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Based in the School of English, the Research and Development Unit for English Studies (RDUES) conducts research in the field of corpus linguistics and develops innovative software tools to allow a wide range of external audiences to locate, annotate and use electronic data more effectively. This case study details work carried out by the RDUES team (Matt Gee, Andrew Kehoe, Antoinette Renouf) in building large-scale corpora of web texts, from which examples of language use have been extracted, analysed, and presented in a form suitable for teaching and research across and beyond HE, including collaboration with commercial partners.
Childhood obesity is a national problem but it is a problem even more keenly felt in the West Midlands where statistics show the percentage of children classified as obese is higher than the national average. Research demonstrating that simple measures such as waist circumference and body mass index (BMI) are every bit as effective as complex and expensive measuring processes such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans in identifying high risk obese children has fed into the evaluation and subsequent improvement of child weight management programmes in the region and more widely in the UK. It also informed the development of an obesity strategy and action plan for Worcestershire for the period 2008-11.
Using advanced mathematics and numerical modelling we have demonstrated how fundamental understanding of laminar-turbulent transitions in fluid flows can save energy. From 2008 we helped the cleantech company, Maxsys Fuel Systems Ltd, to understand and improve their technology and demonstrate to customers how it can reduce fuel use by 5-8%. Customers including Ford Motor, Dow Chemical and Findus testify to the impact from financial savings and reduced carbon emissions obtained by installing Maxsys products on industrial burners used widely in many industrial sectors including automotive, bulk chemicals and food. In 2010, Selas Heat Technology Company bought the Maxsys brand to invest in this success.
Dementia poses substantial public health and societal challenges for Europe as there is currently no cure, and it is estimated that 10 million Europeans will be living with the disease in 2040. Good quality information allows for decision-makers to establish appropriate health policies and target resources where they are needed and where they are effective. The ALCOVE project (2011-2013) established a European network where knowledge on dementia could be shared and developed a series of recommendations for improving dementia care and quality of life across Europe. A particular strand of research within the project on timely diagnosis of dementia led by Worcester's Association for Dementia Studies has already stimulated policy debate on this issue in the UK and elsewhere in Europe, while a `toolbox' developed through the project for those living with dementia and their carers and for health and social care professionals has informed care practice.
A body of research on agricultural geography, with a strong regional focus on the Welsh Marches (the English counties bordering Wales), has led to changes in conservation policy and practice relating to rare breeds, primarily at the national level but also internationally; it has shaped farming policy at the regional level, particularly in Herefordshire, specifically leading to increased diversification in the farming sector across the county; and it has stimulated policy debate around the place of farming in society.
Increased understanding of how a member state can influence the EU created two kinds of impacts: changing thinking, understanding and awareness (e.g. HM Treasury); and changing strategy and policy (e.g. EU Committee of Regions). Impacts were generated between 2008 and 2012 on the Polish Government, the Swedish International Development Agency, the US Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation, civil servants in Ukraine, Russia and the UK, the European think tank community, the Labour Party and the EU's Committee of the Regions. Impact was generated through consultancies to public bodies and by providing advice to governments, international organisations and the private sector.
This Keele University research in multiscale object recognition has led to two key breakthroughs: (a) the automated identification of tissue boundaries in computer tomographic (CT) scans, enabling the latest radiotherapy equipment to more accurately target diseased tissue thus avoiding neighbouring healthy organs. Such improvements are essential to the successful roll-out of new more precise linear accelerators in the treatment of cancer; (b) new fractal algorithms to characterise the quality of transplanted cell growth from post-operative biopsies. By automating the selection of the healthiest cells this has assisted the generation of patient-specific cartilage and is essential for the development of a medical capability for large-scale patient-specific generation of cartilage growth for the treatment of arthritis. It has indirectly led to software improvements in cell-tracking and to achieving reliable auto-focussing in high throughput non-invasive microscopy.
In late 2010 Professor Sanderson decided to form the Flux ceramics spin-out company at Staffordshire University in order to exploit a significant market gap he had discovered via his KTP research project for Aynsley China Ltd., Stoke-on-Trent. Flux has been able to exploit the market gap discovered in a way that Aynsley China was unwilling to pursue. Flux has produced cutting edge ceramic tableware design that has been successful in terms of both sales and recognition as a valuable contribution to contemporary tableware design. Flux won the Home and Gardens Design Award in 2012.
A multidisciplinary team has worked in applied cell engineering implementing cell therapy and biological approaches in clinical practice since 1997. The team has two GMP accredited laboratories in hospital sites and a MHRA manufacturing license for chondrocytes and stromal /stem cells for delivery to patients in orthopaedic clinical trials. The research had impacts on health, economy, public policy and practitioners. Over 400 cartilage patients and over 150,000 knee ligament patients have benefited directly from the research, and associated turnover is over £40,000,000. Team members had influence on government, NICE and professional guidelines.
The project led to improved public access to partner collections via a major website, informed the design of the £10m HLF-funded Birmingham History Galleries of Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (including innovative multi-touch software), and firmly embedded a culture of cross-sector collaboration with impact in Birmingham, the Midlands, and beyond.