Concrete - Issue 279

Have your cake and eat it Win a cake a day for a week from the Campus Kitchen on p.24 of Venue UEA’s Student Newspaper Issue 279 Free Tuesday 5 February

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Chief executive resigns from Union University Amy Adams Editor-in-chief The Union’s chief executive Derek Bowden has announced that he will be resigning from his position in order to start a new job at Essex County Cricket Club.

In a statement released on 4 February, the Union stated: “The Trustee Board would like to thank Derek for his hard work during his 18 months in charge, particularly with regard to the reduction in the organisation’s budget deficit.

“The date of Derek’s departure will be confirmed once a successful handover to an interim Chief Executive can be arranged.”

Bowden will be taking up the post of chief executive at Essex County Cricket Club early in the season, which officially begins on 10 April.

Speaking to essexcricket.org.uk, he said: “I’m really looking forward to joining the team at Essex and working with them to create the success that Essex Cricket deserves.”

Bowden was chief executive at Ipswich Town Football Club until 2009.

He is currently deputy chairman on the board of directors for Ipswich Building

FEATURES

Society, and chairman of the board of trustees at The Junction Cambridge, an arts centre in the south-west of Cambridge.

The announcement comes following controversy surrounding Union staff wages, published in Concrete on 8 January, which was then asked to be removed from the official website.

A constitutional amendment was subsequently put forward by Concrete at Union Council on Thursday 24 January.

The amendment proposed that the chief executive be made exempt from certain sections of Staff Protocol which prevent their salary, performance and conditions of employment from being discussed in any meetings or Union publications.

The proposal received 50 votes in favour, 19 against and 11 abstentions, meaning it did not meet the 2/3 majority required to pass a constitutional amendment.

With regards to a replacement, the Union clarified that “the short term plan is to work alongside NUS in seeking an interim successor whilst we do a full recruitment process.”

When approached by Concrete, Bowden declined to comment on his decision.

P.12-13 FILM

HOMELESSNESS IN NORWICH

Philip Thomas

Inside: Students Appeal in Business School Coursework Controversy

V.10-11 GAMING

THE LATEST RELEASES

Turn to page 3

V.18 LIFESTYLE

GUNS, GAMES AND THE NRA

P.20

PANCAKE RECIPE SPECIAL

2 Editorial

concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk

Editor-in-chief | Amy Adams concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk Managing Editor | Chris Teale concrete.managingeditor@uea.ac.uk Online Editor | Harry Slater Deputy Online Editor | Luke Boobyer concrete.online@uea.ac.uk News | Philip Thomas & Liz Jackson concrete.news@uea.ac.uk Comment | Ciara Jack concrete.comment@uea.ac.uk Global | Robert Norris concrete.global@uea.ac.uk Features | Lauren Cope concrete.features@uea.ac.uk Environment | Tim Miller concrete.environment@uea.ac.uk Science & Tech | Rebecca Hardy concrete.science@uea.ac.uk Travel | Polly Grice concrete.travel@uea.ac.uk Lifestyle | Emma Williamson concrete.lifestyle@uea.ac.uk Sport | Billy Sexton & Sam Tomkinson concrete.sport@hotmail.co.uk Copy Editors | Sidonie Chaffer-Melly & Charlotte Cox concretecopyeditors@gmail.com Chief Photographers | Elizabeth Margereson & Chloe Hashemi concrete.photographers@uea.ac.uk Distribution Manager | Steph Gover

Issue 279

Contributors

News | Philip Thomas, Liz Jackson, Amy Adams, Chris Teale, Chloe Hashemi, Sidonie Chaffer-Melly, Robert Staniforth, Riccardo Monni, Chris Thomson Comment | Caitlin Gray, Livvy Brown, Andrew Ansell, Zoe Jones, Joe Ferris, Peter Sheehan Global | Rachael Lum, Robert Norris Features | Anna Walker, Joel Taylor, Polly Grice Environment | Peter Sheehan, Ella Gillbert, Amy Osterloh Science & Tech | Emily Addington, Harry Slater, Chris Teale Travel | Hatty Farnham, Caterina Incisa Della Rocchetta, Johnnie Bicket, Jessica Crisp Lifestyle | Emma Gladwin, Sidonie Chaffer-Melly, Rhian Poole, Maddy Hutt, Lydia Clifton, Emily-Claire Tucker, Rebecca Layland Sport | Sam Tomkinson, Mike Tomkins, Billy Sexton, Holly Wade, Charlie Savage Proofreaders | Charlotte Cox, Sidonie Chaffer-Melly, Stephenie Naulls, Amy Osterloh, Rob Harding, Rachel Cutler, Jack Perkin Photographers | Emma Williamson, Joshua Smithers, Lydia Clifton, Ricky Burrows, Ga Chun Yau, Whye Tchien Khor, Greg Mann, Oliver Balaam, Philip Thomas, Jerusha Green, Virginie Lassarre

Got a opinion on issues around campus?

We are always interested in hearing your thoughts, whether it’s about sometheing you’ve read in Concrete, or something you have experienced around campus. Send a letter to concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk and you may even be published on page two.

If you think you may have a story, contact concrete.news@uea.ac.uk.

Editorial

05/02/13

The Editor’s Column Happy LGBT History Month!

UEA may not be flying the Pride flag in support, but Concrete certainly is, by helping to launch UEA Pride’s first newsletter, Campus. 625 lucky readers will find it in their copy of Concrete (most likely if you’re reading this in the Hive) but if not, all the content can be found at concrete-online.co.uk/lgbt-blog.

Of course, it’s a particularly exciting time to be talking about LGBT+ issues in general, with parliament taking a free vote on gay marriage on the day of publication (5 February), France passing marriage equality in the last week, and Obama’s shoutout to Stonewall and other civil rights movements in his inauguration speech. You can read about the latter in more detail on page 7 of Comment.

Of course, LGBT History Month isn’t just about celebrating how far we’ve come, but also raising awareness about everything there is still left to do. In our Global section on page 10 we look at Russia’s proposed ban on “homosexual

propaganda”. And who could forget the Ugandan “anti-gay bill” which will soon be reintroduced to parliament, and could mean that Uganda joins one of seven countries which already have a death penalty for homosexuality.

Meanwhile in the UK, LGBT+ people still face high rates of suicide, hate crimes, mental health issues, bullying, homelessness and discrimination.

The Union of UEA Students’ LGBT+ survey last year reported that 52.2% of respondents said they suffered from depression, a somewhat sobering statistic.

However, UEA and Norwich are - in general - incredibly supportive of their LGBT+ community, with many events and support groups available throughout the year. And that’s something we should all be celebrating this month, no matter how we identify our sexuality.

Have a great week, Amy Adams Editor-in-Chief

2013-14: editorial vacancies available Being an editor for Concrete is a demanding but hugely rewarding job, and it will soon be time to choose next year’s team. The openings include: •

Editor-in-chief. Opens 19 February.

Candidates will need to submit 750 words on their vision for Concrete, main priorities and how they will achieve them; design a mock front page in InDesign; and prepare for a formal interview. The deadline will close on 27 February. For information or advice, get in touch with Amy at concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk or any of

Tweet of the Week Beckie Turton | @beckieturton

•

•

the other four senior editors.

Senior editors. This includes managing editor, online editor (plus deputy online editor) and two Venue editors. Open from 5 - 13 March with more information available nearer the time. Contact the current senior editors for advice and support.

Section editors. This includes all sections of Concrete and Venue, plus copy editors and photographers.

Open from 19 March - 16 April. If you are thinking of applying, contact the current editors for advice and support.

Contact Us Union House University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ 01603 593 466

C’mon UEA I need my exam timetable so I can book Beyonce

www.concrete-online.co.uk www.concblog.wordpress.com Editorial inquiries / complaints concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk concrete.venue@uea.ac.uk Got a story? concrete.news@uea.ac.uk

Concrete welcomes all letters and emails, so please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Letters should be addressed to the editor-in-chief, and include contact details. All emails should be sent to concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk. We will consider anonymous publication, and reserve the right to edit for length and clarity. Anonymous article submissions are permitted. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the newspaper. No part of this newspaper may be reproduced through any means without the express permission of the editor, Amy Adams. Published by UUEAS Concrete Society ©2013 Concrete BMc ISSN 1351-2773

News

05/02/13

LGBT+ History Month campaign on campus University Sidonie Chaffer-Melly News reporter The Union of UEA Students (UUEAS) has released its plans to celebrate LGBT+ History Month. There will be a series of events throughout February including film showings, Q&A sessions and socials.

UEA lecturer B.J. Epstein will also give a talk on LGBT+ representation in young adult literature. All events are free and open to all. Details are available on the Union’s website.

Additionally, a poster campaign featuring prominent LGBT+ celebrities has been distributed around campus.

This includes recognisable faces such as Stephen Fry, TV Presenter Sue Perkins, and bisexual Olympian Nicola Adams.

Also starring is The Matrix director Lana Wachowski, who transitioned from male to female in the early 2000s. E-posters

will also be broadcast on screens in The Hive.

LGBT+ Officer Richard Laverick commented: “LGBT History Month gives us the opportunity to celebrate the advancement of human rights. We look back to various law changes and now look to continue making history with same sex marriage. That, for me, is why this year in particular is so important. We will at last have full equality regardless of sexuality.

“For the team that has formed the steering group for our LGBT History Month events, we have decided to look ahead to the problems the community faces. One example is supporting people who are LGBT and of faith, ensuring they are supported by both communities and not rejected from either.”

For more information, visit the UUEAS website or find the LGBT+ History Month page on Facebook.

Issue 279

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Students appeal in Business School controversey University Liz Jackson & Philip Thomas News editors Business students have appealed to their school after allegedly inconsistent and rude communication between module convenors and students, resulting in confusion regarding a coursework deadline which was eventually extended just hours before it was due.

In an email to students it was revealed that three students appealed to the Norwich Business School on 10 January to express their concern with the Strategic Management module coursework.

11 further students considered appealing, but decided not to.

The students who appealed highlighted ambiguity in the assignment brief and inconsistent advice relating to word count and case studies, whilst also claiming that communication with the module convenor had been unhelpful and sometimes rude.

Undergraduate programme director James Cornford and course leader for Business Management, Professor Naresh Pandit, subsequently investigated the students’ claims, deeming that the assignment was “feasible” and “appropriate” for that level of study. The investigation additionally decided that the module documentation was “clear and consistent” with regards to the assignment’s requirements and word count.

The investigation denied that the module leader’s email responses were rude, instead suggesting that they were “short and to the point,” whilst it claimed some of the student emails were “badgering and aggressive” or sent very close to the deadline. The letter concluded by informing students that the deadline had been extended by three weeks to 7 February.

One student on the course said that whilst students had been shown no evidence of badgering and aggressive emails, she emailed her tutor over six weeks before the deadline with “basic questions, and the tutor said to ‘just get on and do the coursework’”.

She also argued that the communication from the school to students has been insufficient, stating that if they had been told earlier than “two hours before the deadline” many students would have felt the issue had been satisfactorily resolved.

In contrast, she says she has lost sleep, missed seminars and lost money through work shifts she had to cancel in order to spend time finishing off her assignment. Whilst she agrees that the task was appropriate for a final year module she criticised the “lack of direction throughout the assignment” and emphasised the surprise students felt at the blunt communication from tutors as many “have never had a problem before with NBS.” She continued: “Even now the deadline has been extended, the assignment is now encroaching on other module coursework, so I think many of us would appreciate at least an apology for the lack of communication over the appeal results.”

A press statement from Professor Paul Dobson, head of NBS, stated: “NBS takes all student complaints very seriously, and we have undertaken a thorough investigation into the matter.

The assignment brief was available to students at the start of the course in October and support included a dedicated seminar about the assignment, a Blackboard discussion board, and further guidance was provided during the final lecture of the semester.

