Reading in the news - Wed 28 Feb

Academic freedom: The Guardian reports on a speech the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Robert Van de Noort, gave to Parliament yesterday, calling on universities to promote academic freedom and promote diversity of thought. The story is also covered by Research Professional News, EdCentral and Yahoo! News). Read our news story. 

Spotting invasive plants: Researchers from the Royal Horticultural Society and the University of Reading have identified a list of plant species for gardeners to monitor for invasive behaviour, reports The Telegraph, Daily Mail, phys.org, EurekAlert!, Mahalsa.co.uk, Alpha Galileo, Mogaznews, BNN, LatestLY and multiple other outlets. PhD student and lead author, Tomos Jones (Biological Sciences) is quoted. Read our news story. 

Swimming in sewage: The Independent, BBC Radio Berkshire, Bracknell News, The Reading Chronicle and Slough & South Bucks Observer cover a study led by research student Karolina Krupska (Geography), who discusses the need for improvement of bathing forecasts, across the UK’s designated bathing locations. Read our news story. 

#PlanetPartners: working with global partners to protect the environment 

• ITV 1 Meridian South Coast, Greatest Hits Radio and Reading.co.uk report that February is set to be the warmest month on the University of Reading’s records. Dr Stephen Burt (Meteorology) is quoted.
• Dr Till Kuhlbrodt (Meteorology) is quoted in Daily Mail, The Independent, The Washington Post, Moosejaw Today, Scienmag, The Week, The Detroit News, Yahoo! News and Newsday, following an interview with AP News.
• Professor Hannah Cloke (Geography/Meteorology) discusses the cause of recent flooding in Henley, for Henley Standard.

Health and wellbeing

• The Mirror, Wales Online, Birmingham Live and Chronicle Live have run a story based on research led by Professor Vimal Karani (Food and Nutritional Sciences), which has found that drinking a glass of milk each day can reduce the chances of a heart attack, and lead to lower cholesterol levels. 

Business and society:

• Dr Dominic Lees (Film, Theatre and Television) spoke to Voice of America about AI video tool SORA.
• Jon Foster-Pedley (Henley Business School Africa) discusses the importance of skills development in the age of AI for Daily Maverick.
• Professor Tabarak Ballal (Built Environment) spoke to Construction Management about her research into AI applications in the construction industry. 

Other Coverage:

• Dr Kenton White (Politics and International Relations) writes for The Conversation, discussing comments by the French president about Western ground forces potentially being deployed to Ukraine. Republished by Asia Times.
• PhD researcher Charlotte Howard (Agriculture) mentions the importance of insects in keeping Britain’s apples healthy, for Farming UK and Hort News.
• Vice-Chancellor, Professor Robert Van de Noort unveiled a new heritage board, detailing the history of the Christchurch Green area, Reading Today mentions.
• Building work has begun on a new sports facility, on behalf of the University of Reading, The Construction Index reports. 

Alumni:

• Locus Mag shares an obituary for Brian Stableford, who taught sociology at the University of Reading in the 1970/80s.
• BBC Radio Berkshire mentions that Mayor of Reading, Tony Page studied at the University of Reading.