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Month: May 2012

Live: Steps @ MEN Arena

Steps
MEN Arena
10th April
5 Stars

It’s been over ten years since Steps, arguably one of the most iconic British groups in recent memory, first split, breaking hearts not just across the nation, but across the world. It should come as no surprise, then, that tickets for their STEPS: On the Road Again tour sold out within days of going on sale – indeed, tickets for their shows at the MEN Arena this April were going for upwards of £70. It would have been a price worth paying.

There can be no denying that the levels of excitement, anticipation and (perhaps) fear inside the MEN were at a high, as an extraordinarily broad demographic eagerly awaited the appearance of these giants of pop music. They were greeted, instead, by supporting act Shockolady (murmurs of “she’s just a shit Rihanna” rippled through the arena), whose groundbreaking lyrics – “I like it like that, do you like it like that? All the boys in the club say ‘we like it like that’” (repeat thrice) – made me quite glad I’d turned down the opportunity of an interview with her.

Following Shockolady’s timely departure, there came a period of nervous waiting for the myth that is Steps to appear onstage. There were literally hundreds of questions on the audience’s lips: “Would Faye still be attractive?”, “Has Claire put on weight?”, “Is Lee still a nice man?”, “Why are we here?” Before long, they would be answered. The house lights went down, the speakers began to rumble and the people wept: it was time.

The formerly famous five of Faye, Lisa, Lee, H and Claire (in order of preference) appeared onstage in individual clear plastic tubes, in a manner oddly reminiscent of Spinal Tap. In what can only be described as a heart-stopping moment, Lisa’s opened early, but her showbiz experience meant she recovered well. Meanwhile, Lee was either struggling to do ‘the robot’ or having a panic attack, while Claire was struggling to move at all (yeah, so she’s put a bit of weight on, but who gives a shit? She’s in Steps!) It was the opening everyone had dreamed of and the following 2 and a half hours were nothing short of magnificent, although for the first time in my life I felt like a dick for not knowing Steps’ dance routines.

While the ‘solo’ section was perhaps a bit filler (with the exception of H’s heartbreakingly moving cover of ‘Don’t Stop Believing’), everything else was banging. For their encore, they naturally played ‘Tragedy’, although frankly this was an evening which was anything but tragic. And anyway, there are certainly much worse ways to spend a Thursday night in Manchester…


Preview: Benicassim festival

Forget partying with the post-AS level results crowd at Leeds or trawling through the routine Glastonbury mud, make your festival experience this year Benicassim. The annual Spanish summer event – sandwiched quite perfectly on the coast between Valencia and Barcelona – promises to be one to remember.

The line-up this year has a lot to live up to following 2011, but the 60+ acts named will not disappoint. The standout headliner must surely be folk legend Bob Dylan. Perhaps the greatest lyricist of our time, Dylan alone makes the journey to Spain seem the only logical choice. But sufferers of homesickness fear not, for Manchester is set to invade Benicassim with the appearances of The Stone Roses, Buzzcocks, New Order and Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds.

Beyond that, there truly is a wide variety of music both new and old on offer, ranging from De La Soul to Florence of the Machine and from Dizzee Rascal to Bombay Bicycle Club. And Ed Sheeran, I s’pose.

The festival begins on Thursday 12th July and ends on Sunday 15th and ticket prices are around £155. For full line-up details check out www.fiberfib.com.

Editor’s Note Final Issue (08/05/12)

Here we are, the final issue of the year. It’s been an incredible journey.I hope you have all enjoyed leafing through the pages of this paper.It has been an incredible privilege being at the helm of the Mancunion, documenting the excitement and the highs and lows of university life in this city.

I’d like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to all the incredibly talented students who have helped to make this paper what it is. While there have been a couple of bumps along the way, I am fiercely proud of the fact that week in, week out these people volunteer their time to put together a newspaper.

Those of you busy making summer plans and putting off revising for those final exams, take a moment to think about all the great things that you have achieved over the course of the year, both inside the lecture theatre and beyond. While the future may not look so promising, with the well-documented difficulty in finding graduate jobs, it’s always worth taking advantage of every chance you have to try new things at university.

My successor Richard has begun looking for students to help put together the paper next year. This opportunity is definitely worth looking into, regardless of what you plan to do in future.The students union is a great place to try new things, meet new people and make sure that your time here is worth more than just a piece of paper.

Manchester is a vibrant city with a rich culture of innovation. Long may it remain that way.

I will be leaving you in the incredibly capable hands of Richard so look out for the paper again from September.

 

Thanks Manchester,

 

Have a good one.

Hell hath no fury like a man stalked on twitter

3.5 stars out of five

One thing must be made very clear from the outset here. Stewart Lee is, how do I put this, not exactly a fan of the Internet.

He finds it difficult to discuss twitter without choking on his own scorn. To him the micro blogging site is “a government surveillance operation run by gullible volunteers, a Stasi for the Angry Birds generation”.

The veteran comedian, composer of Jerry Springer: The Opera, and sometime newspaper columnist specialises in a brand of snarling comedy that like a famous brand of yeast spread, you either like or you don’t.

And so tonight, to a theatre packed with men and women brave enough to withstand the gale force winds battering the city, he raged away. Following the success of his TV series ‘Comedy Vehicle’ he hit the road with his whimsically named show Carpet Remnant World.  Weaving a series of subtle vignettes infused with a mock self-pity, he projected himself very much as a man at the end of his tether, not quite angry at the world, just disappointed.

