Year in review

On 6 October, at a ceremony in the Sheldonian Theatre, Professor Andrew Hamilton was installed as the 271st Vice-Chancellor of the University. Talking in his inaugural address about what had 'bewitched and beguiled' him about Oxford, he said: 'I am here because Oxford over many centuries has committed itself to the development of ideas at the forefront of knowledge and then to the testing of those ideas through analysis, debate and experimentation. I am here because Oxford is committed to excellence in all of these undertakings. Excellence in the standards it sets for scholarship. Excellence in its academic staff, in the lecturers, tutors and researchers, who are crucial to its success. Excellence in the students it chooses for admission. Excellence in the quality it expects of its administration. And excellence in those twin Oxford jewels, the collegiate structure and the tutorial system.'

www.admin.ox.ac.uk/vc

Undergraduate applications for entry in 2010 showed a record number of applications at more than 17,000, an increase of 12 per cent on the previous year. Applications from state school candidates have increased by 77 per cent over the past 10 years (compared to 68 per cent from independent schools). Oxford is committed to selecting students with the most academic ability and potential, and works to attract applications from talented students from any background. In the last year the collegiate University has carried out more than 1,500 outreach activities with nearly 2,000 UK schools and colleges taking part in an Oxford-specific event.

www.ox.ac.uk/admissions

Her Majesty The Queen officially opened the new Ashmolean Museum on 2 December following a major multi-million pound redevelopment, part of the Oxford Thinking Campaign. The redevelopment provides the Ashmolean with 100 per cent more display space, comprising 39 new galleries, including four temporary exhibition galleries, a new education centre, state-of-the-art conservation studios and Oxford’s first rooftop restaurant. Since its opening, visitor numbers have quadrupled to 1.2 million, compared to the previous average of 300,000 per annum.

www.ashmolean.org

Oxford in snow

Professor Dorothy Hodgkin was honoured in a new set of Royal Mail stamps celebrating the 350th anniversary of the Royal Society. The stamp celebrates the advances in X-ray crystallography Professor Hodgson made at Oxford –  she determined the molecular structures of penicillin, vitamin B12 and insulin. In 1964 she received the Nobel Prize for Chemistry, becoming the only British woman scientist to win a Nobel. Three of the world’s most influential researchers mathematician, Sir Andrew Wiles,  physicist, Dr Tim Palmer, and chemist,  Carol Robinson, have been appointed Royal Society Professors.

The Bodleian Libraries unveiled plans for the restoration and renovation of the New Bodleian Library with the aim of creating state-of-the-art storage for the library’s Special Collections, the development of the library’s research facilities, and the expansion of public access to its treasures through new exhibition galleries and other facilities. Once completed, it will be renamed the Weston Library, in honour of the £25 million donation by the Garfield Weston Foundation. The renovation of the New Bodleian is part of an integrated strategy to improve the management of and access to the Bodleian Libraries’ historic collections, as well as improving  facilities for researchers and readers while continuing to preserve and enhance these collections.

www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/about/projects

OPTIMA, the Oxford Project to Investigate Memory and Ageing, celebrated 22 years of research. By collecting information on hundreds of older people, both with and without dementia, the team is able to study the brain and the differences between the two groups. It now holds a unique and growing database of psychological, neurological, biochemical and genetic information and also an extensive biobank of samples that are being used to explore the risk factors or causes of this debilitating condition. It is now building a new cohort, the Longitudinal Early Alzheimer’s Disease (LEAD) cohort consisting of people with early or pre-dementia Alzheimer’s disease, whose main focus is as a platform to allow research on early diagnosis, including biomarkers, imaging and neuropsychology, and facilitate collaboration with industry to help with evaluation of potential new treatments.

www.medsci.ox.ac.uk/optima

Oxford finalist Liz Williams was joint winner of the UK Centre for Legal Education's Student Essay Competition, 2010, sharing first place with Sitanta Ni Mathghamhna, of Birkbeck College, University of London. Liz, who was then in her fourth year studying Law with Law Studies in Europe at Christ Church, wrote her essay to answer the question ‘How might a legal education enable students to contribute to the improvement of society?’ Having argued in her essay that legal studies fosters diversely applicable skills, and after graduating with a First, Liz has gone on to present a paper at the launch of a legal research project in Bonn, and is studying for a Public Relations qualification while also volunteering and exploring opportunities as a freelance writer and artist.

www.law.ox.ac.uk

Geoffrey Hill became Professor of Poetry, the 44th since the role was created in 1708. Interest in  the Professor of Poetry election reached a peak this year following the introduction of new voting procedures. More than 2,500 votes were cast in person and online between 21 May and 16 June to elect a successor to Christopher Ricks. Professor Hill read English at Keble College. His work, both poetry and prose, is studied in English departments worldwide and his powerful and intricate poetic voice has won him both critical praise and a wide audience.

www.ox.ac.uk/about_the_university/oxford_people/professor_of_poetry

Mr Leonard Blavatnik, an American industrialist and philanthropist, gave £75 million to establish the Blavatnik School of Government – Europe’s first school of government. Until now, schools specialising in government and public policy have been found largely in the United States. This historic benefaction, which is one of the most generous gifts in Oxford’s 900-year history, brought the University’s fundraising total to £1 billion. This figure was formally announced in October 2010 following input of Campaign figures from the colleges. The University’s collegiate Campaign supports world-class teaching, research and facilities.

www.campaign.ox.ac.uk