COMMENT: SOMALIA - THE FORSAKEN "HORN OF AFRICA?" | SOCIAL: TRUTH ABOUT LIES | FEATURES: BEAT EATING DISORGERS AT aa LcUvClVvrL IISt iSES^ SNP Leader speaks at LSE JackTindale Staff Reporter Alex Salmond MSP, leader of the Scottish National Party, addressed a packed Sheikh Zayed Theatre on Wednesday evening. The talk by the First Minister of Scotland formed part of a nationwide speaking tour aimed at extolling his vision for Scottish independence. The lecture, entitled 'Independence and Responsibility: the future of Scotland' was chaired by Professor Paul Kelly, Head of the Department of Government. The speech, which was broadcast live by the BBC and other national networks, largely focused on the economic basis for the First Minister's independence movement, attracting attention from a wide audience from outside the London School of Economics (LSE) community. Salmond, who became the first leader at Holyrood to win an overall majority in last year's Parliamentary election, opened his lecture with praise for the LSE, albeit tempered by his Keynesian views rather at odds with the School's traditional Austrian ethos. Praising the recent publication of Beatrice Webb's journals by the LSE Library, Salmond cited the LSE founder's then-contemporary criticism of global financial institutions and the results of research carried out by the Grantham Research Centre for Climate Change and the Environment as a basis for the Scottish National Party's (SNP) vision of a low carbon Scottish economy based around renewable energy. Commenting on the recent downgrade of the British economy by the credit rating agency Moody's, the First Minister began by critiquing the fiscal policies of the Coalition government, calling for renewed investment by the Treasury in order to promote growth. Salmond has adopted a resolute opposition to current austerity measures, often referred to as "Plan McB," and few in the audience seemed surprised by the First Minister using the podium to promote an alternative perspective. Citing free university education for Scottish students, a compulsory apprenticeship program for school leavers and the recent establishment of a Scottish Investment Bank, Salmond argued that his government's record on youth unemployment stood robust against that of the coalition, dismissing their "passive acceptance of the consequences of austerity." Salmond began his main argument by debunking a number of myths perceived as being spread by the pro-Union campaign, principally that regarding currency. The First Minister made no reference to the SNP's long-standing policy of joining the Eu-rozone, especially his view expressed two years ago in the Telegraph that Euro membership offered a "strong argument" for independence. Instead, the First Minister spoke in favour of the continued membership of an independent Scotland in the Stirling Zone. Stating that "no nation can stop another from using a fully trade - able currency," Mr Salmond defended his view of a monetary union with a rump United Kingdom, speaking in defence of the large-scale oil and gas resources that would fall in between Scottish and British territorial waters by a ratio of around 90 per cent to 10 per cent, respectively. Since Scotland currently stands as the third most prosperous region of the United Kingdom after London and the South West, the First Minister expressed the view that an independent nation would easily be able to maintain a currency pegged to the Pound. The First Minister also expressed his vision for an independent Scottish economy in terms of giving the British government "Six of the Best" with regards to estab- ^ _ lishing competi- ^ / Data published by the LSE has shown strong similarities between the attainment of General Course students and that of all LSE undergraduates. The data, taken from exam results of the 2010-2011 academic year, does not show significant disparity in the results of General Course students in comparison with LSE as a whole. Rather, the failure rates of both are consistent with each other, at around 6.5 per cent (General Course: 6.8, LSE Undergraduates: 6.6), whilst there is also only a two per cent differentiation in the amount of 2:1s received by each group. One notable difference between the two groups lies in the amount of ists and 2:2s achieved. 19.3 per cent of all LSE undergraduates achieved first-class honours, compared to only 13.2 per cent of General Course students, whilst exactly ten per cent more of General Course students achieved 2.2s, at 31.5 per cent. Though, when the amount of ists, 2:1s and 2:2s are considered as a whole, the percentages are almost identical at around 78 per cent. Overall, the data demonstrates a general equality in grades attained between the two student groups. This comes despite significant differences in the overall degree process; General Course students are assessed differently and the admissions procedure is similarly varied. Mark Hoffman, General Course Dean, explained that General Course exam results were mainly consistent with other LSE undergraduates, but that various factors affected General Course results. He commented that there is a high failure rate in quantitative courses such as EC220, Introduction to Econometrics, though this failure rate is lower than that of LSE undergraduates in the same module. In qualitative courses, Hoffman revealed that General Course students often struggle to adapt to the different style of essay-writing, but once this transition is made, the top-end of results are often better than that of other LSE students. Several measures have been taken to reduce the high failure rates in courses such as the aforementioned EC220. An important change has been to introduce the requirement to have the permission of the course tutor to enrol, while many students are directed to MN203, Social Science Research Method for Management, as an alternative. The need for permission to enrol in a particular course reflects the general admissions process that General Course students undergo, which is rather dissimilar to the UCAS process. Hoffman explained that the General Course admits around 300 students per year, with 308 admitted in 2011-2012. Some of the students, who attend American universities with longstanding ties to the LSE, undergo internal selection procedures at their home universities; such procedures are fairly automatic and result in a much lower level of applications. The biggest contingent of ^ £. General Course Equality seen in attainment visit us online at thebeaveronline.co.uk and at facebook.com/thebeaveronline 2 News 21.02.2012 | The Beaver theb eaver Established in 1949 Issue No. 767 Telephone: 0207 955 6705 Email: editor@thebeaveronline.co.uk Getting involved in student media Editorial Board Executive Editor Duncan McKenna editor(a> thebcaveronllne.co.uk Managing Editor Alex Haigh managing@theb«averoniine.co.uk Design Editor Liam Brown desigji@theteaTCWHline.eo.uk News Editors Bethany Clarke John Armstrong Sydney Saubestre news(a! thebeaveronline.co.uk Comment Editor Alice Dawson cSnBa8nt@thebeavefonlis®.co.uk Features Editor Gurdeep Chhina Chris Rogers featurcs®thebe»veronline.co.uk Social Editor Laura Aumeer sodal@thsbeaveronliHe.co.ak Sport Editors Tim Poole Maxim Owen sports@thebeaveronlme.co.uk PartB Editor Aameer Patel part b® lhebeaverottHne.co.uk Photo Editor Matthew Worby photogra5ply@tl1gbeaverorii11e.co.uk Online Editor Liam Brown wcb@tbebeavcronline.eo.uk General Manager Konrad Hughes info@theheaveronline.co.uk Collective Chair Alexander Young coIlective@thebeaiTronline.co.uk fThe Beaver is printed on «j£jSa. 1 100% recycled paper. In 2006, recycled paper V made up 79% of UK Wlpa newspaper raw materials. Mm Please recycle your copy. jBHjr 4LSE, a group formed to promote greater discussion of public policy issues at the School. The former Chancellor, Alistair Darling MP, is scheduled to speak on 7th March in what is expected to be a defence of the Pro-Unionist campaign in the forthcoming referendum. I NJ D IA W E EIC ONi: vvi 1 k one Nation, a ihllion im-ksi'ectives. INAUGURATION CEREMONY Featuring talks on Filmmaking in India by Mr Rishi Kapoor and Prof Rachel Dv/yer Monday 20^ February 19:00-21:30 in the Old Theatre CORRUPTION IN INDIA Otaitc an tnc effec««**u of the Jan loitpal But Tuesday 21** February 13:£» 15:00 Ml CROFI NANCE FOR DEVELOPMENT Panel d^cussaoo wrtn: Ms Emsise GooaaB, Or MaJtrtsn anatak Wednesday 22T* Fe&ruary SHI AMAK DAVAR'S BOLLYWOOD DANCE WORKSHOP Thtiraaay 23" FeJ*u*ry Tf»e UnsKriroond. LSE CLOSING CEREMONY Featuring SPedUJ a*rt ay Arjun. ocrtorm ances, orvKr, ana a Boxwood narm Fflday 24** F«-j*ruary 'LET'STALK CRICKET' Crtocsl matcn •Saesl fas* Srt Vr. Ajay J»3e|a Swvaay is" Fe&ruaiy 20-00-22:00 ujrai Cricket Srsxoa. tonaaei FOCUS ON INDIA 2012- PHILANTHROPY IN INDIA Panel dJsaasson ana networ**ns event wnn reorc&entatves from Acccnture. Tata, AreeJorMmas. Tuesosy 21** Fearuary iSX»-21flO Srw.«i ZsvMTheatre {MAS US.031 FEMALE ENTREPRENEURSHIP Tas* ay Mi. Gfta Pate! WeaneKSay 22"* S=«Oruary Hans tons Tneatre. ISE THE INDIAN ECONOMY Pane! <£scuss*onwstft Mr. ftafei Storm a {E.*ccutrre Director and Co-founder, Micros a* Moooe), Mr Madnur jna (Gsooa; Economist, KSSQ, Dr. Qar*ny Quan {Professor of EconarmJcs and Kuwait Professor, ISC), arva an Ernst & Yojng Partner. Thursday Z3r* February 13:00- ISrOD sne^n Zayed "meat re. tSE FOOD GLORIOUS FOOD Sae«ai uawi f ooa serve-a tne w«4* at trie 4'' floor Restaurant. 15£ For more information visit our Houghton Street Stalls or contact: Sbeshaya Surtani Phone: 075S5S013S5 Email: 5.K.SurtarB@Hss.ac.uk: Sow!HoII Travel )ic x; India ASIAN Al£T 8 Advertisement 21.02.2012 | The Beaver LSE Students' Union Energy Conference 2012 Managing the Next Crisis - i; •• V- ; .............. Tickets are £10. Buy online at www.energy2012.org. 25th February in the Hong Kong Theatre. Confirmed Speakers Dr Simon Dietz - Co-Director of Grantham Research Institute, LSE Dieter Krapp \ GeneralJ/lanager LNG, CIS & Europe at Shell IS.'' - Associate Fellow Energy, Environment & j Development Programlne, Chatham House Michael Schuet\ - Policy <)ffic|r|for Indigenous Fossil FuejJ at the European Commission ^#§1" Clean Energy Policy Analyst afBloomberg ew Energy Finance^* ^ riS SXuMKjji Energy Practice Leader at AB Kiprakis\ Energy & Powe m 1 ,3 isfiSthSm t & lunch inclu University / 4 The LSE /— ¦, VThelSEStudents'Union Anniial ; RlnrtmnQm nergy society Fund »'°o«nQerg jj (jr&rjiutm Ri F~ Flickr: urbanshoregirl US cuts seem ideological, not financial Why state funding cuts to "Planned Parenthood" constitute a systematic attack on women's rights Elizabeth Fraser & America's economy is in trouble. Things maybe looking up slightly, but unemployment is still at 8.3 per cent while the national debt is the same size as the economy. One trillion dollars worth of austerity measures loom as the USA desperately seeks to create jobs, encourage growth and cut spending. One of the most high profile targets for spending cuts was "Planned Parenthood." The reason there has been so much uproar around this organisation is that it already has a history of dividing public opinion. For those who support Planned Parenthood, it is a vital service providing some of the most needy and disadvantaged women with access to essential health care including pap smears, HIV/AIDS tests, breast cancer screening and mammogram referrals, as well as providing family planning, including abortion (although this only constitutes 3 per cent of what Planned Parenthood does). As evidence for its indispensability, its supporters point to the fact that one in five American women has used Planned Parenthood. For its opponents, Planned Parenthood unfairly refuses to allow government criticism of its opera- tions, yet happily accepts government money, which they perceive as enabling people to be irresponsible when it comes to sex. Much of the venom reserved for Planned Parenthood comes from the religious right, which attacks the organisation from a pro-life (or anti-choice) stance. The President of Americans United for Life has described Planned Parenthood as "dealing in death." Thankfully, legislation to defund Planned Parenthood failed. But this is by no means the end of the affair. The Susan G. Komen Foundation threatened to retract the $680,000 it provides to Planned Parenthood to enable breast cancer screenings, although this plan was also dropped. Moreover, and perhaps more worryingly, there has been a barrage of legislation both proposed and enacted to limit female reproductive rights and to remove funding from Planned Parenthood. At a federal level, there are no long threats to family planning services' funding, but at a state level organisations like Planned Parenthood are still under attack. We can see this in the six states that have already prohibited state funding for Planned Parenthood. One of these is New Hampshire, where the executive council cancelled the state's contract with Planned Parenthood, thus depriving it of $1.8 million. As a result, New Hampshire's six branches of Planned Parenthood are no longer able to dispense contraception. Another such state is Indiana, which voted to block patients from using Medicaid at Planned Parenthood. About 9,300 Indiana Medicaid patients use Planned Parenthood annually so this legislation could be devastating for low-income women's access to preventative health care, "By targeting Planned Parenthood in particular, they potentially endanger the lives of women by restricting access to breast cancer screenings, mammogram referrals, pap smears and HIV/AIDS tests." STD testing and pap smears. Don't be fooled that these funding cuts have anything to do with fiscal responsibility and the need for austerity. The way in which legislators have targeted Planned Parenthood, alongside scores of other education and health programmes that provide access to reproductive information, contraception and abortion, is in keeping with a larger trend of the socially conservative attacking female reproductive rights. Ohio recently passed three anti-abortion bills, including one fhat would criminalise abortions as soon as a fetal heartbeat can be detected, which can be as early on as six weeks of pregnancy. In New Jersey, Governor Chris Christie eliminated all family planning funding from the st^te budget, and so forced the closure of six centres that provide birth control and health services to uninsured women. Most controversially, Mississippi tried to introduce a "Personhood Amendment," which would define a fertilised egg as a person with full rights. It horrifies me that state legislatures are launching such a damaging campaign against affordable sexual healthcare for women and trying to prevent them from exercising control over their own fertility. A woman's choice about when to have children should be entirely hers to make but, by limiting access to abortion and contraception by either prohibiting it or making it unaffordable, this flurry of laws relating to reproduction is effectively denying large numbers of women the opportunity to have complete control over their reproductive rights. Moreover, by targeting Planned Parenthood in particular, they potentially endanger the lives of women by restricting access to breast cancer screenings, mammogram referrals, pap smears and HIV/AIDS tests. The reasons behind this aren't financial; they are ideological. To take New Hampshire as an example, the $1.8 million funding removed from Planned Parenthood represents a tiny proportion of the state's $10.3 billion budget. Moreover, the abortions that Planned Parenthood provides are paid for privately, by the women undergoing them, and so measures passed that limit abortion under the guise of austerity are really aimed at preventing women exercising their right to make choices about if and when to have children. This systematic attack endangers the rights of women, particularly economically disadvantaged women, to control their fertility. I believe that America, with its long-held liberal values, should reject the draconian calls of the socially conservative right and protect the rights of women. Thankfully, there is a current of liberal feminism that runs in the upper echelons of the US government to counter these reactionary forces, and I draw some optimism from the federal government's refusal to withdraw funds from Planned Parenthood, and the expected rejection of the "No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act," either by the Senate or presidential veto. Nonetheless, female reproductive rights are very much under attack, and this cannot be allowed. I think Hilary Clinton said it best when she reminded us that "women's rights are human rights." This is a message we should not forget. The Beaver | 21.02.2012 Comment 11 The names we choose Pondering the naming ofLSE buildings in light of the School's recent ethics code Marina Gerner W hile walking from the Old Building to the New Academic Building, I could not help but wonder why the LSE is such an exemplary case of an institution that lacks creativity when it comes to naming its buildings. The resemblance of "Clement House" and "St. Clement's Building" is a source of enduring confusion for Freshers and visitors alike. "Tower One," "Tower Two" and "Tower Three" are obviously three towers, so why not name them something more interesting? Instead of Tower One (shout out to the coffee cart!) we could name it the "Ivory Tower" or the "Tower of Babel." The "Kingsway Building," which looks a bit like the branch of a bank, because that's what it used to be before the LSE acquired it, is actually on Portugal Street as far as I'm aware. The "East Building" probably lies east of the other buildings, if only I had a compass on me. Those very original names do not make it easier to find your building, but instead add to the confusing layout and idiosyncratic room numbering system we have. Howard Davies once admitted that, after over five years at the LSE, he still regularly got lost on campus. As we all know, "one does not simply walk through Houghton Street." When trying to find the right lecture theatre, you're inevitably stopped to take a free coffee from one of the "Big Four," and asked to attend a play or a dance, to eat a Chinese fortune cookie or to attend an alternative investment conference. Covered in flyers and coffee you then arrive at the other end of Houghton Street, only to realize you're at the wrong end. I guess we are lucky considering the fact that, 40 years ago, Houghton Street was a traffic throughway jammed with cars. In 1971, students protested for days and physically blocked the street for hours on two consecutive days for the LSE to make an official submission to the City council to turn Houghton Street into a pedestrian road. We are also lucky that Holborn is not one of the poorest and most dangerous areas of central London anymore, as it used to be in the early twentieth century. The situation was so bad in the past that there were plans to move the university