For one thing he’s disappointed that his wife no longer sees him as a sexual being, (“She once asked me if I was having an affair after if I came home with a new pair of pants… recently she saw another new pair and asked me if I’d shit myself”).

His trademark style of telling jokes and then ruthlessly deconstructing them, explaining them to the audience was very much on show tonight. While entertaining, it was employed a little too often, losing him momentum and making the show resemble a lecture more than a comedy show. Added to this was an annoying habit of simply pausing and acting angry at the audience. Although this was occasionally frustrating, it didn’t seem to bother the punters all that much.

Fans relished his attacks on eternal nemesis Michael McIntyre and lapped up the pathos of his final routine, detailing his search for a utopia made from the eponymous carpet remnants.

All in all a solid set, with moments of the daring and poignant comedy that he excels in- but this wasn’t his best show. Not that that should irk him too much. After all, he once boldly named one of his performances ‘41st Best Stand Up Ever. Bless.

Stewart Lee, The Lowry, Salford Quays, 29th April 

 

 

Hath a Jew not eyes?- Israeli Theatre and the BDS Movement

There is legitimate criticism of Israel to be made. This I say with no caveat, no ifs or buts, no obfuscating or justification of things that are unjustifiable. Yet there is something I find more abhorrent about the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement than anything else. That is its tarring of Israeli artists, academics and culture as complicit or synonymous with the government of Israel. I don’t agree with boycotting Israel because I believe it isolates an already small, encircled nation and creates a bunker mentality that manifests itself not just in government policy, but also permeates the very character of the Israeli people. They are a nation obsessed with security, and quite understandably so when the history of its often belligerent neighbours are considered: and anyone truly interested in peace knows that this is not a path conducive to creating an atmosphere of dialogue and mutual recognition.

Yet whilst the arguments made about boycotting produce in the West Bank may be persuasive, I am constantly amazed at the lengths the BDS movement will go to to promote a cultural and academic boycott of Israel. Last month, a letter signed by prominent theatre luvvies Emma Thompson, an actress and Mike Leigh a director, urged the Globe theatre to rescind the invitation to the Habima theatre company, the national theatre of Israel, to perform a version of The Merchant of Venice in Hebrew. They claim that, because Habima performs in the West Bank it is “complicit with human rights violations and the illegal colonisation of occupied land.” And I thought they were just a theatre company.

This boycotting of human beings by virtue of their nationality would in any normal scenario would be deemed utterly offensive; the outcry from Guardianistas would be deafening. But in this world where some elements are desperately seeking their own anti-Apartheid style campaign, this strange hypocrisy prevails. Two years ago, at this very University, the Deputy Ambassador of Israel was barred from speaking in our Union because of BDS policy. If our policy extends to equating the life of a human being to that of a Jaffa orange, it is a policy I want no part of.

But there is something else more troubling of this particular proposed boycott. When an artist decides that they want another artist censored or banned for a political motivation a part of being an artist, the bringing together of peoples and demolishing the barriers between them, is fundamentally challenged. Howard Jacobson, the Booker prize-winning author, put it rather eloquently: ““If there is one justification for art – for its creation and its performance – it is that art proceeds from and addresses our unaligned humanity.

“Whoever would go to art with a mind already made up, on any subject, misses what art is for. So to censor it in the name of a political or religious conviction, no matter how sincerely held, is to tear out its very heart.”

Poignantly, the luvvies that signed this letter have chosen to encourage The Globe theatre to boycott Habima in a production of The Merchant of Venice, a play that includes the famous Jewish money lender Shylock. This stereotype of the Jewish people has persisted for centuries, and that Habima will perform this in Hebrew is special and a wonderful moment. Of course, it isn’t for the rabid Israel haters. Their ever blurring of the line between an Israeli citizen and the actions of the Israeli state is fast resembling a victimisation of Israelis – and let us be honest, not Israeli Arabs, but Israeli Jews – that is tantamount to racism. I do not use the term anti-Semitism to attack any anti-Zionist (although, they will have you believe that anyone who dares speak out against Israel is vilified as an anti-Semite, which is clearly not the case), but there is something disturbing about the singling out of Jewish Israeli authors, actors, poets, lecturers and academics for a cultural boycott. Maybe someone can explain to me what justifies the boycott of someone who produces art and literature simply because they were born a Jew in Israel, but for the life of me I cannot see how anyone can justify it. It is certainly not left or progressive.

In The Merchant of Venice, Shylock gives the famous ‘Hath a Jew not eyes?’ speech, where he challenges his Christian antagonists to whether they are more noble than him. “Hath a Jew not eyes?”, he asks, “If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die?”. Israeli Jews are people also; they should not be subjected to boycotts on the virtue of them being born a Jew in Israel, and it is about time the BDS enthusiasts stop going after their pound of flesh.

Is Sainsbury’s Fallowfield ripping us off?

With a market share of up to 17 percent, Sainsbury’s is the third biggest supermarket chain in the country behind Tesco and Asda, but in Fallowfield Sainsbury’s arguably benefits from a monopoly.

Tesco and the Co-operative stores are also in close proximity to most students residing in Fallowfield, but neither of them is big enough to offer the wide range of products available at Sainsbury’s. This gives Sainsbury’s a very privileged position; they sell what others don’t and therefore attract the majority of regional consumers almost by default. There is, however, a suspicion that Sainsbury’s are taking advantage of this scarcity power by setting their prices higher than the market average.

