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Faculty of Life Sciences and Computing
Issue 26
February 2015
Edited by Preeti Patel
FLSC
It is with great sadness that we mourn the passing away
of our colleague Tony Royce.
Tony was utterly dedicated to teaching and to his students. Before coming to London Met, he also taught at City
and Islington College, and lived locally in Edmonton. His
passion was systems analysis, but he also taught information systems, database and management support systems. He wrote three textbooks (one on C, pictured, and
two on COBOL).
One of his ex-students sums up the gratitude of students
with this message "It is really sad news. Tony taught us, the students how to
learn there and then. His lectures were interactive. His style was no lecture
notes. He would make us learn everything we needed during the class and
with the chapters we were told to read. He would ask us questions every
time even during the lecturers so we had to be always prepared. We were
drawing diagrams and learning on the daily basis during the class. He would
repeat the same questions so eventually everybody could have their own answers and combine it with the fellow students' ones and that made us learn
by heart and with different views of the same problem. The exam was easy
because he taught us and prepared us very well. We learnt a lot with him and
I am delighted to have had the opportunity to be his student."
Tony is remembered for his easy-going manner
and ready helpfulness to colleagues and students
and he is dearly missed by all.
For your Calendar
BCS Student Society event
Wednesday 18th February
TMG-83
5pm onwards
Student Horizon Conference
Wednesday 18th March
TM1-83
9.30—4.30
Editor’s Note
Contributions are welcome from all areas of the Faculty—please send to
me by the middle of the month.
Preeti Patel
[email protected]
School of Computing
The scientific truth behind an old wives’ tale
Dr Ruth Ash, School of Human Sciences, had a letter published in the Telegraph on 10th February. The letter appears (and is copied from):
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/letters/
Salad days: a 19th-century still life by
the Belgian painter David Emile Joseph
de Noter (www.bridgemanart.com)
SIR – It is in fact true that carrots “allow you to see in the dark”.
The carotene pigment that gives them their orange colour is both an antioxidant and pre-vitamin A. Converted to vitamin A in the body it combines with the opsin protein found in the rods at the back of the retina to form the compound visual purple. It is this compound that is responsible for the detection of light.
Thus, the earliest clinical symptom of vitamin A deficiency is night blindness; the inability of the eye to adjust to dim light.
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Fiona meets Valli the Elephant
A recent edition (2997) of The New Scientist published an article (Lassie text home: Pooches get technological) about the design of technology for animals. Fiona French, School of Computing, (as part of her PhD with
the Open University) was one of the researchers interviewed about this topic, because of her work on designing playful environmental enrichment for elephants.
Fiona conducted an ethnographic
study of the elephants at Colchester
Zoo last year, and is currently preparing to do some fieldwork with
Valli, the temple elephant at Skanda
Vale Ashram in Wales. Over the
summer, she undertook a short
course in environmental enrichment
at Lakeview Monkey Sanctuary, making and testing toys for capuchins
and macaques.
Valli greets Fiona
"Playful behaviour is acknowledged to be an indication of good welfare in captive animals and the ability to have control over their environment significantly reduces stress. Toys and games offer the opportunity to engage in cognitively challenging yet rewarding activities that may alleviate the boredom associated with a captive lifestyle."
Fiona's research focuses on the use of technology to support the development of interactive multi-modal play (IMP) experiences using animalfriendly controls and feedback mechanisms. She is a PhD student in
the Animal Computer Interaction Lab at The Open University.
Fiona installing some toys in the
macaque enclosure at Lakeview
Monkey Sanctuary
Opal from Colchester Zoo having a postwash mudbath
Valli scrambling freely in the Welsh hills
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Posters in Parliament
London Metropolitan University has launched a project for Promoting and Disseminating Undergraduate
student Research (PADUR). This is a University-wide initiative with participants from every faculty of the
University, led by UG research project module leaders and supported by CELT.
