The Open University

NASA mission to asteroid Bennu set to return with new space rock samples

9 October 2020

Space rocks returning from near-Earth asteroid Bennu on the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will bring never-before-seen samples back to Earth. Open University (OU) researcher Dr Ben Rozitis, a collaborator on the OSIRIS-REx mission, asserts that the mission, if successful, will return with a large collection of space rocks not currently represented in existing collections on Earth. Launched […]

OU research could improve mobility of Huntington’s patients

17 September 2020

A case study conducted by The Open University (OU) has found that wearable haptic devices – technology similar to a mobile phone vibrating at a set rhythm – could improve the mobility of people living with Huntington’s Disease. OU PhD student Riasat Islam and former OU PhD student Dr Theodoros Georgiou, used haptic rhythmic cueing […]

Open University report shows key skills gaps remain as businesses plan for recovery

16 September 2020

Since 2017, The Open University Business Barometer has provided detailed insights into the UK skills landscape, looking at the impacts across regions, nations and sectors. This year’s report, which is released in a completely new business context, is based on a survey of 1,000 business leaders representing organisations of all sizes. The report found that […]

Groundbreaking discovery could signal life on Venus

14 September 2020

Scientists from across the globe, including Dr Helen Fraser of The Open University, have detected a rare gas – phosphine – in the clouds of Venus. The landmark discovery could point to extra-terrestrial ‘aerial’ life on the planet. For decades, the scientific community has speculated that high clouds on Venus could offer a home for […]

Academic insight: Behind the mask

14 September 2020

This year has seen the world change in ways we never could have imagined: socially distancing from friends and loved ones, remote working implemented across the UK, washing and sanitising our hands for more than 20 seconds, and now wearing face coverings in supermarkets and shops. But how will this new measure affect the way […]

Paramedic Lyn shares her journey to becoming a non-medical prescriber

8 September 2020

As a qualified paramedic, the non-medical prescribing (NMP) programme has enabled Lyn to take on additional responsibilities in assessing and prescribing medication for patients within her role. Extending prescribing responsibilities to paramedics and other qualified healthcare professionals has benefits for both the NHS and service users, such as making better use of healthcare professionals’ skills […]

Prescribing the ‘cherry on top’ of a successful nursing career

1 September 2020

Non-medical prescribing (NMP) enables nurses, midwives and other allied health professionals to take on additional responsibilities to prescribe medicines for patients. NMP has several benefits for the NHS, including better utilising the skills of healthcare professionals and improving care for service users. Claire started her nursing journey in Glasgow where she completed her training, before […]

OU and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime join forces on learning

28 August 2020

The Open University’s Open Justice Centre and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) are continuing their partnership to deliver the Education for Justice (E4J) initiative. E4J has been developed to prevent crime and promote lawfulness – by supplying integrity and ethics education resources for schools, colleges and universities around the world. The original, […]

Open University students join Freedom Law Clinic Race and Policing Forum project

27 August 2020

Ten students from The Open University’s Open Justice Centre are taking part in a Freedom Law Clinic project exploring race and policing in the UK and the USA. The project has been launched following recent events in the USA, namely the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer and subsequent response. The incident […]

Modern plant diversity hotspot traced to mountain ranges 30 million years old

6 August 2020

An international team, including researchers from The Open University, has discovered that highly diverse plant life found in China can be traced back to the formation of ancient mountain ranges. In a new study, published in Science, researchers examined the plant life in China’s Hengduan Mountains, the Himalaya Mountains, and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Using DNA […]

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