“We have reviewed our complaint procedures and hope to resolve future issues more quickly when they involve looming assessment deadlines. We are also developing guidelines to make coursework assignments more clear.

“We expect high standards of politeness from both staff and students in all communication. Where any party feels this is not attained then we would expect them to raise the issue, politely, with the individual concerned. If they are not subsequently satisfied then they should contact the director of learning and teaching. The school is happy to discuss any outstanding issues with students arising from the matter.”

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concrete.news@uea.ac.uk

Issue 279

05/02/13

News

Could you survive on £5.23-a-day?

University Chris Teale Managing editor

Members of UEA’s Amnesty International society recently took on the challenge to live for a week on just £5.23 a day - the average amount of money given to most new asylum seekers in this country by the government.

The amount of £5.23 represents 52% of Income Support, a means-tested benefit available in the United Kingdom for those on a low income. This partial sum is all new asylum seekers have to live on while their applications are pending in the British legal system.

Applicants can often spend up to a year waiting to hear if asylum has been granted for them to stay in this country, in which time they are often not permitted to take legal paid employment.

Amnesty International are part of a coalition of over 50 organisations in this country called Still Human Still Here which campaigns to end the destitution of asylum seekers and grant them permission to work if their application is still pending after six months.

The seven members of the UEA society who took up the challenge were permitted to spend just £5.23 a day on food, toiletries and other items, with rent on their accommodation not included as this would normally be provided by the government for asylum seekers.

One of those who took the challenge was Nazif Nazmul, who is also the society’s Union Council rep. He took the challenge in its entirety, and said that while it was manageable in the shortterm, in the long-term it would be far more difficult.

“It’s actually pretty possible for that amount of time if you live off fruits and that sort of thing, you can pretty much manage it,” he said. “Imagine just doing that for a year or any extended amount of time when you don’t know when this is going to end.

“They’re not really allowed to work properly, they’re not given proper housing and are really constrained in many ways. On top of that, to live on just £5.23 a day to cover food, toiletries and everything, it’s incredibly hard. It’s basic survival that they can barely meet with the money that they’re given.”

The society will now be writing letters to Norwich South MP Simon Wright, telling him about their experiences and urging him to support an increase in the amount given to asylum seekers to £7 a day for single adults over 25.

Advocacy Manager at Amnesty UK, Mike Kaye, said about the campaign: “The Still Human Still Here campaign is vital to ensuring that people fleeing conflict and persecution are able to meet their basic needs in relation to food, clothing and toiletries while waiting for

their asylum application to be decided.

“The support of Amnesty groups in universities is essential to making the campaign successful because it demonstrates to the UK Government that ordinary people are concerned about the treatment of asylum seekers and want them to be treated in a dignified way.”

To find out more about the Still Human Still Here campaign, go to stillhumanstillhere.wordpress.com, or find UEA Amnesty International Society on Facebook.

Orange assailants apprehended Norwich Riccardo Monni News reporter Three men have been arrested following an attack on a man by a group of four people, including a woman. Two were dressed as Oompa Loompas from Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

The 28-year-old male victim suffered cuts to his cheek and nose as well as two black eyes, after being pushed to the ground and struck on the head by a

group including two individuals wearing green wigs and orange face paint.

The assault happened on the morning of Thursday 27 December as the man was leaving the Siciliano kebab shop at around 3:20am on Prince of Wales Road.

Norfolk Constabulary said that the arrested men, in their late teens and early twenties, had been detained on Saturday 26 January on suspicion of GBH and lived in the North Walsham area.

The men have been released on bail until March.

Philip Thomas

Business graduates recieve start-up loan Norwich Chris Thomson News reporter Three UEA graduates are some of the first in the country to receive a lucrative government sponsored start-up loan for young business pioneers.

Unique amongst 2012’s cohort of graduates, James Thomas, who graduated from the UEA in July, along with business partners David Duncan and Seb Atkinson have been awarded a loan under a scheme to help 18-30-year-olds set up businesses.

Their business, Square Social, provides consultation, expertise and project management for firms seeking to use social media as a platform to market their business.

They are currently looking to establish themselves firmly in the eastern region

market, where they have already gained clients such as Starbucks and Vodafone, before branching out into the more competitive national and global markets.

Despite situating their business within a cutting-edge, modern and dynamic marketing industry, Mr. Thomas and his partners revealed it had not been easy to achieve funding.

Speaking to the Eastern Daily Press Mr. Thomas said: “There’s always lots of talk in the press about ‘supporting enterprise’ and ‘helping out our young people’ but the harsh reality is that often I’ve found that this is PR without substance.”

Despite this, Mr. Thomas described the loan worth £5000 as “definitely the best loan we have encountered for startup businesses.” The loan will be used to take on more staff and redesign their website.

News

05/02/12

Issue 279

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UEA Masters students sleep rough for Sleep Easy University Liz Jackson News editor A group of UEA Masters students recently participated in YMCA Norfolk’s 4th annual charity event Sleep Easy.

Executive MBA students Ben Timewell, Justin Galliford, Dominic Allen, Bastian Altrock and Lindsay Springall supported Sleep Easy along with another team from UEA. The event required participants to sleep outside from 7pm to 7am to increase awareness of the challenges faced by young people who have to resort to sleeping rough.

The UEA MBA team conducted a twitter campaign across different company pages and Altrock posted to his 3000 Instagram followers to persuade individuals to donate. In addition, they made a YouTube video to help raise money which has gained over 800 views.

Individuals had only a cardboard box and a sleeping bag to protect them from the elements at the event held at the Community Sports Foundation on Carrow Road. Past events have raised over £30,000 for YMCA Norfolk, which goes towards providing supported accommodation

and projects and activities for over 220 disadvantaged young people in the area.

Altrock said that since many Norwich residents encounter homeless people on an almost daily basis in the city, that it is a worthwhile alternative to raising money for more uncommon issues.

He said: “The UK is a first world country and people shouldn’t still be living homeless today. 39% of people aged 16 to 25 are homeless, and many of those are still in full-time education. By supporting the YMCA we can verify the results of the campaign in day-to-day life.”

(L-R) Ben Timewell, Justin Galliford, Dominic Allen, Bastian Altrock and Lindsay Springall

Islamic Centre saved following faith review University Chloe Hashemi News reporter

A long-awaited decision has finally been made for UEA’s Islamic Centre. For the near future, Islamic prayer shall continue in the current location. Following the recent discussion on the provision of faith facilities on campus, UEA Council has acknowledged recommendations from the Executive Team that the provision of special facilities for Islamic prayer should continue.

In addition to the University’s executive meetings, there has been an overwhelming response from the UEA student body.

Online petitions have been circulating through social media since September including one entitled “Protect Faith on Campus: Save the UEA Islamic Centre”.

One of the clauses of this petition states: “All religious communities within the University of East Anglia should be given the right of self-determination in

the practice of their faith and to be given adequate facilities, which accommodate these determined requisites.”

Acting Academic Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Nigel Norris commented: “The University is committed to providing for the religious, spiritual and pastoral needs of its staff and students and we have listened carefully to their views and concerns.”

The centre will remain open under the condition that it will only serve UEA students, faculty and their families. For the time being, he said, it was only practical for UEA to be responsible for the immediate

campus community.

Professor Norris added: “Ideally we would wish to accommodate all faiths in one multi-faith building, reaffirming the original intentions of the Chaplaincy.

However, practical considerations – including restricted space in the Chaplaincy – mean that special prayer facilities should continue for Muslim staff and students.”

The extended provisional planning permission for the Islamic facility expires in June 2014 and the university will then decide the best way to offer facilities for Islamic prayer in future years.

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David Blunkett announced as Too Difficult Box lecturer University Robert Staniforth News reporter The line up for the Spring 2013 Too Difficult Box Series has been announced by the School of Political, Social and International Studies.

Convened by Professor Hussein Kassim and Rt Hon Charles Clarke, the lecture series began last Thursday with a lecture on Child Protection by Tim Loughton, and will run for the next three weeks.

Clarke described the series as: “an extremely rigorous and popular examination of the reasons why some of society’s problems sometimes seem so hard to solve.”

Future lectures will feature speakers that include former government ministers David Blunkett and Margaret Hodge, and former chair of the Commission for Racial Equality and the Equality and Human Rights Commission, Trevor Phillips.

Further information on the lectures can be found on the UEA website by visiting uea.ac.uk/politics-internationalmedia/events/too-difficult-box.

Fair Pay Campus motion passed University Philip Thomas News editor Union Council passed a Fair Pay Campus motion at their last meeting on Thursday 24 January.

The motion relates to a national campaign for a Living Wage of £7.45 on university campuses, and the advocacy of a 10:1 maximum pay ratio between the highest and lowest paid university staff.

The motion proposes that the living wage be extended to sub-contracted staff, and calls for the UUEAS trustee board to introduce the living wage for its employees.

Motion proposer Chris Jarvis spoke to Concrete, explaining that “the endorsement gives greater legitimacy to the current campaign by demonstrating the views of students represented by Union Council. Furthermore, it means that student officers are now able to work with the current campaign in order to lobby the University to meet the criteria in order to obtain ‘Fair Pay Campus’ status.”

Comment

05/02/13

Issue 279

concrete.comment@uea.ac.uk

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Obama’s speech & legacy of liberty Caitlin Gray Comment writer In 2009, faced with a country caught in an economic crisis and unrealistic hopes for his presidency, Barack Obama had to lower expectations with his inaugural address. In this year's speech however, he was free to say what he wanted. This time round the president did not have to watch or weigh his words, knowing that he will never face voters again. With no chance of re-election in four years time, Obama was able to reveal his true ideologies, and place himself firmly with the liberal left.

Obama has been accused by Republicans of being overly partisan with his address, which has been widely regarded as an unapologetic defence of liberal politics. His second-term inaugural address issued a call to action: to embrace a liberal agenda, and to reclaim the spirit of the founding fathers from conservatives.

Governor of New Jersey Chris Christie complained that “instead of trying to bring people together, it was a manifesto for, “Hey, it's my way or the highway”, while House Speaker John Boehner claimed that the president's rhetoric was proof that he was on a mission to “annihilate the Republican Party”.

In contrast to his 2009 inauguration speech, where Obama expressed hope of working with Republicans, he appeared ready to confront them and to give up

efforts towards bipartisanship.

With the repeated refrain of “we the people” throughout his speech, Obama attempted to disprove the rightwing interpretation of the constitution that has governed the United States throughout history. Instead he argued that the founding fathers did not intend the country to become enslaved by the constitution, and called for collective action to enable the country to live up to its founding principles.

The inauguration was shrouded by reminders of America's racial history.

The country's first black president was re-inaugurated on Martin Luther King Day and 150 years after Lincoln issued

the Emancipation Proclamation. A Latino Supreme Court justice swore in the vicepresident; a gay Cuban-American was the inauguration poet laureate; a civil rights icon whose husband was murdered for seeking equality delivered the inaugural prayer; all while a man with a Kenyan father, a Kansan mother, the middle name “Hussein” and an Indonesian childhood was taking the oath of the presidency for the second term. While this may not be an image all Americans embrace, Obama took the opportunity to remind his country of the events which unite and bind them together.

Obama declared the most evident of truths, “that all of us are created equal”,

to be the star that has guided America throughout history. While acknowledging his support for same-sex marriage and tighter gun control laws, Obama made reference to the events of Seneca Falls, Salem and Stonewall. Seneca Falls was the sight of the first women's suffrage convention in 1848, Selma was a major catalyst for the Voting Rights Act which ended the disenfranchisement of African Americans, and the Stonewall riots marked the start of the modern fight for gay and lesbian rights.

In name-checking the significant moments of the women's rights, civil rights and LGBT+ equality movements in his speech alongside the refrain of “we, the people”, Obama positioned these events as deeply embedded in the American narrative, actively writing these groups into the country's history.