To determine whether this was fact or fiction, we went to Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Lidl and bought an identical basket of products from each one. The basket included 12 generic student purchases such as pasta, ten-inch pizzas and beer. None of the goods purchased were from the basics or values range; nine were house brands and the other three were recognised brand products that can be located at any store.

Contrary to popular belief, Sainsbury’s was not the most expensive supermarket from the sample.  Whilst the basket purchased at Lidl was predictably cheaper than the other two stores at £17.17, the purchases from Sainsbury’s amounted to £20.39, just over 50p shy of the £20.97 total from Tesco express.

On top of shopping at the mentioned locations, the same basket of goods was also purchased from the Sainsbury’s online store. This was to check if there was any truth to the widespread rumour that the Sainsbury’s in Fallowfield is more expensive than its other outlets. Results point towards the most expensive Sainsbury’s myth to be just that. The basket amounted to exactly the same as the basket purchased in Fallowfield.

As these results show the problem isn’t Sainsbury’s, it’s inflation. Since the beginning of 2010, the rate has not fallen below three percent and has at times soared above the two percent target by the Bank of England, consequently putting a strain on students.

There are social ramifications to these higher inflation levels. Students intent on getting more for less will consider unorthodox methods to save money, even if it means stealing.  A common tactic used by shoplifters was to subtly pick up a crate of beer on offer at the entrance of the Fallowfield Sainsbury’s and walk straight out of the door with a random receipt in their mouth to cast away any suspicion of stealing. Countermeasures have now been put in place to prevent such fraudulent behaviour. Whenever a crate of beer is purchased, staff immediately place orange tape across it to signify that it has been rightfully purchased.

Alternative cost-saving methods include freeganism. Cost wary customers may wish to trawl through the Sainsbury’s bins to pick out any food that has been discarded by the supermarket because it is approaching its sell by date. An anonymous source who has regularly been ‘bin diving’ told us that although it is illegal, the behaviour can be justified. “With money at such a premium, it seems stupid not to pick out unwanted food that is in perfectly good condition. I consider myself a champion of conservation!” they said.

The cost of effort is much higher for students than other demographics and Sainsbury’s could indeed capitalize on a large group of people too lazy to venture to lower profile supermarkets that are perhaps cheaper. Their prices, however, are merely a reflection of increasing prices in every industry. Until inflation falls, Sainsbury’s are going to have to shoulder the blame from angry students who are struggling to cope with rising prices.

Government launches pilot student business loans scheme

The Government has released the details of a pilot scheme announced in this year’s budget to provide start-up business loans to young people. The move aims to tackle the paradoxical situation that makes it much easier to get a loan to study business at degree level than to get the money to actually start a business. Anyone aged between 18 and 24 with a feasible business idea could be eligible for one of the loans, which will be on average £2,500 from a fund totalling £9m. The loans will have a 12-month repayment holiday, a loan period of three-five years and an interest rate equal to the RPI plus three percent (the same as the interest on a student loan for graduates earning over £41,000).

After the Labour Government’s push to get more young people to university in their 2001 manifesto, this initiative seems like a positive step towards righting some of the wrongs of that policy, as well as a proactive means of boosting the economy and helping young people with an interest in business. The scheme is supported by the National Youth Enterprise Working Group, a nationwide network which includes the Prince’s Trust, Virgin Media Pioneers and the Institute of Directors, which is working towards coordinated support for young entrepreneurs.

Richard Branson said of the initiative, “This has the potential to transform the prospects of thousands of young people. The entrepreneurs of today will be the job creators of tomorrow so I’m delighted that the Government has listened to those at the very start of their careers.”

“The country is full of gifted and enterprising people so this pilot, which crucially has business mentoring and support at its heart, will help prevent a lost generation of talent.”

As well as the loan, successful applicants will receive access to business mentors and training, hopefully giving recipients a greater chance of success.  Though pitched as an alternative to studying at university, there currently seems to be no condition on the loan excluding anyone with a degree, so one of these loans may also be an interesting alternative to facing the tough graduate jobs market for this year’s graduates (aged up to 24).

Up until 2nd May the Government was seeking expressions of interest from businesses and consortiums that could help support the scheme. Further details of the scheme are expected in the next few weeks. The pilot scheme will run from May 28th 2012 until March 31st 2013.

Obama hopes to slow jam his way into students’ hearts

Students and their fees or loans have seemingly taken a battering recently on both sides of the Atlantic. Student fee rises in England received a great deal of media attention. However it seems that this interest is shifting to that of the United States, as once again Obama seems to be fighting against Congress.

Obama is currently on a major mission to push through Congress a cap on student loan costs, hoping that in doing so he will reconnect with many of the young voters who were so instrumental in his historic 2008 Presidential victory.

Currently standing at 3.4 percent, there is a possibility that interest may double in July. This will cause the average college graduate in America to lose $1,000 each year in interest rate costs over the life of the loan.

Although it would seem improper to argue for the rise, there are some sound financial and moral arguments from both sides. Many, including leading Republican candidate Mitt Romney, are firmly in favour of the proposal, citing ‘bleak job prospects’ as a reason to ‘extend the current low rate’. It would mean that individuals looking at further education would not be put off and those through and out the other side not so monetarily squeezed. Obama himself at 51 said he only paid off his loans eight years ago and previous to landing arguably the most prestigious job in the world, had struggled to save up for his children’s college educations whilst still trying to pay off for his.

On the other hand, those in favour of the rise see it as an opportunity to pay off the national debt with the higher revenues received. It is unsure how much the money gained would offset the $15 trillion debt, however every change would provide a better future for all involved, not only the college educated.