to a green field site in Croydon or to move it to an iconic temple on the South Bank. Luckily, these plans did not transpire. The area kept transforming while the LSE continued to acquire and haphazardly name buildings throughout the last century. Now here's a naming that makes sense. In 1939, Charlotte Shaw made an endowment towards opening a library where students and staff could browse books of general literature, which is now the Shaw library. Many assume it to be connected with George Bernard Shaw, author, playwright and one of the founders of the LSE, but it's actually called after his missus. While the LSE was founded in only three rooms, all of which were rented from the Royal Society of Arts, we are now rich in premises. When the LSE was opened in 1895, it had Take pride in your Students' Union LSESU's Returning Officer urges us to participate in the upcoming elections Josh a Still M You may be thinking this is another generic article from the Returning Officer about upcoming elections. If you're sensible, you probably should skip to the next page of your newspaper rather than listening to more musings from an interfering political hack. But if you'll stay with me for just a few more sentences, I want to emphasise just what the LSE Students' Union is supposed to be; a membership-led organisation. The campaigns it runs, the societies and sports clubs available and even the snakebite in the Tuns are all here as a result of students' needs, input and desires. Channels by which students can air their opinions are improving whilst the advent of the assemblies network alongside a new communications strategy have allowed students' voices to be heard, outside of the ipm-2pm timeslot on a Thursday. There are political activists at LSE, and it is absolutely right that their voice be heard. LSESU is justly proud of its acquired reputation for being one of the foremost campaigning voices in the student movement. Not all of our campaigns are particu- larly divisive or Trotskyite either; in the past few years alone, LSE students have run successful campaigns that have significantly benefited the lives of students and staff, such as keeping open the LSE nursery and ensuring that the London Living Wage is paid as a minimum to all at LSE. And it is inconceivable for an organization representing students not to stand up against cuts to education. Yes, these campaigns and their campaigners have created discord and conducted themselves in the wrong way at times. However, on balance, they are a significant asset to our Union. But given the chances are that they will vote in these elections regardless of the words I deploy in this article, the remainder is not aimed for their consumption. Instead, this is for the students interested in other facets of the Union, those that are all too often overlooked amidst planning for the next demonstration. Nominations for the elections have now been made. In voting for the future leaders of our Union, you can publicly express your thoughts on what the Union should be in the future. Becoming one of the four Sabbatical Officers, and working full-time for the Union for the year, provides you with the opportunity to participate in the primary decision-making committees at the LSE. Here you can attempt to effect changes ranging from improving conditions for PGTs and revamping exam timetables to ensuring greater affordability in the Union shop. Part-time positions include the chance to represent, and campaign on behalf of, particular groups of students here at LSE, such as women and the LGBT community, or causes like the environment. Our Union has the capability to attain numerous great achievements, but those that are translated into reality will be determined by those who succeed in these elections. And these candidates will not acquire their position, regardless of how assiduous and inventive their campaign, if their fellow students do not exercise their democratic right and vote for them. However, representation in our Union can be improved, and its perception must be. The greatest strength the LSE possesses is its diversity; within our 9,000-strong community, there are people from such a broad spectrum of cultures from across the world, speaking a magnitude of different languages, and we have amassed a cornucopia of shared knowledge and experience. Consider what a wonderful institution we can build if we can use this to its full potential. It would be a travesty if the Union that represents us is allowed to be dominated by one small group amongst so many vibrant communities. Different students will want to accomplish different things, and by using our Union, even if we cannot create a nirvana, we can go some way towards achieving that, from our sports clubs to our library. If you have decided to stand for election, of course it can be daunt - "The greatest strength the LSE possesses is its diversity; within our 9,ooo-strong community, there are people from such a broad spectrum of cultures from across the world, speaking a magnitude of different languages, and we have amassed a cornucopia of shared knowledge and experience." ing, but you are not alone. Every student in this prestigious organization is brimming with ability, so you can take confidence in your ideas and your ability to actuate them. The Union offers a range of support to candidates including free materials for your campaign, and campaigning workshops held on either this Tuesday and Thursday that fully encompass all aspects of campaigning here at LSE. For more details, and if you want have any further questions about running for a position, or the position itself, then I would be delighted to help in whatever way I can if you contact me on su.returningofficer(a)lse.ac.uk, or I can arrange for you to speak to the relevant current officer. So, this is the final plea I will make to you about participating at least in some way during these elections. If you're not interested, that's fair enough, as it must be conceded it won't help you get a job at Goldman's. But it may be a chance to improve your university life or, at the very least, escape from the monotony of preparing the latest presentation or problem set. Above all, if you thought the Union was merely a clique of far-left hippies occupying buildings and throwing fire extinguishers, please think again. It's also your sports team, your educational experience and that pint in the Tuns after finally finishing your assignment. And with your help, the LSE Students' Union could be so much more. *£ Flickr; mjsonline denial, no building fund or endowment. Instead, the Webb founders used donations from wealthy philanthropists such as Passmore Edwards and Lord Rothschild, as well as government funding to create their university. Donations from wealthy individuals have since been a source of funding at the LSE. In 2004, the New Academic Building was built with over 65 monetary donations, four of them worth more than one million pounds. The main lecture theatre which has hosted more heads of state than any other in the last few years, is named after Sheikh Zayed, former dictator of the United Arab Emirates who donated £2.5 million to the LSE. Hang on. Did I say dictator? Yes, I did. His research centre is said to have sponsored lectures and publications claiming that the US military had carried out the 9/11 attacks in 2001 and that "Zionists" were responsible for the Holocaust. At the time the lecture theatre was opened, it was greeted with a lot of protest by the LSE Students' Union, but somehow this now seems forgotten. It is surprising that, after all the LSE has been through in the last year, this issue has not come back onto the agenda. Instead, big names in aca-demia and politics continue speaking in the "Sheikh Zayed." If we still have a lecture theatre called Sheikh Zayed, why don't we name our copy shop after Saif Gaddafi? The question of choosing a name obviously depends on whose money we take. This week, the new ethics code was released by the school. It states that "research funding and philanthropic gifts received by the School must be subject to ethical review by the Director of Research Division or the Director of ODAR in accordance with the School's policy on the ethical review of inbound funds, and under the auspices of the Ethics (Grants and Donations) Committee." It concludes that "grants and donations from sources that conflict with the School's core values or legal obligations will not be accepted." In Russian, there is a saying that "the way you name your boat is how it's going to float," similar to the Latin phrase "nomen est omen". Maybe the naming of the lecture theatre should be investigated again under this new code if we are to take the "School's core values" seriously. Obviously, this code of ethics cannot be applied to the lack of creativity in naming our buildings, but naming a lecture theatre after a dictator, who has sup- ---*" J defamation and Holocaust is a different case. 12 Comment 21.02.2012 | The Beaver Gender inequality in LSESU societies Why do men monopolise committee positions in our societies? in the fact that we have plenty of female secretaries. Unless, of course, they agree with me that this seems like blatant gender stereotyping. The effort that an individual has Naomi Russell 1 In a university without any gender inequality with regards to intake, why do men continue to dominate so many roles that are an essential part of university life? Data, painstakingly compiled by Lee Bunce of the Green Party Society, highlights the gender inequality that is present in the committee posi- tions of LSESU societies. The data is not exact but the pattern is overwhelmingly clear. Men dominate the top roles. This is not just a one off; for the past three years around 6o% of society chairs have been male. Explaining this is not easy. It may be that fewer females are standing for positions within Students' Union societies, a problem in itself, or it may be that students are choosing to elect male chairs. Without the data about the candidates that ran for a position, we can only speculate, but the trend is worrying. The breakdown within societies also seems to FEMALE 40% RENDER OF SOCIETY CHAIRS 2010-20U MALE 60% be along gender lines. Many society chair positions are monopolised by a particular gender. In the past three years have there been no women out there who want to lead the Hedge Fund Society? Or what about the Law Society? And where have the men who want to lead the campaigns of Amnesty International on campus gone? Whilst the data set is small, it seems that a disproportionate number of societies are dominated by a single gender. Perhaps, this year, whilst lamenting the fact that the roles of chair and treasurer are predominantly male, people can take comfort gone to in order to highlight this level of inequality surely demonstrates the need for increased transparency and monitoring, in order to ensure equal opportunities? Regardless of your opinion, surely increased awareness of any type of inequality is positive. And, of course, the data merits a call for women to make sure they put themselves forward for the roles-you've got to be in it to win it! if UNKNOWN 2% FEMALE 41% IGENDER OF SOCIETY CHAIRS MALE 2011-2012 Want to send us a comment? Are you outraged by something you've seen in this paper and interested in responding? You can write about anything, from happenings at LSE, to events further afield. Contact us by email: comment@the beaveronline.co.uk Photo: Beaver Graphics Final Comment Exiting Executive Editor gets some things off his chest Duncan McKenna It is a rule within the Beaver, and one that I believe to be both worthy and advisable, that Executive Editor may not write for the Comment section in order to keep the paper neutral and fair. Therefore there are a number of national issues on which I have held my tongue. It is also tradition within the paper that outgoing Editors write a recapitulatory piece to sum up their time at the Beaver. I can't help but feel that to sum up the achievements or failures of the paper for how ever many words would be something akin to narcissistic, and that just doesn't sit with me. And so I've decided, instead, to vent a few political frustrations that have built up this term. The first lies with a couple of ideas that have stemmed from our Secretary of State for Education. Given that our Coalition has virtually slipped up on its on effluent with the amount it has spewed about austerity, fiscal responsibility and debt reduction, that they would practise what they preach. However, one particular minister took it upon himself to suggest some utterly grandiose wastes of money. The first being that we should buy the Royal Family a new yacht, the potential cost of which has been estimated at around £6om. A new, extra, yacht. For £6om. If we take the average wage in Britain to be around £24,000, then that's around 2,500 averagely paid public sector jobs that the government could be providing instead of, what is essentially, a giant superfluous dinghy for our Royals to play around on. Now, unusually for a someone of my political persuasion, I take no issue with the Royals. I accept the argument that they bring more it the economy via tourism that they cost the nation in expenses. It is the flagrant hypocrisy of a agent of a government that constantly reiterates the need to save in order to bring our country out of a debt, advocating a colossal waste of money, money that could be far better spent elsewhere, while real families suffer the bite of government spending cuts and a weakened economy. A second issue that has irked me considerably has been the ongoing saga with the NHS reform bill. The bill, and it's frequently maligned contents, have been batted back by the Lords on multiple occasions and have been multifariously rejected by health professionals, including comprehensive disagreement from the British Medical Association and Royal College of Nurses. The bill has been called 'dangerous' by some but others believe it will reconstitute a jewel in the crown of our nation, and a brilliant health care service. And yet as the governments rolls on with it's incessant desire to reform the NHS, there is a clear wave of public and professional opposition to the bill. This is playing politics with the health and lives of people, and is a truly unacceptable piece of self-service, using the government as a tool of ideology, rather than the betterment of our public good. I wish to clarify that my grievances with this government are not partisan. I, as I frequently said while in charge of the Beaver, always advocate a 'credit, where credit is due' approach. Irrespective of political association, if a government acts in such a way that it benefits most of the people most of the time, with altruistic rather than ideological motivation, then I'm happy to praise it. Ken Clarke's reforms to individual rights in this country, at- tempting to piece back together the Habeus Corpus by rolling back at least some elements of the previous Labour government's draconian anti-terror laws, were commendable. I have always attempted to be fair and balance while at the Beaver, and it would be nice if I felt that our government was doing the same. However, we can, at the Beaver, continue to try to do so, and I hope my successor can. I have been at the Beaver for a long time, and will be sad to leave. I hope my time here will be judged as one in which fairness and equal representation was the driving force, and that people have enjoyed reading it. I wish everyone involved after I leave, all the best for the future. Peace out. Letter to the Editor Dear Sir, I would like to bring to your attention that last week's article regarding the Islamic Society event contained two errors - both the same. The President of the Islamic Society is Nabeel Moosa, that's right, Moosa with an 'a' at the end. It is pertinent to note here that the aforementioned President was actually quoted a few weeks previously in the Beaver by the same writer, in that instance spelt correctly. Alas, we are but human and life constantly provides us with opportunities to learn. Therefore I would like to share that Moosa is the arabic equivalent name of Moses - a Prophet in Islam too. Moosa (i.e. Moses) is mentioned 136 times in the Qur'an, significantly more than any other messenger of God. The Qur'an, a must read for everyone! Yours faithfully, Nabeel Moosa Flickr: University Hospitals Birmingham 21 February2012 . V • i \« I | I T 1 } \ .szrnm rlockney L Religion for Atheists L Pina LThe Recruiting Officer L Suits L Burial L A Midsummer Night's Dream L Saul Bellow L Private B 2Theatre Tuesday 21 February 2012 L PartB Contact PartB Editor Aameer Patel partb@thebeaveronline.co.uk * * * Fashion Editor Louise Kang partb-fashion@thebeaveronline.co.uk Film Editor Venessa Chan partb-film@thebeaveronline.co.uk Food Editor Max Jenkins partb-food@thebeaveronline.co.uk Literature Editor Rachel Holmes partb-literature@thebeaveronline.co.uk Music Editor Ankur Vora partb-music@thebeaveronline.co.uk Private B Editor Jack Tindale partb-privateb@thebeaveronline.co.uk Theatre Editors Rory Creedon Hannah Payne partb-theatre@thebeaveronline.co.uk TV Editor Rasha Al-Dabagh partb-tv@thebeaveronline.co.uk Video Games Editor Hassan Dar partb-videogames@thebeaveronline.co.uk Visual Arts Editor Shyam Desai partb-visualarts@thebeaveronline.co.uk Design Editor Aameer Patel partb-design@thebeaveronline.co.uk Web Editor Angie Moneke partb-web@thebeaveronline.co.uk * * * Cover The Maori, 2012 By Fraser Ward of the LSESU Visual Arts Society PartB uses pictures from Flickr that have been issued under a Creative Commons license. rart L The Recruiting Officer, Donmar Warehouse OOOOO Director: Josie Rourke Playwright: George Farquhar Key cast: Mackenzie Crook, Mark Gatiss, Tobias Menzies, Rachel Stirling, Nancy Carroll At Donmar Warehouse until 14 April 2012 Over the last 20 years the Donmar Warehouse has become one of the most acclaimed and internationally recognised theatres in London. This was in no small part due to the duo of theatre behemoths that were behind the venue: Sam Mendes (currently working on the new James Bond film) and Michael Grandage. With The Recruiting Officer, the Donmar welcomes Josie Rourke as artistic director to follow on from this strong lineage. While Grandage ended his reign with a grandiose Richard II, Rourke has begun with an elegant and entertaining rendition of an underappreciated play. A restoration comedy written in 1706, The Recruiting Officer follows the plight of Sergeant Kite (Mackenzie Crook) and Captain Plume (Tobias Menzies) in the country town of Shrewsbury, as their elaborate plots to recruit the simple but contented members of this community are met with varying levels of success. Women too are needed, not for battle, but to sate the desires of fatigued soldiers. Boisterous boys, illegitimate children and unwanted love make for a delightfully complicated script, filled with