Obama will be hoping to use the next four years to establish a legacy that goes beyond simply being the first African-American president. His speech reminded Americans of the founding principles of the country – the individual's right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness declaring, “What makes us exceptional – what makes us American – is our allegiance to an idea, articulated in a declaration made more than two centuries ago.”

In his second inaugural address, Obama made very clear that he will spend his second term to trying to make this a reality for all Americans.

Who run the world? Beyoncé Livvy Brown Comment writer For a moment, let’s contemplate a very different America. In this parallel America, Mitt Romney won the 2012 election. It’s the day of his presidential inauguration.

He’s trimmed his eyebrows, slicked back his hair and given his binders of women the morning off. He steps onto the stage, gives a speech and basks in the applause.

A chord plays out, signalling the national anthem. Out steps Meatloaf. The world cringes.

In reality, Barack Obama delivered a rousing inaugural address, espousing the new American dream. He stepped down from the stage, and out floated Beyoncé.

Star-Spangled Banner is a notoriously difficult song to master, but she hit every note like a boss. The endless crowds, stretching the yawning length of the National Mall, were awed into silence.

Beyoncé sang the final note, and the Mall erupted. Everyone loved her, with the exception of Sasha Obama, who gave her the evils for kissing Daddy on the cheek.

Fast-forward 24 hours, and the internet is up in arms. Beyoncé, it seems, was not entirely honest about her performance.

Yes, she sang it. Yes, it was incredible. It was also, however, pre-recorded. Beyoncé was - and you could almost hear the Twittersphere’s collective intake of breath - lip-synching.

I can’t pretend I wasn’t taken by surprise. Maybe even a little upset. I may possibly have nursed a tub of Ben & Jerry’s on the sofa, wearing a Snuggie, and sobbed over Beyoncé’s traitorous ways.

Maybe. Over the past week, however, I have gained perspective.

This is Beyoncé. This is a women who invented words like bug-a-boo, just because she could. This is a woman who managed to rock co-ordinated fashion monstrosities with her Destiny’s Child contemporaries, time and again. Carrying off a Tina Knowles design without looking like a Quality Street sweet is no mean feat.

Let’s face it – lip-synched or not – she owned it.

Consider the alternative. Cast your mind out to a Romney-Ryan administration, with all the carefully gelled hair, unseasonal tans and – most horrifically of all – Meatloaf.

His bizarre, painful rendition of “America the Beautiful” at Romney’s October rally

was just a taster. Imagine that scene – with Romney’s pained smile, Meatloaf’s arm awkwardly draped around his neck – in front of millions.

Beyoncé lip-synched at Obama’s inauguration. So what? She’s fabulous.

Perhaps equally importantly though – she’s not Meatloaf.

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concrete.comment@uea.ac.uk

Issue 279

05/02/13

Comment

Osborne should be for turning Andrew Ansell Comment writer It was Albert Einstein who termed madness as pursing the same course over and over again and to expect different results. For this government to stubbornly continue its chosen policy of austerity would signify rank madness.

The false economy of austerity is clear, even to Nick Clegg who appeared to have an epiphany in a recent interview. The Deputy Prime Minister commented: “I think we've all realised that you actually need, in order to foster a recovery, to try and mobilise as much public and private capital into infrastructure as possible.”

These comments are what Labour calls the government’s first admission of a mistake on the economy. Mayor of London Boris Johnson also reacted to this latest economic headache by calling on Chancellor George Osborne to “junk the rhetoric” of austerity.

A failure to do so as Jim O'Neill, the chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management identifies would risk a lost decade for the British economy with low growth and increasing public debt. This recent pressure for a change of course is not new; Osborne’s academic supporters have long since abandoned him. In August 2012, David Newbery, professor of economics at Cambridge University made the response to Osborne’s failing fiscal plan by stating “We need growth, and that requires investment. In a recession bordering on a depression,

public investment in infrastructure that has a high pay-off even in good times must make sense.”

With a triple dip recession forecast and weakness throughout the economy, Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit rightly views Britain’s AAA credit rating as under threat. The coalition’s justification for austerity has rested upon on fiscal credibility, and should Britain’s credit rating be downgraded, the Conservativeled omnishambles will again become

apparent. The government’s decision to pursue fiscal credibility holds an element of myth.

The announcement that the economy shrank by 0.3% hardened the forecast from the National Institute for Economic and Social Research that Great Britain will enter a triple dip recession; signalling the longest recovery from a financial crisis in history. The economy has flatlined throughout this Parliament with Conservative-led policies resulting in

Scarfe turned noose Zoe Jones Comment writer Gerald Scarfe is well known for his provoking cartoons and particularly for his daring outlooks that are expressed through the medium of art. He has been writing for the Sunday Times for 44 years, and his exaggerated drawings are intended to convey his point of view in current affairs with a comical edge, but his work has not come without controversy.

Personally, anyone who has the nerve to draw Bill Clinton as Pinocchio with an exceptionally long tree-willy with the caption “Bill’s been telling lies again” is in my books under “rib-ragingly hilarious.”

However, there are some more extreme cartoons than Clinton as a little wooden puppet, and what of these?

The latest controversial image

appeared on Holocaust Memorial Day on Sunday 27 January in the Sunday Times and showed the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu building a wall on the bodies of Palestinians, cementing it with their blood. Now, one can see why this is not in the best of tastes and Rupert Murdoch himself tweeted the following apology: “Gerald Scarfe's has never reflected the opinions of the Sunday Times. Nevertheless, we owe a major apology for grotesque, offensive cartoon.”

However, Scarfe was unaware that the cartoon would be printed on such a sensitive day and so really the fault lies with the editor Martin Ivens for not thinking to sieve out what might be perceived as an antisemitic attack.

But what if the cartoon hadn’t been printed on Holocaust Memorial Day? Would the Jewish public be equally offended? Were they offended in the first place? Though the image undoubtedly

did strike a nerve, the argument is that Scarfe is entitled to his opinion however brash and exaggerated it might be.

The world cannot simply tiptoe around in fear of offending someone; this is a matter of free speech regardless of what someone feels the need to express about the subject. If everyone were on the same team, how would we win the game with no-one to play against?

We have a right to our own free outlook on things and so we should utilise that. One would not simply agree with everything the government said, for example, for fear of agreeing with a politician who may say to the prime minister: “By all means Mr Cameron, make cuts to the education system, I think it’s a fantastic idea.”

Ultimately, what’s the worst that could happen? So what if you’re offended, your feelings got hurt. No one slapped you round the face with a rolled up Sunday Times newspaper.

the increase of the nation’s debts. The consequences of austerity have caused the national debt to rise from 55.3% of GDP to 70.7% of GDP. Similarly, Greece has experienced five rounds of austerity, only for the national debt to soar, rendering the country insolvent.

Construction, the indicator of an economy’s health, has been sluggish and in many quarters regressed. Osborne’s failed economic strategy has prompted him to extend the years of austerity beyond 2015. Despite holding a Bachelor of Arts degree in Modern History, the Chancellor has failed to learn the lessons of the Great Depression.

The likelihood of Great Britain entering into a triple-dip recession, after two and a half years of a flatlining economy should at least prompt a serious rethink of the government’s deficit reduction plan. George Osborne’s plan A has failed embarrassingly, now a plan for jobs and growth through investment is a necessity.

Britain is not “broke”, but there are hundreds of millions of pounds residing within big companies who have been discouraged from investing through poor growth figures. Osborne, rebuked by the IMF’s Chief Economist over his deficit reduction plan, has to consider a change of course. In part, Osborne should shore up the stagnating public sector which as economist Richard Murphy identifies is the base of an economy. Even if the Osborne is for turning, the austerity has already scarred the economy and British society.

Comment

05/02/13

Issue 279

concrete.comment@uea.ac.uk

Is Oxford University really ‘selecting by wealth’?

Joe Ferris Comment writer Damien Shannon, 26, is suing St Hugh’s College, Oxford for “selecting by wealth” when accepting students for their postgraduate courses. Mr Shannon claims he was rejected by the college because he did not have the adequate supporting funds, despite gaining a place to study an MSc in economic and social history.

Oxford has admitted barring Mr Shannon for financial reasons, but has stated that it is essential that these costs are met to ensure the completion of the required studies.

The fees are high. At £21,082 Oxford requires various assurances that funding will be available to pay the fee if it is to accept a postgraduate student. Is this an active attempt to prevent poorer students from gaining a place at the university as Mr Shannon claims?

It seems the fashion to criticise Oxbridge for its high percentage of public school students, and strange ancient traditions. But refusing entry for a student who could not provide proof of a large amount of readily available funds seems, at first glance, quite hard evidence of snobbery.

The debate reached the House of

Commons, and received a response from our very own lecturer from the school of International Development, Dr Alexander Flynn. As a former St Hugh’s student, Dr Flynn criticised the policy, stating it clearly amounted to “financial discrimination.”

Yet the fact remains that many students

may have to sadly terminate their postgraduate courses due to a lack of financial support. As unfortunate as this may be, this prevents other students from gaining a place, who would have otherwise completed the course. This applies particularly in Oxford’s case,

9

where a limited amount of places will be highly competitive.

It appears that this practice is not confined to Oxford. Amongst many other universities, the University of Liverpool can request evidence of funding for some postgraduate courses, as is the same practice at the University of Westminster.

It seems Oxford has provided a shield for the rest of the universities when it comes to the postgraduate issue of “wealth discrimination” – but what about that giant fee?

It seems to be absent from most minds that a high level of education may come at a cost. It would be reasonable if the higher that level went, the higher the cost went with it. UEA charges the maximum £9,000 for its undergraduate courses, but nobody claims it is discriminating against poorer students because Southampton Solent University charges £7,800. The qualification is exactly the same, after all.

Adittedly, the “leave Oxbridge alone” rhetoric is probably more appropriate to be made under a bed sheet in a YouTube video. Nevertheless, the assessment of ‘wealth’ serves only to ensure as many students can complete the postgraduate courses Oxford provides.

Legal proceedings are not really required for that to be established.

Queer arguments against gay marriage Peter Sheehan Comment writer Backbenchers plot mutiny. The churches are aghast. Nadine Dorries, truly the barometer of our times, has been good enough to once again give of her considered opinion. Yes, the gay pride parade has minced back into town. The House of Commons is at the time of publication debating the government’s gay marriage legislation. Allow me to furnish you with the particulars.

The coalition proposes to afford same-sex couples all of the legal rights of heterosexual marriage. But rest assured: religions would not be required to conduct any ceremony that contravenes their particular strand of bigotry. The expectation is that Labour and the Liberal Democrats, together with many Conservatives, will unite into a parliamentary majority. But a sizable minority of Tories, perhaps as many as

100, are strongly against the changes.

It is often posed that marriage between a man and a woman forms part of the natural order of society (whatever that is) and that this tradition must be maintained for the good of all. The idea of “tradition” is particularly arresting.

Longevity may be its hallmark, but it gives no guarantee of morality. See also patriarchy.

This argument also overlooks the changing nature of heterosexual marriage even in this country. Do these arch-traditionalists send their daughters down the aisle with a dowry of barnyard animals? And in answer to the assertion that the nuclear family is best for children, need I point out that the ability to produce offspring is not concomitant with the ability to raise them? Just ask social services...

Much religious opposition to the plans can be summed up thus: God made me do it. Yet, at least in the Christian sphere, this is based on a delightfully uncritical and selective reading of scripture. For example, Leviticus

thunders that “whatever in the water does not have fins or scales; that shall be an abomination to you.” Consequently, I hope that the Catholic Church’s homophobe-in-chief, Pope Benedict XVI, is as opposed to oysters as he is to gay marriage. Ever the modern pontiff, I expect he will tweet about them shortly.

Finally, much is made of the democratic mandate for the changes.

