The Knowledge Winter Issue by The Knowledge

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theknowledge

The Official Student Newspaper of UPSU Winter Issue - December 2014

winter issue

YOUR EXECUTIVE OFFICER TEAM

facebook.com/execofficers

President | Sarah Bowman

@UPSUPresident

Hi all! It’s been a really busy and very exciting first term! We’ve had our first UEC meetings, bringing together the Forum Chairs and Executive Officers to debate campaigns, Policies and Union Bye-Laws! As well as this I’ve been developing my campaigns to influence University transparency and improve timetabling! I’ve also been creating an exciting proposal for new student representative opportunities in halls of residence. If you’d like to find out more, please just pop in to see me.

VP Education | Ruth Titmuss

@UPSUEducation

November bought us Speak Week, where course reps were encouraged to get opinions and feedback on how you have found your course so far this year – looking for 3 things you love and 3 things you would like to see changed. All this information will be taken to meetings within the University so you can propose the changes you want to see happen and make your voice heard. As always, if you want to discuss anything, please do come and chat to me J Merry Christmas, enjoy the festivities!

VP International & Outreach | Will Holmes

@UPSUIntOut

Hello Knowledge readers, since the last issue I have been finishing up the work on the ‘hello project’, an international mentoring scheme that ran this year, also started work on ‘The Culture Club’, a new internationally themed student night. I’m hoping to have my plans for a project in the partner colleges to be finished this week and am excited to get stuck into work outlined by the Global & partner forums. Merry Christmas everyone! VP Societies & Sport | Emily Hamilton-Peach

@UPSUSocSport

This month has been so busy. All of the new student forums have started, along with the Union Executive Committee meetings - so we’re getting some really good info about what students want. I’ve started working on an Inter-Faith and Belief campaign, using funding we received from NUS; it kicks off with a FREE lunch (12.30, 11th Dec @ Illusion) for anyone interested in faith. Rich, Sarah and I have also been working on a zero tolerance to sexual harassment campaign called ‘Know the Line’, which we will hopefully be launching soon! I’ve also had the first planning meeting with Marjon about Varsity - WOO!! VP Welfare | Rich Skipper

@UPSUWelfare

I’m responsible for representing students on welfare issues which varies from finances to safety and health to accommodation. My aims are to make sure that your voice and feedback is heard, not only by the university, but in the city too. To help build a student community and champion diversity. To empower and equip you with the information you need so you don’t fed ripped off by rouge landlords.

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EDITOR’S NOTE

winter issue

Hello and welcome to our winter-inspired print issue. It’s cold, term is almost over and Christmas is on its way but The Knowledge is not slowing down just yet. We’ve been busy this month helping raise money for Children in Need, attending student-run and Plymouth-based events and keeping an eye on the student protests in London. This issue sees a mix of Christmas style, winter drinks and reviews of great films and some festive activities held by sports clubs and societies. We’ll be joining the celebrations on campus December 12th when we don our craziest Christmas jumpers to help raise money for Save the Children. I hope to see you wearing yours too; if you’re lucky enough, you could be spotted in our Christmas Campus Style! In the meantime, grab an issue, a festive cup of coffee and stay in the warm. Have a great holiday and see you all in the new year! Lauren Chivers Editor-in-Chief

@PlymUniStuNews

winter issue

NEWS theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/news

Students protest over tuition fees Lauren Chivers Last month thousands of student activists, led by Student Assembly Against Austerity, gathered in central London protesting against cuts to education, student debt and tuition fees. The march opposed tuition fees of up to £9,000 and was backed by groups including the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts. When talking to The Guardian, Deborah Hermanns from the campaign said: “I really do think today was the start of a wider movement calling for free education rather than against something. There were lots of people here on their first demonstration and I think they were inspired and will be back.” Talking to the BBC, Hannah Stewart from Central Saint Martins college, said: “I’m here because three quarters of students cannot pay their debts off. “We have no alternative and there is no choice. Voting hasn’t worked, but we have things that work – arts, literature, petitions and protesting.”

It was believed that up to 10,000 protesters got involved including university students, graduates, further education colleges and sixth forms. Students from all over the UK attended including from Wawrick, Sussex, Manchester and Aberdeen. Amongst these, hundreds carried placards and banners. While the protests began peaceful, the march ended in Parliament Square where many tried to gain entry causing a number of arrests. “Various missiles were thrown at the officers and protesters pulled down protective fencing around the grass area in Parliament Square,” the force said in a statement. Other clashes happened in central London including assaults, damage and possession of weapons. The National Union of Students headquarters was donned with paint after deciding not to back the demonstrations.

