Professional Documents
Culture Documents
bare essential
FREE read since 1968
DID OUR
SURREY WHAT DOES CAN YOU BEAT
CAMERA
GOES THE FUTURE OUR
SPOT YOU
GLOBAL HOLD?
THIS WEEK? PUZZLELORD?
P4 P15 P16
P10
AND
CHILD LABOUR
WHY IS THE NUS UNWILLING TO
ANSWER OUR QUESTIONS?
By Ben Miller be associated with the union and, in particular, NUS However, barefacts received a response from
extra. Newsnight and Simon Ostrovsky, the reporter who
The NUS has remained virtually silent on its barefacts also asked the NUS what actions it had broke the Uzbek cotton story. He said: “The NUS
relationship with Britain’s major retailers who use taken to find out what Matalan and Topshop are needs to make a moral decision about Uzbek cotton,
child labour in Uzbekistan. doing to stop the use of child labour in their products the only ethical decision being that it does not use it
The NUS is working with clothing and what are their ethical criteria for in its products. Even if the NUS says the retailers it
retailers Matalan, plus Burton and choosing companies to be associated partners with are giving it vague responses, that is no
Topman - both part of the Arcadia
Group, who were identified in a “The NUS with the organisation.
This newspaper then further put to
excuse for the union not to have a clear stance of its
own on the use of cotton produced with forced child
Newsnight programme on BBC2 on
30 October as using children to work needs to the NUS that if Matalan and Topshop
are shown to use child labour in their
labour. It needs to pass this stance down to its partners
so that they know they will no longer be suppliers if
in cotton fields instead of going to
school. make a moral products, what measures does the NUS
require these companies to undertake
they continue to use Uzbek cotton.
“I think its important to keep in mind that cotton
Classrooms are emptied across
Uzbekistan so the crop can be decision to ensure they meet the NUS’s ethical
standards? Also, how does the NUS
in Uzbekistan is not just produced by children, it is
produced by children who are forced to do so by the
harvested. The cotton industry is big
business - Uzbekistan is the second about Uzbek monitor these measures? What would
the NUS do if they fail to comply?
state. In Bangladesh and other poor countries, many
children work in factories because they need to help
largest exporter of cotton in the world
– and is controlled by the country’s cotton” The NUS’s response was woeful. A
spokesman said: “NUS Services have
feed their families and themselves. In Uzbekistan this
is not the case. The government buses them out of
brutal authoritarian regime. contacted Matalan for information, and schools and forces them to pick cotton for its own
Having seen the programme, we are yet to hear back from them. We profit, not theirs.”
barefacts sought a response from the NUS to will keep chasing this.”
Newsnight’s investigation due to its relationship with “Topman and Topshop operate seperately, and while
Continued on page 4
Matalan and Topshop. We asked how much money or we have an agreement with Topman, we do not have
other offers do the clothing chains give the NUS to one with Topshop.”
Student
The Guildford Christmas lights switch-on is at 7pm on
November 22, with the build up starting at 4pm with editorial team
music and fireworks. Oww-ahh.
1115
debt to EDITOR |GARETH GILES | EDITOR@BFACTS.CO.UK
be sold
DEPUTY EDITOR (DESIGN) | CLAIRE WORGAN | ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
DEPUTY EDITOR (MARKETING) | POSITION VACANT | ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
NEWS TEAM | KATHRYN MEDIEN AND BEN MILLER| bf.newsdesk@gmail.com
The University of Surrey is ranked 190th in this year’s bill which is to be sold off applies to SPORTS EDITOR | MATT CHEETHAM | bf.sport@gmail.com
league table of the world’s top universities up from 258th England only and will allow the newly SPORTS EDITOR | ANTHONY HANSON | bf.sport@gmail.com
in 2006. Britain’s overall performance has improved, but appointed Student Secretary, Lord PUZZLELORD | COLIN EVERETT | ma41ce@surrey.ac.uk
the US still dominates. Four of the top 10 are British and Triesman, to follow his policy of selling COPY EDITOR | PHILL NATHAN | ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
the rest American. Harvard is top and Yale, Oxford and off the student loan portfolio. The COPY EDITOR | RUMBI KAMBARAMI | ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
Cambridge joint second. student loan book is currently worth WEBMASTER | JOSH BATES | ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
----------------------------------------------------------------- £18.1 billion and has been estimated MARKETING EDITOR | NATALIYA NADTOKA | ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
--------------------------------------- to increase to £55 billion over the next
Mohammed Alnafea, who studied at the University CO-ORDINATOR | AARON SALINS | a.salins@surrey.ac.uk
decade. MARKETING
of Surrey had three penalty points slapped on his EDITOR-IN-CHIEF | ALEX COLLINS | ussu.president@surrey.ac.uk
When passed the bill will allow Triesman
driving licence when he was caught unsupervised with a
provisional licence. Alnafea said: “I am sorry for what to disclose personal information about
happened.” the loans to a third party and allow that barefacts is an editorially independent newspaper and is published by the University of Surrey
----------------------------------------------------------------- party to carry on the sale of the loans. Students’ Union Communications Office.
--------------------------------------- The President of the National Students The views expressed within the paper are those of individual authors and do not necessarily
Children in Surrey who are fighting cancer are to receive Union has expressed concerns and represent the views of the Editor, the University of Surrey Students’ Union or the University of
Surrey. This publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part, stored in any form, copied
a special charity award for their courage, backed by hopes that these changes will not affect or distributed, without the express permission of the publisher beforehand.
celebrities. Cancer Research UK is launching its Little individual students, and that confusion
Star Awards and inviting friends and relatives to nominate dose not occur like the last time the Printed by Surrey and Berkshire Media Limited
Stoke Mill House, Woking Road, Guildford, Surrey, GU1 1QA
a young cancer patient who is dear to them for special Government sold the loans company.
recognition in the run up to Christmas. The Little Star Submission is no guarantee of publication. barefacts reserves the right to edit
The Government has assured that the sale
accolade is given to all under-17s who are nominated and submissions. Please direct all equiries to the relevant section Editor.
will have no affect on individual students
have undergone cancer treatment in the last five years.
as control over the loan regulations will WWW.USSU.CO.UK/BAREFACTS
© USSU COMMUNICATIONS OFFICE 2007
still be held at Government level.
ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
19th November 2007 NEWS 3
Work Two years ago the army put an end to street protests in
the city of Andijan killing hundreds of demonstrators.
confirmed his company had ordered a trial run of the
hoodie seen at the fair, but said they did no further business
with the supplier. Sir Philip, who also owns Burton, said:
Scores of dissidents and journalists were thrown in jail, and “We rely on our suppliers to source all raw materials, and
By Ben Miller
the BBC was denied permission to operate there. to operate according to our detailed Code of Conduct
To get into Uzbekistan, Newsnight posed as reporters which includes the statement that ‘child labour must not
Students looking for ways to earn from a textile industry magazine. They filmed cotton fields be used’ ... We would not be supportive of using cotton in
cash and reduce their borrowings while full of school children, some as young as nine, hard at work. products where the cotton has been picked in the manner
studying can turn to studentgems.com Police were seen marshalling hundreds of children onto you allege.... we are now conducting our own investigation
a website designed to create a major buses bound for the cotton fields. with our garment suppliers into the source of cotton fibres
new employment market that matches used in our garments.”
One boy working in the fields told Newsnight he and his
student skills against the demand The Uzbekistan Government told Newsnight they
friends would not go to school until November. He said he
for one-off jobs from businesses or adhere to international conventions on child labour and
picked up to 70 kilos of cotton a day. Human rights groups
individuals. “[forbid] any form of child labour on cotton fields and
estimate 450,000 children are shut out of schools and work
Students post their profiles online other agricultural sectors” and that the “minimal age for
in the cotton fields of Uzbekistan every harvest.
and list all their skills. Customers age for employment [is] from 16 years”.
The industry claims mixing materials from many sources
search the database for someone who barefacts will continue to hold the NUS to account over
makes it impossible to trace cotton back to the field. But
has the skills they require, or if they its relationship with Matalan, Burton and Topman.
Newsnight managed to trace cotton in garments worn in
can’t find a match they can post their - Do you feel angered and annoyed by the NUS’s silence?
the UK from the clothes rack to the cotton field.
job requirements. Let them know by contacting them at nusuk@nus.org.uk.
The Delta Group, with a production capacity of 1.5
The website acts as an interactive Watch Newsnight’s shocking film on the BBC website.
million garments per month, said Matalan was its major UK
jobs noticeboard, automatically putting
client. Eighty per cent of its cotton comes from Uzbekistan
students and their potential clients in
and other Central Asian countries.
touch with each other. Studentgems.
The Radiance group, which said it used yarn supplied
com operates an e-bay style ratings
to it by a company using Uzbek cotton, makes clothes for
system so that students and employers
Burton. At a trade fair Newsnight found a Topman hoodie
can leave reviews about each other.
with “Made in Uzbekistan” on the label.
Matalan confirmed that Delta in Bangladesh was one
of its suppliers. In a statement it said: “Matalan does not
designate where its suppliers supply from ... we do not audit
the thousands of suppliers to our suppliers, as some simple
garments of clothing we take for granted, and wear each
day, contain up to 50 different components.”
ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
19th November 2007 LETTERS & COLUMNS 5
Letters
Dear barefacts....... If you have any opinions or issues
you want to talk about, why not
send us a letter, e-mail or carrier
Problems at the Manor. pidgeon?
We Love Post!
When my friends and I were deciding where to live during our final year of university
the first requirements that came to our heads were that of wanting somewhere hassle Now my purpose in writing this letter/moan is that I would like to know what the
free to live. We didn’t want pesky landlords causing grief, or old boilers packing up as university plans to do about the problems with resnet? I hear on the grapevine that
soon as it gets cold. So we turned to living in university residences. All being final years they are in the process of upgrading the service. If this is the case when will we see the
and wanting to live together, Manor Park was the obvious choice. Final year student benefits? This kind of problem should have been foreseen. I mean if you build brand
only flats with no freshers to get in the way of what is our most important year, degree new residences and install a new campus wide voice over IP phone system and just slap
wise, at Surrey. So, 10 weeks into the semester are we enjoying stress free living? No, it on top of the existent network, isn’t it obvious that performance is going to suffer?
is the answer. What do we get for our neat £94 a week rent? The answer is a nice new Even I can see that, and I’m supposed to be a common sense devoid student! I mean
room with an en-suite. That’s about it. The rest entails an internet service which is this is a University and an affluent one at that, not some budget stricken high school.
worse then the dark ages of dial-up. When it takes 10 minutes to access university Some common sense please management. When trying to complete your final year the
emails you know there is something not quite right. You also get a heating system that internet is a necessity and to have all these constant problems causes nothing but stress
up until this week has not worked. It took four weeks of complaining and pestering to amongst us already frail 4th years. Residences at Surrey are one of the most expensive in
the court reception that I had a problem and about 4 visits from ‘engineers’ to fix. the country; surely we should be getting something for our money? Now lets see how
So, myself being the type to want some sort of value for my money I got in touch with long it takes me to email this to Barefacts…
the accommodation office to see why the residences resnet is the way it is, why problems
take so long to fix and dare I ask, maybe some compensation for spending four weeks
in the cold and technological dark ages . The reply I get is one that states that resnet Yours Stressfully,
only costs £43 per year per room and that giving students such small compensation
would be a waste when it can be put towards improving the resnet service. If it does Disgruntled from Manor Park
cost £43 per year room per room I find it very hard to believe that this is reflected in
the rent charged to the students! I am also told to answer some simple questions about The University will, of
my problems and to send them to the head of IT services. Being helpful I do just this,
but receive nothing in reply apart from a week long out of office reply. Improving course, have the right
the service is obviously a high priority! (Note my sarcasm there…) of reply in the next
issue - if it so desires.
