matthew Byott,  has lead to him being an author in an article published this Tuesday in one of our leading journals: Current Biology. You can read an account of the research in the New Scientist and in the Daily Mail online. We hope to extend this scheme to first year students.

Get your flu jab! 

School lecturer Michael Jarvis explains on Radio Somerset why we should get our flu jabs - watch out for the explanation of herd immunity: click here to listen (go to minute 41:20).