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NEWS theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/news

Societies raise £275 for Children In Need

Lauren Chivers

Last night a number of UPSU sports and societies gathered together at Plymouth’s Life Centre to raise money for Children in Need.

This year’s fundraiser was all about heroes: baking, making, dressing up, dressing down, taking on a challenge or entertaining. UPSU sports and societies donned their best superhero outfits or team kits and spent the evening in Plymouth’s Life Centre hosting a range of activities.

The BBC’s Children in Need raised more than £32.6 million during the annual telethon, with acts including One Direction, S Club 7 and Susan Boyle. This beats last year’s on-the-night total of £31.1 million. Other fundraising included the fourth Children in Need rickshaw challenge and a cartoon starring Tom and Jerry. All proceeds go towards helping disadvantaged children and young people across the UK.

Fundraising included a bouncy castle run by the Storm Cheerleaders, a human fruit machine by GeogSoc the Geography Society, The Knowledge’s ‘draw the best Pudsey Bear blindfolded’ and £1 sweets. Other events on the night included Lacrosse, Netball and a Big Band. Overall the UPSU societies raised an on-the-night total of £275.75.

@PlymUniStuNews

christmas issue

SPOTLIGHT

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‘Illuminate’: marking the countdown to 2020 Alice Longhorn In 1620, the Mayflower left Plymouth on its famous voyage to the New World: America. Three hundred and ninety four years later, on Thursday 20th November, hundreds of people gathered on Plymouth Hoe, in an event called ‘Illuminate’, to mark the start of the countdown to 400th anniversary of the historic journey in which the Pilgrim Fathers headed for the New World. The evening began with a short, civic ceremony at the site of the Mayflower steps on the Barbican. Here, a single candle was lit by a descendant of an elder of the Mayflower, Carrie Southwell. The lighting of the candle refers to a quote by Governor William Bradford, featured in his book Of Plimoth Plantation. He stated, “As one small candle may light a thousand, so the light here kindled has shown unto many”. A procession then took place from the Barbican to the Hoe, meeting a parade of children from local primary schools. The parade was headed by a model ship, representing the Mayflower, and the City of Plymouth Pipe Band. As the parade reached the Hoe, the crowds gathered around Smeaton’s Tower. The school children, as well as anyone who wanted to join in with the festivities, were invited to group together and spell out 400. Each individual was asked to hold a candle aloft, with Star Spangled Banner and God Save the Queen ringing out in the night air, symbolising the special link between the UK and the US from the voyage of the Mayflower. A similar ceremony, with candles being lit, was held the next day in Plymouth, Massachusetts on Friday 21st November. This event is the beginning of a number of celebrations that will occur over the next six years, as both the UK and the US build up to the 400th anniversary.

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SPOTLIGHT theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/features

Interview: Adam Stone, CEO of Rokk Media Samantha Lees On November 20th, The Knowledge was invited to attend a Keynote speech by Adam Stone, CEO of Rokk Media, hosted by the Igniting Enterprise society. Rokk Media is an award-winning development company specialising in bespoke software, mobile and technical web development. Founded in 2002, the company focuses on apps, sustainable software and strategic online marketing campaigns and boasts an impressive range of clientele. Rokk Media was one of the first UK digital agencies to develop native mobile apps, and today utilises progressive technologies to develop applications for global clients. At the helm of Rokk Media is Adam Stone, a successful, award winning entrepreneur, marketer and technologist. Born and raised in Exeter, Adam has been an entrepreneur since leaving school. Adam has evolved his businesses over a 26 year period, owning and running companies within the publishing, marketing and technical sector. Also a social media pioneer: he was one of the one of the earliest exponents of social media marketing within the UK. Mr Stone told The Knowledge that he’s heavily involved in many projects involving students and business, not only in his hometown of Exeter, but also Plymouth, including the Future Centre. Despite only attending college for three months and explaining that “you can be bright without university”, Adam is not against the idea of further education, aiming to connect schools, colleges and universities with such projects.