Or Not So Nice?
By Emma Rogulska
What’s your weakness? Chocolate, cake, biscuits? Or do you This is due to the fact that
rely on a sweet cup of tea to get you through the day? Most of they cannot be broken down and
The antibacterial components of us like sweet things; as one of the five basic tastes, sweetness is fully absorbed by the body.
antibacterial soaps (usually triclosan generally regarded as pleasurable sensation and our bodies crave Non-nutritive sweeteners tend
or, less commonly, triclocarbon) needs the huge energy associated with sweet substances. The problem to be synthetic organic
to be left on a surface for about two being that if you don’t burn the energy consumed it soon gets compounds; large carbon
minutes in order to work. Most people stored as fat. containing molecules which have
are not this patient, and end up washing In today’s culture we are all aware of the consequences of being been manufactured via chemical
off the soap before the antibacterial overweight, with constant publicity highlighting the many health processes.
ingredients can do their job. risks associated. Hundreds of synthetic organic compounds are known to be
What we want is to be able to have our cake, eat it, but skip sweet. The number of these that are legally permitted as food
some of the calories - and with the discovery of sweeteners, our additives is, however, much smaller. For example, chloroform,
dreams of guilt free indulgence seemed to have come true. nitrobenzene, and Ethylene glycol are sweet, but also toxic.
Sweeteners have been It the safety of the non-nutritive group of sweeteners in
Aspirin and Heroin were created by around for a long time now particular that is most questionable, as they are not something
the same chemist 11 days apart. but very few people have an we encounter in natural foodstuffs – so we know less about their
understanding of what they long term biological effects, if they have any.
No matter its size or thickness, no are and how they work. This Their are currently seven artificial sweeteners certified as safe
piece of paper can be folded in half is particularly concerning for widespread use by UK Food Standards Agency: saccharin,
more than 8 times. when you take into account cyclamate, aspartame, acesulfame potassium, sucralose, alitame,
Consumption of TNT produces black the quantity of sweeteners we and neotame.
urine. consume on a regular basis in This means that each of these sweeteners has been evaluated
conjunction with the bad press based on their safety, sensory qualities (for example, clean sweet
they’ve received over the years. taste, no bitterness, odourless), and stability in various food
You’d think we’d question the safety of any consumable substance environments. An Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) for each has
which has at some point been linked to practically every disease also been established. That is the amount of that sweetener that
imaginable - from a variety of cancers all the way to lupus! can be consumed daily over a lifetime without appreciable health
So are sweeteners safe? Well I’m afraid the answer is not a risk to a person on the basis of all the known facts.
simple as the question. For starters there are many different But how many of us know what the ADI is? Or are aware that
Cranberries are sorted for ripeness “sweeteners” and they aren’t all alike. They can, however, be split sweeteners have them? Many food stuffs have a label letting you
by bouncing them; a fully ripened into two basic distinguishing groups – nutritive sweeteners and know that the product sugar free but I’ve never seen anything
cranberry can be dribbled like a non-nutritive sweeteners. As their names suggest, one set have an detailing the amount of sweetener in it and stating the ADI for
basketball. associated calorie count, whereas the others do not seem to make that sweetener. Surely this is important as if we are surpassing
any calorific contribution. the annual recommended intake that would suggest there could
Nutritive sweeteners can further be categorised into sugars and be biological consequences.
sugar alcohols For example Aspartame’s ADI is set at 40 milligrams per
The best recorded distance for Sugars are the natural small molecules that make up kilogram of body weight. This is equivalent to 2,800 milligrams
projectile vomiting is 27 feet. carbohydrates. Examples of which are single unit sugars for an average British adult, but as the content of sweeteners is
(monosaccharide) like glucose, fructose and disaccharides made not usually listed on the back of products there is no way of
A fear of long words is, ironically, of two monosaccharide molecules like sucrose which consists knowing whether we are surpassing the ADI.
called “Hippopotomonstrosesquippe of a fructose molecule and glucose molecule bonded together.
daliophobia” Sugar alcohols are molecules similar in structure to sugars and
alcohol, hence their name, which have less calories associated
with them than sugars.
Do you know about a cool science event going on? Why not write and tell me what
23% of all photocopier faults
it was like. You can review science resources you’ve used; were they good or bad
worldwide are caused by people sitting
and why?
on them and photocopying their
Let me know about things you’d like explaining – anything from why do light bulbs
butts.
turn on if you put them in the microwave to why can’t the common cold be cured?
If you went out into space, you would
explode before you suffocated because Contact: Emma e-mail: bf.science@gmail.com
there’s no air pressure.
ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
Planet Or Pocket :
Who’s Gonna Pay?
By Emma Rogulska
I make to help the environment will need to fit into
The future of our planet will affect us all, if not directly my lifestyle’.
through environmental changes, through government Recycling is an idea that is well established, it is relatively
legislation regarding impacting factors such as waste, inconvenient due to council collections and recycling
travel, and prices of energy related products. points at supermarkets and alleviates the feelings of guilt
It is obvious that by using more energy efficient devices caused by peoples otherwise un-ecofriendly lifestyles.
and processes we can potentially reduce emissions and We may travel by car, buy over packaged goods and use
consumption of resources, but this isn’t necessarily We all want to live our lives comfortably as possible air travel for leisure but at least we recycle. But how is
what is happening. This is partially due to the fact and consequently whether or not we do something is recycling a few tins, some jam jars and the odd cardboard
that commercially increased efficiency also results in increasingly governed by whether or not we can afford box meant to offset the multitude of sins incorporated
an increased profitability. This means that industrially to. This means that in many cases conservation in one in modern living?
increased efficiency often results in company expansion area leads to expenditure in another. In the words of Timothy Cooper “What the revival
For example, insulated houses save energy and money of recycling has really done, like the myth of “ethical
on heating but this is not of ecological benefit if the consumerism”, is to give the impression that the
money saved by efficient heat retention is then spent on environmental crisis presented by global capitalism can be
air travel. indefinitely delayed if only we all do our bit”. But is this
A survey was recently conducted by BRMB in the case? – Even if every person in the world minimised
conjunction with Defra, involving 3,618 participants their total consumption and we eradicated waste would
from 379 areas to establish Public Attitudes and the world be able to support us?
