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News from The Open University

The Open University Chancellor Asa Briggs addressing the audience at a graduation ceremony.

OU pays tribute to Asa Briggs, former OU Chancellor

Members of the OU community, past and present, attended yesterday’s thanksgiving service for the late Asa Briggs. The former Vice-Chancellor Sir John Daniel, representing the OU and a close family friend, paid tribute to Asa’s remarkable contribution to the OU and announced the new Asa Briggs Chair in History. All the speakers brought out just […]

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OU research student on how to make it in space, without actually going there

OU research student on how to make it in space, without actually going there

Vibha Srivastava has always wanted to be an astronaut and work in space science, which wasn’t straightforward as a young women from North East India. Before joining The Open University (OU) as a PhD Researcher she studied Aeronautical Engineering at Gujarat University, and a Masters at the International Space University in Strasbourg in France, including […]

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The White House, WAshington DC. Image credit: Thinkstock

OU academic speaks at White House on bisexuality issues

Senior lecturer in psychology at The Open University Dr Meg-John Barker was among a prestigious panel at the White House, for an official White House Briefing discussing the challenges for and the support given to the bisexuality community. The briefing, held on Monday 26th, was the latest initiative in the White House’s many efforts to […]

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Rosetta may be crashing, but its legacy lives on here on Earth

Rosetta may be crashing, but its legacy lives on here on Earth

The Rosetta Mission will end with a controlled descent to the surface of Comet 67P on Friday 30th September 2016; however, its legacy will live on in applications on Earth, developed by academics at The Open University, including detecting cancer and sniffing out bed bugs. The European Space Agency (ESA) Rosetta spacecraft arrived at Comet […]

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History offers Britain an important lesson on shutting down immigration

History offers Britain an important lesson on shutting down immigration

The rate of hate crimes reported in the UK has rocketed since the country voted to leave the European Union in June, according to the National Police Chiefs’ Council. In 2013 we published research on the parallels between British discontent about migration in the 2010s and in the late 1960s – a moment perhaps best […]

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Can quotas make gender equality happen in politics? Lessons from business

Can quotas make gender equality happen in politics? Lessons from business

The number of women MPs in the British parliament is the highest it’s ever been. There are 191 women among the 650 MPs, up a third from the 2010 election. This has to be good news, especially for the many critics of national politics who complain that too many politicians are white male graduates of […]

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Pupils at Kings Ely Junior School try out Virtual Reality equipment

Open University and Google bring virtual reality into schools

The Open University (OU) is taking school children to the Great Barrier Reef, Everest and volcanoes with new virtual reality technology in the classroom.  Through virtual reality technology called Google Expeditions, students are given virtual field trips to places that may be practically difficult or impossible for them to visit – such as The Great […]

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Dr Ross Burgon with the C3D2 payload during acceptance testing [Credit: Courtesy of SSC]

OU to launch its first ever in-orbit experiment for student labs

A miniature camera developed by space scientists at the OU will open up a new experience for distance learning students who will be able to interact with a live space instrument. The camera will be on board the Algerian Space Agency’s (ASAL) first CubeSat Mission, which will launch on 26 September 2016. OU space scientists […]

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Barbican degree ceremony

Swedish philanthropist, founder of the Sutton Trust and two national journalists honoured at degree ceremony

The Open University has honoured four leading figures in UK society for the exceptional contributions they have made. Martin Lewis OBE, former editor of The Guardian Alan Rusbridger and philanthropists and social justice activists Sir Peter Lampl and Dr Sigrid Rausing all received honorary degrees from The Open University. Personal finance champion Well known personal […]

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New Horizons above the Planet Pluto

Mordor mystery: scientists solve puzzle of the strange, dark north pole on Pluto’s moon Charon

Had Pluto itself not proved to be so spectacular when NASA’s New Horizons probe flew past last year, there can be no doubt that its large moon Charon would have won more admirers. The remarkable moon has a mysterious dark-red stain over its north pole, called “Mordor Macula” by the New Horizons team – where […]

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