England’s great heritage, of starting businesses and even sectors, and bring some bravery back to students.” I asked Adam if he felt there was a need to incorporate a degree of social media education within schools, if it is to be such a large part of the future, to enable young people to have a standard of ‘decorum’ when it came to online presence. Adam believes that such an idea would be beneficial within mainstream education, however learning how to create a “positive experience, would be a while yet.” Adam also believes that children need to be given the tools to deal with the negativities of social media, including cyber-bullying, and that this sort of education has an immediate place in todays society. Finally, I asked Adam for any parting knowledge he could leave us with: “When I left education in the eighties, nothing existed. To make business, I had to make physical connections. Today, such relationships and opportunities only cost your own time and ingenuity.” And as for the next big thing? He accredits the popularity of social media to our “tribal mentality” and a demand for us to form bonds: and in the modern age, the “science has taken over” progressing and implementing these psychologies within commerce, giving an impression that the only limitation is ourselves. Adam said, “the genie is out of the bottle”: but we need look no further than our own instinct.

I asked Adam if he felt there was any apprehension from students about starting new businesses, and if that there is too much pressure on finding a job that they’ll neglect their inner entrepreneur. Largely, he agreed, stating that “the system is geared up to create workers” and furthers that there is little incentive in starting businesses; “We have to remember

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winter issue

SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENT theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/environment

Net Neutrality – How it affects us all Ben Moore

Recently the White House released a video of Barack Obama making a statement in support of net neutrality. Obama states that he supports categorizing the internet under ‘title 2’ which would mean in the eyes of the law internet connection would govern very similarly to a land-line phone connection. This means that ISPs (Internet Service Providers) would have to keep the information superhighway neutral much like your phone line. This may seem too far away across the pond for someone in the UK to be interested in, however if the U.S starts to capitalize upon an nonneutral internet the UK may not be very far behind, that is potentially a very worrying prospect. Although the battle for a free and neutral internet hasn’t been won yet as the final decision is still decided by an independent body the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), this is definitely a small victory to anybody who wants to continue using the internet the way they currently are using it. So what is net neutrality, how would the internet change if this legislation came to pass? The net neutrality debate is a dispute between several internet service providers and people who want to keep the internet free and open. Currently the internet as we know it has been, since its initial incarnation, neutral. So as a whole we don’t really know what we’d be giving up. The current internet that I’m sure most of us are using regularly if not daily delivers all information equally. So if you go to any website such as Facebook, Reddit, Netflix or Vice for example; your internet provider is obliged to keep the channels that send that information to your device all open and running at the same speed. If the web became non-neutral, companies could pay more to have their web pages load faster at the risk of other things being slowed down.

So for example someone like Facebook for example could pay a huge amount of money to an internet provider for their web traffic to get priority over other web traffic meaning their webpage loads in an instant but other web pages could take a lot long unless they pay the providers for the premium service as well, they could even charge you as a consumer for an internet package that has better connection to Netflix or ensure that Netflix loads incredibly slow if you don’t pay for this premium package. There has even been talk of certain internet providers who have their own streaming services like Virgin slowing connection to sites like Amazon Prime and Netflix so you’re convinced to pay for their streaming service also, so you know it will be quicker.

Aside from just these problems I can’t help but see this as just the beginning there could be more and more restrictions and regulations not further down the line if this is left un-opposed. The internet as we know it right now is a wonderful open thing that doesn’t pick who gets priority by seeing who has the deepest pockets. It’s helped bring people together, make the world a smaller place and overthrow non-diplomatic regimes. The ‘Arab Spring’ may not have happened if tweets hadn’t escaped from the locked-down epicenter in Cairo. It may seem like just a minor inconvenience right now, but if the internet becomes the privilege of the rich, what’s the point? We’re moving closer and closer to the government restricting the internet, similar to what’s currently happening in China and Syria, is that undermining the freedom of speech regardless of borders that the internet has helped build?

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SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENT theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/environment

Why should you volunteer in the environment? Megan Kerry

We rely on nature: preserving nature preserves us. While relying on natural resources, environmental volunteering holds mental and physical health benefits. Below are some of the benefits from volunteering outdoors (these were constructed from coursework so full scientific references are available): Physical benefits Physical activity Sitting at a desk, in lectures or in front of the Xbox can take its toll on your health as a result of inactivity. Stretch your legs and your arms with activities such as gardening counting towards your “150 minutes physical activity a week”. Fresh air Living in the city gets stuffy, and in the long term, it can lead to respiratory problems. Breathe easy out in the countryside: escape the traffic (and enjoy the view!) Natural light Cutaneous formation of vitamin D following sunlight exposure is a main source of vitamin D, and getting away from screens reduces the strain on your eyes. Mental benefits: Social engagement Every student loves to socialise, but sometimes it can seem difficult to find those with similar interests, socialise cheaply, or talk to people without alcohol. Volunteering provides a relaxed environment, and with so much variation you’re bound to find someone that shares interests… and it’s free!

