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News archive

December 2022

Businesses need more guidance to protect and restore the natural world

The majority of UK businesses have plans to address their impact on biodiversity and nature loss, but a lack of guidance and sharing of best practice are barriers to progress, a new report reveals.

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Reliable planning tool for the emissions path to achieving the Paris temperature goal

Researchers have developed a new method for the successive calculation of the emission reductions which are necessary for achieving temperature targets, such as the 2°C goal.

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Underwater footage reveals sharks’ flexible feeding skills

Underwater cameras have revealed the impressive range of skills nurse sharks use when feeding.

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World Aids Day: Crowdfunder launched for lifesaving research into deadly meningitis in HIV

A new University of Exeter crowdfunder has been launched in time for World Aids Day (Thursday December 1), to fund vital research and education aimed at stopping all deaths from a form of meningitis that is deadly to those living with HIV by 2030.

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University of Exeter supports Estranged Student Solidarity Week

The University of Exeter has supported Estranged Student Solidarity Week with a pledge to continue to provide wellbeing and financial support for students who are separated from their families.

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Rhino conservation in Nepal creates a burden for communities, infrastructure and other species, study warns

Efforts to conserve rhinos in Nepal have put a burden on communities, infrastructure and other wildlife in Nepal, a new study warns.

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Let the patient choose their type 2 diabetes medication says research study

A largescale new study offers a new approach to treating in type 2 diabetes - that puts patients in charge of their own medication. 

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Modified CVs can help working mothers mind the employment gap

New research explores practical ways to overcome the bias faced by job seekers as they try to re-enter the workforce following a career break.

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Academics unite to call for action on reducing pollution from pharmaceuticals

Academics from across the University of Exeter and other universities and industry sector call for action on reducing pharmaceutical pollution.

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Innovative Exeter Nursing Students Art exhibition on display at St Luke’s Campus

Visitors are invited to a fascinating exhibition on the 14th of December which debuts original artworks created by undergraduate students from the University of Exeter’s Academy of Nursing.

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Arts and humanities vital in national crises concludes COVID‐19 pandemic report

National research project unique in depth, breath and focus, delivers its report on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the role that arts and humanities research had on social inclusion and national wellbeing.

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Exeter joins new Nature Positive Universities Alliance

The University of Exeter is among the members of the new Nature Positive Universities Alliance, launched today at the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) in Montreal.

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University of Exeter sixth in People & Planet League

The University of Exeter has moved up to sixth place in a league table that ranks UK universities on sustainability and ethics.

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People respond more intuitively to spoken language and more analytically when reading

Opinion poll or survey results could potentially change depending on whether respondents are provided with spoken or written information, new research suggests. 

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Mental health support for farmers needs radical overhaul, say researchers

Mental health services in rural areas need urgent attention to ensure the needs of farmers are properly met, according to researchers.

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Connecting Late Antiquities: new project launched to create digital resources to aid research into one of history’s most iconic eras

The fall of the Roman Empire will be the focus of the two-year AHRC-funded project bringing together Exeter, University of London and the University of Bonn.

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New research finds that social group values are most readable in the way we write

Linguistic style can offer a clearer insight into the value and principles of a social group compared to what they say about themselves.

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£2.4million to fund largest-ever trial of ketamine-assisted therapy for alcohol disorder

A new £2.4 million phase III trial delivered across seven NHS sites across the UK will investigate whether ketamine-assisted therapy could help alcoholics stay off alcohol for longer.

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Fossil site reveals giant arthropods dominated the seas 470 million years ago

Discoveries at a major new fossil site in Morocco suggest giant arthropods – relatives of modern creatures including shrimps, insects and spiders – dominated the seas 470 million years ago.

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New study finds logged tropical forests are surprisingly vibrant and need protection

Logging affects many of the world’s tropical forests, and such forests are often considered degraded because they have lost vegetation structure, biomass and carbon stocks.

