Gair Rhydd

Semi-election

How the Cardiff Students’ Union by-elections were won...

Cardiff Students’ Union will be running in full swing soon after the election of six non-sabbatical officers to CUSU’s Executive Committee.

The elections saw three competitive races with an especially tense battle for Health and Welfare support officer that saw no candidate reach the quota to win outright.

Mona Lisa’s Secrets Unveiled

The secrets of the Mona Lisa have been revealed after French technology unveiled eyebrows and eyelashes on the painting.

Pascal Cotte, a French scientist and inventor of the ‘multispectral’ camera, announced the true hairiness of Leonardo da Vinci’s original masterpiece.

No to gays?

Union launches investigation after gay student told to stop kissing boyfriend in Solus

Leigh Crabtree, a Southampton Solent University student, and his boyfriend had decided to visit Cardiff University Students’ Union (CUSU) having heard ‘good things’ about its Friday nights.

But their evening was cut short when a security steward allegedly asked them to stop kissing by the dance floor.

‘Mickey Mouse’ courses on the rise

gair rhydd reporter Kate Budd asks Cardiff students: Is it worthwhile to study computer games at university?

The number of students choosing university courses in computer games is on the rise, despite criticisms that it could be seen as a ‘mickey mouse’ subject.

University applicants can now choose from up to 255 different courses related to computer games across the UK, including ‘Computer Games Development’ at the University of Glamorgan and ‘Mobile, Web & Game Design’ at UWIC.

Lager Lifeguards

Students are to act as ‘lager lifeguards’ in an attempt to curb alcohol related accidents, a leading paramedic has proposed.

Working in close association with the ‘Know Your Limits’ campaign, Steve Evans, a paramedic of 36 years, has highlighted the safety risks to students and those around them when on drunken nights out.

Engineering for Ecuador

A Cardiff student has stepped up to the challenge and used his degree skills for a worthy cause

A Cardiff University student is on a mission to improve lives after securing an Engineering placement in Ecuador.

Engineering student Mark Stanko, who worked in Ecuador during the summer, fought off 200 other applicants for his place on the Engineers Without Borders (EWB) scheme.

Stadium Success

Having played host to The Rolling Stones, Stereophonics, and U2, Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium has been named one of the top three concert venues in the world by an industry expert.

Amsterdam Arena and Paris’ Stade de France, the venue for the recent Rugby World Cup final, were the other venues noted with this accolade from Phil Bowdery, vice president of touring for Live Nation – one of the world’s largest concert promoters.

Xpress denied

Student radio station to miss out on an FM licence because of local competition

The creation of the new commercial radio station XFM South Wales has seen an FM license taken away from Xpress.

Cardiff University’s award-winning station usually goes on FM for four weeks a year, under what is known as a Restricted Service Licence (RSL).

Student minister appointed

With 2.3 million currently attending UK universities, students are set to have their own new government minister and a national forum to influence university policy.

Lord Triesman, the first to take up this ministerial role, will provide a direct link from the student body to parliament as he chairs a new student forum, which will include representatives from the National Union of Students (NUS) and National Bureau for Students with Disabilities.

Lights, Camera, Action

Students are being given the opportunity to broadcast footage of their sports teams to universities across the country.

This comes after the development of www.sub.tv, which allows university teams to upload and share videos of themselves to the entire screen network. This network consists of some 700 screens across 95 universities in the UK.

RAG raid Cheltenham

Cardiff University Raising and Giving (RAG) took to the streets of Cheltenham last week for their first raid of the year.

The society raised over £300, which is being donated to the National Star College in Cheltenham.

Students called to speak their minds

In a new move the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) for Higher Education is giving students the opportunity to really have their voices heard.

The QAA promotes and maintains the quality and standards in universities and colleges throughout the UK, and has always considered the student voice to be important.

Downing it

Students are opting for orgasms as their drink of choice, a recent survey has revealed.

A cocktail-making website conducted a Facebook poll during Freshers’ Week to determine the student’s most popular drink, with the Screaming Orgasm cocktail coming top.

Cardiff University burning the money

One million pound funding gives burns research bright future

One million pounds is being donated to Cardiff University’s newly created Centre for Burns Research.

The money is being given by The Vocational Training Charitable Trust (VTCT), an awarding body offering NVQs in Hairdressing, Beauty Therapy, Complimentary and Holistic Therapies.

Terrorist Hotspot

International student, Mariyam Thomas, considers the number of terrorist attacks back home and questions whether the West overlook their impact and extent

India is one of the countries worst affected by the treacherous hands of terrorism, coming second only to Iraq, a death toll released recently in Mumbai has revealed.

A grand total of in excess of 47,000 people were killed as a result of terrorist violence during 1994-2005.

Reggae rhythms promoting peace

With an increasing number of reggae bars on the Ivory Coast, the musical influence looks set to provide hope in the country’s progression towards peace.

In the Ivory Coast, violent conflict between the New Forces rebels and President Gbagbo has been part of daily life ever since the breakdown of peace agreements in 2004.