Sense of worth Taking part in a group activity, with the end product being a visible improvement, gives a sense of worth and satisfaction. This acts as motivation and improves self-esteem. Stress relief Let’s admit it: hacking down a tree (an invasive species, of course) is great for releasing excess stress! Taking a complete break from work is essential and environmental volunteering provides the means. Physical and mental benefits: Happiness Volunteering boosts general happiness by reducing boredom and redundancy, as well as feel-good hormones coming from exercise and moral satisfaction. Integration Plymouth is diverse in terms of culture, interests and sexuality, however it may not be easy to engage with different groups. I’ve seen many cultures present at all environmental volunteering experiences. Integrating benefits mental and physical health, especially for minority groups. Plus you can learn a lot. Physical environment Industrial areas have been suggested to have a negative effect on physical and mental health compared to ‘green’ and well-designed spaces. Get a break from this and get out there. Plymouth University offers many opportunities, of various durations and on various days meaning it can fit around your timetable. For example: Monkey Sanctuary Barn Owl Trust Burrator Reservoir Plymouth Growing Futures Stover Canal Ford Park Cemetery Don’t just take my word for it: “Being outdoors volunteering lets me connect back with nature. Knowing that I have done something, however little, to help the environment gives me an overwhelming sense of well-being” Charlotte Brown So why not head to the hive and sign up today?

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winter issue

OPINION theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/opinion

Free education demonstrations were a success, but further action will be taken Davide Bertelli

Carnage, destruction, violence. None of what Toni Pearce, NUS President, was deeply concerned about when she wrote a statement two weeks ago declaring the withdrawal of the NUS’ support for the Demo happened. Despite limited media coverage and despite its skewedness towards reporting accidents and clashes with the Police, the demonstration was a success. Thousands of students from all around the country had been gathering since the early hours at SOAS campus in central London: they came from as far as Aberdeen, Falmouth, Durham/Newcastle/Teesside, Liverpool and Plymouth, to name but a few. 200 students came from Sussex University alone, where the local SU have been very proactive in mobilising students on campus and organising coaches. A big, purple UPSU banner (where P stands for Portsmouth…) marked the presence of a number of students supported by their SU who came to London to show their engagement: one of the students said “I’m not politically affiliated but I oppose tuition fees. I think education should be free and I’m glad our SU is supporting us. I’m here to do the right thing, it’s better than doing nothing”. The demo, organised by NUS Scotland, NUS London, NUS Black Student’s Campaign, NUS International Students’ Campaign, National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts (NCAFC), Student Assembly Against Austerity (the student wing of the People’s Assembly) and the Young Greens started at 1:00 pm with BME and disabled students represented in a great number (despite NUS’ concerns over accessibility). Supported by Socialist students and Labour Campaign for Free Education, it proceeded peacefully through the streets of Central London to Parliament Square where minor skirmishes with the Police happened when a handful of protesters tried to break through the police barriers. The route of the event had been previously defined with and approved by London Metropolitan Police, Camden Borough Council, City of Westminster Council and Transport for London and it was heavily policed. A considerable number of stewards (about 150) volunteered to oversee the smooth proceeding of the march and all the safety measures were in place to make the event as successful as possible: legal observers oversaw the march and arrest bust cards were handed out to most attendees; agreed assisted leaving points were indicated and first-aiders were in place. Tom and Gwen, two of the stewards in charge of controlling the Anarchist Bloc, felt at first “a bit concerned” by the responsibility of managing the bloc, but as the march went on, they realised there was “very little to worry about”. The march ended in Parliament Square where speakers (including Diane Abbott, Labour MP, Caroline Lucas, Green MP, Natalie Bennett, leader of the Green Party and Amelia Womack, Vice-Deputy Leader of the Greens) expressed their support for the students’ movement and their opposition to tuition fees and Government’s schemes to further privatise higher education. The demonstration only marks the beginning of the students’ protest against the costs of Higher Education in England. Further action will be taken in the run-up to the General Elections in May aimed at bringing back this subject to the political debate and at calling for a scrap of tuition fees in the next legislature. Students and protesters have proved the NUS and that their concerns were unmotivated and that it is not only possible but also necessary to build an engaged, strong, successful students movement across the Country.

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OPINION theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/opinion

Does Spotify treat musicians fairly?

Katie Sormaz

Recently, Taylor Swift made the bold decision to remove her whole back catalogue of music from Spotify, stating she didn’t feel the site “fairly compensates the writers, producers, artists and creators” of the music. This then sparked numerous articles and debates about Swift, Spotify and whether music should be free.

