The TopUniversities.com guide to the latest university news from around the world, on 12 August 2013.
UK: The UK's top universities say A-level reforms will reduce access
A survey of 22 of the UK's top universities reveals that almost 67% oppose A-level reforms, reports The Independent. The reforms by Education Secretary Michael Gove will be introduced in 2015 and will include scrapping a subsidiary level qualification (AS level) as credit toward an A-level. The university leaders said this will be likely to reduce access to higher education. The Department for Education had previously said that “the reforms will raise standards and that leading universities are backing Mr Gove”.
Australia: University of Wollongong wins international renewable energy competition
A team from the University of Wollongong in Australia has won an international renewable energy competition called the Solar Decathlon with its design of a zero-emissions house, reports ABC News. Although the competition was hosted in Datong, China, the winning team’s project manager, Lloyd Niccol, said that “it's definitely practical to retrofit homes in Australia” in a similar way. The team demonstrated through their design how a home built in the 1950s could be modernized and made to generate more energy than it consumes, by retrofitting a fibro cottage with modifications including the removal of asbestos cladding and the addition of double glazing and solar panels.
Australia: University of Sydney research concludes iPhone ECG app can prevent strokes
The University of Sydney has researched the AliveCor Heart Monitor for iPhone (iECG), and has concluded that it is a quick and cheap way to detect heart rhythm problems and prevent strokes, reports New Zealand Doctor. The research into the special iPhone case and accompanying app was presented at the Australia and New Zealand Cardiac Society conference on the Gold Coast, with senior author Professor Ben Freedman saying: “The iECG allows us to screen patients for atrial fibrillation in minutes, and treat people early”. It can be used in pharmacies, and receptionists are using it to record an iECG before patients see their doctor. The research was funded by grants from BMS/Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Bayer, and the National Heart Foundation provided a scholarship to lead researcher Nicole Lowres.
Canada: Unmanned Vehicle University teams up with International Test Pilot School
Unmanned Vehicle University (UVU) in Phoenix, Arizona and International Test Pilot School (ITPS) in Ontario, Canada have agreed to team up in “a first in the world” civil and military Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) flight test training program, reports Canadian Skies. UVU provides degrees in Unmanned Systems Engineering, and ITPS trains test pilots and flight test engineers. ITPS President Giorgio Clementi said that it is also “essential that ITPS graduate flight testers...be Subject Matter Experts in Unmanned Aircraft Systems test and evaluation” – training that UVU will provide. The two institutions will provide training programs to industry and approved air forces.