Nigel Farage, keen to demonstrate that UKIP dislikes more than just Belgium, finds strong opposition among people “in my village pub in Kent.” Nadine Dorries, an MP whose status as a sensible person can only be said to have risen yet further in recent months, wails that the changes will lose her party some four million votes. Worryingly, a senior party member from Somerset has already resigned.

Arguments against gay marriage are frequently as incoherent as they are ridiculous. Thankfully, progress seems inevitable, and if that means a few daft old codgers are put out, so be it. They’re a dying breed.

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concrete.global@uea.ac.uk

Issue 279

05/02/13

Global

The issues with foreign language films at the Oscars Rachael Lum Global writer The Oscars are back for another year and with it comes the controversies surrounding the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

First introduced in 1957, the award is given to films that are produced outside of the United States of America and written in a language other than English.

However, the award has faced its fair share of controversy in the past. One criticism that has been made against the award is the fact that each country can only nominate one film for the category.

Nations with a larger film-making industry argue that this imposes too strict a limit on their submissions.

France’s La Vie En Rose received an award in the Best Actress category, but did not even compete for the foreignlanguage film award; the French animated film Persepolis had been nominated instead.

The frustration of having to choose only one film from a pool of many to compete with another country that only produced one film in the same year is understandable to a certain extent.

However, it would be unjust if it was not an equal playing field for all of the 71 nations that take part.

Countries with a smaller film industry benefit from the “one country, one film” policy, as they are given the opportunity to show off their best work alongside those from countries with a more profitable film industry. This in turn provides the Oscars with the diversity that the award claims to uphold.

Another issue with this ruling

however is that countries which produce many films each year can only choose a select few to judge, before then choosing one to send to the Academy. This makes the judging process both subjective and potentially flawed.

Last year there were protests against Russia’s choice for the category, Burnt by the Sun 2: Citadel. Not only was it Russia’s biggest box-office flop, the film’s politically influential director Nikita Mikhalkov was a veteran member on the selection committee.

There is also the difficult question over the national identity of certain films. Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution had been disqualified in 2007 because there was supposedly not enough Taiwanese crew members involved to make it a “Taiwanese” film. Ironically, this was the same crew that produced Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, a film that won China the award in 2001.

Other countries have suffered similar problems. Being an international coproduction, Argentina’s The Motorcycle Diaries could not be associated with any of the nine countries that it was shot in. Meanwhile, Israeli film The Band’s Visit was rejected for having too much English in the film. Naturally this raises the question over whether there is a cookie-cutter formula to determine a film’s “nationality”?

It appears that there is need for a clearer definition over what films can be deemed eligible for the Best Foreign Language Film Award. For the most part however, the system still works in giving films that may be unknown outside of their home country the recognition they deserve.

Russian bill could ban ‘homosexual propaganda’ Robert Norris Global editor As LGBT History Month gets into full swing on the UEA campus, with a number of events aimed towards students of any sexual identity, a bill that would ban “homosexual propaganda” in Moscow has been passed through the Russian parliament’s lower house, the state Duma.

The bill would ban any public celebration of LGBT issues, such as LGBT History Month, in the capital. Pride festivals and providing information on homosexuality to those under the age of 18 would also be made illegal. Anyone found breaking these rules could be fined up to £10,000.

The bill will go through a further two readings before being presented to President Vladimir Putin to sign and become law.

There have been a number of rallies and protests over the bill throughout the last two weeks in Russia.

On 25 January, LGBT rights campaigners protested outside of the state Duma, but were assaulted by orthodox activists. Police shortly intervened, but reporters claim that the majority of those detained were the LGBT campaigners.

Russia decriminalised homosexuality in 1993, but homophobia continues to be a major issue within the country. According to the international news network Russia Today, an opinion poll conducted in Russia last spring found that 86% of the population were in support of the “homosexual propaganda” ban, despite the fact that only 6% of people claimed to have ever witnessed any.

The Washington Post reported that a heterosexual high school teacher in Russia recently lost his job due to his participation in the LGBT rights protests in Moscow.

Robert Bridge, an American political

commentator for Russia Today, stated on their website that the proposed bill is a way for the country “to cushion its youth from a “western influence” that it condemns as far too liberal in outlook.”

He went on to say : “Russian legislators behind the bill say minors need to be protected from ‘homosexual propaganda’ because they are unable to evaluate the information critically”.

However, as one comment on Bridge’s article suggested, “If Russia wants to claim that it is not anti-gay, it needs to ban heterosexual propaganda too.”

Another comment stated that, “Gays in Russia cannot meet in private safely … Frequently the police raid gay bars to beat up the patrons.”

It appears that even with the protests over the anti-homosexual propaganda bill both in Russia and across the global LGBT community; most of the country considers homosexual acts to be immoral.

An executive for a government-run television network recently stated on a talk show that homosexuals shouldn’t be able to donate blood, sperm and organs for transplants, before saying that their hearts should be burned after death.

Last year the Levada-Center, a Russian non-governmental polling and sociological research organisation, found that roughly two-thirds of Russians viewed homosexuality as being “morally unacceptable and worth condemning”, while half of those polled were against same-sex marriage and gay rallies.

The bill states that “[homosexual] propaganda goes through the mass media and public events that propagate homosexuality as normal behaviour.”

The bill has been praised by a number of public figures and the Orthodox Church, being seen as an attempt to promote traditional Russian values over what many in the country see as “western liberalism”.

Features

05/02/13

Issue 279

concrete.features@uea.ac.uk

Keeping warm in winter

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Anna Walker provides some tips on how to keep warm in student accomodation January and February are notoriously dull and cold months, particularly for those living in student accommodation.

How can you wrap up warm on a budget and fight away the start-of-the-year blues without turning up the thermostat?

For those early winter mornings when you’d really rather be in bed, invest in a thermos flask to fill with energy boosting coffee or tasty soup. Not only will this keep you warm on the inside, but carrying the thermos will keep your hands toasty on the walk to campus too.

Make sure you’re cooking hearty evening meals to keep up your core temperature. Think jacket potatoes, sausage and mash, pies and stews, and keep the oven open after you’re done; all that hot air can drift into the rest of the house. Cooking a simple cake or breads during the day will also keep the downstairs that bit warmer and the comforting smell of baking will

make the house a lot cosier to be in.

Inexpensive additions can also make a world of difference: draught excluders, hot water bottles and extra blankets can all be picked up relatively cheaply and really help beating those sub-zero temperatures.

Obvious as it sounds, your best friend for the cold winter months is layering. Try to work with lots of thinner layers: they will actually keep you warmer than one big jumper, as the accumulation keeps in the warm air. Of course an added bonus of layering is being able to take some off and avoid sweltering under the central heating on campus. For extra frosty days, thermal vests make the perfect hidden under-layers.

Of course if you’re still feeling the chill you can always escape to the library and make the most of the free heat. You never know, it might just prove the perfect motivation to get some work done!

Oliver Balaam

‘Trust, but don’t be naive’ Suspicious of your partner? New service Qororiqo allows you to check up on their fidelity, reports Joel Taylor Have you met a guy or girl recently who you are interested in dating? Too lazy to get to know them properly? Do you have trust issues? If you answered yes to any of these three questions, you may be interested in the new service brought to you by Qoqoriqo.

With a slogan of “Trust but don’t be naive,” (sic) Qoqoriqo is a website which enables you to enter either a mobile phone number or email address, marking them as in a relationship with, married to, engaged with, divorced from, interested in or an ex-partner of the owner of that contact detail. This is strange when the Terms of Service state that users “agree not to … submit any information concerning any other person … including … personal contact information.”

The idea of the website, which states that if “you wanna find out if your boyfriend or girlfriend is cheating on you ... this app helps you out,” is that a partner or potential partner of a person can check to see if anyone else has “registered” them as spoken for.

After registering my own number and creating a spoof email, the number searched for had three entries assigned to it – one relationship and two “just interested in.” For $60 a year it is possible to search for and “discuss” an unlimited number of people. It is not possible, however, to remove an entry. This throws up a worrying problem: if one does go to the length of “registering” their partner, how is that retracted if the relationship

ends? A person who is legitimately single after the end of a relationship will eternally be labelled as unavailable.

Therefore, should that person be so unlucky as to meet a second partner who uses Qoqoriqo, they will potentially be labelled a cheat.

On the face of it, the venture seems to aim to make money by exploiting fear – both that of the searcher but also that of the searched. The website offers the opportunity to “whitelist” an email address or mobile number in order to make it unsearchable. However, whether a search for a whitelisted address would return no results or state that it is whitelisted (arousing suspicion itself) is unclear. This can be done for a mere $99 dollars a year.

Students at UEA have labelled the website as: “dangerous and predatory … ridiculously creepy and utterly unnecessary.”

“I could easily ruin a guy’s life with this,” said one student. “Plus, it’s far easier to just Facebook stalk them.”

One University of Nottingham alumnus offered that: “you’ve already violated your partners trust by [searching for them on the site], so regardless of the outcome the trust is gone, whether you find anything or not.”

Regardless of the doubts about the service, it seems that many are likely to sign up just for curiosity’s sake. After all, enter your number and you’re done.

Simple. What’s the worst that could happen, right?

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concrete.features@uea.ac.uk

Issue 279

Features

05/02/13

05/02/13

Issue 279

The dangers of sleeping rough Features writer Polly Grice investigates how the recent bad weather has affected homeless people in Norwich, just one of many dangers they face It’s the same story every year. We experience a bit of “freak weather” and the whole country grinds to a halt, but Norwich this January was something else.

The airport closed, snowmen popped up all over campus and passengers had to push a double decker up a hill. Thankfully, the worst seems to be finally over and we can all get back to our lives, but for those without a home, the cold snap has much longer-lasting repercussions.

All over the country last month, emergency shelters sprung up as temperatures dropped below freezing.

These emergency shelters are not designed to house homeless people, but to provide a hot meal, an opportunity to shower and a place to get away from the ice and snow.

Anyone who ventured outside their own front door in the past couple of weeks will have felt the chill, particularly here in Norwich where temperatures dropped as low as an incredible -12.4C. Imagine spending a night out on the streets in those temperatures.

St Martin’s Housing Trust is a Norwich charity that provides a range of services to homeless people and last month they put into place their “severe weather protocol”.

Derek Player, the general manager, explained that when the temperature is predicted to be below zero for three consecutive nights, the trust open up the communal facilities at their hostel on Riverside Road for people who have nowhere else to go.

He said: “We can’t give them a room (even though they may be on our waiting list to come into the hostel when a room becomes available) but we can give them shelter and food. Hypothermia can kill people sleeping rough. You can fall asleep in a shop doorway and never wake up”. All of these services come at a cost though, and St Martin’s now finds itself needing to raise extra funds to provide these essential services.

Throughout the winter season, many people rely on food banks, not just those who are homeless but also people with low incomes at risk of losing their homes.

Prime Minister David Cameron recently declared that there was no need for these banks, as government benefits are high enough that nobody needs to go hungry.

The prime minister visited a food bank in his constituency after pressure from the Labour Party, but insisted that they provide enough benefits that everyone in the country can afford to eat. Local supermarkets including the Co-op stores

on Unthank Road and Coleman Road have been collecting canned and dried goods throughout the winter for Norwich’s food bank.

So how big is the homelessness crisis here in Norwich? It’s hard to count the number of homeless people in any one city as rough sleepers can move around an enormous amount, and sometimes take refuge in abandoned buildings or other hard-to-reach places.

“Hypothermia can kill people sleeping rough. You can fall asleep in a shop doorway and never wake up.”

That being said, St Martin’s’ rough sleepers team engaged with more than 500 people last year. Player said that of this number, “at least 100 and possibly as many as 150 had slept rough on the streets of Norwich for at least one night.”

