Expert insight, analysis and comment on key public policy issues
By Juan Matthews Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
The future of the nuclear industry could lie with small reactors, argues Professor Juan Matthews. In the beginning, all reactors in nuclear power stations were small. Calder Hall, Britain’s first power station which went on-line in 1956, consisted of four reactors each generating just 50 MW of electricity. The next generation of Magnox reactors averaged […]
By Laura ffrench-Constant Filed Under: All posts, Science and Technology Posted:
The final day of Policy Week saw Sam Illingworth of Manchester Metropolitan University chair a lively discussion about the relationship between scientists and politicians, exploring how engagement could be optimised. Speakers included: Lucy Powell MP, Amanda Bamford of the University of Manchester, Dr Richard Walker from the Royal Society of Chemistry and Dr Caroline Kenny […]
By Jim Pendrill Filed Under: Devo, Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
Could the Northern Powerhouse be powered by itself? And if so, what would be the best energy mix to sustain its economy? These were the questions posed at a debate on the UK energy industry during Policy Week, where PhD students from The University presented four different proposals as to how the North West could […]
By Samuel Wood Filed Under: All posts, Science and Technology Posted:
A lively debate on the pros and cons of hydraulic fracturing -fracking- got Policy Week off to a great start. Sam Wood reports on the discussion. Fracking causes a wide range of emotions in people, something that was really brought out at the beginning of the session, when the audience were asked to complete a […]
By Philip Shapira Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
We need to prepare for a world where synthetic biology will reshape our lives, economies and environment. But this rapidly emerging technology needs to be responsibly developed, says Professor Philip Shapira, ahead of an exciting event in Manchester next week. Synthetic biology involves combining scientific and engineering methods to redesign biological components and systems found […]
By Paul Younger and Kevin Anderson Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
Our dependence on a constant supply of energy presents seemingly intractable dilemmas. One of these is whether fracking should be permitted. Professor Paul Younger and Professor Kevin Anderson took opposing views in a recent online debate. In the US, the recovery of underground reserves of shale gas and its extraction from solid rock through the […]
By Stephen Wearne Filed Under: All posts, Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
Stephen Wearne explores lessons to be learnt from the similarities and the differences between the start of the nuclear power era in the 1950’s and now. The structure of utilities, suppliers and contractors for engineering and constructing new nuclear power stations in the UK today is very different to the structure at the start of […]
By Suzanne Parsons and Bella Starling Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
It is important to involve patients and the public in pharmaceutical medicines research and development. Suzanne Parsons and Bella Starling examine who is interested, who is not and why. Involving patients and the public as active partners in their healthcare and in healthcare research has become an increasingly important policy issue in the last two […]
By Daniel Dresner Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
The scale and vast cost of cyber crime has been made clear in the last few weeks. Daniel Dresner suggests that stronger industrial standards may be the best response. Cyber crime is reportedly costing the UK up to £34bn each year. Within that total, personal identity fraud is rising fast and is now responsible for […]
By Alison Browne Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted:
The water industry has tried to manage consumption through technological ‘fixes’. But only by understanding how and why water is used can demand be reduced, argues Dr Alison Browne. For many years the mismatch between the demand for water and its available supply was ‘solved’ by the industry through engineering or technological solutions, including mega-projects […]