witty dialogue and elegant prose in equal measure. The staging stuns in its simplicity. Opened up in an effort to make the small space seem larger than it is, the stage consists of wooden planking lit by candle-bearing chandeliers, successfully creating a rural atmosphere. However, Rourke amplifies this initial reaction to the play with the presence of a band of acting musicians, playing the folk music of the period on visibly well-worn instruments, obligatory marching drum included. Composer-in-residence Michael Bruce created a compelling score for these young, highly energetic and incredibly competent musicians, who are ever-present throughout, but thankfully are not over-used, as would be tempting for a less experienced director. Instead, they double-up as the members of a close-knit community. The inhabitants of the village are led to war through the trickery of the officers enlisting them. This is demonstrated through hilarious yet poignant scenes, such as that of the fortune-teller plot in Mackenzie Crook as Sergeant Kite which Crook's Sergeant Kite relishes the part-improvised role of gypsy teller who advises his clients to always follow the dark stranger. These scenes demonstrate an informed knowledge of the subject, Farquar having spent time himself in the town as a recruiting officer. While the maniacal element of such tricks are highlighted to great comic effect, there are those which are simply harrowing, such as that of the bribing of drunkards by slipping a shilling into the pocket as proof of his having "volunteered" to serve the Crown. This is a perfectly well-rounded play, with a series of stand-out performances from a superb cast, including Mark Gatiss, currently faultless in the eyes of millions as co-creator and star of the BBC's Sherlock, who plays a wonderfully foppish and poodle-wigged Captain Brazen. At the Donmar, Rourke has found a good home for her talents, and this shines through in this playful yet poignant opening offering to London theatregoers. L Pip Willett A Midsummer Night's Dream, Lyric Hammersmith Director: Sean Holmes Playwright: William Shakespeare Key cast: Jonathan Broadbent, Ed Gaughan, John Lightbody, Simon Manyonda, Poppy Miller, Victoria Moseley, Ferdy Roberts, Rebecca Scroggs At Lyric Hammersmith until 17 March 2012 This abridged take on the ever popular A Midsummer Night's Dream by the theatre collective Filter revels in its own anarchy. Full of surprises, modern references and musical interludes, it isn't your typical Shakespeare. The production makes this well-known comedy feel completely fresh while still feeling true to the story and the bard himself. Ed Gaughan as Peter Quince kicks things off with an introduction that is more like stand-up than Shakespeare. With warnings of disappointment, a comparison to The Matrix and hints of the exciting presence of a certain Oscar-winning actor in the role of Bottom, the tone is set nicely, although not everything goes to plan. Once we get stuck into the story the text is interspersed with original and modern jokes as well as regular music and sound effects. Despite these interruptions, great relish is taken in delivering the verse itself. It is not overpowered by the alternative staging, nor is any meaning changed, but rather treated with a degree of reverence such that the production in all its glory and eccentricity could still be nothing but Shakespeare. The music and sound provided by the London Snorkelling Team is a great addition. In fact, it is this as much as the script that guides us through the familiar tale, with the forest, hoards of fairies and infamous donkey-based magic all heard rather than seen. Sound effects are perfectly synced to the actions of Puck, particularly memorable is his playing with the quarrelling Lysander (John Lightbody) and Demetrius (Simon Manyonda) as competitors in a virtual game of pong. The onstage band delve into the world of well-known and somewhat cheesy songs while the actors throw themselves wholeheartedly into Ed Gaughan as Peter Quince the very same, and Quince declares that such behaviour shows that their years at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) were clearly a waste. Jonathan Broadbent's Oberon is both well played and hysterical. Laughter is inescapable as he skips on clad in a superhero costume complete with winged shoes, cape and the proclamation in singsong fashion of his title as the fairy king. The costume is somewhat apt for this great portrayal of a hapless, juvenile and, in this case, asthmatic king. The role of Puck (Ferdy Roberts) is similarly transformed, as a tattooed roadie he crashes on and off stage through walls doing Oberon's bidding and then watches on, beer in hand, as the results of his misplaced magic play out. While these two stand out, there are also excellent performances from the four young lovers and Poppy Miller's Titania is suitably haughty. Verging on madness at points -notably that of a quite significant food fight - this unorthodox piece is something of a pleasant surprise. While a purist is unlikely to enjoy it, for the rest of us looking at the Dream with such fresh eyes is, quite simply, a comic delight. L Hannah Payne PartB L Tuesday 21 February 2012 Visual Arts3 1 >avin Hocknev KA: A bieeer rictu Oi /~Hb» 1 Hockney's new exhibition paints the Yorkshire landscape with a mystical vibrancy, and yet the saturated layout of the Royal Academy does everything in its power to counteract the elegance of his mature style. There is something oddly nauseating about entering through the gift shop, and amid the flurry of activity witnessing the frenzied faces of people pushing past each other towards the tills to buy postcards by the kilogram. In Jerusalem, Jesus banished the money changers from temple; one is forced to wonder if the Royal Academy requires some kind of messianic intervention to prevent the rooms the paintings hang from becoming houses of merchandise. Crossing the threshold into the magnificent rotunda that is the first room of the exhibition provides a welcome relief. Four large paintings depict the seasonal changes of three trees in the village of Thixendale. It is an apt aperitif for the rest of the show, which continues to explore the transition of the Yorkshire landscape through the year, and Hockney's evolution of style that was prompted by his return to England in the mid-nineties as his mother's health ailed. The second room of the exhibition seeks to provide a context for Hockney's return to landscape painting, and his move away from the provocative images he painted in the sixties of boys slipping through the cerulean water of Californian swimming pools. The room has an almost apologetic tone, as though the works were scavenged and displayed for whatever tenuous link they may have to the present collection on display. A momentary glance at the first painting of the Thixendale trees in the rotunda from the distance of the adjoining second room transforms its appearance. The rectilinear rami multiply with precision as they fork into the top of the canvas; what seem like crude brush strokes from within the crowded first room take on a new air of refined elegance from afar. The largest room of the exhibition is dedicated to a collection of 51 David Hockney, Winter Timber, 2009 drawings created on an iPad. Hockney's commitment to continuing his experimentation with technology is admirable; over the course of the seventy four years of his life, he has experimented with a variety of media, and produced work using anything from Polaroid photographs to faxes. Speaking in an interview before the opening of A Bigger Picture, he remarked that it took him some time to see that the iPad is "a very serious medium." The portability and immediacy of the gadget allowed him to work at an immense speed to chronicle the arrival of spring in the Yorkshire Wolds. As intriguing as the narrative is, 51 repetitions of such similar scenes only serve to highlight the flatness of the digital images in comparison to his paintings. What they do well in showing is Hockney's meticulous exploration of the technical aspects of painting from observation. His 2001 publication Secret Knowledge: Rediscovering the Lost Techniques of the Old Masters contextualises his conscious rejection of the influence of the camera on observational study. The progression of the exhibition also marks a remarkable change in Hockney's style. The familiar motifs of trees take on unfamiliar, bold colours that could have been borrowed from Andre Derain's Fauvist palette. The techniques employed in his earlier works, pointillist dotting evocative of Seurat and short, and intensely coloured strokes reminiscent of Van Gogh, are amplified in these compositions. These works form the core of the exhibition, and have divided the opinion of critics since their unveiling. Some have argued that the tentaclelike appendages of The Big Hawthorn look as though they have been painted under the influence of a magic herb, that the flatter compositions are discordant and garish. Others have applauded Hockney's newest reinvention for their imaginative flair. What is certain is that the show has been in greater demand than the Royal Academy's Van Gogh retrospective two years ago. The flagship piece of the exhibition is Winter Timber (2009). We are reminded of Hockney's wealth of experience designing sets for the opera; the row of blue trees that lines the path curves in dramatically, culminating in a ball of twisted branches. The piece flirts with the idea of death and destruction that can be seen as the catalyst for this recent streak of productivity. Crowds will undoubtedly continue to flock to the exhibition, and will continue to revel at the grandeur of the new works. Yorkshire's tourist trade will swell as enthusiasts walk, like pilgrims, on "Hockney's Trail." Yet the show does not come close to realising its potential, it butchers the work on display. When Hockney agreed to undertake the gargantuan project, I doubt he envisaged his work being used as wallpaper in the grand rooms of the Royal Academy. L Shy am Desai David Hockney RA: A Bigger Picture is at the Royal Academy of Arts until 9 April 2012 David Hockney, VVoldgate Woods, 21, 23 and 29 November 2006 4Literature Tuesday 21 February 2012 L PartB Religion for Atheists by Alain de Botton RELIGION for ATHEISTS Alain de Botton begins his new book Religion for Atheists with a bang: "The most boring and unproductive question one can ask of any religion is whether not it is true... of course no religions are true in any God-given sense."This may seem to be shaping up like another Dawkinsian screed against believers, but de Botton quickly differentiates himself from the well-known crusaders of New Atheism. Despite being a committed atheist, he does think that religious traditions can teach us important lessons, and that atheists should perhaps slow their equivalent of Sherman's March to the Sea and learn to appreciate all the religious scenery on offer. De Botton caters his book to others like himself - doubters unsatisfied by secular culture who believe "the problem is not that secularism is wrong, but that we have too often secularised badly." He admires religions for their "conceptual ambition," and details how the traditions of three major faiths (Christianity, Judaism and Buddhism) might be adopted into secular culture to allay a whole host of modern ills. De Botton believes that selectively applying lessons from religious practices to the modern world can lead us towards less solipsism, more kindness and tenderness, and a better appreciation of the role of institutions. Religions can enrich our communities, education, art, architecture and institutions, and in so doing fill the ancient needs which religion once satisfied. Contrary to the title, de Botton's message is likely to resonate with the vast majority of people (the 99 per cent, to borrow a contemporary allusion), those who occupy (no pun intended) any position between casual believer and mild atheist on the religiosity spectrum. Indeed, de Botton is at his best in elucidating the hidden functions of routine religious customs, and is perhaps most relevant to believers who want to get more out of their religion. Minus the first few sections mentioned above, Religion for Atheists could easily be repurposed as 10 Habits of the Highly Effective Believer, or How to Get the Most out of Your Religion. The book consists of ten chapters, each a meditation on a certain aspect of secular life that could be informed by religion. De Botton explores in each how the modern world fails in some regard (how we lack perspective on our ultimate smallness, for example), discusses how religions have successfully dealt with the issue (by centering themselves on something much greater than ourselves), and then proposes a religion-inspired solution for the secular world (in the case of perspective, this consists of "insisting that a large percentage of all prominently positioned television screens" display images of outer space). As you might imagine from this example, the suggestions themselves are a bit slipshod - one gets the feeling that de Botton is throwing paint at the wall without thinking about what has the feasibility to stick. To be sure, some of the suggestions are charmingly inventive and would be refreshing (if quirky) additions to the modern world, such as dinners with strangers based on set lists of discussion topics, a digital "wailing wall" in large cities that displays people's insecurities and problems writ large, and a day each year to ritually air all our grievances to others. Others, however, are considerably less wise. He proposes abolishing university history and literature departments in favor of the "Department for Relationships" and "Institute for Self-Knowledge," and grouping art in museums solely towards "concerns of our souls" rather than periods, stylistic themes or artists. Indeed, the idea of ever learning anything for purposes other than to nurture the soul seems anathema to de Botton (he also suggests that we emphasise sermons instead of lectures), and this is a major liability of the work. It is certainly nice to explore art and history in ways that lend themselves towards informing our daily lives, but it is also important to learn without the nebulous cotton candy sentimentality this tends to engender. Some ideas are simply bizarre - for example, psychoanalytically attuned travel agents that help us decide where to travel based on our emotional state. Another section consists of a strange exhortation of major corporations like BMW and Armani to found liberal arts colleges, political parties and therapy units (so much for the idea of a core competency). More so than the uneven quality of his suggestions. Religion for Atheists suffers from three major problems. First, it deeply overestimates the effectiveness of religion. De Botton describes religious traditions and the effects they have on believers in with laudable insight, but rarely stops to ask whether these traditions actually work in practice. Take reconciliation - a Christian sacrament in which one confesses sins to a priest and is then ritually cleansed. De Botton waxes poetic on the beneficial effects of ritual purification on believers. However, as far as I can recall from the haze of my childhood, people unhappily went to confession about once a year due to a feeling of obligation, confessed a few superficial sins to a priest, said a couple of Hail Marys, then left (vaguely dissatisfied) and proceeded to commit the same sins over the course of the next few days. Second, de Botton seems to view religions in stark, dualistic terms - a set of ridiculous, undesirable beliefs coupled with incredibly effective, desirable practices and institutions that the secular world would do well to appropriate. This underlying dualism prevents de Botton from seeing the downsides of religious traditions - he tends to assume they do not work just because they are coupled to bad ideas. This of course is not the case. Many religious traditions are dying because they are archaic and unfit for the modern world, not just because they are tied to belief in God. De Botton fails to realise that not only do religious institutions need to be borrowed from, they need to be radically modernised. Humboldt's Gift by Saul Bellow As a Nobel laureate who has also achieved the Pulitzer Prize and the National Medal of Arts, and as the only writer in history to win the National Book Award three times, Saul Bellow possesses the type of literary prestige that should make anyone blink. Among his most celebrated works ranks Humboldt's Gift (1975), as a novel responsible for some of Bellow's success, and the Pulitzer Prize in particular. Originally intended as a short story, the self-described "comic book about death" is a roman a clef inspired by Bellow's friendship with the poet Delmore Schwartz (1913-1966). After early success, Schwartz withdrew into mental illness and alcoholism at the Columbia Hotel in New York. Despite receiving earlier praise from literary giants such as T. S. Eliot, William Carlos Williams and Ezra Pound, when Schwartz suffered a fatal heart attack in July 1966, his body lay unidentified at the local morgue for two days. Schwartz's character is resurrected in Bellow's invention Von Humboldt Fleisher, a writer of exceptional genius who nonetheless fades into obscurity, eventually dying a failure. The narrator, Charlie Citrine, is similarly surmised to reflect to some degree, Bellow himself. He is a successful writer, aware of the mediocrity of his works but nonetheless haunted by a vision of greatness, expressing the legitimate if passive talent upon which his friendship with Humboldt is founded. The power dynamics between the two writers make for interesting reading, and reflects Citrine's own creative struggle between absolute abandonment to greatness, versus societal acceptance and accompanying commercialism. One of Citrine's best received and most financially fruitful works is a Broadway play and eventually a film, based quite ironically, on Alain de Botton in 2009 Finally, he does not consider that secular culture may not be able to simply insert the good parts of religions into its pre-existing structure. He respectfully points out early in the book that believers might take offense with his picking and choosing the best parts of religion, treating it as something of an intellectual buffet. The more important question, however, is whether religious can be picked and chosen from in the first place. Is it possible to separate the best bits of religion from the more unsavory parts? Although we might have a sore need for sermons in the modern world, can we value sermons and still have an overriding respect for scepticism and the scientific method? Is it possible to be an atheist and still appreciate constant reminders of one's insignificance, or would that simply lead to unfathomable nihilism? Before considering how we might best