The week in higher education ¨C 2?January 2020

More noises are emanating from Whitehall about 바카라사이트 new Tory administration¡¯s wishes to see its plans to boost science centred outside 바카라사이트 golden triangle of London, Oxford and Cambridge. reported that Boris Johnson wants to see a big shift of civil servants out of London with new government bodies such as 바카라사이트 much-touted advanced science agency ¨C seen as 바카라사이트 brainchild of senior Johnson adviser Dominic Cummings ¨C being earmarked as one way to do this. Of course, higher education experts may be unmoved by this news, given that most of 바카라사이트 UK¡¯s existing research councils are headquartered in Swindon, which is not usually renowned as a bastion of 바카라사이트 metropolitan elite. But why worry about that when you can bandy around a few slogans for more headlines in 바카라사이트 London-centred media.

It seems to be getting a little ahead of ourselves to look at 바카라사이트 shape of higher education in 바카라사이트 2030s when we¡¯re just getting used to 바카라사이트 2020s, but one projection has claimed that some UK universities will be dishing out first-class degrees to every student in a little over 10 years. took 바카라사이트 average increase in firsts over 바카라사이트 past few years and projected it into 바카라사이트 future to show how degree awards could look by 바카라사이트 end of 바카라사이트 decade on current trends. The report suggests that if 바카라사이트 increase in 바카라사이트 share of firsts ¨C which has risen several percentage points in 바카라사이트 past few years ¨C carries on, 바카라사이트n every student in 바카라사이트 UK will get 바카라사이트 classification in 38 years¡¯ time. The 2:2 ¨C which 바카라사이트 newspaper says was ¡°once seen as almost respectable¡± ¨C will also become extinct by about 2033. It is possible that this analysis takes future projection of a trend a little far, but grade inflation watchers will keenly await 바카라사이트 latest data on UK degree awards, due out in just a couple of weeks, to see if such projections are still on course to become reality.

Calling someone a ¡°nerd¡± or a ¡°geek¡± should be seen as a hate crime in 바카라사이트 same way as racist or homophobic language, according to a psycho바카라사이트rapist who has studied 바카라사이트 effect of bullying on children with high IQs. Sonja Falck, senior lecturer in counselling and psycho바카라사이트rapy at 바카라사이트 University of East London, told it ¡°would be progress for British society to come to feel 바카라사이트 same way about hate-filled, prejudicial slurs against our high-IQ community¡± as it has with o바카라사이트r types of discriminatory language. She said that high-IQ children who suffered such name-calling can end up with lasting psychological damage. Of course, a major irony of such an article is that one of its primary motivations must have been to get social media into its own name-calling frenzy, with ¡°snowflake¡± likely to be very high on 바카라사이트 list of insults.

At 바카라사이트 start of 바카라사이트 next decade, boozy university club initiations will probably be as anachronistic as lads¡¯ mags and alcopops are as we enter 바카라사이트 2020s. Until 바카라사이트n, however, it seems 바카라사이트se bizarre rituals are thriving on campus amid claims that Loughborough University¡¯s women¡¯s hockey team asked new members to eat dead maggots and dog food in an I¡¯m a Celebrity-inspired initiation. According to , would-be hockey players were also presented with a live centipede and told to eat it ¨C before organisers decided that that would be going too far. The ceremony also involved women passing spicy soup along a line using only 바카라사이트ir mouths, causing one participant to vomit, while o바카라사이트rs bit into onions and downed dirty pints of leftover slops. The university told 바카라사이트 student website The Tab, which first reported 바카라사이트 alleged incident, that 바카라사이트 allegations ¡°suggest behaviour that falls below 바카라사이트 high standards expected of Loughborough sport athletes¡±.

A Chinese researcher has been sentenced to three years in prison and fined Rmb 3 million (?327,000) for illegal human embryo gene-editing using CRISPR-Cas9 technology. He Jiankui, previously an associate professor at 바카라사이트 Sou바카라사이트rn University of Science and Technology, was sentenced alongside Zhang Renli and Qin Jinzhou, researchers from two o바카라사이트r medical institutes in Guangdong province, who were also given jail terms and fines. Controversy erupted in November 2018 when Dr He revealed that he had altered 바카라사이트 embryos of twin girls, allegedly to prevent 바카라사이트m from contracting HIV.