If you scale this up to include the other major cities of the UK it comes as no surprise that the number of rough sleepers on the UK’s streets has risen. Recently published statistics from the Department for Communities and Local Government showed that more than 52,000 families were living in temporary accommodation, an increase of 8% compared with the previous year. Worryingly, the trend is on the up for the first time in a number of years as we feel the full force of the financial crisis.

It is important to remember that the causes of homelessness are incredibly varied, often interconnected, and unique to every individual. Ollie Kendall, who works for GrowTH, a homeless charity based in London, told the New Statesman last week: “While we do get some street drinkers and drug users, the majority of our guests don’t fit the homeless stereotype. Most of our guests are individuals who have, for whatever reason, been without a community to care for them when things went wrong.”

Last year, in a film by UEA graduate Guy Wilson, a member of St Martin’s’ Contact, Assessment and Prevention Service (Caps) explained: “For the people that do have alcohol or substance misuse issues, being on the streets is almost a way of coping ... at the moment in our economic climate we’re

seeing more and more people that don’t have those issues, and yet are homeless.”

One way out of the vicious circle of homelessness is through the Big Issue Foundation, a charity which provides homeless people and those in vulnerable positions with the opportunity to sell a street paper. On top of that they give advice and counselling to all the vendors, in line with the charity’s ethos of offering “a hand up, not a handout”.

All the more shocking then, was the news last month that two vendors had been stabbed to death, highlighting the very real danger of violence against homeless people. Ian Gladwish, who was 31, and Wayne Busst, who was 32, were killed in Union Street in Birmingham city centre, and a 23-year-old man has been charged with their murders. John Bird, founder and editor-in-chief of the Big Issue broke down during a BBC interview about the stabbings, describing the deaths of the two popular vendors as a “terrible tragedy”.

As if that didn’t highlight the shocking level of violence against homeless people enough, three individuals are currently on trial for kicking a homeless man to death in Liverpool. Kevin Bennett, 53, was badly beaten on 17 August last year while sleeping rough behind a supermarket.

Mr Bennett sustained serious internal injuries and died from blood poisoning six days later. What is possibly the most alarming part of this story is that two of the defendants are aged 14 - 16 years old.

Data collected by the Big Issue, published in the wake of the murder of the two Birmingham vendors shows that one in three sellers of the paper have been attacked and robbed of their earnings, while over in America more than 1,000 “bias motivated” attacks were carried out against the homeless between 1999 and 2010. 291 of these attacks were fatal.

Surely we must ask serious questions about the state of our society when we can stand by and watch as vulnerable people sleep on the streets in -12C, where they are a target for senseless and unprovoked violence, simply on account of them being homeless.

Many are reluctant, but helping those we see on the street, rather than walking past, even by donating to charities that help provide access to hot food and a warm place to stay, is the kindest thing we can do. The cold snap may be over, but the dangers faced by homeless people across the country, including right here in Norwich, are still very real and everpresent.

Homelessness: the facts •

Government statistics found in Autumn 2011 that there were roughly 2,181 rough sleepers on any one night in England.

•

This was a rise of 23% (413) from Autumn 2010, when the figure was 1,768.

•

446 of these were from London.

•

The other most concetrated areas were Cornwall, 80; Leicester, 50; Hounslow, 45; Brighton & Hove, 37; Bradford, 30 and Exeter, 29.

•

Crisis, the charity for homeless people, were quick to point that these figures are a snapshot. In London alone, 5,678 people were reported sleeping rough during 2011/12.

•

This was a massive increase on the previous year’s total of 3,975.

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88% of these are male, 71% are white.

•

Many have one or more support needs - 47% alcohol, 29% drugs, 43% mental health. The proportion of rough sleepers with no support needs has risen to 24%, compared to 17 per cent in 2010/11.

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34% have been in prison at some point, 11% in care and 10% in the armed forces.

•

In Wales, statistics have suggested that between 128 and 165 people slept rough in 2008.

concrete.features@uea.ac.uk

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concrete.environment@uea.ac.uk

Issue 279

05/02/13

Environment

‘Global weirding’: weather to get your teeth into Peter Sheehan Environment writer It is sometimes pointed out that while some parts of the world have a nearconstant climate, Britain suffers from an excess of weather. To the residents of these well-watered islands, this is no surprise: day after day we experience the atmosphere’s apparent caprice. The warmth of December gave way to New Year in Narnia. A NASA satellite image currently scuttling around the internet (pictured right) shows a snowy Britain looking like a sugar-dusted garnish on a Christmas cake.

As happens every year, certain rituals must be observed. The rest of the world must vanish as the news is dominated by reports of school closures, interminable traffic jams and general carrying on.

Somebody must then complain that this is ridiculous; Ian Hislop kindly obliged.

Finally, some crass journalist must wonder whether snow, being frozen,

is compatible with global warming.

This year’s scientific rhubarb came from London mayor Boris Johnson, thus requiring that we purge from our thoughts any remembrance that he governs one of Europe’s largest cities.

At a local level, people are regularly seen slipping on the vast quantities of ice around Norwich and the local area, something that must be come to be regarded as a grand UEA snow-time tradition.

As soon as the snow began to melt, the Environment Agency rushed out hundreds of flood alerts. At the time of writing, its Twitter feed presents the concerned citizen with a map of the country almost completely obscured by ominous red and amber circles. The huge volume of water discharged as a country’s worth of snow cover thawed in a matter of days saturated the ground.

The water table was pushed so high the ensuing heavy rain had nowhere to go.

Just as Boris cannot resist the

temptation to bring up climate change in relation to atypical weather, many other commentators – even those better informed than him – cannot either. The same happened in relation to the recent flooding in Australia and freak storms such as last year’s Hurricane Sandy. It is a link that should be made with caution.

While the hypothesis that a warmer climate will lead to more rain is well backed up, predicting the future of extreme weather events is more complicated. By definition, they happen rarely: identifying trends can be tricky.

And nobody can point to any one event and say with confidence that it would not have happened without climate change.

What we do know is that heavy snow does not disprove climate change. In fact, the two appear to be highly compatible, however counter-intuitive that may seem.

If global warming causes confusion, perhaps the under-appreciated term “global weirding” should perhaps be used instead.

UEA scientists mimic plants UK closes borders to to produce renewable energy colonial plants Ella Gilbert Environment writer It is well-accepted that we need to find new, renewable sources of energy, but UEA scientists have taken it a step further in putting what are essentially tiny solar panels onto microbes.

This £800,000 project, undertaken in conjunction with the University of Cambridge and University of Leeds, and funded by the Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), creates an artificial photosynthesis reaction, exploiting the energy from sunlight and generating hydrogen.

Hydrogen is a zero-emission fuel, which is already being used to drive some London buses as well as transport in many other European countries.

Many people envisage a clean, hydrogen-based future, where the only emission from vehicles and fuel is water. Currently, hydrogen production technology is limited to being made mainly from fossil fuels, but with advances in technology such as this, renewable generation of hydrogen is becoming increasingly possible.

The project was inspired by natural photosynthesis, with scientists attempting to replicate it. Chlorophyll pigment absorbs light and energises an electron

that creates sugars via chain reactions with the help of catalysts. By using miniscule solar panels, the team aim to “harness sunlight and drive the production of hydrogen, from which the technologies to release energy on demand are welladvanced” says Professor of Biophysical Chemistry Julea Butt, from UEA’s School of Chemistry Biological Sciences.

It is expected that the technology will be more efficient than existing solar converters – top end solar photovoltaic panels (PV) have a laboratory efficiency rating of only around 17%, which falls even lower once installed outside optimum lab conditions. There is enormous capacity for renewable energy, but a vast amount of it is unrealised, mainly because of the difficulty in converting solar energy into useful forms that can be used for transport, electricity, or heating, for example.

The scientists in the team have high hopes for their budding technology, however; they “imagine that our photocatalysts will prove versatile and that with slight modification they will be able to harness solar energy for the manufacture of carbon-based fuels, drugs and fine chemicals.” It may take a while before we are seeing houses powered by microbes, but this is certainly and exciting step in the right direction.

Amy Osterloh Environment writer Wherever you go in the UK you will find invasive species. On the UEA campus, as well as the grey squirrels and rabbits, the 2009-2011 Biodiversity audit found many of these species.

Many cause several problems, like outcompeting the native species.

However, never before has an invasive species caused enough problems for the sale of it to be banned in UK. From April 2014, any retailer who sells water fern, parrot feather, floating pennywort, Australian swamp stonecrop or water primrose may face a £5,000 fine or up to six months in prison.

These plants are often inadvertently introduced when they are bought as ornamental plants for the garden and then allowed to spread into the wild. One of the plants, floating pennywort (Hydrocotyle ranunculoides) was introduced to Britain from North America in the 1980s. It can grow up to 20 cm a day and therefore has potential to block rivers and waterways.

In 2009 the Enviromental Agency started a campaign to clear it from the Trent and Tame rivers in Tamworth.

Environment Minister Richard Benyon announced the ban on 29 January, stating that it would save Britain millions of pounds worth of damage as well as allow fishers and anglers better access to rivers and lakes.

Science & Tech

05/02/13

Issue 279

concrete.science@uea.ac.uk

15

Potential Alzheimer’s vaccine in development Emily Addington Science writer It is a disease accountable for roughly 60% of all dementia, currently affecting an estimated 700,000 people in the UK alone and some 36 million individuals worldwide. Without a viable treatment presently available, Alzheimer’s Disease is a frightening diagnosis.

However, researchers from the Université Laval, CHU de Québec and international pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) may have taken the next big step towards the development of not only a potential treatment, but a vaccine to help prevent the onset of the disease in high risk individuals.

Their study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on 15 January, showed the molecule Monophosphoryl lipid A (MPL) is capable of inducing an immune response in the brain that improves the symptoms of Alzheimer’s in mice.

Alzheimer’s is a neurodegenerative disease with late onset, typically diagnosed in individuals over the age of 65 and characterized by progressive memory loss, behavioural changes and decline in cognitive ability. While the exact cause remains elusive, the disease is always associated with deposits of the toxic peptide amyloid beta in the brain, causing “senile plaques.” The migratory microglia cells that form part of the

nervous system’s immune response are incapable of clearing this amyloid beta build-up in Alzheimer’s sufferers. This leads experts to believe that these plaques, while not the sole cause, contribute to the associated pathology of the disease.

Researchers of GSK have now reported that MPL initiates an immune response capable of significantly reducing senile plaques and improving cognitive function in mice. The mice, who had Alzheimer’s associated pathology, were injected daily with MPL and observed over a 12-week period, with the study reporting an extremely promising 80% reduction in senile plaques and an ability to learn new tasks that suggested improved mental ability.

MPL acts as an antagonist of Tolllike Receptor 4 (TLR4), a member of a class of proteins important in pathogenic recognition and innate immunity initiation.

The result of MPL antagonisation is a nonpyrogenic immune response, including powerful phagocytosis by microglia that significantly reduces senile plaques.

MPL is nothing new for GSK, who have been using it for years as a vaccine adjuvant, such as in their HPV vaccine, Cervarix. The benefit of this is that MPL’s safety in humans has already been well established by the Food and Drug Administration in the United States.

Dr Serge Rivest, lead researcher and a co-author of the paper, sees two

potential future uses of MPL. The first is as a neuromuscular injection to slow the progression of the disease in those already diagnosed, the second, is as a vaccine serving as a preventative treatment for those individuals of higher risk.

The results of the study have been hailed by Dr Paul Patterson, a neurobiologist at CalTech who believes that MPL hits the “sweet-spot” of a drug which is effective yet safe. “Since this molecule [MPL] is approved for human use in vaccines, MPL is a good candidate for clinical testing in Alzheimer’s Disease,” Dr Patterson explained, citing its use as a vaccine adjuvant without any apparent side-effects.

However, Dr. M. Marsel Mesulam, a neurologist at the Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, warned that the results, while promising, should be regarded critically.