apply religious traditions to the secular world, we would do well Humboldt. Yet with Citrine's growing success his relationship with his friend and mentor deteriorates. Driven mad by jealousy or sincere disgust, Humboldt disowns him as a traitor. The characters are assembled in great detail, they drive and give the novel compelling depth, from which Bellow explores the changing status and nature of art in a materialist America. Humboldt's Gift has been understood by some as a commentary on the com-modification of culture. Elsewhere, on e-zines some readers complain that the novel is not event-orientated enough, and rambles. The novel is very wordy and crammed full of Bellow's spiritual musings, often detached from current action. For some it may not be particularly enjoyable - it is definitely slow going. Nonetheless, it is important, interesting and enlightening, particularly for anyone with any interest in the arts. For others, it may be brilliant all the same. L Rachel Holmes Humboldt's Gift (2007), Saul Bellow, Penguin Classics, Paperback, £12 to ask whether such traditions can be severed from religion in the first place. In the end, I found myself liking the idea of Religion for Atheists more than the reality. There is a sore need for atheists who can discuss the legacy of religion in calm terms and explore to what extent various religious practices tangibly improve life on Earth. De Botton importantly fulfills this role. But the discussion needs to be more intellectually rigorous than the vanilla armchair philosophy that he ultimately offers. While there is little in Religion for Atheists that will improve the modern world, in advancing the discussion past the once exciting but now stagnant charges of irrationality, de Botton has perhaps laid the groundwork for precisely that to happen. t Edward Larkin Religion for Atheists (2012), Alain de Botton, Hamish Hamilton, Hardback, £18.99 I -Day L.SESIJ and LSE Drama Society 28 February 8:30pm 29 February 6:30pm Only £3 on Houghton Street PartB L Tuesday 21 February 2012 MusicS Perspective: The Beauty of "Flim ff This past week a funny jpeg made the rounds. It was a screenshot of an old Facebook post from the wildly popular dubstep producer Skrillex. He linked to a YouTube of Aphex Twin's "Flim" and called it his "favorite song of all time." Below the post, there are responses from his fans that say, "I was hoping for a drop," and, "that track is waaaaay too light to be my face [sic] song." The responses were edited down from hundreds of comments, many of which had Skrillex fans mirroring his praise of the tune. But the reason why it's funny, and why it's been passed around so much, is clear: These bass fiends have no ear for electronic music genius. They just want that drop. For me, a fun thing about this image was seeing Skrillex's initial post about his favourite song of all time and thinking, "Hey, it's mine, too." I wrote an article once about what I consider perfect songs, and one of them was "Flim." I've played it regularly for years and always marvel at how perfectly and carefully it's constructed, not a single snare hit or cymbal brush wasted. It has that brilliantly simple Satie-like piano melody, the kind designed to turn your insides into mush, which is something Richard D. James had already mastered completely by "Xtal," the first song on his first album. But the most interesting stuff in "Flim" is happening elsewhere. I've written about my admiration of the track's drum programming, how each little pause, hesitation, and stutter is so perfectly placed, and how the drums plant ideas in my head about innocence, awkwardness, burgeoning confidence, and growth. I'm projecting pretty heavily there, but Aphex Twin makes the drums feel, and he knows exactly what to do with the bass that goes with it. There is bass in "Flim," and its role in the track is key, even if it never overwhelms the space; it supports the drums and engages in a dialog with them, but the approach is subtle and precise and intimate, a whispered conversation instead of a shout across the rooftops. Someone on YouTube has slowed down "Flim." At least one person created a dubstep remix of the song in response to the Skrillex Facebook post, but it has since been removed. More of these will follow. And some people will even like the drop version better. Their ears may work differently from mine, but they are not wrong. Meanwhile, I put on my "accurate" headphones and turn up "Flim" as loud as I can bear, and I picture myself sitting across from Richard James in his bedroom as he works over this material on his computer. It's an illusion, of course, but I like to imagine that I'm hearing what James was hearing right at that moment, that the glass between us is completely transparent. And maybe that's what Skrillex hears, too, even if some of his fans couldn't. L Mark Richardson Skrillex my fav song of all time fyi http://www.youtube.com/watch7v-z560iPR4r2s Aphex Twin - Flim www.youtube.com Aphex Twin ~ Plim Come to Daddy £P Track 2 1997 Abraham Parra i was hoping for a drop.. -December 24, 2011 at S:llam - Like • <£) 1 Adrian joscf Pakula Still waiting for the drop.........no? December 3, 2011 at 1:56pm - Like 2 1 William Campel I was wailing for a drop that never happrd iof December 3, 2011 at 7:06pm • Like *5 7 Cameron Mittelstaedt i didrtt even here a nice drop -_-....i thought it was suppose to have atseast a good drop????? December 3, 2011 at 4:04pm • Like Taavi Kuusisto where is the drop? December 3, 2011 at 1042pm - Like Tuan Sy Dau Wheres the wubs and the dubs and the bass? SkriSiex put me down for once...... December 18, 20] 1 at 10:37am • Like Burial - Kindred EP Although we know a little more about 2-step master Burial, better known Will Bevan, since the release of his landmark album Untrue, he has not been quick to capitalize on his fame and influence by releasing a ton of music. We've only gotten a couple of collaborations with Four Tet and Thom Yorke, and last year's stunning Street Halo EP. And those releases have stuck fairly uniformly with the Burial aesthetic, with minor variations that still seem to evoke the typical Burial sound while still advancing his technique. Scheduled to be released last year, but held up by production issues, Kindred is the latest teaser from Burial. While not a full album of material, indeed, Burial seems less than in a hurry to come out with another full length, Kindred's three tracks, which are longer and denser, take up almost 30 minutes of run time, and, in fact, show a new side to his sound, while still retaining the "Burial" trademarks. While pitch-shifted vocal samples still play a role in Burial's world, they are not the focus here, simply becoming another element in the mix. What is most striking about these tracks, aside from their length (two tracks edge the 12 minutes mark while one is almost 8 minutes), is the density and pure weight of what is going on. Burial's previous work was all about atmosphere, while here, the tracks become all about texture. Lead and title track "Kindred" is the most "Burial" sounding of the three, retaining the trademark kick and block drum sound, but instead of it being in the front of the mix, it is pushed far in the back, letting the ominously brutal bass line take over, haunting wafts of choral synths hovering in the distance, the vocal sample insistent and choked up. Over the 11+ minutes, Burial brings in an almost symphonic attention to detail and pacing. In fact, the three tracks together almost make up a symphony in their pacing and structure. "Kindred" begins in standard Burial style with angelic synths and blocky beats before the grime and ash take over, the buzzing bass line smearing its gloom over the beats. There is a muscularness here that has been heretofore unseen, instead of feeling like a passive listener, travelling silently through urban streets, you feel like your feet are on the pavement, the danger around you, the clipped vocal samples are either the passers-by or the voices in your head. Again, Burial is a master at letting pauses and silences speak volumes. The final movement of the track breaks through the grime and darkness, a lighter synth pattern emerges alongside a more ethereal vocal sample. Probably most shocking on Kindred is Burial moving on from his trade-marked beat plan. Second track "Loner" is akin to Dylan going electric when Bevan moves the track up to 130 BPM. There is a bit of a fake out at first, with the opening bars featuring an almost Eno-esque ambient quality, before Bevan shoves an almost house beat in the mix. The track is quite subtle. Echoing vocal samples, which recall some of the vocals from This Mortal Coil's first record, burst in an out of a dense fog of atmospheric effects, arpeggiated synths rising and falling against a throbbing bass pulse. The drums dropping out occasionally, letting the other layers swirl around until jacking the beats back up again. It is the kind of track that definitely "sounds" like Burial but is also completely unlike him. But nothing quite prepares you for the tour de force that is the final track, "Ashtray Wasp." Over more than eleven and a half minutes, the track takes the listener on a chaotic journey, from fear, danger and loneliness, to a final sense of calm. He trades his blocky beats for a steam pulse with the vocal samples striking a gorgeous chord over the swirling mass of synths. The mid section of the track getting more agitated, the samples becoming more clipped and ambigu- ous, with Burial even drawing attention back to his work on Untrue with what sounds like a synth sample from that epic work, until the track rights itself again back into the swirling mist. Just when you think the track will continue in slight variations on this theme, the track basically drops out completely and morphs into a delicate piano based number with overlying clipped vocal samples that keep the track askew and haunting. What begins as a trip through hell becomes an arrival in bliss. Kindred is an amazing continuation of the art that Burial makes. Instead of minute changes, he is going full out with pushing his sound to greater and more deeper meaning. These three tracks stay with you for hours, their pulse and haunting melodies lingering in the blood stream. In the 24 hours I have been listening to this record, my hand keeps reaching back to press repeat. Once these tracks have been ingrained in your body, there is no way to resist their pull. L Russell Beets This week's live highlights 21 Feb: Kurt Vile - KOKO 22/23/24/25 Feb: Tindersticks - Soho Theatre 23 Feb: Kaiser Chiefs - HMV Hammersmith 25 Feb: Mylo (with Lindstr0m) - Scala 25 Feb: Tycho - Cargo 25 Feb: Two Door Cinema Club - 02 Brixton Kurt Vile, Live in New York PartBeat The office playlist this week... Freeway Kurt Vile: Constant Hitmaker (2008) Blister in the Sun Violent Femmes: Violent Femmes (1982) Long Distance Call Phoenix: It's Never Been Like That (2006) Shutterbugg (feat. Cutty) Big Boi: Sir Luscious Left Foot - The Son of Chico Dusty (2010) Here Comes Your Man Pixies: Doolittle (1989) Subscribe to the PartB piaylist: www.partbonline.co.uk/spotify Follow us: @partbmusic ? 6Film Tuesday 21 February 2012 L PartB The Other Cinema: Brief Encounter O Director: David Lean Screenplay: Noel Coward Key cast: Celia Johnson, Trevor Howard, Stanley Holloway, Joyce Carey Year: 1945 Runtime: 86 minutes Presented at The Troxy from 14 February to 18 February 2012 There was a convivial buzz around The Troxy tonight, in contrast to the rest of the slightly drab Commercial Street. People in lines chatted as they waited to verify their place on the guest list. I was glad to get away from the cold wind after the commissionaire found my name, and once inside the sumptuously art deco lobby it was clear how much thought went into the event. Lily Farthing and her Mechanical Flower greeted us while usherettes with coiffed hair in charming uniforms fluttered about, flashing coquettish smiles. A grander occasion than the usual Odeon fare - suggested attire was black tie - all the ladies and gentlemen in evening gowns and dinner jackets were complemented by a seductively lit interior. While others took their seats at the round tables, Benoit Viellefon & His Orchestra provided some stylishly nostalgic jazz accompaniment. At this point, The Other Cinema seemed more a variety show than a film screening. There was a sing-a-long followed by a quaint little farce performed by the commissionaires and usherettes. The Lady Greys then gave us some hilariously terrible burlesque dancing and a glamorous Lili La Scala sang songs from the era of Gracie Fields and Vera Lynn, both of whom had treaded the same stage. Approximately an hour after settling into our seats, the lights were finally dimmed for the best and final collaboration between David Lean and Noel Coward. Brief Encounter is a superbly fitting choice for the inauguration of The Other Cinema. A classic in every aspect, the quintessentially British film is perfect for this occasion of throwback cinema. Laura Jesson (Celia Johnson) is a middle-class housewife who leads a dull but content life with husband Fred (Cyril Raymond). She travels to Milford every Thursday to shop and go to the pictures. She meets Dr Alec Harvey (Trevor Howard) by chance when he removes a piece of grit in her eye in the refreshment room of Milford Junction Station. An affair ensues. The fate of the lovers is made known immediately, but its emotional potency is intensified by subsequent flashbacks before a final crushing blow is dealt in the denouement. Laura and Alec meet every Thursday and go rowing on the lake, driving in the country, and to the cinema. These colourful outings starkly contrast with Laura's domestic life where Fred favourite leisure activity is The Times's crossword. The two are undoubtedly in love yet their mad longing is constrained by an inherent sense of propriety. Their furtively stolen moments of intimacy are shrouded in shadows and claustro-phobically captured by Robert Krasker. Lean and Coward owe much of Laura's characterisation to Celia Johnson. No one else can match her sincerity and heart-breaking anguish. The pain is obvious as Johnson's soulful eyes stare in horror at the abyss her hopes and dreams have disappeared into. Laura and Alec's • - V fW v§ Actors playing the fated couple of Brief Encounter at The Other Cinema instinctive feelings for each other are smothered by the artificial constructs of society, a distinct tragedy of the human condition still relevant today. The Troxy was briefly restored to its former picture palace glory by The Other Cinema to rediscover the sense of community and mutual affinity cinema brings, and what an experience indeed. The wit of Noel Coward's script is brought to life as laughter erupted from every corner. The poignant clamour of every train to Churley reverberated throughout the theatre. We even had our own Laura and Alec who made a dramatic descent from the staircases on opposite sides of the dress circle to take their seats at a special reserved table before the stage. There was an equally dramatic separation under strobe lights and the violent roar of a train. To round off a fantastic night, couples made their way to the dance floor to celebrate their happiness in lieu of the fated lovers. My first viewing of Brief Encounter seems terribly boring in comparison to this spectacle - the music, the dance, the drama - which was truly captivating cinema. L Venessa Chan Pina O Director: Wim Wenders Screenplay: Wim Wenders Key cast: Pina Bausch, Regina Advento, Malou Airaudo Year: 2011 Runtime: 103 minutes Screening as part of The Tricycle Theatre's international Oscar season, until 23 February 2012 If this film were to be described in a few words it would simple: truly inspiring and deeply emotional. Pina is a documentary about the eponymous director of the Tanztheater Wuppertal - Pina Bausch - and her unique and highly-acclaimed style of dance. Bausch's dance was praised for its modernism and experimental qualities. The film kicks off with a performance in a theatre. There are many people, large and abrupt movements, over a stage covered in soil accompanied by loud and hectic music. At first, it made me feel uncomfortable, but it was then all put into context with Pina's comment: "Some situations leave you speechless and this is when dance comes in. It is not necessary to be said or named. It just hints at an emotion." The dancers were requested to express their yearnings and emotions, in order to create the most naked, truthful, and thus gripping performances. Throughout the film we see extracts from Bausch's theatre pieces, including Le sacre duprintemps, Kontakthof Cafe Miiller and Vollmond. Wenders manages to neatly weave in other performances in everyday locations as well as interviews with her fellow dancers and video excerpts of Bausch at work. The outside locations range from a sidewalk, woods and a lake to a gravel pit with dancers usually wearing long silken dresses and their hair down. Everything serves as an extension of their movement and further adds to the expressiveness. Wenders skilfully conducts an orchestration of colours, music, and dance. This richness brought through to the screen makes for a compelling film experience. In addition to the dancing, the comments of dancers regarding Bausch illustrate the deep emotional bond they had with her. It is interesting to note that these dancers are all very international and came from all over the world to work with her. Some described feeling lost in the process because initially they did not understand how she worked. Wim Wenders's Pina A few of the choice comments these dancers recall Bausch making to them include pithy sayings such as "go on searching" and "what are we longing for?" The brevity of such statements reflects Bausch's understanding of dance as a substitute for words. Pina as a film may be less able to carry across the vim and vigour of Bausch and company's dynamism, yet it is no less affecting. Wenders adds layers to the experience through the intercutting of performances and interviews, which add an extra emotional heft. The film may be seen as a eulogy in response to Pina Bausch's untimely death in 2009, a moving tribute to her craft. It caters not solely to admirers of dance as an art form, but for anyone who is willing to embrace the raw and visceral state of human emotion. L Helene Andreas Events Close-Up Launch Party 24 Feb at the Bethnal Green Working Men's Club An evening of film and music in the fashionable East End to celebrate the relaunch of Close-Up's website. There will be a screening of Alfred Hitchcock's classic, Vertigo, at 8pm. Best of all, entry is free! Don't Look Now 26 Feb at the Close-Up Film Centre Nicholas Roeg's adaptation of Daphne du Maurier's short story is often remembered for its explicit (rumoured to be unsimulated) love scene. But this detracts from the fact that it is quality film and study in grief. Julie