news 2011

Health Cath Harris | 24 Feb 11 A novel way of finding people to take part in a new study of dementia is being employed by researchers from the universities of Oxford and London. The Oxford Project to Investigate Memory and Aging ( OPTIMA) and the Centre for Stroke and Dementia Research at St Georges , University of London, will host stands at the Who Do You Think You Are?

Launched as a reaction to the lack of outlets for challenging contemporary writing, a Cambridge-based journal is finding favour in the very places it aims to be the antidote for. One year on from its birth and with the fifth issue soon to be released, the Cambridge Literary Review continues to gain prominence, with a strong write up in the Times Literary Supplement and copies on sale in the Tate Modern bookshop amongst others.

Art historian joins BBC antiques show in Brighton University of Sussex art history research student Alexandra Loske has graduated from behind-the-scenes advisor to on-screen expert with an appearance on BBC show The Antiques Road Trip . The show, a spin-off from the perennially popular Antiques Roadshow , has begun its second series, with Alexandra appearing in the Brighton episode, where she shares her insights into rare and beautiful objects in Brighton's Royal Pavilion.

Early humans may have preferred the fox to the dog as an animal companion, new archaeological findings suggest. Researchers analysing remains at a prehistoric burial ground in Jordan have uncovered a grave in which a fox was buried with a human, before part of it was then transferred to an adjacent grave.

PA21/11 The Vikings are alive and well and living in the North West of England! That's the revelation in a new book on an epic research project into the genetic footprint of the Scandinavian invaders. 'Viking DNA: The Wirral and West Lancashire Project' is the culmination of several years of research by Wirral-raised Professor Steve Harding from the University of Nottingham, Professor Mark Jobling and Dr Turi King from the University of Leicester, and many other collaborators.

Planck unveils wonders of the Universe Astronomers reveal galaxy clusters and distant cold objects from space. Adapted from a news release issued by the UK Space Agency Monday 17 December 2010 Scientists working on Europe's Planck spacecraft have released the mission's first new findings this week in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics , revealing the coldest objects in the Universe in greater detail than ever before.

New research has uncovered a forgotten chapter in the history of the Bible, offering a rare glimpse of Byzantine Jewish life and culture. The study by the Centre for Computing in the Humanities (CCH) at King's College London, in collaboration with Cambridge University researchers, suggests that, contrary to long-accepted views, Jews continued to use a Greek version of the Bible in synagogues for centuries longer than previously thought.