Behaviours toward the Environment. It is the opinion of some, that a huge part of the strain we
Results of the survey indicated that the majority of are putting the world under is purely due to the fact that
people appear to be both aware of and concerned about the human population is constantly increasing and that
the problems besetting the global environment, and to we have therefore surpassed the point up to which the
believe that human behaviour has brought these about. world’s resources were sustainable. “Unceasing economic
There was also widespread optimism that it was not too growth, increasing per capita resource consumption, and
and increased production capacities, increasing overall late to do something about climate change and that it global population growth have teamed with our reliance
consumption! It’s a case of economical gain at the price would be possible to overcome the world’s environmental on finite reserves of fossil energy to exceed the Earth’s
of ecological loss. problems. absorptive and regenerative capacities.” says John Feeney.
Lifestyle also seems to dictate the use of efficiency However, while the majority subscribe to the need for He believes that even abundant clean energy will not
increasingly in our day to day lives: Cars were once a individuals to change their behaviour, there are a whole
luxury, only affordable to a privileged minority, nowadays range of reasons which some people give to explain
most of us can afford a car but the question is that if we why they themselves do not do more. One of the most
make more efficient cars will we actually reduce emissions prevalent is the being their efforts would make very little
and petrol usage? Or will it just encourage people to use difference to climate change in the national and global
their cars further as they are cheaper to run? Will people context.
buy the biggest car they can afford instead of buying a Other reasons included lack of information, lack of
more efficient version of the cars they already have? time and finding it hard to change established habits.
The problem is that the environment is rarely a Certain individuals made no excuses and were quite frank
consideration in our day to day lives, whereas money and about their lack of motivation to change their lifestyle,
convenience are. So decisions made about the way we live saying that the environment was a low priority for them
are influenced by these factors primarily; how often do compared with a lot of other things in their life, or that end ecological deterioration of the earth. And the only
you base a lifestyle decision on its environmental impact? it would take too much effort to change. Most people achievable means of attaining truly sustainable existence
More frequently we are more concerned with a reduction are resistant to making radical changes to their current we must reduce the global population size.
in expense, than in emissions or use of materials. lifestyle - almost half concurred that ‘any changes
RK S
WO
T Y IRE
F 7
I
ERS /11/200
UNIV 02
WE ARE SCIENTISTS1
10/11/2007
I
N
P
E R P A RT Y I
A L K FOAM /2007
ROY W
14/11/0
7 09/11 C
T
U
R
E
S
I’m worried that exams are looming and I still haven’t you graduate, you could decide to put off applying till then knowing that other
filled out all the application forms I intended. What opportunities should still be around.
should I do?
This is one of those questions for which there is no right or wrong answer. There are But aren’t they more likely to be smaller employers who
all sorts of personal issues involved. For example, how important is it that you have a advertise in the summer?
definite job offer before you leave? It goes without saying that the more applications
you make, the more you increase your chances of finding a job. Mind you, it is Generally speaking this is true. Most of the employers who recruit graduates in
mainly the well-known graduate recruiters who set early closing dates for receipt of large numbers are likely to have filled their vacancies. However, they sometimes fail
application forms and they are also the ones who are the most difficult to get into. to meet their target or perhaps their original target changes for some reason so you
Simply making lots of applications doesn’t guarantee you a job. Only you can decide can still pick up occasional vacancies with the popular recruiters. You could also
whether you want to make the extra effort required to meet their deadlines and keep consider applying the following year. Of course, if your aim is to work for a smaller
alive your chances of employment with them. organisation anyway then leaving it till nearer the time you graduate would work very
much in your favour.
I am wondering whether it might be better to concentrate
on my degree. What do you think? Any final tips?