Christie and Donald Sutherland star as the couple who travel to Venice to recuperate following the death of their young daughter. Eyes Without A Face 28 Feb at the Close-Up Film Centre George Franju's classic horror has influenced countless films in the genre. A brilliant plastic surgeon attemps to restore his daughter's face which was disfigured in a car crash. This radical surgery comes at a gruesome price. Michael 26 Feb at The Aubin Cinema An Austrian film that perhaps draws inspiration from the Kampusch case. It follows five months in the life of a paedophile, Michael, who keeps a io-year-old boy locked up in his basement. An eerily chilling film reminiscent of Michael Haneke, for whom director Markus Schleinzer did the casting in several films. You're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat Film Quiz 90s Special 21 Feb at Hackney Picturehouse Tickets are on sale at the door from 18:00 (£3.50 per person). Get there early for some food and trivia fun. Leia Clancy wearing Soraya Fernandez Lisett Luik wearing X&O Luba Koroleva wearing X&O Anika Bhagani wearing X&O Ahmed Zbidi wearing Inkwell and Ivy Alice Whalley wearing Cristina Dami Beyond the Box PartB L Tuesday 21 February 2012 Fashion LTV7 colours including pistachio, peach and rose. The pace of the show oscillated between serene episodes where the models, dressed in floor length maxi dresses in tranquil blue, brought out candles for the audience and a sleeker showing of minimalist silhouettes, perfect for power dressing, set to the sounds of "Moves Like Jagger." Jewelled embellishments, delicate fabrics and intriguing cuts were all a delight to see up close, with some of the 1920s drop-hemmed dresses a particular favourite. Proving that fashion is not just for women, the menswear also did not disappoint. Felipe Rojas Llanos presented an excellent collection of silk capes vis-a-vis academic gowns over jewel-toned sheer T-shirts and satin trousers. Also seen were interesting interpretations of the traditional shirt and trouser combo with layered copped shirts in delicate variations of white, light blue and lavender and black trousers. Another reinterpretation of a classic trend saw cricket jumpers in lemon yellow and mint green and head-to-toe outfits in black that wouldn't look out of place on a posse of fashion assistants trailing Anna Wintour herself. The enjoyment of this show for all present could only be enhanced knowing that the proceeds would go to Afghanaid, a charity which for the past 30 years has helped support poor and vulnerable Afghan communities by providing grass-roots development. Representatives from the charity were present on the night and it was truly inspiring to see the contribution Afghanaid's work made to ordinary people's lives. A night of giving and receiving, what more could you ask for? L Louise Kang ,T m Rosa Ng wearing Soraya Fernandez r ;- ¦ I 1 & ^ y 20:00 on Monday 13 February, a sizeable crowd had gathered outside the Hong Kong Theatre in anticipation of the LSESU Fashion Society's annual fashion show, this year entitled Beyond the Box. As was the fashionable custom, the show was starting late. Once inside, however, the sight of the clothes was enough to make any sign of a technical difficulty a distant memory. Starting the show with dresses in bold primary colours from Russian label XO, the distinctive digital prints had a fluid feel as if looking down into the heart of a volcano, tempered with delicate pink chiffon and sharp tailoring. The hottest spring/ summer trends were all present with a feminine and elegant collection from Avneet Rehal, who showcased floaty dresses and silky separates in ice cream The sharply dressed cast of Suits Impeccably tailored suits Whenever I watch a legal drama I find myself envious of law students, imagining them jumping straight into a life of perfectly tailored suits, £500 haircuts and a salary that will make you act like a douche bag. Unfortunately for them, it doesn't take too long for my envy to subside as I am reminded of the real life prospective law graduates face, filled with horrific tales about obtaining training contracts with a dumbfounding ratio of sixty applicants to one vacancy. So, as I settle for every bank's favourite degree, Economic History, I start to enjoy Dave's new show, Suits, even more. Here we have a high-powered attorney at the firm Pearson Hardman in Manhattan, Harvey Specter. His char- acter has the superiority and demeanour of Wall Street's Gordon Gekko and Gabriel Macht carries himself with a bit of Ryan Reynolds's "I know I'm a handsome man" swagger. Nevertheless, his perfect lawyer arrogance melts away during interactions with his secretary, Donna, his driver Raj and with the firm's managing partner, Jessica Pearson (Gina Torres of Firefly fame). The other lead character of the show is Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams), a young man with an eidetic memory and a bad choice of companions who fell into a life he never intended. His life is turned upside down when a desperate situation forces him to walk into Specter's office with a bag full of dope that would ultimately land him in a makeshift interview with Harvey, who is reluctantly seeking a new junior associate. It is at that crazy moment when you go from being a broke college dropout to a kickass lawyer at a prestigious firm, wearing nice suits and making the money that defines this show. No complaints about the girls either, as far as I can tell. So we get an almost predictable bromance series that leaves you with a satisfying feeling every time another one of Tom Ford's suits are displayed on Harvey's frame. Extra bonus points for those who recognize how much Patrick J. Adams looks like Simon from The Inbetweeners. t Rasha Al-Dabagh Suits, Tuesdays, 21:00, Dave TV Picks of the Week The Celebrity Apprentice USA BBC One, 23:35 Sundays The BBC has decided to show us how they do business in the USA, with Lord Sugar replaced by Donald Trump. The eighth season is filled with familiar faces including Clint Black, Claudia Jordan, Brian McKnight, Tione Watkins, Tom Green, Andrew Dice Clay, Dennis Rodman, Herschel Walker, Scott Hamilton and Brande Roderick. In honesty, the series is much more entertaining as a reality show, with over-manicured contestants in comparison to its more down to earth British counterpart. Nevertheless, the drama is there for those who enjoy watching the glamour of Hollywood business. Psych BBC One, 19:00, Saturdays The annual show returns and comedians, sports stars and other celebrities gear up to dance for charity. First to slip into their dancing shoes are Ulrika Jonsson and Angelos Epothemiou, Terry Alderton, Laurie Brett and Tameka Empson, Tony Blackburn and David Hamilton. The judges are Graham Norton, Keith Lemon and Greg Davies. Watson & Oliver BBC Two, 22:00 Mondays In this hilarious sketch show, filmed in front of a live studio audience, comedy duo Lorna Watson and Ingrid Oliver (best known for their three consecutive sell-out Edinburgh Festival shows and their appearances in Peep Show, The IT Crowd and We Are Clang) deliver sharp humour. It includes characters of Wills and Kate reminiscing about their wedding day and two insatiable Georgian ladies. Guest stars for the series include John Barrowman, BAFTA winner Daniel Rigby, Adrian Scarborough, Sophie Thompson and Perry Benson. Luck Sky Atlantic, 21:00, Saturdays A new show starring Dustin Hoffman and Michael Gambon, following a vengeance call Ace (Hoffman) embarks upon once released from prison. Ace is deeply involved in the gambling around the horse race track and along with gamblers Marcus, Lonnie, Renzo, and Jerry, he learns a thing or two about make heaps of money after discovering the tactics of one of the racers. There is an undeniably large amount of jargon used in the pilot episode, however with a little bit of careful listening the meaning of almost all of it can be easily understood out and you can absolutely enjoy this show. 8 Private B Tuesday 21 February 2012 L PartB PRIVATE B ... Why have you desserted me LSESU Rowers in Geo-Political Cox-up Senior management at the London School of Economics have announced a full enquiry into the workings of the Students' Union following the news that the LSE SU Rowing Team made a mistaken attempt to enter Afghanistan on Tuesday evening. As part of a tradition within the Athletics Union, now suspended, a dozen crew members have made the "Row to Amsterdam" an annual event as a means of raising money for LSE Raising and Giving (RAG). Previous fundraising efforts have historically taken place on Houghton Street using improvised rowing devices. It is understood that rowing machines were hired as a back-up by the Athletics Union but were not intended to be used. As a further means of apology to the School, the machines were granted temporary teaching contracts and were tasked with running LSE100 Classes for the remainder of the week. Following positive feedback from students, the arrangement is to be made permanent from September. J My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard After intensive research carried out by the B, it is understood that a number of members of the Rowing Team chose to embark on a physical voyage to the Dutch capital by means of the Thames, North Sea and IJsselmeer. The conclusion of the voyage was intended to be marked by a celebratory tour of the Rijksmuseum followed by lunch in Belgium. In a mistake believed to have been caused as a result of the number of Geography students on the team, the coxless four, led by Jock Curtsy, departed from the team boathouse early on Wednesday morning in a mistaken belief that their destination was located in Central Asia. Flying-Spaghetti-Monster Palmtree, a second year Government student who accompanied the team, informed the B that he became aware of a possible mistake when he found himself "having to use the boat as a makeshift shelter in order to evade NATO drone attacks in the Sistan Basin - yet more evidence that all religion is evil." Although the whereabouts of three members of the team are currently unknown, LSESU RAG have announced that the £34 raised by the missing rowers will form part of general fundraising efforts over the past week. It is expected that the majority of the donations will be given to the newly established charity aimed at finding the missing rowers. The incident represents one of a number of oversights by RAG with regards to fundraising efforts this year. Other incidents have included the failure to properly explain the concept of "Battle of the Halls" to a number of students from Passfield. The miscommunication resulted the purchase of a remote Scottish island, acquisition of various illegal weapons, barricades around the building, and the hiring of a modified minibus, before students were informed that the event referred to a sponsored club night rather than an all-comers fight to the death. A statement from RAG has since informed the B that given that the discotheque hired was "Cheapskates," and as such, the mistake made little difference to the overall experience. The President of the AU is expected to make a full statement at the first weekly Union General Meeting that he is awake for. Meetings always take place on Thursday afternoon, which follows immediately after Wednesday night in AU tradition. L Tanned Ale That Beaver Collective Missive in Full Dear plebs, I have been forced to send you this appeal for more candidates to put themselves forward for two positions within the newspaper's executive. It's not looking good so far, and despite my best efforts to be Machiavellian, I don't seem to have many means for mischief. Still, here are some manifestos I made up for rumoured candidates. They might or might not stand, like they (and we all) might or might not exist. Executive' Editor Antihistamines: I want too bee teh bestist eggesut....xeequit...head newspaper guy ever. If u elect me to the possession, I wil make sur that I devote as much thyme to teh papper as I usually do to the 3 Tonnes. Lambert & Butler: As a member of one of the most underrepresented minorities on campus, I am fighting for the chance to represent the values of any self-respecting member of my community. I want to white for the paper at an executive level, I will Angle for better marketing opportunities, I shall reestablish the Saxon Gender column. Finally, I assure you that I will Protestant any attempts by the Students' "Union" to infringe our historic rights. Before Christ: Withdrew owing to institutional chauvinism within this right-wing rag. Probably. Webular Editor George Washington: I am only running to split the RON vote. [Cont. on page %] That is your lot. Remember, haters gonna hate. Rolex Young Collective Weight Around the Neck That LSESU Mayoral Debate in Brief V - \y Liebour: Ken is not Boris! Tory Scum: Boris is not Ken! LimpDems: Kermit: Brian is neither It's not easy being in Boris nor Ken! the Greens That LSE Language Pay Special In Full LSE to Franglais KSgSPj Lesson One: • • Lesson Two: Dans la Dans I'UGM • bibllo-theque Le chaise (pour il est lui): • L'ascenseur un: |\..l Oil I'enfer est tout le • Rolex Jeune: C'est merde monde? • d'taureau! David Lanm^tre-Charbon: • L'ascenseur deux: Rez de Le minutes s'il vous plait! • chaussee! Le chaise: Urcjh. • Rolex Jeune: ["...1 • Le 3oucanier (descendre les • stairs): Yaaaaaaaaa! Lesson Three: ••••••••••••• Dans \e Office de • Lesson Four: Pans le Cst&Hor • Arrerages Petale: Ou est # la critique de film? Tanned Bi£re: Pans mon • arse! • Arreraqes Petale: Ah! Le m nouveau David Lynch. Consell LSE Le Chevalier de Pouvet: Merci pourles conseils! M. Poiqts Gaddafi: la vie sans cheveux est difficile! Professeur Lieu: Merci pour la m6molre, merci pour I'argent! M. Points Gaddafi: Merci pour I'th^se! The Beaver 21.02.2012 21 Features Beat Eating Disorders Rosie Hamer highlights eating disorders awareness week It is very likely that you know someone with an eating disorder. It is also just as likely that you know somebody suffering, but are oblivious to their problem. Your sibling, best friend, team mate, flat mate, yourself... ? Eating disorders exist in today's world as one of the most wide-reach-ing and hardest hitting problems for young people. Yet anorexia, bulimia and other similar conditions are still highly taboo topics of conversation. Commentators put the increase in the number of anorexic sufferers, particularly among teenage girls, down to a surge in magazine and fashion culture. This leads to a mistaken conception in the causes of eating disorders. Far from being about food itself, by and large, eating disorders are brought on by internal and emotional stresses. The stigma that is attached to sufferers is removable, and voices can be heard in the discussion around eating disorders and their related illnesses. Monday 20th February marks the beginning of Eating Disorder Awareness Week 2012; seven days that Beat, the national eating disorder charity, focuses their energies into raising awareness of Anorexia, Bulimia, Binge Eating and Compulsive over Eating Disorder. Amongst young people the incidence of eating disorders is high; amongst university students the numbers are also some of the greatest. "Epigram", the independent Student newspaper of Bristol University noted a 175 per cent recent rise in eating disorders amongst female students in Bath and Bristol at the start of the month. Eating disorders however, are not something to be reduced merely to statistics. For each and every individual the causes and effects of an illness of this kind are distinctive and unique. There is no singular recognisable symptom "Eating disorders exist in today's world as one of the most wide-reaching and hardest hitting problems foryoung people." for diagnosis, nor is there a prescriptive cure that will see the recovery of the sufferer. For many sufferers who have eating disorders, the road to recovery is a long and endured one. Such a recovery can seem out of reach and impossible, even with help from friends, families and professionals. In some cases, the outcome can be the most feared of ends. Eating disorders are diverse in nature. Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa, the two most commonly known of illnesses, appear only as examples of a range of disorders that relate to compulsivity, obsession and control of food. Both Anorexia and Bulimia Ner-vosatendto stem from low self-esteem and a difficulty in one's ability to cope safely with worries and problems. They cover the spectrum of the mind and body, often causing significant harm and damage to both and making diagnosis and treatment complex and multilateral. Regardless of the physical strains that a condition such as anorexia can bring, such as drastic weight loss, dizziness, stomach pains, growth of fine hair all over the body or hair falling out, the internal struggle that is going on within the sufferer is the symptom most worrying. Sadly it is often the most difficult to overcome. It is a myth to think that Eating Disorders only affect women, or specifically middle class white teenagers. It is a dangerous view to suggest too that eating disorders are limited to certain social groups. As studies have shown, eating disorders affect people regardless of background, ethnicity, gender or financial status. An estimated 10-20 per cent of sufferers are male and it is believed that many men with eating disorders will not seek help at all, making some claim that numbers are actually much higher. However, research within the field is advancing all the time. Only 30 years ago so little was known about eating disorders that many did not recognise Anorexia, Bulimia or BED as a medical condition at all. Stubbornness has led to stagnation; it has taken many years for eyes to be opened and attitudes to have changed. This has contributed to the difficulty in the frankness of discussion around eating disorders, and has "Itisamythto think that Eating Disorders only affect women, or specifically middle class white teenagers." encouraged controversy and obstinacy in place of education and help. Eating disorders awareness seeks to change this. So you may know somebody with an eating disorder. You may not. You may still think that you are clued up on the nature of illnesses of this kind, how to recognise them and promote recovery. According to the British Psychology society "it can be difficult for students and young people to identify warning signs that may suggest eating disorders among their peers." The research shows that students tend to believe that eating disorders should be put down to a "vanity issue", rather than recognise the obsessive behaviour of their companions as a way to cope with stress and anxiety. Females show to be more aware of the signs and risks to do with eating disorders than males. However, it is worrying that compulsive behaviour used as a coping mechanism appears to be a norm within the typical student body. Professor Andrew Hill at the University of Leeds thinks that "behaviours characteristic of disordered eating are commonplace in the lives of young women." Looking around you, this may be true. With challenging, dynamic and busy student experiences come stressful, intense and anxiety ridden moments. These feelings can manifest themselves into the everyday behaviour of your companions, and it could be you who picks up on these signs. Whatever your take on Eating Disorders, whether you're sympathetic and informed or hardened and ignorant, this week is about opening your eyes to the true nature of eating disorders and how you can help those in need. Visit www.b-eat.co.uk for more information on how to recognise and deal with signs, or follow (a)beatED on' twitter, 22 Features 21.02.2012 | The Beaver The Agony & Ecstasy of Breakfast Bars Edward Larkin examines how our food Is marketed I woke up the other day and opened a newly bought a box of Multigrain Cranberry & Raspberry breakfast bars. Having failed to find the Fudge Graham Protein Bars that had fueled me through four years of college in the States at Sainsbury's (and having found out that it is illegal for Amazon to ship this particular brand of bars to the UK), I had eventually settled on these breakfast bars as the closest possible substitute. Vaguely disappointed after the first bite, I casually grabbed the box and turned it around, glancing at the back of the package only to find a phrase that shocked me. "We don't advocate skipping breakfast, but if you are on the run and don't have time to catch a bowl of cereal these Breakfast Bars will keep you going." A modest assertion on the face of it. But consider the medium: the back of a package. Back of the package statements aren't exactly the genre of literature most conducive to modesty. The number of books that claim to be the seminal text of the Twentieth century is almost certainly in the high three digits; DVDs feature breathless reviews in large type with tiny attributions to obscure newspapers as small as possible without deleting the name altogether; even mundane foods use words like savory, succulent, velvety. Given the context, modesty all of a sudden becomes avant-garde. Let's deconstruct this. "We don't advocate skipping breakfast." First of all, they are explic- itly telling us not to substitute their product for breakfast. "...If you are on the run and don't have time to catch a bowl of cereal." Second, they are giving a healthy alternative to their product - they're not just saying "don't only rely on us," but rather, "don't only rely on us, and here's how not to rely on us: eat a bowl of cereal." "... .these breakfast bars will keep you going". Third, this isn't some overarching claim that their bar will solve all the problems in the world. It will simply "keep you going." It won't invigorate you, it won't have you wired for 24 hours on end, it won't replace a nutritious meal. It will just "keep you going." I was struck by the sheer humility of these words on the back of a box of Breakfast Bars. Humility is not a word that is often found in modern marketing, mostly because the modus operandi is to make your product sound as much as possible like all things to all people. To illustrate exactly how bizarre the company's strategy is, try to picture other companies doing this: 'We don't pretend this is the absolute car out there, but ifyou don't want to burn half your savings, our product will get you from Point A to Point B reliably and efficiently.' 'We're not going to give you the most comprehensive insurance in the world, but we do cover a good amount and are pretty cheap, so ifyou want at least basic insurance, come to Barely Legal Auto Insurance Corp.' 'This isn't the most prestigious degree in the world, but ifyou want to leam the fundamentals of a specific trade, make yourself more marketable, and save a lot of money in the process, come to RedForest Community College.' 'We realize that unlike our posters, you're not going to find yourself in a blissful situation wearing five layers of shirts coupled with a scarf, a trendy pair of boots, and rolled-up khaki pants frolicking with a really attractive girl (herself wearing only a bra, seductively looking at you) in a scenic field somewhere in the middle of nowhere, but if you want cool clothes, shop here at Plantain Republic.' 'Quite frankly, this beer is not going to win any awards for taste or quality, but if you're a college student who is a.) broke b.) quickly nearing a.), or c.) just wanting to get drunk on the cheap because you can't differentiate a good beer from a bad beer, buy KeyLight Smooth.' 'We don't recommend eating a lot of chocolate, because quite honestly it's not very healthy, but ifyou want to indulge once in a while, a Venus bar is a good choice.' (Instead, the Candy mottos usually follow this vain: "Hungry? In a rush? Take a 'Venus' Break" This simple sentence is perhaps more valuable than any academic text in defining, exemplifying, and summarizing the avaricious instant gratification social psychology that has laid low countless insulin receptors over the past few decades and provided the raw fuel for the ever-increasing waistline. The opponents of consumer capitalism could not possibly ask for a more effective straw man than "Hungry? In a rush? Take a 'Venus' Break." Each exquisite syllable is pregnant with the hope of immediate pleasure. It is the Veni. Vidi. Vici. of the 21st century, the "do unto others as you would have them do unto you" of marketing, the "voule-vous coucher avec moi ce soir" of the postmodern world. These six words cast their net and it falls over the world. Anyway, back to the body of the article.) As you might have imagined from how foreign these advertisements sound, one would not dare market their products like this. I'm sure there are quite valid reasons for this - presumably, executives would not bend over backwards to hire marketing gurus if they did not have to. Now let's do a more ambitious thought experiment. What if this kind of humility were applied to the entire world? "Yes, I want to do investment banking for the money. Do you seriously think I would spend 17 hours a day working like a slave on spreadsheets for $50,000 ayear just because I love finance, I'm a "team player", and I enjoy access to the senior management, and, most of all, I like the culture here? The other reason besides the money is the exit ops. Which, since the ultimate goal is more money, probably reducible to money." "Yes, I am going in to medicine for the prestige. Do I really want to help people? I would like to think so. I hope so. But there are a lot of ways to do that. I chose medicine because I like the idea of being a god among mortals in my white coat, and it's a safe profession, so there's not much risk involved." "One of the major reasons I chose this school was the league table rankings." "Hey...what'syour name? I actually really want to dance with you and then hopefully have sex later tonight!" As you can see, some of this unvarnished honesty is good, and some is not. As with everything, there has to be some sort of golden mean somewhere in the middle. I would argue, however, that we as a society are too far towards one the side of fabrication. And Breakfast Bars' humble, down-to-earth advertisement exhibits what the industry seems to consider anathema: straight-shooting. "We don't advocate skipping breakfast, but ifyou are on the run and don't have time to catch a bowl of cereal these Breakfast Bars will keep you going." Perhaps we are entering a bold new world of honesty. In the end, despite the rather sawdust-glue taste of the bar exacerbated by the uneasy duet between cranberry and raspberry, this single sentence was enough to give me hope. That is, until I realized that it was a cereal company. •4" The Beaver I 21.02.2012 Features 23 Cancer, Cancer, go away Matthew Worby investigates the development of new Cancer drags Cancer. There are more than 200 types of cancer that could affect someone over the course of their life, and with one in three people developing cancer over the course of their lifetime the effects and ramifications of the problem are enormous. The National Awareness and Early Diagnosis Initiative released a poll in late 2010 revealing that the biggest fear of Britons aged over 16 was contracting cancer. What's more, there seems to be few real statistical indicators, it's down to "fate." It is unsurprising, then, that scientists around the globe are working to develop vaccines and cures for the disease. This short article will take a brief look into some of the more promising vaccine developments in the world of science happening now. The most common form of cancer in the UK presently, breast cancer, currently has two promising drugs being developed that appear, in the very early stages, to be better then the current gold standard. Respectively these are NeuVax, which has permission to enter stage 3 testing, i.e. testing is on humans, first for side effects on fully healthy volunteers, and then a double blind test on those with the disease. There is also AE37, which is presently in stage 2 that which is done on animals or on clumps of lab grown cells. The gold standard in pharmaceutical testing is that which is better than the current benchmark under the best reasonable conditions, in layman's terms it is better than the current market leader. While this does not necessarily mean that the side effects will be equal or better, regulatory bodies are more hawkish than ever before about side-effects, so it would be extremely unlikely for there to be a noticeable increase in risk for new drugs hitting the market. While this means there is "with one in three people developing cancer over the course of their lifetime the effects and ramifications of the problem are enormous." a certain level of murkiness as to the exact conditions of what is reasonable and how you define "better" in some instances. But the bottom line is that these two drugs, currently, appear to be an improvement on what is presently being used. NeuVax seems to be able to delay disease resurgence and progression by stimulating T-Cells to attack any patient whose tumor is expressing low levels of the HER2 receptor. In other words, instead of finding every cancer cell and killing it, or targeting the area with radiation or chemotherapy in the medical equivalent of a blunderbuss, the body's own, vastly more efficient, defences are retargeted to attack the harmfid cells in the body. What makes this drug particularly exciting is the way in which it uses HER2 to target the cancer, because this specific receptor seems to be significantly linked to more aggressive forms of breast cancer. While it is a slight downside that this drug is not a "catch all" cure industry experts are hopeful that despite this the drug will become the "go-to" alternative to Herceptin in the future. The other promising drug is AE37, that Generex Biotechnology argues is an off-the-shelf cancer immunotherapy product candidate that is easier and less costly to produce than comparable cell-based approaches." Much like NeuVax the aim of the drug is meant to instigate a response from the body such that the cancer is removed by already existing cells. In this case the drug is hoped to act as a vaccine that will enhance the patients system so that a relapse back into cancer is dramatically reduced. There is similarly positive news for pancreatic cancer, in a way reminiscent of a low budget sci-fi movie Globelmmune are aiming to defeat the disease with baker's yeast. The process itself is complicated but apparently is along the lines of specifically mutating a yeast culture such that it contains a mutated protein responsible for certain types of cancer. This yeast is then introduced to the patient because, in the words of David Ape-lian "it looks horribly dangerous to the immune system if it goes where it doesn't belong." By removing this from the body the immune system learns to target other cancerous cells, given the extreme levels of testing these drugs have to go through it should be "targeting the area with radiation or chemotherapy in the medical equivalent of a blunderbuss" perfectly safe, even if to the alarmist it would initially appear like a prequel to I Am Legend. Finally, this type of research has wider applications that are also garnering attention. Notably in that a possible vaccine for Celiac disease. Celiacs disease is the incapability of the body to absorb gluten, meaning wheat, barley, rye are all off the menu for particularly adverse sufferers. Imagine a life where the potential eating of couscous, batter, pasta, mayonnaise or pasta could provoke a reaction. The availability of gluten free alternatives is increasing, but this really only mitigates the problem. NexVax2 is being touted as the vaccine to help sufferers by altering our trusty little friend, the T-Cell. In this case the body sees gluten as poisonous to the body and reacts accordingly. The reaction's cause has been identified to three peptides, gliadin, secalin and hordein, the current method involves gradual desensitisation via relatively frequent injections and according to INOVA diagnostic tests roughly 90 per cent of sufferers would qualify. But one must be cautious about being over-optimistic. NexVax2 is only in stage one of clinical trials thus far and while this approach could theoretically apply to asthma or even autoimmune diseases only time, and the correct identification of antigens, will tell. There has been a paradigm shift in the targeting of cancer in the world of science that is now coming to fruition with the development of technology. While it would be naive to suggest that the traditional methods of curing cancer are on the way out, one can be increasingly hopeful that advances will mean certain types of the illness can be cured in less invasive ways. It is also exciting to see this type of science being put to use tackling other diseases, such as Celiac disease. Hopefully this period in discovery will be seen as a watershed moment in the history of combating diseases, who knows what the future will hold. ? Ton's failures ment is we; fact that he must ackno leader are c had to lead coalition go handled siti now the Fal! 1 must f first Prime f a coalition g be working t policy issuei have disagre coalition has was forecast likely due to Secondly ter attemptir recession. Sf is the best w: and boosts c< the coffers ar government, even deeper i circle of debt crippling the: ment is invesi improvement has and will b nomic benefit Policies such: sighted Prime cies with the j long-term pol of Britain in rr Cameron foreign policy Scotland, and eron helped re many other W< 21.02.2012 | The Beaver At a time when the government is proposing and implementing massive spending cuts, the particular background ofthe Conservative leader does not much help his cause. Before the general election in May 2010, a video changing the lyrics ofPuip's "Common People" song aimed to dissuade voters from voting Conservative became popular. It highlighted Cameron's awareness that he must hide his party from the common people, for if the I ' , voters saw them they would never vote him in, before V. he can embark on cutting welfare. Joking aside, a millionaire privately educated at Eton, David Cameron cannot pretend to be affected by many of the cuts his government is supporting. While most of Britain will be touched in some way by the changes to local education, the spiralling cost of higher education and job cuts; the Prime Minister and his cabinet will not suffer to quite the same degree. This has raised criticism that the Prime Minister is out of touch with ordinary people and cannot understand how damaging the cuts will be. This suggests he is in the wrong position to make the "right" choice. Cameron is closely associated with his "Big Society" pledge, a conscious response to Margaret Thatcher's claim in 1987 that there was no such thing as society, at a time of similar recession and government cuts. But many have been left wondering what, if anything, this nice-sounding word means, withevenC------ " Cameron's _.00_______ voters in the election. From what has been seen so far, the Big Society has meant big cuts to welfare and state administration, with private firms being encouraged to take over the old jobs of the government, from parents (or in many cases private businesses) running free schools to outsourcing the budgeting and accounting of primary care trusts to independent groups. The student and public sector protests, as well as the summer riots last year, underlined the deep cracks in Cameron's society which his party has done little to heal so far. In the face of mounting unease and unrest towards the proposed government cuts, the government has been unrelenting and plans to press ahead. Is this sensible? From a leftist Keynesian perspective, Cameron and his party seem to have got it all wrong - in times of economic hardship it is better to spend more in order to stimulate growth, putting confidence into members of the public to go out and spend money themselves, supporting British businesses. It is feared that Cameron's support for George Osborne's cuts will put Britain into a double dip recession, by strangling British economic growth, making full recovery even further away. For critics of David Cameron, the coalition government has been a long string of mistakes and damaging decisions. One ofthe most prominent of these is the health care reform the Prime Minister is currently trying to push through - this seeks to introduce more competition into the health care system, moving away from the current central planning of the NHS. This is anathema to Labour supporters obviously, who cherish the idea of the big state, but is Cameron's reform really that beneficial? Like with education, health care may not benefit from being turned into a market where the main concern is profit. A poll commissioned by Unison last week revealed that 62 per cent of those questioned do not trust the Conservatives with health care, which comes at a time when several Conservative MPs are querying Cameron's reforms themselves. It also emerged last week that many health groups such as the British Medical Association (BMA) and the Royal College of General Practitioners, which have both expressed their disapproval of NHS reform, had not been invited to an upcoming summit on Cameron's proposed bill. This does nothing to help the impression of Cameron as out of touch with what people affected by his reforms are feeling. The Prime Minister was also seen as scoring an incredible own goal in December by refusing to sign the European Union Treaty on eurozone rules. His veto was seen by Europhiles as symbolising a desire to distance Britain from the continent, twenty years after the signing of the Maastricht Treaty which bound Britain up in a European Union. Cameron's move only serves to make Britain less relevant in world affairs than it currently is, as Europe has a greater influence in international relations when its states combine their voices together. Cameron's veto also created animosity in Europe towards the British, which did little to help Anglo-European relations or to help to solve the euro crisis for which the Conference was called. Cameron himself was also personally criticised for his behaviour at the conference in December, appearing cold and aloof while the other European leaders networked and seemed committed to reaching a consensus. The fact that even his coalition partner Nick Clegg publicly criticised the move suggests how Cameron has little support in this decision, bar the acclamation of die hard Conservative Eurosceptics. For someone ofthe Left on the political spectrum, Cameron appears to have spectacularly misfired not only in terms ofthe European gaff, but also through his cavalier method of cutting welfare spending, the increased emphasis of privatisation and competition in education and the NHS and his general lack of awareness oOiow ordinary people are suffering in the recession.