Gair Rhydd

Rank Injustice

Cardiff University has dramatically slipped from number 99 to 133 in the list of the top 200 universities in the world according to the Times Higher Education – QS World University Rankings.

The list was published in the Times Higher Education Supplement last Thursday and has evoked mixed reactions on both sides of the Atlantic, with many fearing the newly-released information spells bad news for UK universities in general and highlights the problem of under-funding in British higher education.

To infinity and beyond

A Swiss airline pilot has crossed the English Channel in 13 minutes – with the help of four turbine engines and a wing made of fibreglass.

Yves Rossy sped across the channel at 125mph after jumping from a plane that was hovering over France before the turbine engines powered him to the English coast.

Flight of the penguins

Penguins rescued by air force planes

Hundreds of penguins that migrated to Brazil’s coastline have been brought back home by air force planes.

The birds, whose natural habitat is in the South Atlantic Ocean, migrate north every year in search of food.

Ukraine snd txts in 2 space

Messages have been sent to a planet 20 light years from Earth in a recent attempt to contact intelligent alien life.

At least 501 pictures, drawings and text messages have been collected through a competition by the social networking website Bebo, and trasmitted through radio waves by a giant telescope in Ukraine.

Discounts dismissed by prudent students

New research has revealed that student discounts have grown increasingly irrelevant to hard up students.

According to Zebra Technologies, 54% of students polled claimed they would rather have discount on their food and transport costs, rather than the current selection of luxury goods such as clothes and CDs.

Free education: now in circulation

A campaign set up by the UK Youth Parliament to abolish tuition fees has reached a new level this week, as protestors have sent over 9,000 anti tuition-fee pound coins into circulation in the House of Commons at Westminster.

The coins bear stickers stating ‘Free For All’ in a bid to emphasise concerns about the mounting financial pressure experienced by undergraduate students as a consequence of tuition fees, which may now be as high as £3,145 per academic year.

Free drugs for all, says Welsh Assembly

The Welsh Assembly Government has denied claims that it is planning to end free prescriptions.

Free prescriptions in Wales have been employed since April 2007 and have been deemed a success by the Assembly Government.

Cardiff residents left in the dark

A councillor has declared that residents in Cardiff are being left in the dark due to the inadequate length of time being taken to repair streetlights.

Councillor Ramesh Patel said: “Fast repair times are essential as crimes are more likely to be committed in poorly lit areas.”

Diabetes study underway

A study coordinated by Cardiff University has recruited children with the newly diagnosed type one diabetes.

The research project, funded by Diabetes UK, aims to investigate whether is it best to immediately admit sufferers to hospital on diagnosis or begin initial management from home.

Huw's home to host anniversary concert

Cardiff is set to be the centre of attention as celebrities from the world of opera, music and media come together in a gala concert to mark the University’s 125th anniversary year.

Internationally renowned Welsh opera singers, Dennis O’Neill and Rebecca Evans will be two of the headline performers at the event, which will be held on Sunday October 19 at the Wales Millennium Centre.

Proposed fee shake up may leave the Welsh worse off

Welsh students studying in Welsh universities could soon find themselves out of pocket.

A report has recommended that the Welsh Assembly Government’s subsidisation of fees for Welsh students should be scrapped, meaning that students living in Wales will have to pay the full cost of tuition fees.

Man arrested in Great Hall drugs bust

A wild night at Cardiff Students’ Union has led to an arrest.

On Saturday October 4 a suspect was arrested on suspicion of possessing large quantities of a Class A drug.

Former Irish President to talk on human rights

Ireland’s former President, Mary Robinson, is coming to Cardiff to present a lecture.

She will talk on ‘Ethical globalization – a challenge for the 21st century’ a lecture focusing on challenges facing ‘a global society and the need to position human rights at the heart of governments and policy-making’.

Vocational qualifications worry

Vocational qualifications are not good preparation for university it has been revealed in a new study

Students with A-levels have a higher chance of being accepted by top universities, than those with vocational backgrounds, research has shown.


A study carried out by the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) found that not only are vocational students less likely to attend the UK’s leading universities, but are also more likely to under perform academically and drop out, than those with traditional A-levels.

Graduate grief over loans

Graduates face tough times to come as they struggle to repay their student loans.

From higher inflation rates to the credit crunch crisis, the student loan cannot be classed as ‘cheap’.