In an article for The Wall Street Journal Swift wrote that music shouldn’t be free, because she considers it art, which caused a backlash of people calling her ‘selfish’ and ‘greedy’. But, really, is asking to be paid for something you create actually selfish? And, if you decide an artist is greedy for wanting to earn money for what they do, are you looking at the bigger picture, or just taking something at its surface and jumping on the bandwagon? The CEO of Swift’s record label, Scott Borchetta, has stated that over the last year, the label received $496,044 from Spotify for streams in the US of Swift’s music. So, for someone who the site claims was listened to by 16 million people in just thirty days, that’s nothing. A large proportion of the profits from Spotify don’t go to the artist (which is the whole point of the service). It goes to the shareholders, who are sitting pretty making money from other artist’s hard work, which is probably infuriating to think about if your music is on it. @PlymUniStuNews

Swift is not the first artist to show her disdain for the streaming service and others like it. The list includes Pink Floyd, The Black Keys, AC/DC and Thom York from Radiohead, all of whom are popular and critically acclaimed bands. But now Spotify has hit back at people who are against their service, swearing that artists do earn a fair amount from them, and that they help them sell more records. This may be true if you’re a small indie band who’s trying to get their music to more people, but Taylor Swift has proven that this isn’t the case for the larger bands and artists. Her latest album 1989 sold over 1.7 million copies in two weeks, and it was never uploaded to Spotify. You don’t need a streaming site to sell records; the most important part is fan loyalty, which is what the bigger bands and artists have. I have never illegally downloaded music. I prefer to own it on CD or vinyl, and support the artist I’m listening to. I understand that CDs can be expensive, and being a student means that you might not want to spend what little money you do have on music, but in the end, illegally downloading an album is stealing. There’s no two ways about it. So, in that respect, Spotify is useful. You can listen to music for free without doing anything illegal. But the main issue with the site isn’t that people can listen to music for free, it’s that the artists who make up the whole thing don’t get paid fairly for it. They make $0.007 per stream. Spotify’s CEO Daniel Ek has stated that he ‘started Spotify because [he] loves music and piracy was killing it’, but his business doesn’t seem to be treating the artists on it fairly. So, as Patrick Carney from The Black Keys put it, the owner of Spotify is “richer than Paul McCartney and he’s 30 and he’s never written a song”. Is it unfair on musicians or do you think it will barely affect them? Let us know on our website.

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LIFE

theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/lifestyle

Bring a Bottle to the table this Christmas and New Year Megan Pollard

Nearly £5.1 billion spent on drinks over the festive period posing a problem with those on a budget. Comparison website www.bringabottle.co.uk shows us how widely drinks prices can vary. Hugo Fairey, Director of Bring a Bottle said “Christmas is the time of year where most people will be entertaining, so shopping around means big savings. With the average family spending £300 on drinks, it could mean a saving of £75 or more. Consumer’s perception that ‘value’ retailers are always the cheapest has proved not to be the case”. For Him: Christmas is usually an easy time to shop for the man in question, whether it’s the friend, the boyfriend or the father (in-law). They are not as difficult to buy for as you may think, especially considering the prices of these: Jack Daniels Old No 7 Tennessee Whiskey (70cl) – £16.00 Sainsbury’s vs £20 Morrisons (Saving £4) Highland Park 12 Year Old Whisky (70cl) - £23 Waitrose vs £33 Tesco (Saving £10) For Her: There are never-ending complaints against buying for women at Christmas, with anxieties about buying the wrong size clothing to the argument about their dieting when they are given chocolate, so we’ve made it easy for you this year: Casillero Del Diablo Cabernet Sauvignon (75cl) – £5 ASDA vs £7.99 Waitrose (Saving £2.99) Giesen Sauvignon Blanc (75cl) – £6.99 Majestic Wine vs £21.98 Amazon (Saving £14.99) Cockburn’s Special Reserve Port (75cl) – £9.60 Waitrose vs £12 Tesco (Saving £2.40)

For The Party Animal: These are the easiest people to buy for. They are the ones who go out all the time, and you know that you can’t go wrong buying alcohol for them. They will appreciate a few bottles, and you can save a few pounds by looking around: Sierra Silver Mexican Blanco Tequila (50cl) – £13.50 ASDA vs £15 Sainsbury’s (Saving £1.50) Jägermeister Herbal Liqueur (70cl) – £15 Sainsbury’s vs £18.99 Morrisons (Saving £3.99) For The Classy Friend: These are the friends that notice the labels, know the names and respect the prices. If you’re looking to impress this Christmas, or just looking to bring a bit of sparkle to the Christmas dinner, we recommend that you check out: Taittinger Brut Reserve N.V. Champagne (75cl) – £25 Sainsbury’s vs £36.99 Morrisons (Saving £11.99) Moët & Chandon Brut Impérial NV Champagne (75cl) – £25 ASDA vs £32.99 Waitrose (Saving £7.99)