® What do you think? Have your say at thebeaveronlliie.co.iik The Beaver | 21.02.2012 Features praises Cameron's efforts fi ullingdon club' this, 'rich, toff MMJ w****r'that... Many people who dislike David Cameron base their !¦ views on his privileged upbring-ing, and, quite frankly, this argument is wearing a little thin. Nobody disputes the fact that he had a privileged upbringing, but we must acknowledge that his abilities as a political leader are cannot be judged on this. Cameron has had to lead through difficult times: he has led a coalition government, faced a recession, as well as handled situations in Europe, Libya, Scotland, and now the Falklands. I must firstly comment on Cameron being the first Prime Minister in a long while to have to lead a coalition government. The government seems to be working fairly well, and where there have been policy issues over which the Tories and Lib-Dems have disagreed, this has been managed well. The coalition has not fallen apart quite as rapidly as was forecast by many commentators, and this is likely due to Cameron's prudent leadership. Secondly, David Cameron is a Prime Minister attempting to lead the country out of a global recession. Spending your way out of a recession is the best way. It helps stimulate the economy, and boosts confidence in business. But when the coffers are left less than bare by the outgoing government, this option is not available. Going even deeper into debt would create an inescapable circle of debt with unsustainable debt payments crippling the British economy. Where the government is investing; for example, infrastructure improvement such as "High Speed 2"; the money has and will be well spent, with enormous economic benefits spread over more than thirty years. Policies such as this juxtapose David with shortsighted Prime Ministers of late who enacted policies with the pure aim of getting votes. Cameron's long-term policies show that he has the interests of Britain in mind. Cameron has also had to handle a number of foreign policy issues as Prime Minister: Libya, Scotland, and now the Falklands. In Libya, Cameron helped remove a tyrannical dictator, whilst many other Western countries stood by without acting. Concerning the Falklands, Cameron is defending the islands as British, and will not let Argentina take them. Cameron has taken an equally "no nonsense" approach to the situation in Scotland. The United Kingdom should, in his opinion, remain united, but the Scottish are, of course, entitled to a referendum on the issue. This strong stance on foreign policy is reflected in all that he has done as Prime Minister. Certainly, one issue that cannot be ignored is Cameron's vetoing of the EU Treaty. It was claimed that Britain was going to become isolated from Europe because of Cameron's veto, but Britain is a key player in the European Union, and the last thing that will happen to us is that we will become isolated. Now, there is some confusion about the EU veto. Cameron's veto was in fact concerning new budgetary rules in the EU, and his veto was used to prevent further European integration (particularly of countries within the Eurozone), and therefore aimed to prevent British isolation from Europe. The whole British economy was at risk due to the treaty, not just the financial sector, as many people may portray. It was still claimed that Cameron had created a 'two-tier Europe,' but Europe has been a 'two-tier Europe' ever since the Euro was introduced, and Cameron's veto has changed nothing in this regard. David Cameron has made his mark as a great Prime Minister not only here in Britain, but globally. His choices as Prime Minister show that he is doing the best for Britain by securing a safe recovery from the recession, fighting successive attacks of bad regulation from Europe, as well as handling matters of foreign affairs with commend -able pragmatism. David Cameron's long-term vision for Britain is something that British Prime Ministers have been lacking for a long time, and I hope that this fact is soon recognised by his opponents. Europe crisis lhim-/iour land ked 26 Features 21.02.2012 I The Beaver We are the Social Sharers Joanna Hirst looks at the generation of the "social consumer s eventeenyears ago, in a little village near Frankfurt am Main in Germany, my English mother held a Tupperware party. All the mothers in the village came over for some "Kaffee und Kuchen" (coffee and cake), and to buy some shiny new Tupperware. My mother recalls that this method of marketing proved to be extremely successful with these small-town housewives, who all left that day clutching their beloved plastic boxes with pride. That was the 90's, and since then, much has changed. Scrunchies are no longer an acceptable as a hair tie, and the nature of consumerism has been radicalised by the coming of the internet. We are the generation of the social consumer, and more of us are swayed towards particular products or brands through the internet than we may realise. It seems that these days every brand or product has a Facebook page, a Twitter feed, and some form of interactive website. But does this always work? Is social media really the way to push forward a product? Brands use social media as a way of reaching consumers in a place where they spend so much time- the internet. Information today is constantly thrown at us from a variety of channels, but the link between social media engagement and actually purchasing a product has been hard to trace. Digital agency, Beyond, decided to embark on the difficult quest to discover this relationship. They found that all digital channels do play a role in the path to purchase, and that sharing and recommending things online plays a crucial role in connecting customer and brand. Brands have picked up on this, and are thus shifting more and more of their advertising and marketing budget toward digital, just as an example, financial services corporation Visa has recently announced its media investment is being increased from 11% to a staggering 36%! This leads us to examine why social consumers share information. I don't repost a link to Nike's new Nike+ Fuelband on my Facebook and Twitter because I want to support Nike as a company. I repost because I can be classed within a group of 'altruistic' sharers, those who share because they feel it will benefit others. Social consumers share information for a variety of reasons, and The New York Times' 1 & - share because they want to help share because it's relevant to a friend share because they share, a passion with someone else inspire socializing with friends share because it shows o tilers the)' are on top of what's new share because they want a reaction share because it helps thetn in business 39.6% 26.1% of the UK's social sharers of the UK's : social sharers 16.7% 7.9% 5.6% 2.6% 2.5% of the UK's social sharers of the UK's social sharers of the UK's social sharers of the UK's social sharers of the UK's social sharers Source: Beyond 11 influential study, The Psychology of Sharing (2011), found that getting the word out about a brand is actually the least likely reason why we share content online. They found that the majority of consumers share content because they feel it will be valuable and entertaining to others. Some share to define themselves online, or to grow and forge relationships with others. In the past month, university-based meme groups have been popping up everywhere on Facebook. Once reserved for gamers and ggag-ers alike, memes have been shared over and over again by thousands of students across the UK. The LSE Memes group alone has 1,464 members and counting. Those who know what I'm talking about, we are part of the 19.27 million Britons that use social media in one form or another. 42% of these users are active content sharers (Source: Marketing Online). Posted a meme online? You're one of the 42%. According to Beyond, there are seven types of social sharers: altruists, which make up 39.6% of people who share content online, selectives (26.1%), passionates (16.7%), connectors (7.9%), trendspotters (5.6%), provocateurs (2.6%), and finally careerists (2.5%). Selectives share because its relevant to a friend, passionates share because they share a passion with someone else. Connectors share to inspire, trendspotters share to show others they are on top of what is new and cool. Then come the two smallest categories, the provocateurs and the careerists. The former share because they want a reaction, the latter share because they want to further their career and network. Apparently, our sharing personality type defines which social channel we use to share content. Altruists are more likely to use Facebook and e-mail, whereas provocateurs, who share because they want a reaction, are more likely to use a combination of Youtube, Wordpress, Blogger, Twitter, Linkedin, Foursquare, Flickr, and Delicious. Like Tupperware parties, social media has provided brands with a new pane on which they can hawk their products. Whether you are a sharer or not: engaging with a brand online means you are more susceptible to purchasing a product. I am a fan of the ASOS page on Facebook, and as a result I'm told about last minute sales and special offers directly on my news-feed. Beyond found that 43% of UK consumers go on to purchase a product after engaging with it online. With this new information about different types of sharers available, brands will soon learn to delve more deeply into which channels their consumers use to deem which is most appropriate for the brand itself. We've come a long way since the days ofword-of-mouth sharing, and as our world becomes ever more digitised, the way in which we interact with brands and with others is due to change drastically. Who knows what lies ahead? Joanna Hirst is a member of LSESU - AMP To find out more about the future of digital, come along to the Advertising, Marketing, PR Society's Annual Conference on March 6th. This year's theme is "How to survive in a Digital World". Details can be found at www.lsesu-amp.com. Measured musings | The decline of faith and the Church of England U od is dead", the phrase coined ¦ by Nietzsche, ^gf is apt perhaps to describe modern society. Nietzsche argued that Europe had moved on from the time of religion, and God was drifting into irrelevance. To quote Lord Cutler Becket: "The immaterial has become immaterial." This is the common view of Religion today, particularly Christianity. Richard Dawkins and the New Atheists have helped transform the nature of society. Once being Christian was a natural part of British Society. However, Atheism seems to have triumphed, particularly among today's students. Led by a strong contingent of secularists, it is frequently broadcast that there has been a fundamental shift away from the Christian heritage of Britain. Even last week Baroness Warsi asserted in a speech at the Vatican that Britain is being taken over by "militant secularists." This week has certainly seen evidence to support this theory. Council prayer meetings have been banned by the High Court. Catholic adoption agencies have been forced to close. The head of the Equality and Human Rights Commission compared Christians who wanted exception from certain parts of the equalities bill to Islamists who wanted to impose Sharia law in part of Britain. Certainly many Christians in Britain feel their faith is being marginalised. Where Christianity once dominated the discourse in modem Britain, it has been pushed to one side. Where the King of England was once forced to abdicate because his desire to remarry a divorcee went against the teaching of the Church, the doctrine of the Christian Faith has been all but forgotten by the majority of British society. As if to prove a point, shortly after Baroness Warsi made her declara- tion at the Vatican, Richard Dawkins released a poll finding the majority of those who identified themselves as Christians were unable to name the first book of the New Testament, rarely went to Church, and didn't believe Jesus was the Son of God. This seems to destroy the facade of David Cameron assertion that "we are a Christian country and we should not be afraid to say so" and Baroness Warsi's claim that this government would "do God". Perhaps they have taken a wrong turn? However, does this mean that Christianity has been pushed from the stage, or at least on an inevitable trajectory away from public life? This doesn't seem to be the case either. The claim that religious beliefs must be completely removed from public life, as Richard Dawkins would advocate, seems to profess a great ignorance of British tradition. Britain is not at year zero, rather there are 2000 years of Judeo-Christian tradition that influences the nation. Perhaps it is time for a fundamental rewrite of the British Constitution, but to do so with no respect for the last 2000 years seems naive at best. Indeed, faith may not be waning. The Queen rallied to the defence of her Church, of whom she is still the Supreme Governor, proclaiming the significant position the Church has in our nation's life. Saying "The Church of England has created an environment for other faith communities and indeed people of no faith to live freely." On top of this, after councils were banned from holding prayer meetings. Eric Pickles, Minister for Local Government, personally fast tracked and signed a Parliamentary order which should render the judgement irrelevant, protecting the freedom to pray in council meetings. Indeed Eric Pickles said: "Last week's case should be seen as a wake-up call. For too long, the public sector has been used to marginalise and attack faith in public life, undermining the very foundations of the British nation. But this week, the tables have been turned." Pinning the blame on secularist forces undermining the religious fabric of the nation is certainly a bit misleading. After all, the National Secular Association boasts around 7000 members, the same as the Sausage Appreciation Society. Certainly it is important to draw a distinction here, what is happening in Britain cannot possibly be called persecution. As Lord Carey, former Archbishop of Canterbury, noted in an interview with the Spectator, "Christians are very lucky in this country." However Lord Carey argues, "It's up to us to do something. We've got to shake up our clergy, shake up the people, encourage them to get over the attitude of 'We can do nothing about it, this is now a post-Christian age'." The contrast with Africa: "For them, faith is so important that they would face death for it if it came to that." In this light is it is clear that for the vast majority of people Christianity just isn't taken as seriously here. Perhaps Britain is fully in the clutches of secularists, but probably not, most likely there has been a cultural shift. Cultural Christianity has been replaced; the done thing today is to be an Atheist or just not to care. However, that doesn't mean that faith is a complete irrelevance to public life. Just looking at the LSE, founded by Christian socialists, the campus is filled with issues of religious affiliation. Even in Dawkins' poll, only 33 per cent of respondents classified themselves as having no faith. Clearly, faith remains an issue in Britain, if not the one with the most political salience. Chris Rogers Features Editor m The Beaver 21.02.2012 We all lie. Fact. Whether it was this morning,yesterday or last week that you last felt your nose go "Pinocchio", we are all guilty of a little fib here and there. Deception, sadly, is part of human nature. You might tell the odd white lie just to make someone feel better or perhaps you are more of the exaggerating type. But when does a fabrication of the truth become myth? You might use a false positive, a harmless way to ease initial social tensions with comments like "I love the new shirt" or "nice hair." While "Girls are particularly prone to being economical with the truth to avoid upsetting someone's feelings; men tend to be the ones exaggerating their attributes" girls are particularly prone to being economical with the truth when it comes to avoiding upsetting someone's feelings, men tend to be the ones exaggerating their attributes. I seem to remember there being quite a few Mr. LSE contestants boasting of their larger than average penises. I am by no means saying that we are all compulsive liars, who routinely come up with whopping great big bare-faced lies, but equally, nobody is truthful all of the time. We learn to lie early on; we pick it up from our parents, just as we do speech. Even at the tender age of three, most children know how to lie and by your sixth birthday chances are you were fibbing a couple of times a day. This makes perfect sense, after all who was it that assured you Santa Claus was real and that carrots would make you see in the dark? Society though relies on the majority of people being honest most of the time, especially when it comes to the "important" stuff. Most people only tell the odd white lie when they really believe that it is better for someone not to know the truth. Sometimes you might tell a white lie because you knowyou are likely to be rewarded, or less likely to be punished for it. It is much better to say in an email to your class teacher that you have an emergency doctor appointment/lady problems rather than "Hey, heavy night last night, not going to make the 10am class. See you next week." Technology brings a whole new dimension to the lie. Have you ever found yourself sending a text/bbm/ email ending a conversation by saying you're having dinner/seeing a friend/watching a film, when actually you just cannot be bothered to chat? Yes, I thought so. This is a new phenomenon known as the "Butler Lie". Or perhaps you are guilty of deceiving your class teachers, sending a blank file titled "Essay" to give yourself that much needed deadline extension. I have not tried that one myself YET, honest. Unsurprisingly, it