He explained that though MPL has had promising results in mice, it might not work as well in humans, and that senile plaques are not the only effecting factor in Alzheimer’s Disease.

Despite this, Dr. Rivest feels that the promising results were a at least a clear step towards the development of a curative treatment, stating: “When our team started working on Alzheimer’s disease a decade ago, our goal was to develop better treatment for Alzheimer’s patients. With the discovery announced today, I think we’re close to our objective.”

Electronica celebrated at London Science Museum

Internet crime costs China over $46bn in 2012

Harry Slater Science writer

Chris Teale Managing editor

An exhibition celebrating the technology of electronic music opened at the London Science Museum last week.

Home-built and one-off inventions appear alongside iconic instruments, charting the history of the genre from 1950 to the present day. The exhibition also highlights how new technology changed the way musicians and composers

worked, and how electronic music made its way into the mainstream.

At the centre of the showcase is the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, a studio that introduced electronic sounds to the masses through radio and television theme tunes and sound effects. The studio contributed to popular music too: Roger Mayer, who supplied guitar pedals to Jeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix, mastered the art using instructions given in the Workshop’s regular journals. Recognising its influence, dance music magazine Mixmag praised the Workshop as “the unsung heroes of British electronica.”

Equally important, and also featured by the museum, is Daphne Oram. Her Oramics Machine, which produced sounds from drawings, is on display.

Inspired by Oram’s invention, students of the National Youth Theatre wrote and put on a play about her.

Oramics to Electronica: revealing the histories of electronic music is free and open until Friday 30 August.

It has been reported that China lost an estimated $46.4 billion from internet crimes last year, according to the People’s Public Security University of China.

The report found that the Chinese authorities launched investigations on 118,000 cybercrimes in 2012, with the Global Times noting that “fraud, prostitution, pyramid selling and personal information theft” were among the top crimes committed.

It also implied that as many as 700,000 internet users in the country are victims of cybercrime each day.

China has taken steps in recent years to reduce illegal activities online, but cybercrime continues to be rife in the country as more and more people become connected to the internet.

Just last month, the New York Times drew the world’s attention to websites offering guns, prostitution and date-rape

drugs.

A government agency believes that 564 million people were connected to the internet in China at the end of last year, up from 513 million at the same time in 2011.

16 Travel Sun, sea and sangria in Spain concrete.travel@uea.ac.uk

Hatty Farnham Travel writer Barcelona: home of man-made beaches, Las Ramblas and all things Gaudi. With its artificial beaches in La Barceloneta, its historic architecture and its thriving night life in the student quarter, the city has a little bit of something for everyone.

Firstly, when booking your flights make sure you weigh up the pros and cons of flying to Reus, the budget airline destination, rather than Barcelona airport itself. It’s bound to be cheaper, but buses take several hours and terminate on the wrong side of town.

Many of the cheapest hostels are located around Passeig de Gracia, the major shopping avenue leading to the centre of the city. The view from your balcony will almost certainly be the window display of Chanel, Dior or Cartier rather than the sea, but with winding alleys and medieval buildings on one side and designer shops on the other, Passeig de Gracia will introduce you to much of the city you would miss if you were closer to the seafront. The area is a fifteen minute walk from the centre of Las Ramblas, (the vibrant but tacky centre of Barcelona) but after exploring the commercial streets, be sure to explore the more picturesque routes of the gothic quarter.

You will find the cheaper restaurants and bars (good food isn’t very cheap anywhere) surrounding Barcelona’s main university, but can pick up fresh fruit, olives, cheese and bread from the local markets, and cheap bottles of sangria from the corner shop, to make up a picnic each day. The markets are gorgeous and perhaps the most famous is La Boqueria, which is one of the oldest and largest

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fresh produce markets in Catalonia.

Sightseeing-wise there is no avoiding Gaudi, but then again, why would you want to? Antonia Gaudi is responsible for the most of the architectural landmarks in Catalonia. Designing the cathedral Sagrada Familia, the hill-top gardens of Parc Guell, Pavillion Guell and so much more, Gaudi became a figurehead for Spanish modernism and iconic sculptural design, and his unique intricate style is breath-taking.

The vibrant colours used in his mosaics, and the unique structures of his buildings capture the energy of the city and contrast the natural landscapes within which they are usually built. The gorgeous Sagrada Familia is an absolute must-see, but you can often queue for over an hour in the baking sun, so make sure you’re prepared for the wait with liquids and sun cream!

Similarly, build in enough time to queue when visiting the Picasso Museum, because it is well worth spending a whole afternoon in the renovated medieval building, home to over 4000 of Picasso’s pieces.

The night-life is excellent in Barcelona, but be prepared to pay around 50 euros for entrance into a nice club (this will include your alcohol for the night), and to see many semi-naked women dancing on stage. Also, don’t wear flip-fops, you’ll probably have to squeeze your feet into a size four pair of heels you’ll borrow from a drunk Spanish girl.

Finally, enjoy the freedom of a city which can offer you almost everything.

Try new foods, drink lots of sangria, and if you have time, try to explore the beautiful mountainous landscapes surrounding the city too.

Photography Corner

Ricky Burrows in Pokhara, Nepal

Issue 279

Are you a budding photographer? Here at Concrete we love seeing your travel pictures, so why not send them in? Just email them to concrete.travel@uea.ac.uk.

Travel

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concrete.travel@uea.ac.uk

How to upgrade to First Class for free Caterina Incisa Della Rocchetta Travel writer Flying in First Class is a truly wonderful experience, one which precious few students can actually afford. It is possible to blag your way into First Class though, so you can enjoy all of the luxury, without having to pay a penny extra.

Firstly, dress the part. Now, flying in comfort does have its perks and most long haul flights will be full of people dressed in what could be mistaken for pyjamas, but they aren’t going to upgrade a slob.

So in the interest of having a fancier flight, try putting on a some clean clothes and make a bit more effort with your appearance. It doesn’t take much effort and you will still be comfortable enough for the flight, but it is important that you don’t resemble a scruffy student too much.

Secondly do be persistent but polite.

It might take two requests to get an upgrade, one at the check in desk and one at the gate desk, not much really.

At check in, simply ask if the flight was empty, particularly if you are travelling on a holiday like New Year’s Eve or on a flight very early in the morning. Even if the attendant at the desk informs you that the flight is actually full, you can still use this to your advantage. There is always a chance that they might have overbooked the flight. You can simply ask, “I was just wondering, with the flight being so full, if there was any chance of an upgrade?”

Yes, there is actually a list held by the

airline of people “willing” to upgrade on every flight, so it is absolutely worth making sure your name is put on that list.

However, it is best not to get too excited though as there is only a slim chance.

It’s easy to give up hope but persistence really does pay off.

It also does not hurt to go up to the desk at your flight’s gate in the airport terminal and politely mention to one of the staff working there that one of their colleagues at the check in desk had mentioned there

The East Coast’s best kept secret Johnnie Bicket Travel writer Maine is a state that tends to be sidelined when people consider the places to visit in the USA. In a country with such cultural and geographical diversity, it can be tricky to choose what experience of America you would like to come away with.

If you are drawn to the east coast, of course New York is the jewel in the crown.

However, if you venture north, you will be taken in by one of the most beautiful places in America - New England.

On the border with Canada, Maine is defined by three things - pristine countryside, beautiful picket-fenced wooden houses, and the best lobster in the world. Staying on the coast is the best way to see Maine, and what a coast it is - valleys and mountaintops transformed into thousands of inlets and island chains by the last ice age, and everywhere covered with dense prehistoric pine forests.

The nature there is truly intoxicating - the woodland has a magical quality,

lichen draped over boughs and the forest floor layered with thick emerald mosses, occasionally intersected with hiking trails.

While on the coast, hiring a boat and picnicking on tiny islands is the best way to spend a lazy day. You’re sure to avoid the crowds as the only other people around will be the ever-present lobstermen, always lingering in the distance while gulls, loons and ospreys swoop down, stealing scraps of baitfish.

Inland, Maine is rather underdeveloped, with little villages and mining towns dotted about the gemstone-rich Appalachian Mountains.

The coast has been invigorated by tourism, with many New Yorkers and Bostonians investing in holiday homes and timeshares, who then visit Maine during the summer break.

If you find yourself losing your mind in New York (it’s very easy to do), fly up to Maine and you’ll see just how amazing America is - the true outdoors is always at your fingertips in New England.

Finally, do try the lobster. It really is the best in the world.

was a chance of an upgrade and if this is still possible. After all, there is no harm in asking.

Thirdly, it helps to have flown with the airline before as they are more likely to choose their frequent flyers for an upgrade. As students this can be hard as it makes more sense to go with the cheapest deal than to stay loyal to one company, but if it makes financial sense then book with the same company if you can. Also, make sure to claim your air miles! It’s free

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to sign up with any airline and will come up on your details at check in, making you more likely to get upgraded. Given that so many airlines operate co-operatively nowadays, the collection of air miles has been made even easier, so you can have one air miles account for multiple airlines.

And finally: don’t give up. If it doesn’t work one time, that doesn’t mean it won’t work another time. These rules are not guaranteed. Remember: if you don’t ask, you won’t receive.

Every week our writers will tell you their favourite place in the world. This week, Jessica Crisp describes her favourite bar in New York City.

A popular bohemian bar in the centre of New York, the Evil Eye Lounge is an assault on the senses. This unusual world of travel and mysticism is hidden behind the bar’s shop by day and only accessible via a tiny alley at night. The colourful, wooden décor is influenced by Brazil, Haiti and Morocco, the delicious food is

Issy Witcomb in Slovenia

Asian and the cocktails are downright wacky, if a little dangerous. Dare to try the Blood From A Cat’s Face or Murder In A Hurricane concoctions, many have tried Shed Seven but few have survived. Not feeling so adventurous? Beers, coffees, teas and soft drinks can all be sipped while lounging on a cosy four poster bed.

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concrete.lifestyle@uea.ac.uk

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Lifestyle

Keep your two wheels happy: look after your bike Emma Gladwin Lifestyle writer It is no secret that university students are often ambassadors for a particular form of transportation that involves two wheels: cycling. If you fall into this category of student, perhaps you have asked yourself how to clean and care for your machine. If

so, fear not; Concrete has a few basic tips for you.

For minimal care, always treat the bicycle’s chain – this makes the bike work and without it a bike is just an oddly-shaped and unsteady chair. To do so, ideally turn your bike upside down so its weight is resting on the handlebars and saddle, or otherwise prop it right side up against a

Joshua Smithers

wall with no obstructions to the pedals.

Now look at your chain, is it dry?

Covered in black gloop? It might be beyond care, but before disaster strikes grab some bike friendly spray oil, such as WD-40, GT85 or TF2. Holding a pedal, work the chain backwards (so your bike does not run off!) and spray a good amount of your chosen oil at one spot near the back, making sure all the chain gets covered. Do not be afraid to go overboard.

Grab an old tea towel or cloth and run the pedals backwards again, holding the chain where your hand will not get caught up in metal. This strips excess oil and helps work it between the chain links where it is needed. Ideally, keep going until your chain is beautiful and shines like new. You can stop here, but that oil will not last long – a maximum of a week in dry conditions and you will be doing the whole process again!

You now need a “drippy” oil. TF2 again makes a good one, but otherwise anything labeled a cycle lube is good, with dry lube for summer and wet lube for winter. With this drippy stuff it is the same process – run the chain backwards, apply generously and wipe the excess away.

Now that the messy part is over (you probably noticed oil spattered just about everywhere), it is a good time to clean the rest of your bike. You can buy specific bike cleaning products, which are great at tackling grime and mud and who knows what else. However, for the casual commuting cyclist, some washing up liquid in a bucket of warm water works just fine. A cheap dish brush, old rags, or even an old toothbrush are also perfect for cleaning those hard to reach places.