LIFE theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/lifestyle

Christmas Dinner for £2.50 per person

Megan Pollard This year you’re spending Christmas with a group of other students who have never cooked a Christmas dinner. But Life brings you a fail-safe recipe to feed four, leaving you only to worry about who’s doing the washing up:

How to tell if it’s cooked: Cut the breast in half, and if it’s all white with not a trace of pink, then you’re all good. If any of the chicken is pink, or if any of the juices that run out of it are pink, then you need to stick it back into the oven. Peel the potatoes and cut into reasonable sized chunks. Add them to boiling water for around 10 minutes. Drain them, then add them to a roasting tin, seasoning with oil and rosemary. Add a small amount of flour to them to make them extra crispy and shake them around a little. Adding some honey and maple syrup to them will add even extra flavour. Put these into the oven the same time as the chicken, turning them over and adding a little extra oil after 20 minutes.

Ingredients: Chicken Breast Fillets(1Kg) – £3.99 (ASDA) Maris Piper Potatoes (2.5Kg) – £1.98 (ASDA) Carrots (1.Kg) – 57P (ASDA) Parsnips (750g) – 90p (Tesco) Peas (900g) – 89P (Iceland) Yorkshire Puddings (15) – 49p (Tesco) Chicken Gravy – 2 for £1 Optional (but recommended): Honey Maple Syrup Method: Put the chicken breasts in a casserole dish or baking tray and drizzle a little oil over them. If you’re feeling brave add some herbs or lemon to bring out the flavour. Put them into the oven for about 30 mins at 200 degrees, but you will need to take into consideration the state of your oven – weaker ovens may need a whole hour to cook the chicken thoroughly. If you are roasting a whole chicken, pre-heat the oven to around 220 degrees and put the chicken in for 20 minutes, turning it down to 190 degrees for a further 45 minutes until it is golden and crispy.

Peel the carrots and parsnips and cut them in half, slicing them into long slices. Put them into a roasting dish or baking tray, drizzle with a little oil then absolutely coat them with honey and maple syrup. The carrots will take roughly 30 minutes, so place them into the oven just after the chicken and the potatoes. If you’re running low on space in the oven by this point, don’t worry. Yorkshire puddings, if frozen, will take roughly 3 minutes so you can pop them in even if you’re serving up everything else. They will only need heating up. The same time that you put in the Yorkshire puddings, put the peas in boiling water or whatever the instructions are on the packet. These will only really need defrosting. If you don’t want them going soggy, add a little salt to the boiling water. Remember to have boiled the kettle for the gravy! Put the mix into a jug and add boiling water, stirring until it’s ready. You can also add the juices from the meat into the gravy for extra taste.

winter issue

STYLE

theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/style-beauty

Jacob Hill-Anderson

Jacob Topham

STYLE theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/style-beauty

Alissa Touley

Chevonne Chevonne Clay Clay

STYLE theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/style-beauty

Winter Accessories One of the best things about winter fashion is the plethora of accessories that come with it. Whether its hats or scarves you can accessorize your outfit to achieve an effortlessly stylish and winter chic look.

Hats: knitted beanies for a classic look. Trilby's are back in fashion and when it comes to faux fur, you can’t go wrong.

Topman - £22

Topman - £8

Topshop - £28

Topman - £12

Topshop - £15

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STYLE theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/style-beauty Newlook Boy - £9.99

Newlook Girl - £14.99

Scarf: Whether it’s classic tartan or something a little more daring, the high street are offering a wide range of colours and styles to help bring out your original style.

River Island Boy - £14 @PlymUniStuNews

River Island Girl - £18

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ART & ENTERTAINMENT theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/arts-entertainment

Interview: Rory Clewlow from Enter Shikari Ashton Rowntree & Simon Stone

Yesterday, The Knowledge was fortunate enough to interview Rory Clewlow from Enter Shikari. With the up-coming tour and release of their fourth studio album, The Mindsweep, we caught up with Rory to see where 2015 will take the band. Listening to ‘The Last Garrison’ it sounds like you’ve picked up a few tricks from doing (Enter Shikari) Sound System. How much has this impacted the sound of the new album? Well we did Sound System because me, Rou, and Rob are really into our electrical production for like years and years now, so we did that as a kind of outlook for that. Along the way, we had to shape up our production, and learn to finish up tunes, and that would naturally influence Enter Shikari and would benefit the electronic side. But there’s nothing massively noticeable through what I can think of, before you asked that question I’d never really thought of it (laughs). Though I guess it must have impacted our electronic side in some way. Will Sound System make a return in the near future? Possibly, I mean we all really enjoyed doing it, we put a lot of work into the tunes and it would be great to do some more Sound System. But we have no plans as of yet, our main focus is Enter Shikari, I think that is our main focus, it’s just something to do in between really.

