Largest ever grant awarded
Underlining the quality and value of Loughborough’s research, the University was awarded over £35m in external funding in 2005-06, boosted by the largest ever grant given by a research council – almost £18m awarded to the Innovative Manufacturing and Construction Research Centre (IMCRC) by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), which will enable the IMCRC to continue its work in creating and safeguarding UK manufacturing and construction jobs for a further five years.

Among the new research projects funded this year were an acoustic real-time monitoring system to help predict landslides; a high-tech system to help CCTV cameras identify people carrying concealed guns; a communications system to give firefighters accurate information about the buildings they are called to; and initiatives to recycle shoes and cars.

Prestigious fellowships announced
Loughborough was this year awarded six academic fellowships under a scheme administered by the Research Councils UK. The fellowships, valued at £750,000 over five years, will be based within three of the University’s new research schools – Health and Life Sciences, Sustainability, and Materials – and will provide further support to the strategic growth of the University’s research profile. The fellowship scheme is designed to ease the progression and improve the security of research careers by helping researchers move from short-term contracts to permanent positions.

Looking into low carbon energy solutions
Loughborough is to be one of four partner universities participating in a new £10m research programme looking at the next generation of low carbon energy solutions. Launched in August by energy company E.ON UK and the EPSRC, the programme will tap into expertise and ideas within the UK’s universities to benefit industry and tackle the challenge of climate change. The initiative will underpin Loughborough’s existing expertise in low carbon research and the important work being conducted in the University’s recently formed Research School in Sustainability.

Hop your way to stronger bones Researchers in Human Sciences are investigating whether hopping could help to improve bone density and reduce the risk of osteoporosis. One in three women in the UK over the age of 50 is likely to develop the painful condition, where bone mass is lost, leaving them fragile and susceptible to fracture. Studies have shown that exercise that exerts high forces on the skeleton, such as hopping, is particularly effective in helping to increase bone density and therefore reducing the risk of problems in later life. The researchers are looking at exactly how often and for how long someone would need to hop to benefit. The findings of the research will help to determine the minimum amount of exercise required to improve bone strength.

Screening children’s weight could be harmful
The Government’s proposal to screen the weight of four and ten year olds in schools could be psychologically harmful to children and even result in some developing eating disorders, researchers from the School of Sport and Exercise Sciences warned this year. While supporters say the tests, which measure the children’s Body Mass Index (BMI), will help to increase parental awareness of obesity, the Loughborough researchers and other opponents claim the initiative could lead to overweight children being misinformed about the state of their health or even being bullied. The Loughborough team has conducted research into the experiences at school of girls and young women suffering from eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia. Their findings revealed that many sufferers believe their illness was nurtured or exacerbated, or sometimes even caused, albeit inadvertently, by the well-meaning actions of teachers and health experts in schools.

Giving athletes the boot
Pioneering Loughborough research has been instrumental in the development of the first-ever football boot that can be designed uniquely for an individual player. Created by British firm Prior 2 Lever (P2L), the boot has been developed to meet the needs of professional and elite athletes. With an outsole individually designed for each wearer, the shoe provides maximum support and reduces injury. Loughborough’s Rapid Manufacturing Research Group created the outsole using a process called Selective Laser Sintering, which allows cost-effective manufacture in small batches. After testing at a Premiership football club to prove the soles were durable yet light, ‘Assassin’ – P2L’s performance soccer footwear featuring the revolutionary outsoles and one-piece leather uppers – was launched in April. The technology could eventually be taken to the high street to allow the production of bespoke footwear.

Sunday, the day of rest?
Overweight people do less walking on a Sunday compared to the other days of the week, according to experts in Loughborough’s Department of Human Sciences, who monitored the activity levels of adults for four weeks by giving them pedometers. The study also found that overweight people did significantly less physical activity on Sunday, compared to individuals of normal weight, who were generally more active. The findings could help GPs and public health campaigners to target their strategies for tackling and preventing obesity more effectively.