A significant part of the initiative involves participating in external UG research events, the main one being
Posters in Parliament (PiP) which is organised by the British Conference of Undergraduate Research. The
event brings together undergraduate students from selected UK universities, to present their original research. It is a great opportunity for students to share research and ideas with those from other universities
across the UK.
This year Youssef Itani (Supervisor Dr
Nicholas Chatterton) from BSc Chemistry was selected by the PADUR panel to
represent London Met with his project
titled
‘Using Nanotechnology to Fabricate an
Ultra-Sensitive Ammonia Sensor’.
Youssef was a worthy contender and
was shortlisted for the top 5 posters,
losing out to the University of Aberdeen
and Oxford University.
Our Vice Chancellor, Professor John
Raftery, was at the Houses of Parliament event on Tuesday 10th February,
with Youssef and Dr Sundus Tewfik.
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Computer Science student up in the Sky
"My name is James McLaughlin, I am a 22 year old Computer Science student living in London. I've been studying/working with
Computing in various forms for around 9 years, I joined the University in 2012 as an undergraduate in Computer Science. The
course has given me a well-rounded foundation of skills and
knowledge which I plan to take into future employment.
I was recently accepted onto the Sky DevOps Graduate Scheme
based in Osterley, London. The DevOps are at the forefront of deployment and operational support of Sky’s ever expanding mobile
and interactive platforms/ventures.
I began applying for Graduate Schemes and opportunities at the
start of summer (after the 2nd year examinations). I applied for all
of the big companies as I knew that if I was given the chance to
show what I am capable of I would have as good a chance as anybody else. From experience, I noticed that the majority of the
Graduate Schemes relevant to Computing (Computer Science) students focus on Software Engineering and Development methodologies, rather than a focus purely on an applicant’s ability to reel
off code.
The scheme itself lasts for 7 months with a placement at Sky after the programme. Hopefully, after a
few years of industry experience I plan to move into a senior/managerial role within the development
sector up in the city."
VFX Festival
BSc Games Modelling, Animation and Effects
students at VFX Festival, Leicester Square
Students from all three years of the School of
Computing BSc Games Modelling, Animation
and Effects degree attended a VFX Enthusiasts Day at the Vue Cinema, Leicester Square, London to find out
more about this fast growing, creative, in-demand industry that is often seen in advertising, film and games.
They heard talks/presentations from some of the biggest names in the business (including London-based
Framestore, Moving Picture Company, Double Negative, and The Mill) as well as being able to talk to and get
tips from VFX, animation & games insiders at the Information Fair.
1st year student Chris Sheridan summed up the thoughts and feelings of many of those London Met students
who attended...
"Awesome day, very informative and inspiring talks from industry professionals and very insightful
into the actual workings of the VFX industry. Covered a huge array of aspects of the VFX industry and
answered lots of my questions."
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Another successful PhD award in Human Sciences
In January, research student Eva AmoakoAttah successfully defended her PhD thesis titled ‘Body composition measurement in African and Caribbean children and its relationship
with morbidity’. Eva’s PhD supervisor, Professor David McCarthy of the Public Health Nutrition Research Group commented that the
external examiners were hugely impressed
with the innovative body composition assessment tools that were generated from this research and strongly recommended that Eva
publish these new body composition centile
charts as soon as possible. Eva is currently
working as an A&E physician but hopes to
move into a more research focussed position in
the near future. Congratulations Eva!
Eva herself says,
“I find research as an avenue to contribute to
help society especially children. I enjoyed my
L-R: Supervisor Professor David McCarthy, Eva
study at London Met since I was fully supported by my ded- Amoako-Atta (PhD candidate), Dr. Lynne Boddy and
icated supervisor Prof David McCarthy as well as the entire Dr. Basma Ellahi (external examiners)
department. I plan to continue to practice medicine and use
my acquired knowledge from research to assist my patients to the best of my ability”.