Seeing as you recorded your last album in Thailand, how did recording this time round compare? I don’t think anything will compare to Thailand, as it was literally paradise. Mega relaxation, like more of a luxury than anyone deserves. But when we were recording in Chapel, Lincolnshire for The Mindsweep, it was a completely different vibe; it was like cottagey, countryside, mills, a family owned business, like you were staying at your Nan’s house or something. It had a really good studio as well, but in a different way. The important thing in studios is that you feel comfortable there, and you feel relaxed, the more relaxed you are the easier the creativity flows. We don’t really like recording in London because getting the tube to St. Albans and stuff you don’t feel relaxed and it’s not really a productive atmosphere. And Thailand was relaxing in a different way, but Chapel was an equally relaxing experience… I do enjoy it as much.

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/arts-entertainment

How is the live show shaping up with the new songs?

Were there any influences you drew upon for the new album?

We’re literally in the rehearsal studio right now practising for the new stuff. We’ve only ran through it a couple of times so it’s a bit early to say how it’s shaping up, but I mean so far it seems to be going well. We’re really looking forward to trying it. We’re in the process of updating our whole system, like how the electronics run, how the guitar runs, so trying to tighten it all up so it sounds better really.

Nothing specific really… Rou was saying when he was working on the album, all he was really listening to was Classical and Neo-Classical, like I don’t really know what the difference is there (laughs). When he told me, I thought “That sounds impressive, I’ll have to say that in an interview.” We listen to all kinds of music and over time, your music tastes change a bit, and you know it evolves in production. It depends on what we’re currently into mixed with what we’ve previously learned about music. We’ve tried to be as organic about as possible. Just sit down and get writing and see what comes out. There’s so many musicians we kind of admire, but I probably couldn’t start listing them to be honest (laughs).

I’m completely changing my guitar playing so that now all my guitar playing are controlled by the electronics, so as the electronics run through from verse to chorus, there’s like a MIDI switch that allows my guitar amp to change settings. I’ve spent the last few days listening to about 60 different guitar tones, and they’re constantly changing. That’s really exciting for me, because previously I’ve just had distortion, and now I’ve got 6 different types of playing. So hopefully that should make the live show a little more diverse and interesting. What do you think is most important for a live band? What helps your interaction with the crowd, or that kind of spark? I really don’t know, I don’t think it’s something you can know. I think it’s to do with people in the band’s personality, the music they make, and the people they attract and how all those things interact. There’s loads of factors that need to coincide, I’m not sure you can just say one thing particularly. A lot of it is to do with luck.

As a band, are there any goals you feel you’re still pushing towards? Not really, I mean it… I’m trying to find an answer that doesn’t sound cheesy, but I guess just having a band as a job is kind of the ultimate goal. Like we haven’t had a proper job for 9 years, this has been a job, like having paid salaries, which is crazy to think. I guess that is the goal, that’s what we are trying to maintain. I mean it was just a hobby as first. It doesn’t really matter how many people you’re playing to, as long as the ride and energy is there, and you’re enjoying it. I mean what more is there really?

What’s worked for us is making music for us, not trying to please anyone, so having faith in our own abilities, rather than thinking “Is this good?, “What do people like?” We never think that because in the times we have made music which we think people will like, it’s always failed. We have solid belief that we should just do what we want to do and that gets the best results. And that’s generally the best starting point in making music in my own head, when I just think of something, like a part I want to create, I’ll think “Oh that would be cool” and I just get it down, and that’s great, and I’ll just leave it as it is. But the moment I think, “Would Rou like this?” “Would the general public like this?” D’you know what I mean? That’s when you start diluting it down and corrupting it. It’s very hard to do, but you have to have that faith that people will understand what you do. @PlymUniStuNews