Tools unravel mystery of early humans
Early humans were living in Britain as long as 700,000 years ago, according to a set of flint tools discovered this year by an international team of researchers, which included Loughborough geographer Dr Ian Candy. Found at Pakefield in Suffolk, the tools provide evidence that early human species journeyed across the Alps and into northern Europe much earlier than had previously been thought. Using new accurate dating techniques, the team showed the tools to be some 200,000 years older than the previous oldest discoveries. Before the find scientists had assumed that humans had not moved from southern Europe to the colder north because they were unable to adapt to longer winters and shorter growing seasons. However soil samples, and a climatic reconstruction done by Dr Candy, showed that the climate 700,000 years ago was similar to the present day Mediterranean. Although much of the vegetation and fauna would have been similar to today, the landscape would have been dominated by large mammals, with the remains of rhinoceroses, elephants, sabre-tooth cats and hippos discovered at the site

Batter by far
A revolutionary bowling machine that can replicate any type of cricket delivery has been devised by Loughborough researchers. Developed in the Wolfson School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, the prototype robotic bowler, dubbed ‘Virtual Warney’ after the Australian spin-bowler Shane Warne, will help to unravel the science of bowling and improve match training for cricketers. Unlike other machines, the Loughborough invention gives batsmen a warning using a special visualisation device about when the ball will be bowled, just as they would get from a real bowler. The machine also uses proper cricket balls, which react more realistically with the bat and pitch.

Are you sitting comfortably?
Almost half of all British drivers are suffering from a painful new medical condition – Repetitive Driving Injury (RDI) – caused by poor driving posture, according to research by Design and Technology’s Professor Mark Porter. The study identified the four most common driving positions – categorised as Racers, Pimps, Multi-Taskers and Rollercoasters – and their related problems. It also revealed that despite eight out of ten drivers having suffered from RDIs, only 21% consider car comfort an important factor when purchasing a car.

The Rollercoaster (37% of the population) – drivers lean forward and sit upright, with the seat forward, their legs and arms bent. Their most common RDI symptoms are shoulder pain, neck strain, leg cramp and side ache.
	The Multi-Tasker (26%) – Drivers have a straight back, with their arms bent and one hand on the gear stick. They most commonly suffer from headaches and eye strain, feet cramp and pain in the coccyx.
The Racer (19%) – Drivers have straight arms, with the seat reclined and their legs straight, adopting a low driving position. Their most common RDI symptoms are side aches and lumbar pain.
	The Pimp (8%) – Drivers have the seat inclined, an arm on the window ledge or outside window and one hand on the wheel. They most commonly suffer from arm and shoulder ache.

New balls, please?
Research into the wear and tear of tennis balls, carried out in the Wolfson School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, could have far-reaching consequences for tennis players around the world. Experts developed a new way of measuring tennis ball hairiness, or ‘fuzziness’, to see if changes in the ball’s surface affect its flight, bounce and impact. Using digital imaging to assess the ball’s surface and monitor its deterioration, the new technique allows objective assessments to be made; previously judgements on a ball’s condition were made visually, based on its physical appearance, and were largely guesswork. The researchers found that a tennis player’s perception of the ball’s condition was a significant factor affecting play – players who felt the ball was too ‘fuzzy’, and therefore had lower expectations of it, did not perform as well on court.

Turn left at the lights
Drivers are less likely to make mistakes at the wheel if their in-car navigation systems use landmarks, such as pubs and traffic lights, to direct them, Loughborough researchers have discovered. A study into the effectiveness of ‘sat nav’ systems found that drivers who used a distance and landmark navigation system glanced less at the visual display, and made fewer navigational and driving errors. Drivers made more errors with directional systems that use distance information alone. The researchers also found that systems need to be improved for older drivers, with larger and clearer on-screen information and navigational instructions provided earlier. The research could help companies to develop the next generation of ‘sat nav’ systems.

Tactics to ease community conflict
Coexistence between local residents and street sex workers could be improved by better management of public spaces, according to a team of researchers which included Geography’s Dr Phil Hubbard and Social Sciences’ Dr Maggie O’Neill. Commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, the study found that for many residents, street sex work in their neighbourhoods did not significantly affect their overall quality of life. Concerns centred on the visibility of sex workers and issues such as debris and noise. Street sex work also impinged on some residents’ use of public space and some associated it with drugs and crime. Coexistence was greatest where integrated responses to community concerns had been developed with a range of partners. Residents also believed that ASBOs were of limited use in addressing the long-term issues.