The emerging 5G ecosystem
The Centre for Communications Technology in SoC has been instrumental in organising another high profile
IET Seminar on 5G Radio Technology. The seminar will bring together wireless industry R&D leaders from
operators, regulators, network and hardware vendors, and academia to address the challenges in 5G radio
technology in such areas as architecture, standards, spectrum, air interface, mmWave band and massive
MIMO antennas techniques. In addition to invited talks the event will feature a series of technical presentations and poster contributions submitted in the call for speakers.
Speakers include:
Dr Joe Butler, Director of Technology, OFCOM
Prof Mischa Dohler, King’s College London
Dr Maziar Nekovee, Samsung Electronics R&D Institute UK
Prof Rahim Tafazolli, Head of 5G Innovation Centre, University of Surrey
Andy Sutton, Principal Network Architect, EE
Prof William Webb, IET President
Date: 17 March 2015
Venue: Hallam Conference Centre, London, UK
Further details can be found at: http://conferences.theiet.org/5g/authorinformation/committee/index.cfm
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FLSC Graduate Interns
Seven bright FLSC graduates have been selected as a part of the university-wide graduate internship programme.
The interns work in all areas of the faculty and are undertaking a variety of tasks, and making an impact to
all three schools.
Mahdieh Allahdad works at the School of Psychology, and as a part of her role has organised a “Culture
Shock” event for the department, in addition to developing the Psychometric Library which holds all the
resources.
“Currently I am carrying out a literature review on
measures of trauma in young people as well as comprising a data bank for these measures which will be
available to anyone in the university who wishes to
use it. So far I am settling in really well into my role
and the transition from student to staff has been
smooth for me. I look forward for what this role has in
store for me in the near future,” shares Mahdieh.
There are two interns working at the School of Human Sciences, Neemat Aladejana and Zainab Rassoul. “We have
started a project called “Reusable Learning Objects for UG project students”, which includes making tutorial videos
on how to use some equipment in the science laboratory, as well as, making video on how to fill some health and
safety forms,” says Neemat. Zainab has also helped organise the Royal Society of Chemistry Masterclass Day: “This
was an amazing opportunity to speak to young people who are interested and passionate about science. I asked them
about their future plans and most of them have lots of plans that will benefit the society and country”.
Hasith Mataraarachchige and Raza Ul Haq work at the School of Computing, and are applying the knowledge
they gained during their degree to the workplace. “The internship has already helped me to solidify my computing
skills, such as, web development, Photoshop, Illustrator and Premier Pro. Raza and I are also designing a virtual
learning platform using QuestionMarks software. It involves designing web interface using PHP and MySQL,” says
Hasith.
In addition to enhancing his knowledge of computing, Raza is also assisting Gabriele with the social media of the faculty.
Gabriele Butkute has set her eye on a career in science communications and marketing, therefore she is now
working as a Student Enterprise and Marketing intern. One of her main duties was to launch a new faculty employability project “London Met FUTURE”, which involves organising events, developing marketing materials and many
other daily responsibilities. In addition, Gabriele is also leading the FLSC social media platforms, creating student
video diaries, writing articles and assisting with FLSC webpage maintenance. “I love writing, therefore, I find writing
news stories really exciting as I get to meet new people and find out more about the work they do. As a student, you
focus on one area and don’t really see the whole picture, the internship has made me more aware of all the interesting activities that are taking place at the faculty,” says Gabriele.
Satinder Sembi BSc Forensic Science graduate is now working as a laboratory technician at the Science Centre: “I'm work in an analytical department (HPLC) and it's proven both challenging and requires a lot of hard work.
However, I have gained a lot of hands on experience and it’s an ongoing learning curve, which I am thoroughly enjoying! Being a studious individual, I took up the role of mentoring students in Bioanalytical science”.