If you are you on a borderline at the moment e.g. First / 2.1 or 2.1 / 2.2 and you Just one. If you are someone who is good at getting on with things through careful
think that spending too much time on application forms will interfere with your prioritisation and a well-organised lifestyle, then you might be able to squeeze a few
chances of getting a higher degree class, then you might benefit from a strategic more application forms out of your busy schedule. If you decide to do that, you can
decision to put your job-hunting on hold for the time being. It may also help you to check closing dates in Vacancies for Finalists on the Careers Service website at
know that typically about 30% of Surrey graduates obtain their work by replying to
advertisements. Since these are more likely to be available nearer to the time http://magic.surrey.ac.uk/careers
ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
12 EVENTS & RESULTS 19th November 2007
OFFICIAL UNION EL
Ethics and Equal
Environment Officer Oppurtunities Officer Events Officer Internation
VALID VOTES: 644 VALID VOTES: 493 VALID VOTES: 709 VALID VOTES:
BLANK VOTES: 330 BLANK VOTES: 482 BLANK VOTES: 244 BLANK VOTES
SPOILT: 3 SPOILT: 2 SPOILT: 25 SPOILT: 3
CANDIDATES: 3 (and RON) CANDIDATES: 1 (and RON) CANDIDATES: 4 (and RON) CANDIDATES:
ROUNDS: 4 ROUNDS: 1 ROUNDS: 5 ROUNDS: 1
QUOTA: 323 QUOTA: 247 QUOTA: 356 QUOTA: 305
ELECTED: MEGAN ELECTED: NATALIE ELECTED: LUKE ELECTED: DINA
ESTORNINHO FORRESTER MCCLELLAND GUINDI
CONGRATULATIONS TO
ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
19th November 2007 EVENTS & RESULTS 13
LECTION RESULTS
nal Officer Post Graduate Research Post Graduate Taught Union Chairperson
Officer Officer
608 VALID VOTES: 572 VALID VOTES: 497 VALID VOTES: 792
S: 368 BLANK VOTES: 404 BLANK VOTES: 481 BLANK VOTES: 198
SPOILT: 4 SPOILT: 2 SPOILT: 3
2 (and RON) CANDIDATES: 4 (and RON) CANDIDATES: 4 (and RON) CANDIDATES: 1 (and RON)
ROUNDS: 3 ROUNDS: 5 ROUNDS: 8
QUOTA: 287 QUOTA: 249 QUOTA: 397
A EL ELECTED: SUSAN JONES ELECTED: JOSHUA ELECTED: GEORGE
FOSTER GRAMA
1
Answers
page 21
ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
As many of you will be fully aware, Saturday 10th November hosted an evening of live music
featuring what can be easily classed as the finest band to perform upon the union stage in
many a moon. Yes of course it is the prestigious We Are Scientists that I am reminiscing about
in this text format. Due to this being such a momentous event for the University of Surrey
I felt it was fully required to grab a pew and have an interview with the band members
themselves. And so, only two hours after the sun was at its highest point in the sky on that
fair Saturday, my co-conspirator Jake Howell and I moved at haste towards the union for one
extraordinary conversation.
Upon arrival, it was the handsome bassist Chris Cain that greeted us. Chris was looking well,
boasting slinky smart trous, a long-sleeved shirt with sleeves rolled up (fashion), and what
appeared to be a tweed waistcoat. We liked it. Not only this but Chris was half way through
a cup of tetleys tea; refreshing. Our conversation began with a discussion about cheap
products from Hong Kong, before I moved on to what could have been the touchy subject of
Michael Tapper (the original W.A.S dummer) departing from the band earlier that week. This
is something that had left the nation in a state of shock and concern, fear of tour cancellation
was on every human’s mind, Chris however was well prepared to calm our thoughts;
“Its true, it’s true, Michael Tapper has left the band. But it wasn’t sudden at all; it was
something that we had been talking about as a group for a few months, so not nearly as
sudden as the announcement may have led one to believe. Michael just had a bunch of other things he wanted to do”.
We agreed that this was fair, before moving on to the topic of “Brain Thrust Mastery”, the possible title of their new album (“first
official announcement”) and title of the seminars that Chris and Keith (vocals/guitar) have been giving.
“Well on the last album [With Love and Squalor] we wanted to make something that sounded like three people could easily be
playing it. On the new album the type of songs we were writing really seemed to call for a fourth part, so we needed Max (keys
and guitars).
South: Are we going to see a more electronic side to W.A.S with this new record then?
Chris: Most of the keyboard stuff on it is organ so it’s not necessarily super synthy. There’s a couple of drum machines used
throughout but that’s about as electronic as it gets. It definitely isn’t like dance rock, there aren’t any dance disco beats; there
are some very danceable beats but no disco beats.
S: Can you tell us a bit about your Brain Thrust Mastery Seminars then, kind sir?
C: Brain Thrust Mastery, yes. This is something that Keith and I have developed somewhat separately from the music; there’s
no musical element to it. We decided that because we’ve taken so much from our fans we thought it was just time for us to give
something back. We really open up your brain, give it a vigorous massage, wash it out in the sink and pop it back in there and
suddenly it’s working better that you’ve ever known it to work. I like to think of it as the modernist humanist version of an old
religious revival where a preacher would actually be healing people, like casting Satan out, that’s kind of what we’re doing but
minus all the hocus-pocus. Its rational, it works”.
[We share much laughter]
S: “Has there ever been an occasion during any of these seminars where a “student” has asked you a question that has massaged
your brain. Such as; if you saw a horse ride by with a horse riding it, so there are two horses, one of them carrying a spear,
would you feel like these horses would be an ally or an annoyance?
C: With Brain Thrust Mastery I know that I would be able to make an ally out of those horses.
Howell: That would be a damn good ally to have.
C: Yeah absolutely.
The following part of the interview turned towards the topic of raccoons, based upon a short study of the life of raccoons posted
on the W.A.S website (wearescientists.com). An insightful and rewarding conversation I am sure you will agree, however it was
only a diminutive period before Chris veered the subject back towards Brain Thrust Mastery.
H: Are raccoons your favourite animal?
C: No, I just think they are one of the less understood animals. It seems to me an analysis like that was long overdue. I consider
it to be an introduction to raccoons and I would encourage further research, I think you will be surprised and delighted.
H: On the topic of mammals, if you were stuck in the jungle with only a biro as a defence, what do think would be the largest
mammal that you could probably kill?
C: Me specifically? I could kill any animal; using the techniques from Brain Thrust Mastery.
[Many shared amusements]
C: It would be no problem at all to convince an elephant, or a blue whale to terminate its own existence by using the biro. I
would just shove it into the dirt and it would take care of the rest. I could easily convince an elephant to asphyxiate the biro to
produce an emphysemic death.
[Nervous laughter, Chris excluded]
S: Chris tell me what is your favourite month?
C: December. It is approaching fast, I’m not prepared.
S: Thanks.
So there we have it, a brief but informative slither of the interview conducted with We Are Scientists very own bassist, Chris
Cain. Of course W.A.S went on that evening to perform a far-fetched show, rich in mirth. If you weren’t there you missed each
band member dressed in mule skins, wearing goat horns as shoes and small men as hats. If you were there you will know that
none of the above is true.