is your parents who are most likely to be hearing, and believing, your little lies. Experts reckon teens try to deceive their parents in up to half of conversations and admit that parents are not always very good at picking up on signs of deception. I have to confess that recently I have been lying to my parents about something. I entered myself for a beginners Mandarin examination at SOAS and my mum offered to pay the exam fee. On the day I felt that I was ill prepared and my head was further blurred with a hangover, I just didn't turn up. When my mum asked over the Christmas holidays if the results had come through, I lied and told her they had not yet. I lied because I thought she would be disappointed and maybe a little annoyed. In hindsight, I really regret not being honest. I hate being forced to tell more lies as my Mum asks again and again over the dinner table or on the phone about the results. I know this may seem like a trivial example, but it illustrates the point that once you tell a lie, it might just creep back up on you. While it is not really the case with the Mandarin exam, the tricky thing is that some things are better left unsaid. We all like the idea of knowing the truth, but sometimes the truth hurts. Telling the truth can be destructive and it's easy to see why keeping things to yourself at times seems well intentioned. "Unsurprsingly, it is your parents who are most likely to be hearing, and believing, your little lies." Call me cynical, but I'm just not convinced that the world would be a happier place if we knew what was going on behind people's eyes. It is true that we are not always in the position to judge what is best for people and there is only one way to find out if someone really does want to know the truth. While I am not advocating lying for fun, for self-gain or being down right deceitful, sometimes your skeletons in the closet are there for a reason. I am not quite sure we would be able to handle the pressure if we always knew what our family, friends, teachers and colleagues had to say. Flickr: niznoz THE TRUTH ABOUT LIES BYhKIRSTY KENNEY N O vk 28 Social 21.02.2012 I The Beaver A life outside of banking Timothy Poole on the Importance of a "counter-culture" at the LSE When I first arrived at LSE, I soon got the gist of what was on the school's priority list. An inevitable emphasis was placed by welcoming teaching staff and student mentors on achieving that elusive 2.1 or 1st, while students were also encouraged to join as many societies and apply for as many internships as possible. Within a few days, the word "bank" virtually became synonymous with the name "LSE" in the back of my mind. This perception was confirmed and permanently lodged at the Freshers Fayre, when I was bombarded with leaflets and freebies by the Finance Society, Investment Society, Hedge-Fund Society and the like. Even my own Human Resource Management degree, seemingly virtuous upon application, turned out to be geared towards the investment banking industry. I discovered that the EROB department (Employment Relations and Organisational Behaviour) has close ties with "the Gold Man" (Sachs). My world was becoming rather one-sided. Indeed, it was hard to look beyond a future in the City that already seemed pre-determined for me. Yet, thankfully, several months on and approaching the end of Lent Term, it has dawned on me that, in a sort of protest against LSE's image as the "investment banker's nursery", our student body is actually enriched with a rather fantastic cultural variety. After that unavoidable first impression we all get of this university, it is hard to imagine the LSE as a hub of anything other than the next generation of economists. Okay, it is the London School of "Economics" after all. But this surely doesn't have to restrict us to one discipline of interest alone, does it? After all, our degrees range from Social Anthropology to Management Science, contrasted with a hint of Philosophy and a sprinkle of International Relations. I'm not for a second suggesting there is anything wrong with aspiring to become the world's next top banker or financier. However, I'm also aware that many ofyou out there, like me, do not hold such a dream. My initial worry was simply: what is there at this university to really engage those of us who aren't following the mainstream and are not crossing our fingers for Barclays whilst settling for Deutsche Bank? Alas, this is where our fantastic cultural variety comes in. What I have discovered about LSE throughout my first year here has been truly encouraging and offers hope to those of us that grow wary of rather generic and empty 24-hour talk of the FT and Economist. My personal experience has been hugely influenced by this very newspaper, and the larger Media Group it is a part of. It occurred to me what a testament to variety it is that the student newspaper of the LSE does not include a Finance section. The Beaver and Media Group represent a much wider concept: that of a student voice. In my eyes, this student voice has spoken out in remonstration against the inherent banking culture that LSE has become known far and wide for. This is most evident through the SU and AU, who are both so important to the everyday existence of the university and its students. The latter is perhaps the most under-valued organizations at the school, with many choosing to ignore the unrelenting service it provides for the thousands of undergraduates and postgraduates studying here. At no time is this sentiment more applicable than in the wake of RAG week, whenyou name it and they are doing it, all in the name of charity. A wealth of events catches the eye, demonstrating that there is more to LSE life than books and problem sets. Moreover, sensational one-off performances like Timeless further highlight the vast range of hidden talents the LSE has to offer. Religion, perhaps rather surprisingly, is also well represented, with many religious societies having a strong presence within the school's community -something commendably not in the spirit of market domination. It can, of course, be argued that these are all basic features of any university. But, here at the LSE, it is remarkable that areas such as media, theatre, sport, and religion are so well catered for, when these are principally not in the interest of the oh-so prominent culture of economics and finance. It is these areas that are so fundamental for most of us to keep our sanity and alleviate our stress; fortunately, our needs have been met - one way or another. And so, whilst the LSE is relentlessly "big on banking" - understandably so in an ultimately capitalist-driven economy such as ours - it is wonderful to witness the mini-revolution many of us have chosen to undertake. Indeed, the great foundation on which this school was built remains strong and an appreciation of the finer, non-bonus-driven things in life is still plentiful on campus. One can only hope that this continues for a long time to come, expanding rather than subsiding. After all, "to understand the causes of things" requires more than understanding which consulting or accounting firm is ranked highest on the London Stock Exchange. Making moments in the library Angelina Castellini & Susan Sebatindira on improvisation at LSE Whilst searching for a computer last week, you might have seen the slow-motion fight that broke out on the lower ground in the Library. Or you may have wondered about the group of students frozen in place around the Library entrance. Maybe you heard a student chanting pleasant phrases through a megaphone down Houghton Street. Either way, a group of LSE students have made the LSE campus its stage. Why does this keep happening? Why else, but to have some fim! A great moment can make someone's day. A few minutes out of the daily routine can turn a day of studying around. Those ofyou who were here last year will have remembered the epic flashmob in the Library during the exam weeks. The event gladly broke up the dreary routine of stressful cramming with spontaneous dancing. We want to keep up this spirit of doing things out of the ordinary with weekly events this year. The highlight of the year will be a huge library event during the exam period, larger than last year. This could very well become a tradition. In order to make it an event that YOU and LSE will not forget, we need a large number of students willing to participate. No experience is required. If you have been taking part in drama for years or have never participated in improvisation before then no worries; you don't need any experience for any of the sketches we're involved in, just a smile and the willingness to make other people smile too. I must admit, I was a little bit hesitant at first. The idea of fully submerging myself into a slow-motion fight, in front of people I might know, was very daunting. But soon enough, I found myself throwing out a round-house kick with as much intensity as I could muster. Although in slow-motion of course. Often it is easy to get caught up in the stress of LSE studies and this brief interlude was just what I needed to remind me that university life can be creative and does not have to be constrained to just filling out applications for summer placements. The only aim of the Improv group is to spread happiness and the occasional thought. The overall point of the group is to get comfortable enough to truly get loose, be it in front of a small number of people or the various students milling about on the Lower Ground. Many of us in the Improv group had trepidations at first about not being courageous enough to run round the library in the name of some good old fun. Join the facebook group: "Impro V Atlse" to find out what is going on. Try it out once, there's no need to keep on coming back next week if it turns out that it is not for you. So go on, take a step out of your daily routine, do something out of the ordinary. You won't be disappointed. 2011 LSE Flashmob | Beaver Archive The Beaver | 21.02.2012 Social 29 Down and out in London Cleo Pearson on being a country girl in the big, bad city I am a country girl through and through. I come from a place called Ham, it doesn't take a geographer to realise that "Ham, the Hamlet" is likely to be pretty remote. Getting lost in fields of oil-seed rape in an attempt to find a "short-cut" home, running over gravel without a grimace and making mud pies are amongst my favourite past times. However, by 181 felt that the merits of counting deer on the walk to the bus stop were outweighed by the mud, rain and the 40 minutes it took to get there. So 1 decided to move to the big smoke. Despite the fact that on paper I am not an international student, at times I felt like a foreigner in this urban domain. On closer inspection it would appear that some things are not as different from home as I might have thought. I was able to handle the pollution from congestion because of the wind atop of Parliament Hill. I didn't miss the kamikaze pheasants on country roads because of the squirrels and the heron at Regent's Park. I felt at home without the ant and ivy infestations in my kitchen because of the greenfly that attacked my basil and the grain beetle that infested my room. Yet, there are still aspects of city life that make little sense to me. Let's do a riddle. What am I referring to: people tend to dislike them, they are not the prettiest of things, they tend to emerge from dark comers and move in funny ways? I do not blame you if you are confused, am I referring to spiders or some of the creeps you might find in the dingier London clubs? I have never had a fear of the former, because I know how to dispose of them; simply find a glass and a piece of card to slip underneath. In contrast, I feel totally unequipped with the tools or methods for avoiding the particular kind of pest found in bars and clubs. I learnt a lot in childhood through the method of look, sniff, and bite. Applying this technique at university has almost as bitter an outcome as that of trying crab-apple. I swiftly reconsidered tactics. For parts of the year our family fridge is filled with fresh but sometimes unidentified produce. My Mum loves nothing better than the wild mushrooms from our garden and assures us they are not the dangerous kind. Personally, I would not make the judgement on what would harm us. Neither would I contemplate what a London friend of mine was considering the other day. The million pound question was: should she consume the ominous bag of white powder she found stuck to the bottom of her shoe after a night in a club? As far as my very loud and logical conscience is concerned, why would I consider any drug for that matter? The cost, the risk of addiction n M /\ In rt 1 vt* 1 V-\ 1 P /"\1 11* with Wladimir. He then went on to ridicule the fighter asking him how his toe was (a reference to the Brit's comical excuse for losing the fight), a comment that Chisora picked up on and took it upon himself to drive home, repeat- like a perfect plan'. Leave it to Frank Warren to seal the deal with 'Right then, we've got a fight'. After this Chisora, riled by Haye's comments, gets out of his seat to go and square up with his tormentor and the whole of things' and beyond that, finding answers for the causes of these 'things'. The LSE100 graduate inside me refuses to swallow this whole episode as some sort of spontaneous testosterone-fuelled brawl, as we are being led to edly asking 'How's your toe David? How's your toe? How's your toe?'. Mr. Chisora then exclaimed that he would very much like to fight Mr.Haye in London, to which Haye replied 'You've lost three fights in a row'. At this point, Frank Warren -Chisora's promoter - interjects with 'Hold on David, I've got a great idea!' I'm sure you do Frank... 'How about you two fight, and the winner fights Vitali!' To which his German counterpart unsurprisingly replies 'Sounds thing escalates into a full-on brawl in which the two British boxers and their entourages exchange blows with one another (it should be noted that Haye landed a cracking right hook on Chisora's chin which lent itself to a rather amusing line from Haye,'That's for in a row now! That's four in a row! As (a)rioferdy5 would have put it you got merked!'). If my two terms of LSE100 have taught me anything, it is undoubtedly the questioning of 'the causes believe. In a sport where the Wu-Tang Clan's aphorism 'cash rules everything around me' is more relevant than in any other, I find it very difficult to believe that this episode was anything other than a premeditated organisation and publicity of not one, but two very big-money fights. First the All-British ruckus of 'Chisora v Haye', followed by the second installment of the 'British Challenger v Klitschko' bonanza. As a child I can distinctly remem- ber my surprise at the outcome of the first bout between Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield: a draw. 'A draw!?!?' I remember my father exclaiming. I also remember him trying to explain to me that that is the way the sport of boxing works: by scoring a fight that was so clearly won by Lewis a draw, they would be able to stage a rematch meaning more money would be made for all involved. At the tender age of 8,1 found this logic rather difficult to understand. However, after this brawl that 1 am convinced was staged or at the very least structured, that logic rings truer now more than ever. If I turn out to be right - something we may never truly know - then surely the responsibility for 'disgracing the sport' lies not with the boxers (as many sports commentators have presumptuously declared), but with the money-grabbing, pseudo-Machia-vellian promoters hell-bent on making a buck off boxing and its ambitious but arguably naive fighters. They may not realise it at first, but boxers are almost entirely conditioned by the money they make and the money they generate for the people around them. A glance at any defeated boxer - Leon Spinks being my favourite example - shows that these men are as much rewarded as their are ultimately bound and imprisoned by the money they do or do not make. Sadly for them, it is not they who control this money but an elite set of profiteers who call themselves 'promoters'. It was Bernd Boente who teed up the rematch with his antagonistic comments and Frank Warren who smashed it beyond the green, past the rainbow and into the pot of gold. Timothy Poole On Monday February 13th, the Premier League saw its third managerial victim of the season as Wolverhampton Wanderers owner, Steve Morgan, dismissed manager, Mick McCarthy. The decision came in the wake of a 5-1 pummelling at home to fierce Black Country rivals, West Brom - a result which compounded a dismal run of just two wins in 23 games. As hiring and firing goes, Morgan's decision came with heavy statistical backing; despite claiming that he was 'the right man for the job', McCarthy's talking on the pitch virtually made his position untenable. Now the hunt for a new Wolves manager is on, whilst McCa- rthy's five-year reign at the club has come to a less than glorious end. *** Thierry Henry's hopes of a final flourish for the club he so dearly loves were well and truly dashed last Wednesday as AC Milan overcame Arsenal in comprehensive fashion. A wonder strike from Kevin Prince-Boateng, a brace from Robinho and a Zlatan Ibrahimovic penalty have all but sealed Arsenal's exit from the Champions League before the second leg has even begun. Questions will be asked of manager, Arsene Wenger, whose side simply did not turn up, further succumbing to a 2-0 defeat three days later, at the hands of Sunderland in the FA Cup. Is Wenger right to keep his faith in the likes of Rosicky, Walcott, Djorou, Arshavin and co.? And can Wenger ensure Robin Van Persie will still be at the Emirates to spare his teammates' blushes come the end of the season? The voices of dissent have started to grow. One thing we can ascertain for definite is that Arsenal are no longer the 'Invincibles' they once were. Guus Hiddink was appointed head coach of super-rich Russian outfit, Anzhi Makhachkala, last Friday, ruling him out of contention for the England job at Euro 2012. In the Dutchman, Anzhi have a highly-qualified candidate who has overseen the likes of Chelsea, Real Madrid and several national teams - not least of all, Russia. Fabio Capello was heavily linked with the job initially, but it is Hiddink who will take up the reigns for a reported £8 million a year. England have lost a chance here. Whilst it is now only a matter of time before Harry Redknapp is offered the national job, it is surely too soon for him to try and salvage any success at this summer's European Championships. Hiddink would have been the perfect interim - the FA could have and should have acted rapidly to snap him up. As things stand, England remain managerless, but Anzhi's ambitions of playing Champions League football have received a sizeable boost - Hiddink will have them there in no time.