Using your warm soapy water and brush, just work around the frame, forks and anywhere looking like in need of a scrub. Rinse off with fresh water and voila!

During cold months, wipe your bicycle down with a dry cloth in order to prevent rust.

If you are still not satisfied, the last basic thing to clean is the rims of your wheels – if you have these brakes that is.

For best results, use clean soapy water and a different rag. Dunk the rag in the water and work it around the rim, making sure to switch to a clean part when you’ve collected enough black gloop (it will happen). Remember to do both sides of both wheels.

compromise your degree. However, this is probably the one that will be the most useful to you. Making the break might be agonising but you’ll undoubtedly find

yourself with more time on your hands, and you’ll make more effort to get in touch with people in the real world rather than on Facebook.

An alternative Lent Sidonie Chaffer-Melly Lifestyle writer We’re all familiar with the concept of giving something up for Lent. The Christian tradition of sacrificing luxuries lasts six weeks, beginning with Ash Wednesday and finishing at Easter.

Whether it was chocolate and crisps when we were younger, or alcohol and cigarettes as we grew up, the struggle against the things that tempt us most comes around alarmingly quickly every year. Those who stick to the tradition may be struggling with what to give up this year round, so we have come up with some suggestions.

Sex. Giving up sex for forty days (and nights) is a daunting thought, but it could prove to be highly beneficial. It will allow you to exercise your will power and you might find that you start building relationships quicker and more easily without the pressure hanging over you.

For those already spoken for, it will be a true test of the bonds of your relationship.

Extra points for giving up masturbating as well.

Underwear. Not unheard of, but not exactly the most socially acceptable abstention. It might be a little chilly and it’s possibly not the most hygienic thing to give up, however you will cut down on laundry. It’s also imaginably a little uncomfortable, and hard to explain if you do get lucky.

Emma Williamson

The LCR. Almost impossible.

Although technically Lent doesn’t count on Sundays so you could be sneaky and go after midnight.

TV. Tricky but perhaps manageable, this depends purely on your addiction to the box. For those who don’t have televisions, this means no watching re-runs online as well. As this is one of most people’s main procrastination techniques, it could mean that you get a lot more work done when you would normally be catching up with whichever series you’re currently addicted to. For daytime TV lovers, you would be amazed at how much time there is when you’re not glued to the latest scandal erupting on Jeremy Kyle.

Laundry. While we don’t exactly advocate wearing the same dirty clothes for six weeks, giving up doing laundry might actually help you to re-evaluate your wardrobe. You’ll be forced to wear the outfits that have been lying abandoned at the back of your closet, and you might rediscover some forgotten gems. After that, you can sell the things you know you don’t want and make some money.

The internet. Perhaps the most difficult, the internet is so ingrained in our daily lives that it would be a true sacrifice to give it up for forty days. Trying to tear yourself away from social media is tricky at the best of times, but attempting to write an essay without some background reading on Wikipedia might even

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The international growth of online media Rhian Poole Lifestyle writer Online media is becoming more and more commonplace in our daily lives, as people take advantage of an online network where they can share photos, memories, music and much more. The internet has served as a connective plane between communities, friends, families and even celebrities and their fans. Many stars such as Justin Bieber, Sean Kingston and Soulja Boy have become famous via websites like YouTube, where they began their careers posting amateur videos.

YouTube was created in February 2005 by three former PayPal employees, and has developed into a home for a variety of different types of video, ranging from educational to music videos and even film previews. YouTube is used by businesses and is also a stepping stone for the public to

become professional artists and vloggers.

However, it is not by pure luck that potential new stars are found. YouTuber Megan Parker was only 15 years old when she was discovered for her make-up, fashion and life advice videos, but she was resourceful and promoted an idea that was novel and had mass appeal. She received 100,000 views per video and through the YouTube partner programme and brands she mentioned in her videos, she was able to leave school in ninth grade, buy her first car and begin saving money for college.

This is not to say it will work for everyone, but for Megan her perseverance and ingenuity paid off.

Jenna Marbles had similar success.

She is a go-go dancer, who is known for her quirky and humorous videos that she produces in the comfort of her bedroom.

Marbles began producing videos in February 2010 and quickly became known

for her spontaneous and creative use of titles for her videos, including “How to get ready for a date” which received 15,323,595 views. Again, YouTube’s partner programme has opened doors for Jenna to follow her passion and to earn a living as she has reached 500 million views on her channel, and currently has around 3 million subscribers worldwide.

“The power of online media lies in the interaction and expansion of a fan base.”

Other websites such as WordPress are becoming very popular, soaring above its competitors Joomla and Drupal.

WordPress was launched in 2003, and offers the opportunity to build a blog or a whole website. It is a completely free

service with over 60 million sites running on it and 40 million new posts published each month. You can connect with social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and blogging service Tumblr, whilst posting from many different mobile devices such as Blackberries, Android phones, iPads and iPhones. You can also track your popularity, and see how many views your website is receiving.

As the viewers and subscribers of the stars of online media, it is important that we realise the amount of work and determination which is required to become a premier social media personality, and to understand the work, fresh ideas and dedication which the maintenance of such success needs.

In a world where it is all too easy for stars to become old news, the power of online media lies in the interaction and expansion of a fan base.

Whimsy and tradition: Biddy’s Tea Room Maddy Hutt Lifestyle writer Stepping into Biddy’s Tea Room feels a little like entering Lewis Carroll’s Wonderland.

Tucked away down Lower Goat Lane, this delightful tearoom that opened its doors back in 2011 has already been recognised for its triumphs, including winning Best Vintage Café in Norwich at the Norwich Vintage Awards last year and even being praised in the travel section of The Guardian.

Biddy’s is unique, with its eccentric interior and traditional teas using local produce, ranging from delicious chorizo and pork pies to rose flavoured tarts and carrot cakes in teacups. Their peculiar window display, complete with a welcoming stuffed fox, is an immediate head turner, and the eccentricities do not stop there. Inside the design is perfectly mad, with every piece of décor and furniture exerting its own individual charm.

The layout of the tea room is divided into a lounge area at the back, ideal for a quiet cup of tea with a friend or two, and an afternoon tea room upstairs, perfect for a special get together over scones and crustless sandwiches. Biddy’s takes bookings for large parties and events if you wish to celebrate a special occasion in their venue, with a range of party menus that can also cater for specific dietary requirements, such as vegan or gluten-free alternatives. A stand-out feature at Biddy’s is their delicious cupcakes in all manner of flavours, from Piña Colada to Turkish Delight.

Not only can you sample a freshly made cupcake in their lounge with one of the many fruity teas on offer, but Biddy’s also offer a bespoke cupcake service. Pick the flavours and colours of your choice and for a few

Emma Williamson pennies more you can have your cakes in a pretty presentation box ready to surprise your loved ones with. Or, depending on how generous you are feeling, Biddy’s can prepare you a box ready to be devoured as a post-exam treat for yourself, should you be feeling greedy.

Norwich boasts a wide array of cafes, but this tearoom has quickly succeeded in establishing itself amidst the quirky boutiques of the Norwich Lanes as a traditional tea house. It advertises many of

the city’s Vintage themed events, as well as hosting upstairs its own “Stitch and Bitch” sessions where tea and knitting lovers can come together and do as the name suggests. However, if you are not a dab hand at crochet but are keen on vintage pieces then turn your attention downstairs.

The owners of Biddy’s have themselves collected many of the ornaments and trinkets that adorn the tearoom and some of its treasures are for sale. Items to purchase include teapot-shaped jewellery, vintage

luggage cases and entire crockery sets if you feel inspired to recreate your own high tea at home. Be sure to speak to the staff if you see a particular item that catches your eye, as the owners often come across their finds in boot sales and can offer advice on where to pick up such treasures.

In short, Biddy’s is a place of whimsy, tradition and great cake. It has quickly become a popular venue for the city’s tea lovers and it truly is a delight for all of the senses.

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Lifestyle

Banana pancakes recipe Lydia Clifton Lifestyle writer Serves 2-3 pancakes.

Ingredients • 2 eggs • 1 banana • Sweetener • Blueberries or any other fruit you fancy • Butter or cooking spray Method 1. Heat a medium sized frying pan with the butter or cooking spray on a low heat.

2. Slice your banana into small pieces and then mash in a bowl.

3. Once the banana is as smooth as you would like it, mix in two eggs. A whisk is easiest but a fork is fine.

4. Once you have this mixture, pour some into a pan, wait for the first side to cook and then carefully flip.

5. At this point, you could pop some blueberries into the pan whilst they are cooking.

6. For extra sweetness, sprinkle a low calorie sweetener to keep it healthy but still delicious.

7. Pile your pancakes up, top with blueberries or any other fresh fruit, and enjoy!

Lydia Clifton Rebecca Layland

Chilli pancakes

Pancake puddings

Emily-Claire Tucker Lifestyle writer

Rebecca Layland Lifestyle writer

If you really want to go all out with pancake-themed eating on Pancake Day, this almost Mexican recipe, which uses pancakes in place of flour tortillas, is filling enough to eat as a meal.

Ingredients • 1 medium onion, chopped • 1 garlic clove, crushed • 425g can of baked beans • 397g can of chopped tomatoes • 2 tsp of chilli powder • 1 yellow pepper, seeded and chopped • 8 freshly made pancakes • 50g of grated cheese Method 1. Place the onion, garlic, beans,

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

tomatoes and chilli in a pan and simmer over a medium heat for 15 minutes.

Add the pepper and cook for a further five minutes, or until the mixture is a bit thicker.

Divide the vegetables mixture between the eight pancakes and fold each pancake into a triangle with the filling inside.

Lay the filled pancakes in a baking dish, trying not to overlap them too much.

Pour any remaining filling over the top.

Cover with grated cheese.

Place the whole dish under the grill (on a medium heat) for roughly five minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden.

Season with salt and pepper.

Serve hot.

This is the perfect recipe for students who do not have the time to flip pancakes but still want the luxury of eating them.

This recipe cooks the pancake batter in the oven as you would for Yorkshire puddings, giving you more time in the morning. Taking just 30 minutes to cook, these are perfect for popping in the oven before you go in the shower in order to be ready for breakfast when you come out.

Ingredients • 75g of plain flour • 2 eggs • 100ml of milk • Butter Method 1. Pre-heat the oven to 220C.

2. Take a six hole muffin tin and add a small knob of butter to each of the hollows before placing in oven to heat up.

3. Combine the flour, eggs and milk with a whisk until smooth, and pour evenly into the cupcake tray whilst the butter is still hot.

4. Cook for 30 minutes and serve hot.

The extra mile…

• Put a spoonful of yogurt into each pancake pudding and scatter fresh blueberries over them.

• Cover the puddings in maple syrup.

• Place sliced banana inside the puddings and cover them with honey.

• Top with fresh lemon juice and sugar and pop under the grill for a lemon drizzle twist.

• Stuff the puddings with smoked mackerel and horseradish.

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concrete.sport@hotmail.co.uk

Issue 279

05/02/13

Sport

‘Magic of the cup’ alive and well Mike Tomkins Sports correspondent

Editors’ column Sam Tomkinson Sports editor After the high pressure of deadline day and the numerous amount of tweets posted about players moving (many of which were made up) it would be easy to suggest that after one of the busiest days of the year there will be a lull in the sporting calendar. This is of course not the case.

The razzle dazzle of the Super Bowl is always a talking point and this year’s was no different. England’s women’s cricket team defend their World Cup in India and the fight for European rugby domination starts in the Six Nations.

This year it is difficult to pinpoint a favourite. France were the strongest in the autumn internationals, England put in a mesmerising performance in their historic victory over New Zealand and Ireland can never be ignored due to their club sides’ dominance in the Heineken Cup. After a heavy defeat to England it is extremely unlikely that Scotland will be anything other than competition with Italy for the “wooden spoon” of last place. Although spirited, Wales started too slowly and their form leading up to the match was abysmal.