Jake South
ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
19th November 2007 ARTS 19
The Rumble Strips Gorillaz –
Time D-Sides [PROMO]
Island Parlophone
Released 05/10/07
Taken from their much-
admired debut album ‘Girls and D-Sides is a collection of B-sides
Weather’; ‘Time’ encompasses from the Gorillaz multi-platinum
all that is The Rumble Strips. album Demon Days and features
The intro physically reaches previously unreleased material
out and pulls you in with from early demo sessions. The
the vigorous drum beat and release will also include a bonus
quirky saxophone rifts; from disc of remixes by artists such
then on you can’t help but as Junior Sanchez and Hot Chip.
keep listening. If you’re feeling The Promo showcases the jittery
down, if all those assignments electro hit ‘Rockit’ and ‘Hong Kong’, a dreamy eastern ballad
are asking you to question how you actually get through each originally written for the War Child album Help: A Day In
day, then slip this into your CD player, update your iPod, The Life (now with lush new string arrangements) which had
and remember, ‘it’s only time, let it pass away’. Inspiring and tremendous audience response as an encore at their Demon
creative, The Rumble Stripes are destined for an exciting Days Live Concert at the Manchester Opera House.
future. The full album includes collaborations with the psychedelic
indie rock band The Bees (‘Bill Murray’) and Einar Orn,
Ben Pook the former lead singer of The Sugarcubes, along with the
Mandarin version of the chart-topping ‘Dirty Harry’ (TV
New Young Pony Club Airplay Chart No.1).
Get Lucky Following on from the success of its preceding model G-Sides
Modular (a similar collection of rarities from the band’s self titled
debut album), D-Sides is clearly a must-own for any big
This Electro-pop outfit has Gorillaz follower and certainly worth a listen by anyone who
amazed everyone with their was a fan of Demon Days.
debut album ‘Fantastic
Playroom’. The latest release Jamie Buchanan
and opening track ‘Get Lucky’,
is a sparkling showcase of
their bright and colourful
Startling
talent. The different sounds,
guitar, drums, sexy vocals
and electric keys, all join in
an amazingly simple formula, a five piece band named New
Young Pony Club. The energy of vocalist Tahita Bulmer is
Competitive
incredible to watch live and will have you hooked on every
track, if not for her crazy hair. If you haven’t heard of New
Young Pony Club before this single is a great place to start,
but be warned, there’s no going back.
Opportunity
Ben Pook
By Chris Pittock
Surrey LINKS
care of anything from the past year, as well as the filming of Top Gear at Dunsfold
simplest of small cuts, to Park. Larger duties have seen members at events such as
the most complicated near- Live8 and the Download festival.
misses, but fear not! All If socials are more your thing, then most of our
members are fully trained informal gatherings are more along the lines of getting
to be able to perform to know each other a bit better at Spoons or somewhere
under the most demanding on campus, but there’s often the chance to have fun at
situations, so you can rest Thorpe Park, or start a beach party in an isolated section
assured that we’re not of West Sussex - all ideas are welcome.
going to chuck you in the Meetings are every Tuesday at 7.30pm in TB12a. They
deep end too soon. generally last around 90 minutes and tend to involve
No prior experience learning a topic relevant to first aid - come along and
is necessary, and it’s not check out what we do in more detail. If you’re interested
necessary to have been a in the potential to save someone’s life but not in the
St John member in the voluntary work, come along anyway and we can provide
past – in fact, most of our you with first-aid qualification at a more student friendly
group didn’t give a second price.
St John Ambulance LINKS is the section of the thought about St John before starting university. When
major voluntary organisation tailored to student needs. you join, we can get you started by providing you with
However, when you hear the words ‘St John Ambulance’, free first-aid training to a national standard, which only St John LINKS - who would have thought that
it’s common to conjure up images of directing people needs to be renewed every three years – easy on the wallet helping people, making friends, learning new skills and
to the toilet or helping people down the stairs. Even and your time. Plus, with essential training under your the bonus of adding to your CV could be achieved by
though that still happens outside the university, we have belt, it could help you gain the upper hand in your future attending one society? Think no more!
many more opportunities that you may not be aware of. job interview (speaking from personal experience)!
LINKS at the University of Surrey provide first aid First aid events are not just limited to the university;
cover for both Citrus and Flirt! in the union, situated opportunities to provide cover for events like Guilfest
downstairs in the Activities Centre. This involves taking and Notting Hill Carnival have been the highlight of our
ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
19th November 2007 SOCIETIES 21
bf.societies@gmail.com
An article should aim to be from 200-400 words. Any general societies enquiries
should be directed to Simon Moore (Societies Editor).
���������������������������������������������������������
If you are interested in forming your own Society or have any questions related to
you society’s interaction with the union please contat VP Societies & ID at
:
ussu.societies@surrey.ac.uk
To stop you from ‘accidentally’ reading the answers, and 2003 (all Juventus).
substitute each letter in the answer with the next one 12)Brazil’s Ronaldo, with 15 6)Marcello Lippi - in 1996, 1997, 1998
in the alphabet. So RSZQS would become START.
11)Brazil’s Cafu, with 16 wins. club competitions.
Clues Across: Clues Down: 5)Filippo Inzaghi with 62 in all European
7 and 8) Odsdq Stsbkheed. 1) Qdzqqzmfd. 2) Kdnmzqcn.
11) Ronqzchb. 12) Czhqxkdz. 3) Stdrczx. 4) Zbs ne Fnc. 10)Germany with 202 December 26, 2006)
13) FBRE. 15) Hfmnakd. 17) Zcuzmbd. 5) Chuzmr. 6) Zeehw. 9) Rgtk. 268 days (for West Ham v. Portsmouth,
22) Zogdkhnm. 14) Zbbnkzcdr. 9)Germany, with 92 4)Teddy Sheringham at 40 years and
26) Dkhizg. 25) Rmnvcqno. 16) Ktrsqntr. 18) Zkk qhfgs.