America would be more financially stable and hopefully able to spend the revenue increase on social benefits that would aid every American and not just the fortunate educated few.

Once again there lies a tough road ahead for Obama. With the US national debt ballooning furiously, it might be time that students take a hit to help carry the burden of a nation.

For those interested in watching Obama slow jam with Jimmy Fallon and The Roots, follow this smart code to the Youtube channel. You could never imagine David Cameron doing such a thing!

CV packed for summer?

With youth unemployment making headlines, it is clear that CV building whilst at university is vital for access to the limited places on both internships and for a graduate job. Whilst first job expectations have been considered to be unrealistically high, I want to argue that such jobs are within the reach of students from any background and university, so long as they put in the effort and initiative.

Second year internships, whilst massively beneficial, are not the be all and end all and for first year students, good use of this summer can really help with developing and demonstrating the skills required for future work experience or internship applications. Too many students today give up at the first hurdle, be it unsuccessful past applications or the belief that if a work experience is unpaid it is automatically inaccessible to them. This does not have to be the case. The opportunities are vast and demonstrating to employers that you don’t just give up there can be incredibly valuable.

The University of Manchester has fantastic funding and bursary schemes aimed at helping people pursue work experiences that may go unpaid and award money in the hundreds to students with viable and beneficial (be it for degree or career) summer plans. Whether it’s an official programme or your own personal applications to work shadow, picking up the phone, searching the web or sending an e-mail can make all the difference, especially when combined with university or even governmental support.

CV building does not have to stop there however and sitting in an office over the summer isn’t necessarily the only thing a future employer looks for. With the emphasis on work experience being vital for first jobs, many students find themselves in similar positions to those they are competing against in their applications, all of whom have a couple of weeks work experience here and there. To think outside the box and demonstrate that you won’t just get the job done, but that you will contribute to a positive and interesting working environment is something that can make applicants that little bit different.

From charity fundraising, to career or interest based travel, or even setting up a small summer business, the opportunities for both an enjoyable and productive summer are vast and can all be covered through various forms of funding.

Buy yourself a 2:1

Written by Emily Bunting & Oliver Taylor

From signing university contracts, to stern e-mails and talks in lectures, plagiarism in the world of academia can ruin a degree, a career and even a profession. The hard line taken by the University of Manchester demonstrates the seriousness of such offences, with online essay submissions being scanned through the use of high-tech software and a strict illegal drugs policy. With university end of year exams just around the corner, we here at the Business and Finance section of the Mancunion have decided to look into a market where the apparently stark line of plagiarism and performance enhancement becomes all the more grey.

Thousands of students across the country will be graduating this year, with minimum expectations of achieving a 2:1 degree (the minimum class required for most graduate jobs). With the environment of a near-saturated jobs market, the looming repayment of student loans on the horizon and alternatives of increasingly expensive masters programmes, the pressure to perform is higher than ever. This can be seen to have contributed to the creation of a more alternative student market. The seemingly most lucrative of businesses designed to exploit these fears, are businesses set up to write tailored essays for students and the demand for cognitive enhancing ‘smart drugs’.

Students across the country appear willing to cough up as much as £200 of their hard earned government loans to pay for essays written to their specification in under 24 hours. This comes with a guaranteed classification for the essay (prices varying according to the desired grade) and apparently no risk of being caught by the essay scanning systems. With such an attractive offer, it is no surprise that the essay writing market in the UK is valued at over £200 million.

The widespread occurrence, and even to some degree acceptance, of cheating is apparent on looking at the results of a 2010 Manchester University study, which found that 45 percent of students were ‘sure’ that in the past year another student had cheated in some form of work submitted towards their degree. Such figures illustrate the extent of demand for services such as essay writing.

It is clear however, that students will not stop there. The demanding student lifestyle of continuous essays and early morning lectures, on top of late nights (every night) and hours of sport training for some, seems to have made it ever harder to study and make productive use of time spent in the library. A growing number of students find drugs such as Ritalin and Modafinil (intended to treat disorders such as ADHD and narcolepsy) can help them block out distractions, stay awake for longer and therefore study harder.

Whilst there seem to be mixed conceptions of the extent of the ‘smart drugs’ market, on asking around, we needed little effort to find many students who had at least tried one of these (technically illegal if not prescribed) smart drugs. Simply googling ‘buy Ritalin’ directs you to a large number of websites openly selling the class B drug without prescription, where it retails for around £1 – £3 a pill. The equivalent search for Modafinil is even more startling. A company called Sheffield Modafinil actively markets the drug towards students and the testimonials page contains two from students at the University of Manchester. On the black market, Modafinil retails at between £2-£3 a pill depending on the quantity purchased. It is more expensive to buy legally (in other countries) and the equivalent dose costs £4. The illegal and therefore unregulated market, as well as the taboo nature of the product, means that some unscrupulous sellers are profiteering by selling placebos or less effective substances to boost their profit margins. No academic has ever tried to estimate the value of the UK smart drugs market, however increasing jobs and university pressure could suggest potential for growth.

If buying smart drugs and online essays are as effective as some (but importantly not all) claim, it may become difficult to compare a student’s performance and the value of their degree. For now however, the current situation is far from ideal. Manchester University has no official policy on cognition enhancers and whilst essay purchasing is contractually cheating, the expanding market seems to suggest certain levels of their success.