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University academic wins prestigious national book prize for ‘provocative’ analysis of God

God: An Anatomy, written by Francesca Stavrakopoulou, Professor of Hebrew Bible and Ancient Religion, has won the PEN Hessell-Tiltman Prize 2022.

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£1 million NIHR funding for new Exeter blood pressure research initiative

A million-pound grant from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) will fund ground-breaking research that aims to deepen knowledge about blood pressure in older people, with a view to identifying disease earlier.

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Children and young people need lessons in building strong relationships to counteract negative role models and “Disneyfied” portrayals of love, experts say

Children should get lessons in school on how to build strong relationships to counteract negative role models and any “Disneyfied” portrayals of love they are exposed to, experts have said.

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Heat network customers need action now to protect them from “devastating” unregulated price rises and reliability issues

Heat network customers need action now to protect them from the potentially devastating consequences of unregulated price rises and reliability issues, an expert has warned.

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Fastest British woman in history Dina Asher-Smith awarded honorary doctorate by the University of Exeter

Around 2,400 students from 94 countries who have studied 371 programmes will graduate during nine ceremonies this week.

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Plastic pollution kills sea urchin larvae

Sea urchin larvae raised in high levels of plastic pollution die due to developmental abnormalities, new research shows.

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Economic behaviour not influenced by gender or biological sex, study finds

Gender and sex assigned at birth are not as decisive in economic decision-making as previously thought, a new study finds.

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Harmful fungal toxins in wheat: A growing threat across Europe

Harmful fungal toxins are on the rise in Europe’s wheat and affect almost half of crops, according to a new study.

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Ultra-strong ‘threads’ made of proteins help tiny organisms live in boiling acid

Scientists have discovered a new chain-like structure that helps single-celled organisms survive in the sulfur-rich hot acid springs of Yellowstone National Park in the USA. 

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Former Exeter student named on list of 50 trailblazing women working to create a better world

A University of Exeter Business School graduate was named on the prestigious Women of The Future list published by the Financial Times.

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Sir Michael Barber to chair work to improve life prospects across the South-West

Sir Michael Barber, a world-renowned expert on government delivery, will chair the newly created South-West Social Mobility Commission, it was announced today.

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The University of Exeter unveils exciting plans to build new Multi-Faith Centre at Streatham Campus

Plans to build a new, purpose built Multi-Faith Centre on Streatham Campus at the University of Exeter have been approved by Exeter City Council this month.

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Chinese Communist Party zero-covid “volunteers” have suffered from stress and anxiety, study shows

“Volunteers” tasked with enforcing the Chinese Communist Party’s zero-covid policies have suffered from stress and anxiety, a new study shows.

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“Robust” amendments to insurance law and international environmental law needed to allow carbon capture, utilisation and storage

“Robust” amendments to insurance law and international environmental law are needed to allow carbon capture, utilisation and storage to take place legally so the technology can be used in the fight against global warming, a new study says.

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Overshooting climate targets could significantly increase risk for tipping cascades

Temporarily overshooting climate targets of 1.5-2°C could increase the tipping risk of several Earth system elements by more than 70%, a new risk analysis shows.

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Scientists turn to astrophysics to measure body clock in hospital patients

An interdisciplinary team led by University of Manchester scientists has adapted a technique originally developed to analyse data from stars to devise a way of accurately measuring the human body clock in hospital patients.

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Penalties, corruption and legislation are failing to deter harmful gas flaring in Nigeria, study shows

Legislation is failing to end gas flaring in Nigeria which is harming the environment and people’s health, a new study warns.

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Medieval doctors thought fertility suddenly ended rather than slowly declining with age, study shows

Medieval doctors saw fertility as having a cut-off point rather than slowly declining with age, ancient medical texts show

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Former football manager with motor neurone disease appeals for others to take part in research

A dentist and former football manager whose life has changed dramatically since his ALS diagnosis has appealed with others who have the disease to join him in a new brain imaging study to help the race to find new treatments.

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