Some of the interns are writing for a blog, where they share their daily work, achievements, worries and successes,
www.FLSCinterns.wordpress.com
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FLSC lecturers in Top 5
Have you come across the website www.rateyourlecturer? Some of our students have been rating their lecturers and leaving very positive comments about them. Among the top 5 lecturers rated at London Met, 3 of
them are from the School of Computing.
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Forensics students out and about…..
On the 16th of January 2015, a group of our final year students on the BSc Forensic Science course were given a rare opportunity to observe a post-mortem at the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester.
Milena Georgieva, Hajer Swedi, Jeffy Jebamani and Rachael Francis were accompanied by Sean Frost
(Lecturer, Biomedical Science) and Dr Amara Anyogu (Academic Mentor, Forensic Science). This visit was
organised to enhance academic experience by providing an occasion to learn about human anatomy from a
different perspective as well as confronting the reality of working in an environment that most people may
find uncomfortable! Overall, it was an interesting and educative trip as evidenced by the comments from
our students below.
‘The visit was much better than my expectation. I was surprised by
the size of some organs and how quickly an autopsy procedure can
be carried out for an experienced pathologist and lab technician. I
think the experience is very valuable and can help Forensic students
make decisions about their career path.’
‘Contrary to my feelings before the visit, I did not feel uncomfortable
or uneasy when I was exposed to the autopsy. Instead I wanted to
learn more about the diagnosis of causes of death and was really interested in the role of the pathologist. During examination the detection of anomalies within grouped tissues, or coming across abnormally, deformed or diseased organs really excited me, because spotting these will help determine the cause of death. Overall the trip was
educational, providing information and experience needed to work in
forensics.’
‘During the postmortem I was fascinated and very surprised. The amount of blood that was present was more
than I expected to be. I also thought the stomach was a much bigger organ! This experience encouraged me to
look into becoming an anatomical pathological technologist (APT) and working on forensic post mortems.’
Clean and Green Energy
A consortium of three SMEs and London Met (Centre for Communications Technology, SoC) has been successful in winning a HORIZON 2020 (EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation) grant bid of
€1.2M. The twenty four month project is to develop a highly efficient and intelligent industrial microwave
heating system based on state-of-the-art Gallium Nitride
(GaN) technology.
The impact of this work is potentially immense. Full adoption
of the technology in industrial processes would improve energy conversion efficiencies to over 70% and deliver potential energy savings of 6.74TWh of electrical power across Europe, representing a reduction of ca. 5.9 million tonnes of
CO2 emissions from power generating plants. The project is
expected to commence in April 2015.
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Student video diaries
FLSC marketing interns, Gabriele, Hasith and Raza, have been developing student video diaries, where the
students get a chance to talk about their university experience, preparation for assessments and extracurricular activities.
One of the students participating is Bianca
Giunta, a third year BSc Psychology student.
“When I came to London and started my
studies, I felt a bit lost and anxious since it
was all new, however, my very first day at
university showed me that there is nothing
to worry about. The first people I met were
Student Welcome Team members, who
were friendly and supportive, showed me
around the campus, helped me find my
classrooms and gave advice on how to organise myself so that I make the best out of
my time at university. This is how I discovered the Students’ Union. This was a crucial
moment because they encouraged me to
start a student society, and this is how I founded Psychology Society as a first year student,” says Bianca.
Leading the student society has been a great experience for Bianca: “In our first year we ran several events,
some of which were revision games, which helped us study in a more fun way”.
In addition to studying together, the Psychology Society also organises social activities, such as ice skating,
for fellow students as well as staff members.
Another student being featured in the video diaries is Mateus Gardi, a first year BSc Biotechnology student.
“I chose this course because I am very interested in genetics and I am considering pursuing a
career in treatment development, for such diseases, as cancer or Parkinson’s,” says Mateus.
Being a foreigner and wanting to make new
friends motivated Mateus to participate in various activities at the university, one of which is
being a Student Academic Representative
(StAR) for his course: “We get to be the voice of
fellow students and help improve the course
this way. It was a great opportunity for me to
meet new people from other courses and it has made my life in London better”.