Synthetic genetics – XNA

Philipp Holliger, of the UK Medical Research Council’s Laboratory of Molecular Biology, and his team of scientists have taken a new approach to the molecule of life and developed ‘synthetic DNA’. The ladder-like structure of the DNA double helix has bases that make up the rungs and sugar-phosphates as the sides. The synthetic version has been developed to have the same bases but different sugars, giving rise to its name xeno-nucleic acids (XNA), xeno being Greek for foreign.

Naturally occurring enzymes called polymerases carry out the copying of DNA molecules and scientists have engineered polymerases that can carry out this process to produce XNA from DNA in the laboratory, with 95 percent accuracy.

What’s got scientists excited is that this molecule shows the ability to evolve, in an experiment where a particular protein target was made that would specifically attach to XNA of certain sequences – the right order of rungs in the ladder – and the other XNA would wash away. As multiple copies of the attached XNA were made by the engineered polymerases, variations in the sequences of bases occurred to produce XNAs that could attach even more tightly to their protein target.

This discovery has shown that DNA is not unique in being able to evolve, which exobiologists (who study the idea of how life could occur on planets other than earth) believe has implications in their studies.

XNA has much potential in pharmaceutical research, as the body cannot break down its novel structure. The reason this is such a useful property is because current use of nucleic acids as antiviral and anticancer drugs has many pitfalls as enzymes in the bloodstream often rapidly break down the drugs, which would not be the case with XNA-based alternatives. The future of XNA and its uses is bright and could lead to some life-changing therapies.

Answer to obesity in new weight loss drugs

Excitement over breakthrough drugs in the treatment of obesity, hopeful to enter the market over the next few years, may be short-lived due to possible side effects.

Throughout history, one of the greatest challenges man faced was finding enough food to satisfy the body’s demand for energy. In contrast, our greatest task now is keeping excess weight at bay.

Statistics show that at least one in three adults in the US is classed as obese, which is mirrored worldwide. Carrying excess weight increases the risk of heart attacks, strokes and cancer, as well as burdening the economy. With a rise in obesity, there has never been a greater demand for a ‘quick fix’ for weight loss.

Currently, no ideal weight loss treatment exists that comes unburdened with side effects. Early weight loss remedies stretch as far back as the 1800’s, when arsenic and pills containing soap were used to slim down, with side effects such as vomiting and convulsions. Amphetamines later became popular due to their actions curbing appetites and boosting activity levels, but this was short lived due to the development of heart problems.

Drugs have come onto the market since the 1930’s, but few have stayed the distance. One drug, Orlistat, blocked fat absorption in the gut producing a modest weight loss, but was tarred by side effects.

Qnexa, one of the hopeful candidates set to reach clinics in the near future, is a combination of two drug compounds with dangerous side effects, that when combined, lowers the risk.  In a yearlong trial, patients taking the drug lost on average 9.3 percent of their total body weight, a significant loss.

Another drug, Lorcaserin, set to come onto the market if approved by the FDA, works by binding to serotonin receptors in the brain, shown to produce a 3.6 percent loss of body weight.

Whilst both these drugs look set to reach the clinic in the near future, a new class of drugs is upcoming which offers less broad effects, by mimicking hormones in the gut to regulate appetite. They work by telling the brain to slow down the speed that food moves through the gut, making you feel fuller for longer, leading to an average loss of six percent total body weight. However, research has found that these drugs may inflame the pancreas and may increase the risk of thyroid cancer.

The third and final class of upcoming drugs aims to boost metabolism and promote the depletion of fat stores, leading to weight loss.

Even if these drugs are found to be effective at reducing weight and are safe, there are other considerations. Although new research is pushing for the production of so called ‘diet-pills’, there is controversy as to whether they have a place in society. Many doctors believe that willpower, exercise and healthy eating are key to maintaining a healthy weight, with the use of weight loss drugs alongside simple lifestyle changes.

Private sector avoids lion’s share of data breach fines

Over a third of all reported data breaches in the UK are committed by private sector organisations, which only account for less than one percent of the resulting fines.

The figures, requested by satellite system-maker Viasat, were released by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which claimed that the discrepancies are due to the strict criteria that must be met before civil monetary penalties can be imposed.

The chief executive of Viasat stated that whilst the ICO should be praised for their policing of data breaches in the public sector, the private sector has “relatively free rein”. Viasat believe that further breaches go unreported by private sector organisations.

In the last year, the private sector accounted for 263 out of a total of 730 data breaches reported to the ICO, with the NHS and local Governments making up the majority of the public sector cases.

However, during that period a single £1,000 fine was issued against a private sector firm. In the same period the ICO issued a total of £790,000 fines to local councils for breaches of personal data.

Amongst this total was a £140,000 fine, the heaviest ever by the ICO, handed to Midlothian Council for sending sensitive personal data about children and their carers to the wrong addresses on five occasions during the 12 month period.

Most data breaches involve documents being emailed to the wrong address; the second most common cause is theft of data or hardware.

A statement from the ICO said “Effective regulation is about getting the best result in the public interest. There are several types of enforcement action we can take, all of which help drive compliance with the Data Protection Act. The course we choose will always depend on the circumstances of the individual case”.

Breast cancer: 10 separate diseases

Breast cancer should now be thought of as 10 completely separate diseases, reports a landmark study on the disease.

Sorting breast cancer into 10 different types could help predict survival rates, as well as improving treatments by offering more specific drugs for each different type.

Researchers compared breast cancer to a map of the world, with different types of breast cancer currently separated into “continents” for treatment. This new research will allow breast cancer to be split into “countries”, which will help treatment be more precise.

