Meet our students at the end of the spring term

A new study, based on data collected by NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray telescope, suggests the universe's most powerful particle accelerators behave differently than previously thought. The study, published in the scientific journal Nature, shows that the bulk of gamma rays are produced much further away from black holes than scientists expected.

Recently a new university-wide agreement was signed with the University of Vermont (UVM) that will enable the bilateral exchange of undergraduate students. Vermont is highly ranked among national public universities in the USA and is considered one of the most environmentally responsible schools there.

Nobel Laureate Paul Crutzen talks to Per Larsson, editor of the University's staff magazine, about global warming, not owning a car, and what makes a good research environment.

Russian and Swedish researchers report in Science on significant methane emissions in the Arctic from thawing seabed north of Siberia.

International team of ecosystem researchers develop new approach for managing ecological tradeoffs.

Last summer, researchers at the Department of Applied Environmental Science published an article demonstrating that thiamine (vitamin B1) deficiency may explain increased mortality among birds in the Baltic Sea area. The article has now received the Cozzarelli Prize, an international prize awarded to articles of exceptional scientific excellence and originality.

For the fourth year in a row researchers from Stockholm University's Department of Geology and Geochemistry are conducting research in the Southern Ocean. Currently onboard Oden, an icebreaker, the researchers are working alongside a team of Americans on a variety of projects including marine geology, geophysics, oceanography, ecology and physics.

The Centre for Academic English (CAE) has quickly become a significant resource for students and staff at Stockholm University since its launch in 2007. With a high level of English proficiency virtually a necessity in many fields of higher education and professional life, the CAE runs specially designed courses in English for academic, research and professional purposes.

The Swedish government today presented a bill before parliament entitled "Competing on the basis of quality - tuition fees for foreign students". The bill suggests that study fees for students from outside the EU/EEA area should be apply from autumn 2011.

Issue 1/2010 of Stockholm University's staff magazine, Universitetsnytt, is now available – the first of the year. All members of staff receive a printed copy of the magazine in their postboxes and the magazine is also available in digital PDF format, via this webpage.

A new report on health inequalities in Britain, "Fair Societies, Healthy Lives: The Marmot Review", was published on February 11, 2010. The report, which was presented at a conference in London, offers recommendations for the reduction of health inequalities and is based on an extensive review of evidence and policies in England today. Professors Denny Vågerö and Olle Lundberg from Stockholm University's Centre for Health Equity Studies (CHESS) have been actively involved in work on this report.

Today is the so-called Fettisdagen in Sweden – or directly translated, "Fat Tuesday"! Shrove Tuesday, as it is generally known in English-speaking countries, is the day when Swedes (and other Scandinavians) eat semla, a traditional pastry long associated with this day.

"The Strangest Liquid: Why water is so weird" tells the story of how Stockholm University's Lars Pettersson, and Stanford University's professor Anders Nilsson, a guest researcher at Stockholm, have developed a theory that may change the way we understand the microscopic construction of water.

The Research School of Aesthetics is to hold a two-day symposium at Stockholm University on February 25-26, 2010.

In recent weeks the University's Security Unit has received many complaints concerning theft. Most of the thefts have occurred in connection with unguarded wardrobes or from offices. In order to prevent this kind of theft from occurring you should be extra alert.

Professor Drude Dahlerup from Stockholm University's Department of Political Science was invited to Freetown in Sierra Leone as a quota expert for a nation conference in December on "30 % Quota Representation for Women in Political Decision-Making Positions in Sierra Leone".

The Swedish Research Council has made an analysis of why several European countries in recent years have received more citations in scientific publications, while Sweden's level has remained relatively constant. The analysis also shows that publications from Stockholm University are the most cited in Sweden.

This workshop, which takes place on March 12, 2010, will focus on how researchers can use the University’s official Microsoft Word template. It is divided into two parts: a basic introduction to the University’s Word template followed by exercises where participants can work with their own texts.

Although referred to as spring term, the Orientation Day, which took place on January 18, was cold and snowy here in Stockholm. Once inside the University auditorium, however, Pro Vice-Chancellor Lena Gerholm's introductory remarks warmed up the audience of international students, giving them their first official welcome to Stockholm. The Magna Aula, nearly full to capacity, contained an attentive and enthusiastic group from all parts of the world.

The discovery that men who suppress their anger in the workplace are two to five times more likely to suffer a heart attack or die from it by researchers at Stockholm University Stress Research Institute has attracted attention in the US in recent weeks.

Recently The New York Times blog Freakanomics picked up on a paper by Stockholm University doctoral student David Yanagizawa on the powerful effects of radio propaganda during the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

Where’s the best food on campus? Where should you go if your wallet is a bit empty? And where should you go if you’re allergic to certain types of food? After intensive research on the part of personnel, a new online guide has been published on the University's international website.

Ericsson is offering two prizes of SEK 30,000 each to students who submit English-language research papers on one of three topic areas, selected by Ericsson, in the area of television and media.