Mateus takes his studies seriously, and when asked about his preparation for exams last month, he said; “I
am studying a lot, spending long hours at the library. I am a bit worried, but hopefully it is going to be alright,
as I am enjoying the course a lot. Fingers crossed!”
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Student Enterprise
Nick Gardiner (Principal Lecturer, Faculty Student Enterprise Coordinator)
London Met FUTURE event...
You can follow
London Met FUTURE on Facebook and Twitter.
How do you become a biomedical scientist?
The new employability initiative at our faculty London Met FUTURE has recently hosted a talk by
Dr Mike Carter from Public Health England Colindale on how to become a biomedical scientist.
The event was a tremendous success, attracting many biomedical science students from the very eager
preparatory year students to the third years who are planning their next career after university.
Becoming a registered biomedical scientist can be a confusing process for students as it requires not only
graduating from an IBMS (Institute of Biomedical Science) accredited degree but also completing a competence portfolio, undertaking placements and registering with Health and Care Professions Council.
Dr Mike Carter is an excellent speaker on the subject not only because he is a scientist himself, but also
due to his experience as a Scientific Education and Training Manager and the Placement Programme
Lead. He is a Health and Care Professions Council registered biomedical scientist, a Chartered Scientist
and liaises with schools, colleges and universities to enhance the teaching of biomedical science and
awareness of a career in the biomedical and clinical sciences. Dr Carter is also a volunteer member, trainer and assessor for St John Ambulance.
Dr Carter describes biomedical science as “a science in the service of life”, because without biomedical
scientists, doctors would not be able to diagnose diseases properly or treat patients effectively. He covered many important aspects in this talk, including how rewarding the career is, the steps to become a
registered biomedical scientist, the qualities one needs to be successful and some useful application tips.
“Professional skills and competence, flexibility, adaptability and transferable skills are key,” said Dr Mike
Carter.
He stressed the importance of placements, as they provide students with valuable laboratory experience,
enable networking opportunities and help students develop interpersonal skills.
Dr Mike Carter was popular with students, and they all engaged in lively discussions over coffee, where
they were able to ask questions and get more personal advice on their career aspirations.
The event was organised by Gabriele Butkute, enterprise and marketing intern, and will be followed by
more employability events in the future.
Our faculty is proud to have IBMS accreditation for Biomedical Science degrees.
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Faculty Enterprise Development
Associate Professor Yanguo Jing (Academic Leader Faculty Enterprise Development) reports:
New funding secured for WOW Agency
Following Associate Professor Yanguo Jing’s recent visit to Colliers International, further funding has been secured for the WOW agency to provide
enhanced features to their property management system. This project will
provide a vehicle for our students to gain real-life insight into a commercial
IT project.
WOWBiz in action
In January 2015, WOWBiz welcomed its latest graduates. These students are supervised by Associate
Professor Yanguo Jing and Dr Jianming Cai on a range of forensic and security projects. The feedback
from our students is overwhelmingly positive. One student said “Personally, I like everything about it,
it was totally something new. I did not study it before. I did my own research and investigation. We all
worked as group and tried to find solutions for problems we encountered. Yanguo and Seema were
flexible, very helpful. It was easy to approach them and speak to them. I think the help and support, and
their openness makes us motivated to finish the task. Overall, it was great experience and it opened
new doors for me. I got the option to think to pursue my career as a penetration tester.”
Associate Professor Yanguo Jing said: “I would like to thank Seema as the WOWBiz manager for her
hard work for getting students organized and Dr Cai for bringing in some highly relevant projects for
WOWBiz this semester. It is very heartening to see the positive feedback from students and I am hopeful that the WOWbiz graduates will continue building on the employability they have improved
throughout WOWbiz and will secure employment following their graduation.”
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