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/arts-entertainment

Introducing: George the Poet Cara Davies

Next month the Student Union will be hosting an exciting performance and Q&A by rising star George Mpanga, (better known by his stage name George the Poet); a highly acclaimed spoken word performer and recording artist from North-West London. With his addictive new single ‘1,2,1,2’ being released next Sunday and a UK tour coming up in February, 2015 could easily be George the Poet’s breakthrough year. A keen analyst of contemporary British politics and culture (particularly of the influence of rap culture on the lives of young people), George’s relevance and talent is finally becoming fully realised by the mainstream. Don’t let the Cambridge graduate’s young age fool you; he’s been on the scene and writing great stuff for a while now. His intelligent skits on Mic Righteous’ massive mixtape Kam-pain were incredible. Particularly ‘The Choice’, which gives a non-glamorising but compelling explanation of the real difficulties facing those in economic crisis, and how a person can easily be lead down a criminal path they never envisaged. George’s poem, My City, was also read at the Olympic Games, and was a much needed reminder of those Londoners whose plights were largely being swept under the carpet or wilfully ignored: “Business is going to be booming, but there’s a difference between having a front row seat and watching from the side-lines”. Earlier this year George released The Chicken & The Egg, which received high critical praise and warm audience responses. The unique EP offered an emotionally charged exploration of modern relationships, poverty, unexpected pregnancies and the growing epidemic of fatherless children in Britain. For those who can identify with the EP’s dioramas of these common life changing situations which don’t often see representation, tracks like ‘Accident’ can resonate so powerfully it can become uncomfortable. For those to whom these situations are foreign, the EP’s honest approach offers a much needed insight into the realities of the too often dismissed and derided lives of young parents and the economically disadvantaged. George has a deep and calm voice which is well suited to both his musical and nonmusical verses, which are becoming more refined with each release. Though these verses can be challenging and go to dark places, they are also witty and optimistic, for example the cheeky humour of YOLO can’t fail to put a knowing smile on your face. While his new single ‘1,2,1,2’ is filled with inspirational lyrics that paired with the catchy backing track makes you want to either dance or get things done. Mpanga doesn’t want to just bemoan the injustices of the world, instead he tries to motivate and enlighten people through his music and poetry. It’s this attitude and lyrical dexterity that gives George the Poet his appeal, and will give him the creative resilience to continue branching out into new topics and forms. George will be performing at our very own Students’ Union on the 11/12/14, after which there will be an intimate Q&A session, all of which is free entry! Check out the event page on facebook. You can find out more about George the Poet, his work and upcoming events on his official page.

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SPORTS & SOCIETIES

theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/sports-societies

Literature Society Book Swap

winter issue

Jessica Hamlyn

On 27th November The Writing Cafe and the Literature Society held a book swap in The Writing Cafe, on the top floor of Babbage. This event contained books supplied by The Writing Cafe and the Literature Society committee which they had either decided to give away for the swap so that someone else would have the opportunity to read them or were bought in charity shops, so that money for the supply of some books for the event went to charity also. The books were from a range of genres from a gardening book to romance novels to crime fiction. There was also a signed book by the University’s Royal literary Fund Fellow Katherine Roberts available for £4. The books were laid out on a table at the back of the cafe allowing the cafe to run as usual as a place for students to be given advice on writing whilst also supplying people with the chance to expand their reading.

Staff and students were given the opportunity to swap any books they no longer wanted with different or if they did not have any books to swap they could buy them for a donation of fifty pence or more. All proceeds from the event going to the ReadWell charity (http://www.readwell.org.uk/) which provides books and readers for children in hospital which was chosen by the Literature Society as a charity that helps children in a difficult and distressing situation through the love of literature. The event raised £30.53 and the supply of books had depleted noticeably by the end of the event.

@PlymUniStuNews

SPORTS & SOCIETIES theknowledgeplymouth.co.uk/category/sports-societies

UPRC: Row for Charity Rhi Squire If you walked through the Roland Levinsky building on December 1st on your way to lectures, you were probably greeted with an unfamiliar sight...

Not content with the challenge that they already set themselves, it turns out that the club also completed their fitness tests that weekend, meaning that their physical and mental stamina was truly being tested.

The universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rowing club underwent a 48 hour sponsored row in the ground floor of the building, in aid of Row4Recovery, a sister charity of Help for Heroes. The event began at 8am on Sunday November 30th, and continued until 8am on Tuesday December 2nd, with athletes rowing continually across this time.

Watching them on December 1st, with another 24 hours to go, the club were hopeful to beat their target; the pace then indicated that they should be successful, alongside their fundraising total. The club collected money for the charity, but also set themselves a target of 700km, the world record held by the University of Portsmouth.

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