This year Stockholm University is able to offer an additional seventy new student apartments for exchange students, bringing the current total to 408.

On Thursday, 7th January a new station, named Universitetet, was opened on the Roslagsbanan commuter line.

Science Magazine's Runner-Up Breakthrough of the Year 2009 was the discovery of gamma-ray pulsars with the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. A number of researchers from Stockholm University participate in this project, including the coordinator of the Swedish Fermi consortium Jan Conrad, Professor Lars Bergström and Associate Professor Joakim Edsjö.

December saw Stockholm University enter into a unique research collaboration with Greek academic and business partners. The move will enable the university's climate researchers to monitor climate change and its impact on the natural environment and life in the Mediterranean.

Swedish prime minister Fredrik Reinfeldt spoke at Stockholm University on Monday, December 14, 2009. Reinfeldt, who graduated from Stockholm University in 1990 with a degree in Business and Economics, spoke for thirty minutes about a range of topics including the financial crisis, the climate debate, and Sweden’s role at the helm of the EU for the last six months before taking questions.

Johan Rockström, Professor in Natural Resources Management at Stockholm University, and head of Stockholm Resilience Centre and Stockholm Environment Institute, has been awarded the title of Swede of the Year 2009 for his engaging and inspiring work for sustainable development.

This page includes details of master's programmes not published in Stockholm University's catalogue of master's programmes in English: Catalogue of master's programmes in English

The vaccination of staff at Stockholm University against the new influenza has once more been postponed and will now not take place as planned during week 49 (week beginning Monday 30 November). Changes in the vaccination schedule are a result of the fact that health care providers Avonova have not received the required vaccine doses.

Stockholm University has recently produced a new catalogue covering English language master's programmes starting during the academic year beginning autumn 2010-2011.

Stockholm University Library, in collaboration with Wikimedia Sweden, recently held a two-day conference focussing on one of today's most important internet phenomena: Wikipedia.

In a record collaboration between the public and private sectors, including the City of Stockholm and Stockholm University, the Karolinska/Norra station area of the city is set to become the world's leading centre for life science research. Over SEK 50 billion ($7.3 billion) is to be invested in the area, in the period up to 2025, making it the largest investment ever made in Sweden.

Stockholm University invites all students and employees to follow the recommendations of the Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control (SMI) and the National Board of Health and Welfare regarding how to avoid infection by the new influenza (flu). The University has also decided to offer free vaccinations for employees and students.

Due to a change in priorities by Stockholm County Council, the planned vaccination of staff at Stockholm University against the new influenza (flu) will be delayed, and can first begin during week 49 (week beginning November 30).

"What should we do to stay competitive in science? Some reflections from the European Research Council". Seminar by Professor Helga Nowotny, Vice President, ERC Scientific Council.

The 2008 Elizabeth Haub Prize was awarded on October 22 at Spökslottet. The prize went to professor Laurence Boisson de Chazournes from the Université de Genève. The Elizabeth Haub Prize is one of the world's most prestigious prizes in the environmental field.

The Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet) is to award SEK 400 million in grants for research in the humanities and social science this year. Stockholm University will receive 32 of the 157 grants issued, totalling SEK 100 million from the Swedish Research Council, the highest total in Sweden.

A group of astronomers has recorded the most distant object ever in the universe so far, a star which exploded 13 billion years ago - only 640 million years after the Big Bang itself.

The Japanese New Government's Policy and Nexus of the Korean Peninsula & China by Prof. Hideshi TAKESADA, Executive Director, The National Institute for Defence Studies (NIDS), Tokyo

The PRD College (Poverty Related College) is an international collaboration programme on biomedicine and development issues established with the aim of closing the gap between research on biology, health and development in Africa. It will enable young African and European scientists to conduct research on poverty-related diseases, such as HIV/Aids, malaria and tuberculosis.

In 2012, only three years away, it will be the 100th anniversary of the death of August Strindberg.

The University's telephone exchange is going to be updated with a new software version. Preparatory work has already begun. The upgrade will start on Friday 30 October at 14.00 and going on over the weekend until Monday 2 November at 7.00. This means excessive disturbances and periodic interruptions for all telephony at the University during this work. Interruptions will also disrupt the functions of voice mail, references and further links to mobile phones.

In an international survey of masters’ programmes in law, the law course at Stockholm University emerged as the most popular of all equivalent programmes in Scandinavia.

Once again this year, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences will hold the annual Nobel Lectures in the Aula Magna on 8 December.

From 1 July until the end of this year, Sweden holds the presidency of the EU. Among other things, this means that the Swedish government is running the activities of the EU Council of Ministers and representing the EU as an organisation at an international level in a number of areas.

The Swedish Council for Working Life and Social Research (FAS) has decided how to allocate the supplementary funding provided under the Research and Innovation Bill for research on working life.