“Breast cancer is not one disease, but 10 different diseases,” said researcher Prof. Carlos Caldas. “Our results will pave the way for doctors in the future to diagnose the type of breast cancer a woman has, the types of drugs that will work and those that won’t, in a much more precise way than is currently possible.”

Scientists decided on the 10 different types by looking at which genes were working overtime in the breast cancer cells and which genes were no longer working properly. They also looked at what kinds of receptor the tumour cells had – for example, if cells have the Her2 receptor then they can be treated with the drug Herceptin.

Around 2,000 frozen breast cancer samples were analysed in this groundbreaking study, published in the scientific journal Nature. However, researchers still need to prove that there are benefits to treating patients according to this classification. This means that it will be at least three years until the study changes the way hospitals and clinics treat breast cancer.

This study could “revolutionise the way breast cancer is diagnosed and treated” says Baroness Delyth Morgan, chief executive of Breast Cancer Campaign. “Being able to tailor treatments to the needs of individual patients is considered the Holy Grail for clinicians and this extensive study brings us another step further to that goal”.

Sex tips: tried, tested, rejected

Wander into your local newsagent and at every turn you’ll be confronted by magazine covers, on both women’s and men’s mags alike, with the same old tag-lines ‘Top sex tips’, ‘How to drive him wild’, ‘Make her orgasm seventeen times’…etc etc. Even Lifestyle’s own Emilia Hazel has proposed her own bedroom advice (“turn your partners body into a homage to your favourite Domino’s topping” if you remember rightly).

Cosmo and Men’s Health are the most renowned so I have kindly volunteered my time and  manhood to put to put some of the best to the test.

1. More Magazine’s Position of the Week: The head rush

Missionary with a twist. Dangle your partner off the edge of the bed so that her head hangs free. The blood rush to her head will transport her to orgasmic heights she’s never reached before.

In practice: It felt like I was shagging a headless corpse. She looked uncomfortable and unusually pink. We were concentrating too hard on not causing injury that nobody reached orgasmic heights of any kind.

 

2. Men’s Health Position Master: Reverse cowgirl 

The cowgirl position (her on top) but in reverse (backwards), obviously. You’re in for one hell of a ride.

In practice: As much as I worship the female form seeing my girlfriend attempt to angle herself on to me with her derriere in the air was both awkward and unflattering for everybody. Granted, it gets good but just be prepared for a bit of “to me, to you” à la the Chuckle Brothers before you begin.

 

3. Men’s Health: Blow bubbles

Take a swig of champagne before going down, then use your tongue to swirl the bubbles around her clitoris. Nerve endings react to bubbles. In a very good way.

In practice: I’m on a student budget so had to make do with Sprite, I figured it’d have the same effect. This just caused a mess. Instead of “swirling it around her clitoris” most of it ended up dribbled down my chin. How was I meant to do direct it? With a straw or spurting it out like a fountain? Sugary products should be kept away from the vaginal area at all times or else instead of an orgasm she’ll end up with thrush

 

4. Cosmo: Mutual masturbation

Watch porn and masturbate together.

In practice: Pretend you can’t navigate yourself around a porn site in 30 seconds, find the video you watched the other day and avoid eye contact with your girlfriend as you awkwardly put your hands down your trousers. I don’t know why you’d do this when you could just have sex?

 

5. Lifestyle’s Emilia Hazel: Alternative role play

Ever feel like you’ve wasted your money on all those BOP outfits? Why not indulge in those fantasies you never knew you had

In practice: My girlfriend went out with friends dressed as mimes, she went the whole hog painted face and all. When she got home, she stumbled into my room and instead of washing her face and changing out of her stripy attire we thought we’d give the alternative fantasy suggestion a go.

The events that followed are ones I’ll never forget. What started off as fun and mysterious transpired into odd and bemusing. I had to stop her when she began to mime blowing up a balloon like a Parisian street act. Her embarrassment continued when we awoke to a bed-spread smeared with face paint and white gloves thrown half way across the room from her impromptu strip tease.

Blind date: Lily and Tom

Lily, Drama and English Lit, Third year

What were your expectations for the evening?

Having been the one to set up the previous blind dates this year I thought it only right for me to have a go myself. I went in with the expectation that I’d spend an awkward hour with a postgraduate data programming student unearthed from the depths of the Kilburn building.

First impressions?

Where are my flowers?

What did you talk about?

Dissertations, post-third year plans, what we’ll miss about Manchester, my dog, mutual friends.

Best thing about them?

Easy to talk to and chatty but also happily endured my incessant babbling

What did you eat?

After all the previous steak recommendations I couldn’t resist. It was delicious but the waiter came and took mine away before I’d had the chance to finish. I was devastated but felt I’d look like a pig if I made a fuss so silently cursed him and glugged down some more wine.

Any awkwardness?

Only when a rather plump woman tried to squeeze on to the end of the table next to us and inadvertently grazed me with her bum a few times.

How did you part ways? 

After a few drinks in Sandbar, we said goodbye on a jam-packed Magic Bus. I was tipsily tucked up in my onesie by 10pm – no nights of passion at the Palace hotel this time.

Out of 10?

The steak – 10, the date – 8.

Would you see them again?

Yeah I’m sure I’ll see him around.

 

 

Tom, Biomedical Science, Third year

What were your expectations for the evening?

Free food and good company.

First impressions?

Cute and cool, nice jacket.

What did you talk about?

Friends in common and all the gossip about them.

Best thing about them?

She had a nice smile.

What did you eat?