27) Nmdqntrkx. 19) Jzlozkz. 21) Dcvzqc. 8)Raul, with 112 at present 2001 to December 28 2005).
28 and 10 and 23) Gddk. all Premier League games from October 13
20) Sgqdd Eqdmbg Gdmr. 24) Hmzmd. That puts his overall cost at around £77m 3)Frank Lampard, with 164 (having played
Lastly Chelsea spent £15m on him.
1 services 21, 2004)
2 Then Man Utd spent £28.1m for his (for Bolton Wanderers v. Fulham, August
Then Lazio got him for £18.1m. 2)Fernando Hierro, 36 years and 151 days
Parma signed him for £13m.
Juniors of 98,772.
Sampdoria signed him for £3m from Boca 1)Barcelona’s Camp Nou, with a capacity
Surrey produced the game of their life last night to maintain their unbeaten record in the shoulders of young talent Matt Peacock when he finally made his way to the
the surrey league. In a match tipped by Guildford skipper Timmy Goodman to be the wicket. The young all rounder did not disappoint however and constructed a solid
game of the season, neither team disappointed. It was a duel worthy of the history books 13* and a good partnership with senior all rounder Bancroft.
as Surrey produced a stag petronas charm that harry potter himself would have been The bowling however did not begin with the desired effect as surrey failed to have
proud of. Guildford too showed tremendous their radar screwed on. Too many extras and bad
courage to come within 2 tantalising runs of lines allowed Guildford to get off to a flyer and start
Surrey’s mammoth target of 234. to put the pressure back on the stags. If it wasn’t
After losing the toss and being put into for Al Shorts excellent glove work and some great
bat, ‘Captain Fantastic’ Chris Coombs was athletic fielding from Ryan Gregory the deficit might
determined to set a good target for the bowlers. have been too much for the stags to contain. Some
Coombs combined intelligent stroke play with uncharacteristically bad fielding from Reid also didn’t
some blistering shots to reach yet another 25* help the cause. Captain Coombs eventually turned to
and maintain his fantastic vein of form in himself and his trusty friend Reid to try and make
indoor cricket. Vice captain Reid said ‘I mean something happen. Coombs bowled expertly and
what can you say about the guy he’s just a class economically given the situation and kept the pressure
act, I think he’s scored over a hundred runs gauge firmly in the balance. Reid’s first two over’s
without getting out in his last four games, I contained too many balls that were full of a length,
mean his record speaks for itself ’. Down allowing the classy Guildford batsman to hoist him
the other end a different kind of innings was over his head for six. At this point the pressure was
required from Reid this time as he was given on Coombs to make something happen and he did,
little by the bowlers and put under pressure by he kept faith in Reid who produced a heroic over
a good off-side field. However, Reid showed of 4 dot balls which changed the whole feel of the
that he is not only a fluent stroke maker but a tough character as well. He fought hard occasion. Finally Coombs turned to his Pacey Ace card Banger for the last over. At this
for his 27* combining solid defence with some elegant cover drives. Manager Ferdenzi point no one could quite believe how close it was, but banger kept his nerve until a
said ‘He’s such a cool customer; he’s got the perfect temperament for these situations, six and a wide put the ball back in the Guildford court, however a brilliant catch from
never flustered by anything’. Once Coombs had reached 25 it was wicketkeeper Al Peacock off the wall meant that the Guildford batsman needed 6 off the last ball to
Short’s time in the limelight. He played brilliantly under pressure with some trademark win the match. It was game on as Coombs moved everyone to the back wall. Banger was
flicks of his pads and some good running between the wickets with Reid. When Reid canny under pressure and bowled it short outside off stump which restricted them to
retired it was Banger time who took it upon himself to hammer the advantage home three and the game was won, the stags had pulled off a historic win!!! There’s even talk
with some powerful strokes and solid running between the wickets. Much pressure was of an open bus top ride through Trafalgar square but we’ll have to talk to Al Collins
on about that one!!!
Football Trivia
Record Breakers – Test your knowledge
1) What is the biggest football stadium
Guildford
in Europe?
9) Which country has played the most
World Cup matches? Heat
Tickets are on sale
2) Who is the oldest debutant in the 10) Which country has scored the most NOW from the
English Premier League? World Cup goals?
Students
3) Which player has the most 11) Which player has won the most Union Shop
consecutive Premier League matches in World Cup competition? Price: £5
appearances? Includes bus from
12) Who has scored the most World
4) Who is the oldest goal scorer in the Cup goals
uni or town to
English Premier League? overall? the Spectrum.
5) Which current player has scored the Next home game:
most goals in European club football?
Sunday 25th
6) Who is the only manager to have Answers On November
competed in 4 Champions league finals? P21
BBL Cup
7) Which player has the biggest
accumulated transfer fee?
Tip-Off 3pm
8) Which player has the most European
club appearances?
ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
19th November 2007 SPORT 23
By Matt Cheetam
Sports Editor
Football Talk prospects be introduced earlier? The top ten most capped
England under 21 internationals are: Milner, Carson,
Welcome… Carragher, Prutton, Pennant, Defoe, Reo-Coker, Garry
Welcome once again to barefacts’ interactive Football Talk Owen, Steven Taylor and Huddlestone.
section. The past fortnight saw a tactical tussle between
the older masters Ferguson and Wenger, the conflict What Can be Done…
ended in a 2-2 draw, keeping tensions high at the top of Surely the right people are not spotting talent early
the Premiership. England’s rather sizeable hopes invested enough. Despite entering the Argentina national side
in Israel halting Russia suffered a stressful week. Israel’s at amazingly early ages, both Tevez and Messi both had
star player, the inspirational Yossi Benayoun, showed decent stints in the Argentine under 20 side at very young
impressive form for Liverpool scoring a hat-trick against ages. Is 21 too old, should we drop to under 20 level?