My pick for the Six Nations is France.

They are ranked above all other European nations and rightly so. They were the strongest and most consistent northern hemisphere side. Under Philippe SaintAndre the selection policy is much also more consistent, allowing players to be more comfotable with their teammates and in their positions as they are a lot less likely to be dropped after one bad game. With the infamous French flair in the backs and a much more sturdy and reliable pack it is hard to see any other team triumphing.

A special mention must be given to England’s women’s netball side for their emphatic landslide victory over Australia. England won 3-0 against the number-one ranked side in the world.

The reason why it was so spectacular was that only twice in netball history had England beatan Australia before this series, so for them to dominate in such a way was historical and very significant indeed.

If the state of modern football looked as though it was becoming less attractive, this year’s FA Cup would suggest otherwise, with proposals that the “romance” of the cup has been rekindled.

When Aston Villa crashed out to Championship side Millwall on Friday evening many believed it to be merely symptomatic of their current plight, but it was to be the sign of things to come.

Extraordinarily, five Premier League sides fell to lower league opposition all on the same weekend, including last year’s runners up, Liverpool. The biggest shock arguably came at Carrow Road, where Norwich City were humbled 1-0, at the hands of non-league Luton Town.

Elsewhere, Leeds United overcame Tottenham 2-1, whilst MK Dons hit four past QPR in a 4-2 victory.

The chaotic weekend leaves just six Premier League sides guaranteed a place in the fifth round, with Chelsea’s fate yet to be decided after Brentford bravely held them to a draw and forced a replay.

At this stage last season, there were nine, and just one team outside of England’s top tier who progressed to the sixth round.

Usually when one or two Premier League “Goliaths” exit prematurely it is often dismissed as carelessness. But when five go all at once, questions begin

to be asked. It might be easy to blame the younger players, as Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers did, but that only begs the question: why field a weakened team in such a prestigious competition?

Besides, even when Chelsea deployed a host of experienced names such as Frank Lampard and John Terry, they still failed to see off a side two divisions below.

Of course, one should take nothing away from the giant-killers themselves.

The likes of Oldham and Leeds both fought hard and were worthy of their respective victories. This has led some to

question the reality of the gulf between the Premier League and the lower divisions.

Yet even if such conclusions are hasty, and the rekindled “romance” of the cup appears to be no more than a brief fling, the results are massive for the victors in more ways than one. For them it isn’t just the back-page headlines, or the fifth-round fixture, but the financial revenue rewarded from their success. In a footballing age of inflated transfer fees and contracts, a seemingly small sum can go along way for likes of Luton Town.

More than meets the eye in Beckham’s PSG move?

Billy Sexton Sports editor David Beckham putting pen to paper in a five-month unpaid deal with Paris St. Germain raised more questions than it answered.

The highly respected Englishman left LA Galaxy in November with the intention to embark on “one final challenege” before he brings his playing career to a close. It was revealed that Beckham would play for free, with his would be salary being kindly donated to a children’s charity located in Paris. Nobody is questioning Beckham’s own generosity in this issue but one must address the club’s motives behind signing the 37-year-old in the manner in which they have.

Firstly, Beckham has been a free agent for months, so why didn’t PSG snap him up as soon as he was out of contract with LA Galaxy? Unless of course, there were multiple offers Beckham was considering, the entire move was an ingenious way to get the ambitious French team the global exposure they desire on one of the busiest days in the annual footballing market.

Beckham is unlikely to be match fit for at

least another couple of weeks, and even when he is, it is unlikely he will be in the starting XI given the intensity of midfield competition. Of course, there is plenty Beckham can bring to the training ground - in his experience, professionalism and charisma - but the deadline day move was clearly a publicity stunt to trump the big money moves of Mario Balotelli to AC Milan and Christopher Samba to QPR.

As mentioned, nobody is questioning PSG’s and Beckham’s generosity in donating his wages to a children’s charity.

But PSG are a club who is gaining an increasingly bad reputation for forking out astronomical amounts of money for their first team players, and donating Beckham’s wages to charity serves as a friendly reminder that the club aren’t just all about paying footballing mercenaries such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Javier Pastore and Lucas Moura to collect a couple of items of silverware.

The links with Qatar also have to be addressed. With PSG’s owners part of the Qatar Sports Investment (QSI) and the country being set to host the World Cup in 2022, signing Beckham on a five-month contract will reap rewards long after his time at the club expires. Qatar are looking to increase their international image through football, so what better way than to sign the ultimate shirt seller?

In his press conference, Beckham made it clear he wanted to be a part of the club’s future and it could well be the case that the former England captain adopts a role similar to the one Patrick Viera currently holds at Manchester City.

Sport

05/02/13

Issue 279

concrete.sport@hotmail.co.uk

23

Netball II edge out Oxford Brookes Holly Wade Sports correspondent

Netball II 46 Oxford Brookes II 35 UEA Netball II took on Oxford Brookes II in the Sportspark on Wednesday in a clash that saw the home side victorious with a strong win of 46-35.

UEA won the first centre pass and the first quarter was action-packed with plenty of goal opportunities as well as penalties being incurred on both sides.

The first shot went to UEA, a direct aim from shooter Alex Makin.

There was little doubt that UEA would lose as their lead progressed steadily until the final quarter due to great shots from the shooters, Makin and Deyonte Abbott-Lewis, as well as rebound catches from the defence of Becca Newby and Georgia Janes down the far end.

Brookes failed to exploit their chances, often losing the ball once in the circle. Their shooter towered over the UEA defence, proving difficult to stop

her goals but the pair worked tirelessly and saved many a ball gone astray.

Moving to the end of the first quarter UEA’s enhanced formation helped them score consistently. Zoe Ridd as Wing Defence came from behind to take the centre passes and push the ball forward, ensuring that Makin and AbbottLewis were consistently in possession the ball and were prepared to shoot before Brookes were really sure what had happened. Becky Borrows proved allusive as centre, always appearing in a clear space at the right time.

The second quarter saw UEA working hard and attacking to perfection with Wing Attack Ella Crook and Borrows constantly pushing the ball forward into the circle and the hands of Makin.

Abbott-Lewis constantly found herself available in the right places and pushed out in order to score her fair share of nets.

UEA’s sharp passes certainly held their advantage and this was echoed when the whistle blew for the end of the second quarter as UEA led 22-11.

Rachel Sloper’s competent and

Men’s Badminton demolish Bedford 8-0 Men’s Badminton recorded an 8-0 whitewash victory over Bedford. The win is their first of 2013, after they suffered a huge loss to Aston the week previous.

The result sees the team climb

Ga Chun Yau

to second in their league, although they remain 14 points behind leaders Cambridge I. UEA will battle it out with four others for second place, with the top spot assured for Cambridge.

powerful passing during the second half of the fixture helped maintain UEA’s strong tempo. UEA also closed the ball down well, thwarting Brookes’ attempts further.

The final quarter proved more costly for UEA as their tempo slowed and they gave away easy chances. Sadly for the attacking side they could only look on as Newby and reserve Goal Defence Nicola Ferguson desperately attempted to push the ball back down the court.

At the end of the match, team captain Newby described the game as being an “excellent win which will help us massively in the league.” Makin was awarded player of the match by the opposition and Crook gained players’ player for all her feeds to the shooters.

Newby also proclaimed that she is “looking forward to the rest of the season and hoping to finish in the top three.”

If UEA can keep up the pace and agility shown against Brookes during the first two quarters they really could become a competitive force that finish in the final three as the team hopes and deserves.

Whye Tchien Khor

Focus: UEA Boat Club Having been made a focus sport by the Union of UEA Students, the UEA Boat Club has looked to increase their profile on campus. With an ambitious development plan into its second year the club is going from strength to strength. and with the increased funding they have been able to hire quality experienced coaches to go along with their improved equipment.

This has paid dividends as there has been a marked improvement in their results since the start of the plan.

Results this season have been encouraging for the club. The men’s senior eight won at Cambridge Winter Head, with three other UEA boats finishing second in their categories in what was a great achievement. Not only were UEA successful at Cambridge, the men’s coxed four won in the Carrow Cup. There were also strong performances from those new members who had previously never rowed before. Many of them were in the men’s and women’s boats that finished second at Cambridge Winter Head, which amazingly was their first race. They are now getting to the stage where they are starting to push for places in the senior squad.

At the moment the club boasts 67 members, which has been an increase from previous years. Undoubtedly, the interest was especially high this year due to the success of Great Britain’s success at the Olympics. The Team GB rowers

achieved nine medals at Eton Dorney (four golds, two silvers and three bronzes) and have been inspiring the public to get involved with rowing.

UEA Boat Club refuse to rest on their laurels and go through rigorous yet beneficial training to make sure that they improve their status in BUCS rowing.

They train seven to 10 times a week comprising of three to four outings out on the river, two sessions using rowing machines and two weight sessions as well as additional yoga and circuits. Outings primarily take place at six in the morning, with indoor training held either at eight in the morning or in the evenings during the week.

The recent weather has affected training slightly as the boat club is about three or four miles from campus, and members are discouraged from cycling in the ice and snow. However, unless the river is frozen or visibility is far too difficult the club trains in most weather, as long as they can get there.

The second semester will see the club compete in races further afield such as London, Nottingham and Berkshire, where there is great belief that they can improve on last season’s results. The ultimate goal for the club is to row at the prestigious Henley Royal Regatta in July; and there are numerous races along the way which will be used as markers to analyse their progress.

@concretesport

Concrete Sport UEA

SPORT

Issue 279 05 February 2013

Netball II match report

Greg Mann

Ga Chun Yau

Men’s Football cruise to victory Charlie Savage Sports correspondent

Men’s Football I 4 Northampton I 0 In their opening BUCS match of 2013, Men’s Football I produced a convincing display in an emphatic 4-0 win over Northampton I, to place them level on points at the top of their division. The side was slightly changed from the one that lost the Norfolk Junior Cup quarter final, with Neil Hurren marking his return to the side with a brace, adding to goals by Ben Calvo, and a stunning free kick from Simon Beeson.

The first half failed to gather pace, as the strong wind at Colney Lane restricted UEA’s normal fast, passing style. Neither side were creating any clear cut chances, with the home team’s most potent threat coming from corners.

Northampton thought they had taken the lead on the half hour mark through a free kick, but the referee and linesman correctly spotted a touch from a player in an offside position. This scare seemed to jolt the home side into life, and it wasn’t long before they broke the deadlock.

Calvo beat two men with his trademark trickery before lashing the ball into the far corner of the net, and bring his side ahead

going into the half-time break.

UEA started the second half in the same manner they ended the first; with a goal. Beeson sprayed a perfectly weighted pass to the right, where Stefanos Pachnis beat the offside trap and delivered a great ball for Hurren to poke into the back of the net to make it two.

It wasn’t long before the lead was extended through a moment of brilliance from Beeson. He lined up a free-kick around twenty-five yards out and left the goalkeeper motionless as he curled the ball over the wall and rattled the stanchion of the goal to extend the UEA’s lead.

Northampton’s only dangerous shot on target came from a free kick just outside the box, which was well saved by Charlie Savage in the home side’s goal, but UEA were looking more than comfortable defensively. They added the icing on the cake late on through another Hurren goal after it fell to him from a floated ball in, and the yellows were able to see out the remainder of the game with ease.

Captain Scott can be very happy with his side’s effort against Northampton, bouncing back after the disappointment in the Junior Cup. This victory adds even more importance to the match tomorrow, when the squad travel to Derby in another must-win game, which will be crucial in their promotion push with only five games to go.

UEA BUCS Home

Page 23 UEA Boat Club focus

Fixtures 6 February Women’s Basketball v Oxford Brookes Men’s Squash v Aston Men’s Tennis v Oxford

Page 23 Is the FA Cup magical?

Women’s Tennis v Oxford Brookes

Page 22