Gair Rhydd

No faith in humanties

Humanities and Welsh courses threatened by proposals

A campaign has been launched by staff and students to save the humanities at Cardiff University’s Centre for Lifelong Learning after proposals threatened over 2,000 Cardiff University students’ studies and up to 140 jobs.

Staff were informed two weeks ago of plans to cut the courses available across the Centre as a result of a pay restructuring. The cuts would reduce courses on offer to just three areas: social science (including business), computing, and modern languages.

Calvin Harris and Beardyman join best ever Summer Ball line-up

Calvin Harris and Beardyman are the latest additions to Cardiff University’s Summer Ball 2009 stellar line-up.

Harris has had multiple hits including Acceptable In The 80’s and the collaboration with Dizzee Rascal Dance Wiv Me which enjoyed massive success last summer.

Students discover squatter in their shed

A group of sunbathing first-year students were shocked to discover a homeless lodger living in the garden shed of their student house.

The students were making the most of the hot weather on Tuesday 21 April when they discovered items belonging to a mystery guest after they looked in their garden shed.

Crime in Cardiff at all-time low

New police figures have shown that crime in South Wales has halved over the last 18 years and is continuing to fall.

The new data released on April 21 2009 shows an overall reduction in crime of 7.6%, meaning there were 2,427 fewer victims of crime in South Wales during October and December 2008 than in the same period the previous year.

Lacrosse record-breakers

Cardiff University’s Lacrosse Team have broken the record for longest lacrosse match, playing for a total of 21 hours.

The male and female Lacrosse Club teams played separately against a team of Lacrosse Alumni, with both men and women breaking the record.

Cardiff students abduct themselves

Students from Cardiff and Wales abducted themselves outside Cardiff University’s Main Building on 25 April to raise awareness of the humanitarian crisis in Uganda and the many children who have been abducted.

Approximately 100 students marched from the Millennium Stadium to the Main Building where they waited until someone ‘rescued’ them.

Student volunteers help cut crime by 40%

The South Wales Police Student Initiative was out in force last week to raise awareness of crime against students and help to prevent further incidents.

Every month, the group of student volunteers canvass the Cathays area in search of unlocked doors to highlight the relative ease that burglars have in attaining access to student houses.

Students ask: 'Is it worth it?'

With the cost of higher education rising and student debt spiralling, many students are beginning to question whether university is worth it.

A recent government survey has found over half of all students believe that their academic performance was affected by increasing money worries and one in twelve full-time students have even considered dropping out because of it.

Carrot Crunch

Many students have taken to growing their own fruit and vegetables as a way of saving money in the current financial crisis.

At the University of Gloucestershire, environmental policy and management MSc student Sarah Taylor set up the University’s first Allotment Society last September, managing to secure a gardening plot suitable for fellow students to grow an enormous range of fruit and vegetables.

SIFE semi-final success

Cardiff University’s SIFE (Students in Free Enterprise) team reached the semi-finals at SIFE’s national competition held in Canary Wharf, London.

The team, who this year have completed a number of projects including the setting up of a highly successful fruit and vegetable co-operative in the Students’ Union, beat other teams including Leeds University to collect a trophy.

Union Watch

Emma Jones rounds up the week in student media

Varsity covers the nudes

A Cambridge University student has posed topless in a student newspaper mock-up of The Sun’s Page 3.

Glow in the bark

A research team from Seoul National University have unveiled the world’s first cloned dogs which glow red under ultraviolet light due to them being implanted with modified genes.

The researchers planted red fluorescent genes into the four beagles hoping to prove that it is possible to implant genes with a specific trait which could be used to help treat humans with diseases such as Parkinson’s.

Boots not boobs

Voters in the Swiss Alps have passed legislation banning naked hiking, after dozens of German nudists started rambling through their picturesque region.

Citizens in the state of Appenzell Inner Rhodes voted at their open-air assembly to impose a 200 Swiss franc (£119) fine on offenders.

Artsy Nazi

What are thought to be Adolf Hitler’s earliest paintings have been sold for a total of £95,000 at an auction last week.

Stored in a garage, the paintings were left forgotten until specialist auctioneers Mullock’s picked them up.