Besiktas. However, after demonstrating such rampant Are there too many 21 year olds, who probably won’t
form in front of goal, the slender midfielder promptly become focal to our countries future hopes, clogging
developed a torn groin, ruling him out of the crucial up the system from promising 17, 18 and 19 year olds.
tie and further quelling English hopes of reaching Euro witnessed continued signs of nerves in defence. It is Many of our stars from the tournament cannot get a
2008. Let’s hope Israel cope well enough without him worth remembering how Marcus Bent alone upfront for game for their club now, yet these were our best hopes
and England still have a chance of qualifying when you Wigan, the Blackpool strikers, and Aliadiere playing up at under 21 level, what does that say about our national
read this. front for Middlesbrough (scorer of 2 Premiership goals hopes for the future, and possibly the level of foreigners
- ever - in just under 40 appearances) hardly pose the in the Premier League. After the performances in the
Brief Round Up… threat that most teams competing against Spurs will cause summer, the likes of at least Taylor, Nugent, Lita, Baines,
Domestically numerous derbies were contested, in that department. In coming weeks, when they travel Ferdinand and Reo-Coker should all be key players for
Newcastle and Sunderland played out a draw, whilst Liam to West Hams, Portsmouth, Arsenal and Chelsea their their sides, and knocking on the door for the national
Rigdewell may well need to relocate from the Midlands defence will be more vigorously tested. However, results team, particularly the strikers, since England have such
after his nightmare performance in the ‘Second City’ have improved, and clean sheets have been obtained, a short list to pick from. What is the consensus about
derby. The former Villa defender, and now Birmingham certainly in January we will understand more Ramos’s our young national side? Is there a cause for concern
captain scored an avoidable own goal, and missed two ability when the transfer market. I maintain my opinion here? This debate can continue next issue with more
glorious chances in an end to end game that Villa edged that Martin Jol was not given enough time to steady the response.
2-1. Tim Cahill stalled Chelsea’s recent impressive ship at Tottenham - after two successful top five finishes
league form with a spectacular overhead kick. Everton’s surely most would agree his demise was premature? Sinking Fast…
key man, absent for the best part of 2007 due to injury, At the bottom of the table, Wigan and Derby are
stated he had forgotten what number he wore for the All Gone Quiet… showing limited signs of Premiership class, Wigan
Toffees. His return has brought goals for himself, and Last summer the England U21s stole the hearts of without Heskey, have severely lost their way. The, now
sparked an impressive run for Everton, their five match many, performing fantastically well at the European manager-less side, were top of the table after 3 games
winning streak (2 in the Premiership, 2 in the Uefa Cup Championships and reaching the Semi Finals. Barely with 6 points, they now have 8 points after 13 games. 2
and 1 in the League Cup), prior to their draw at Stamford a player in the squad went amiss, contributing fully to points out of a possible 30, a remarkable decline. Derby
Bridge, was their best for over 15 years. Over in the their countries impressive run, the likes of Ashley Young, simply cannot score, they have not at all away from
ever controversial Italian league more pandemonium has James Milner, and Scott Carson have certainly grown in home and have only mustered a meagre 5 goals at home.
ensued when a fan tragically lost his life in an encounter stature since the event, however many important players; Add to that the fact they have conceded 31 goals already
with the police. Chaotic scenes permeated the games Steven Taylor, Nedum Onuoha, David Nugent, Leroy and the severity of their situation is plainly highlighted,
last weekend, hopefully the consequences can be sought Lita, Nigel Reo-Coker, Leighton Baines and Anton scoring 0.4 goals a game, and conceding 2.4 goals a
out sooner rather than later. The Italian Sports Minister Ferdinand surely should be more household names. Is game is not a good ratio. Both these two were tipped by
has called for a suspension of Italian football for the the under 21 game respected enough in this country? many, including barefacts sport, to go down this season,
‘next few weeks’. This follows previous controversy in Is enough done to help the players progress? Stuart and without drastic improvement many seem to have
Italy involving match fixing, drugs, fans rioting, the Pearce was adamant his players would learn invaluable drawn the right conclusions. Is there any hope for these
Dida episode and further shenanigans. experience from these encounters and progress quicker, two? Tactically can they play their way out or are drastic
but have they? Personally I do not feel we take this signings required in January? Who would sign for these
Response… level of football seriously enough. Of England’s recent struggling sides?
Thank you for the response received. I have had a squads, none of Owen, Rooney, Beckham, Gerrard,
particular intense debate with a Spurs fan who believes Ashley Cole, Joe Cole, Hargreaves, Micah Richards, and Send your responses to these topics and any topics you
Martin Jol had to leave Tottenham, saying he had lost others reached double figures in under 21 caps, some want brought up in future columns, as well as any sports
the respect of the dressing room and tactically he was were not even chosen at that age group. Surely the related articles to
inept. This ambitious fan also believes Tottenham have wrong people are in charge of spotting talent, the ratio
shown in their past four performances (since Ramos has of talent spotted at that age, and what is done with that
been in charge) that they have overcome their calamitous talent in terms of development does not work. Last bf.sport@gmail.com.
start to the season. True Ramos has overseen some issue I covered the fantastic work of Argentine youth
decent displays in his short time in charge of Tottenham, coach Hugo Tocalli, and the way his youth team players If you enjoy reading this column tune into GU2 on
and yes they have continued to score many goals, but are now the core of the Argentina squad. Many of our Thursdays at 3-4 and check out Matt and Tony’s Sports
anyone who saw their displays against Blackpool, Wigan top ten capped under 21 internationals have not and will Show, get in touch on MSN during the show and talk
and Middlesbrough (I missed their victory in Europe) never dominate on the international scene, yet they are over anything sport with us…
along with Spurs’ impressive scoring spree, will have persisted with at this level. Shouldn’t younger, better
ussu.barefacts@surrey.ac.uk
24 SPORT 19th November 2007