Steak and sweet potato chips.

Any awkwardness?

No only small jitters at the beginning.

How did you part ways? 

Just parted with a “goodbye” as we were on the bus and she was dying to get back to watch Grey’s Anatomy.

Out of 10?

8

Would you see them again?

It would be nice to bump into her again.

 

Lily and Tom ate at The Deaf Institute, Grosvenor Street, Manchester. Thanks to the guys down at Grosvenor Street for getting involved with blind date for the last year and for all the free food and drink we’ve got out of them. It’s been much appreciated by all!

To check out Deaf Institute’s menu, gig listings and have a look at what club nights are coming up visit their website www.thedeafinstitute.co.uk

Thanks also to all the blind date participants, whether you’ve been lucky in love or not you’ve provided some entertainment and that’s all that matters.

 

Not like the movies

Anonymous

One fated evening during the Easter break, I ended up sharing a couple of bottles of wine with my friend…and then a bed. Oops.

The main problem with this is that the friend in question is not just any old friend, but in fact my best friend of over five years. We have, quite literally, grown up together. So, not only is it extremely awkward, it’s also border line incestuous.

Although I vaguely remember us promising each other that it wouldn’t be weird in the morning, it was. I made a hasty exit, all the while contemplating whether I was horrified by the event a) because it was a giant mistake, or b) because I was now hoping for a One Day-esque romance.

After eleven long, painful days of silence, I realised that I was going to have to be the one to break the ice. Playing it safe with a ‘Hi, how are you?’ text, I felt fairly confident that he would have the decency to reply and that we could at last laugh this misdemeanour off. Unfortunately, I was wrong. That was three days ago and I still have yet to receive a reply.

So there we have it, all that stuff about your best friend being the ideal person to date is a load of rubbish. Do not be fooled by the fairytale endings in the movies; you will be disappointed. Instead of sweeping you off your feet, your friend might just have a fully fledged heart attack and never speak to you again.

Ask Keir: Ritalin

Ask Keir is a column aiming to answer all your health questions. If you want to know about that funny looking lump that won’t go away, why that student doctor keeps poking you or anything at all to do with health get in touch at: [email protected]

All questions will of course be kept confidential and anonymous.

Question of the Week

A couple of friends of mine have been taking Ritalin for their exams and they say it has really been helping them concentrate whilst they’re revising. Does it help or is it all in the mind?

In short Ritalin does have the potential to help us study. Even Professor John Harris from our grand university has declared it ‘unethical’ to stop healthy adults using it and also stated it enhanced study skills and concentration.

Almost unanimously most health experts would agree with it having the ability to enhance concentration but there are other factors that need to be taken into account.

First off, it’s imperative to acknowledge that Ritalin without prescription is a class B drug, is therefore illegal and could land your friends in prison for 5 years for possession of it.

Also if you wouldn’t be getting it on prescription there’s no guarantee that what your friends are taking is actually Ritalin.  Back to the drug itself, like with all drugs there are side effects. Some of the most common are;

– Difficulty sleeping

– Feeling nervous

– Headaches

Rarer side effects include psychosis, anorexia and depression. It is however always good to put these possible ‘side effects’ into context. If you look at the lengthy leaflet inside an ibuprofen packet it could shock you into never taking them again but the chance of these occurring are usually very low and the same applies to Ritalin.

So to summarise Ritalin could help you revise but is it really worth the risk to your future career by potentially acquiring a criminal record?

It also, like all drugs, has a long list of side effects that could affect you and some of the most common will be of no help to you at all during the exam period. So my advice has to be you can do as well as anyone on Ritalin by hard work alone.

“I went to school and it went downhill from there…”

Dr Peter Lawler is not your typical academic.

Having grown-up in Essex to Irish immigrant parents, he failed his A-levels in the late 1960s, and became a gardener for the local council.

“I went to school and it went downhill from there,” he smiles. “I did my A-levels and I bombed them. I think being stoned and tripping in school probably had something to do with it.”

Peter, who is now a senior lecturer in International Relations at the University of Manchester, then decided to go to teacher training college; but that didn’t work out.

“I went up with my best mate Terry for an interview [at what is now Nottingham Trent University] and I walked in and after about ten minutes a bunch of Rugby players walked by. I looked at Terry and thought ‘nah’ and we went home. My parents went mad.”

It wasn’t until Peter moved to a kibbutz in Israel in search of “sun and women” that he really became interested in politics.

“I used to go on demonstrations in 1973 and 1974 in the West Bank against the emerging settler movement,” he says. “Then my ex-wife [who he met on the kibbutz] said ‘you’re an under-educated smart-arse’. So I applied to do Hebrew and Politics at SOAS and got rejected. Then I applied to Lanchester Polytechnic (now Coventry University) in 1977 and got in.”

At Lanchester, Lawler’s love of politics really blossomed. “I became a politics junkie,” he explains. “I got involved in student politics, and I regularly stayed up until 3am reading everything! I loved it.”

Peter then applied to do a Masters in International Relations at the London School of Economics and came top of his year, later writing a PhD in Australia; and then, more recently, taking up his position at Manchester.

I ask him if he thinks it’s possible for young people to follow his path into academia, in terms of leaving school with few qualifications and returning to education as a mature student. He seems doubtful.

“There’s no doubt that the world in which I’ve made my slightly unusual path is different to the world now. And I cannot say, nor would I have the arrogance to say: ‘why don’t you do what I did, take seven years off’; because economic circumstances are very different.”

A BBC report from January of last year found that the graduate unemployment rate was at its highest point in over a decade; while the number of 16-24 year-olds without a job passed the 1 million mark in 2011.

This is in stark contrast to the late 1960s and early 1970s when, such was the availability of work; Peter was able to turn down a job at a bakery because he didn’t want to cut his long hair.

Meanwhile, just a week ago a cross-party committee of MPs warned that British people’s employment chances are increasingly governed by their school days. Their report found that today’s 40-somethings have less chance of rising up the class-system than those who were born in the 1950s. Peter Lawler’s generation, in other words.

Lawler says that the move away from the traditional admissions process toward the Ucas style system used by the vast majority of English universities, has meant that bright students from disadvantaged backgrounds find it harder to differentiate themselves from other, less intelligent candidates who have better grades.

“You apply here [the University of Manchester] with your grades and you get in or you don’t get in. We don’t interview people anymore,” he says, before making a startling claim. “Paradoxically you’ve got a better shot, if you’ve got a rough story, at Oxford or Cambridge. I mean in terms of having your story heard at all. Because how is it going to be heard here?!”

Like most people involved in higher education, Lawler is also concerned about the impact of fee rises on the number of students attending university.

Taking into account changes in the British population, the number of applications to the University declined by 11 percent for 2012/13, when fees are set to go up £9,000 a year. Lawler envisages more students staying at home, and therefore missing out on what he sees as the “rite of passage” of going to a university away from your home town. He also worries that the quality of a degree will be increasingly determined by how much it costs.

“Manchester can’t discount its fees because what will that say?! We’ll either look desperate or cheap,” he argues. “And so you’re going to get this view that if it’s expensive, it’s probably good.”

But despite his fears over fee rises, Peter seems determined to look on the bright side; stating that rising fees should mean rising teaching standards.

He describes how in recent years, Manchester has become “obsessed” with the National Student Survey, which measures how satisfied students are with their course; with Vice Chancellor Nancy Rothwell recently sending out a recent message to academics: “if you think you’ve come to Manchester just to do research you should get a job elsewhere.” And he is clearly enthused by a new project he’s setting up with the university aimed at promoting interdisciplinary learning.

The University College for Interdisciplinary Learning, of which Peter is the Academic Director, will open this summer and starting from next year it will offer undergraduates the chance to take courses outside their degree programme.

Next year there will be around 10-15 level 2 courses on offer, and in the future the aim is for students to take up 30 credits worth of interdisciplinary courses during their time at university. The medical school have already decided to make it compulsory for their students to take an interdisciplinary in order to make them “more rounded intellectuals”.

Dr Lawler sees more and more universities starting interdisciplinary style courses in the future. Perhaps this is due to a growing realisation that, for most employers, a single degree isn’t enough; but also, as Lawler points out, because they offer students the chance to improve their skills in areas they aren’t comfortable in.

“In the social sciences and the humanities students generally have poor numeracy and don’t like numbers. And if you put up a course called ‘statistics’, your enrolment is going to be zero,” says Peter. “But the statisticians want to put on a course called ‘Figuring out the World’. So it’s a way of smuggling statistics in to get arts and humanities students to show them that numbers can say interesting things.

“The idea is that your choice of course is not determined by your programme, but simply by desire,” he adds. “So if you are doing biochemistry and you’ve always wanted to do something on international politics, there’s a course available and you can do it.”

How to resemble a decent human being when you’re failing at life

Like many of my beloved peers, I currently spend most of my time eating every carb ever, weeping alone, and accidental napping all over the place. Yes, it’s that sexy time of year: the dissertation / coursework / exam hell that causes you to beg for your own spontaneous combustion. Chances are your body is now mostly composed of sugar, caffeine, and fear, which – combined with the inevitable sleep deprivation and shower frequency failure – probably means you mostly resemble some form of detritus.

Cue endeavour to cheat the system and look respectable in a bid to disguise from others the true lunacy that lurks inside your banshee soul. So, next time you look in the mirror and want to throw your computer at your reflection and use the broken shards to cut your books up into tiny smithereens and then throw the carnage up in the air singing, “AYOOOOO, I’LL GET A ZEEEEERO!”, try some of these products for a quick shortcut to pretend dignity:

1. Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer, £27

Skip moisturiser and foundation and just slather this baby all over your face for hydration and sheer coverage on the go. Oil-free yet luxurious, this product gives a luminous glow, contains natural ingredients, and has been proven to improve skin tone and brightness in four weeks. Plus, it’s parabens-free and contains SPF 30.

2. Benefit Boi-ing Industrial-Strength Concealer, £16.50

For the inevitable excess of blemishes and under-eye circles darker than the blackened hollows of your horrible heart.

3. Stila All Over Shimmer Liquid Luminizer, £14

Apply to the inner corners of the eyes, bridge of the nose, and Cupid’s bow to help contour the face and look more awake. Alternatively, mix with tinted moisturiser / foundation for an all-over glow of falsehood.

4. M.A.C. Matte Lipstick in “Russian Red”,

Whether you’re on your own in need of a pick-me-up because you destroyed all the coffee (I can’t be the only one who usually emerges from essay / revision sessions covered in glitter) or you have to do the unthinkable and endure public social company, the perfect red lipstick is an easy way to look like you’ve made an effort, feign sophistication, and add a splash of colour to your otherwise dreary life, all in one swipe.

5. Topshop Nail Polish, £6

Speaking of colour, invest in a kaleidoscope of nail lacquer for an instant, easily changeable, yet subtle method of shiny self-expression.