The planning process for the new Albano area is now fully underway. This is the area where the new educational and research buildings for Stockholm University and the Stockholm Institute of Technology will be located. Accommodation for undergraduate and postgraduate students will also be built.

Providing care in a globalising world: the role of markets and migration, is an open conference on the political and social economy of care in Sweden, Finland, Australia, Canada and the UK. The conference will take place at 09.00-17.30 on October 26.

On Friday, September 25th 2009 eight honorary doctorates will be conferred during the University's graduation and installation ceremony in the Blue Hall at Stockholm City Hall. During the event 139 of the 246 PhD candidates who graduated during the 2008/9 academic year will receive their doctorates. The ceremony will also see eight jubilee doctorates awarded to those who received their PhDs from Stockholm University fifty years ago.

This year's Annual Report from the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education shows that there were more international students in higher education in Sweden in 2008 than ever before.

The Swedish Government has announced proposals that would allow universities to charge tuition fees for students coming from outside of Europe, starting in the autumn term 2011.

Sweden looks set to strengthen its position as a research nation after the government published a report outlining its plans to increase funding and promote scientific competitiveness between now and 2012.

This term, autumn 2009, saw the most well attended Orientation Day for international students so far, with around 800 exchange and master's students attending. We were out and about with the video camera meeting students from all corners of the world.

Teacher educators within Europe will soon have access to a common and comprehensive repository with videos, exercises, presentations and lectures as a tool for preparing their education. This is the main objective of an ongoing international EU-project called Share.TEC, in which Stockholm University is one of the participating partners.

PRD College (Poverty Related College) is a programme for international co-operation in biomedicine and development, which was created to bridge the gap between research in biology, health and development issues in Africa. The project provides a context for young African and European researchers to conduct research on poverty-related diseases such as HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.

Stockholm University and the University of Michigan have initiated a new program to enhance collaboration in research and education.

The Teaching Award is awarded every year for both Teacher of the Year and Department of the Year.

As of 20th August, new addresses have been implemented within the Frescati campus area, in order to make it easier to navigate the area.

The New York Times recently featured comments from Stockholm researcher Örjan Gustafsson as part of its coverage of a potential major environmental catastrophe that will rapidly accelerate global warming.

Stockholm County Council estimates that vaccination against the new influenza A(H1N1) can be initiated in early October. The influenza vaccination is to be offered free of charge to all patients living permanently in Stockholm County.

The Board of the Faculty of Social Sciences has made a special commitment to the recruitment of new doctoral students within ten of the Faculty's leading research areas, and is currently offering ten separate PhD positions. The deadline for application for these positions has now been extended to September 21, 2009.

The University has a wide variety of attractive profile products – clothing, pens, mugs, and so on, decorated with the University's emblem. These items can be purchased at the University's supplies store, the SU-butiken.

Around 800 international students from all corners of the world received a warm welcome and an overview of life at Stockholm University during the 2009 autumn term Orientation Day programme, which took place on Friday 21 August. Taking the opportunity to mingle, introduce themselves and chat, many students were already forming new relationships for the coming term.

The new influenza, now known as influenza A(H1N1), and previously known as swine flu or swine influenza, can spread easily between people. Stockholm University has decided to contract to vaccinate University staff against swine flu. Students at the university will also be offered vaccination.

On July 1, Stockholm University completed the third of an initial five annual training programmes for civil servants from the Chinese province of Guangdong. New components in this year's programme included a collaboration with Oxford University and an increased focus on the environment and sustainable development.

Master’s student Sara Mehrabi is positive about life in Sweden. “I love Stockholm,” says Sara. “I think it’s the combination of forest and water right here in the city. You’re always close to nature.”

Swedish culture has always interested Joanna Tsen, exchange student from Australia National University in Canberra. “Sweden is cutting edge, the political system, the approach to education,” says Joanna.

Good friends, a supportive community, stimulating courses, these are the ingredients that have helped create a positive international experience for Ethiopian Master’s student Yenenah Haileselaissie.

If you’re heading to Stockholm University in the near future – you practically don’t have to leave the desktop of your computer to get an idea of what's going on here! There’s a wealth of information about life in the city and at the University available on the Net.

Want to stay in touch with Stockholm and the University now that you have returned home after your studies in Stockholm? Stockholm University's network on the new online community Sweden in Touch is a place where former students can make contact with friends old and new.

"The scariest science by far is not the glaciology or what's happening with Antarctica – it's the sociology", noted NY Times New York Times reporter Andrew Revkin. We spoke to Dr Marcus Carson, a researcher specialising in political and environmental issues at Stockholm University's Department of Sociology, about why it is so difficult to change the patterns of human activity that lead to global climate change.

Stockholm University professor Francisco Lacerda was threatened at the end of last year with a law suit for claiming in a scholarly article that the underlying software used by a lie detector lies “at the astrology end of the [scientific] spectrum”. Last week Professor Lacerda presented a paper about the case during the international phonetics conference at Stockholm University – Fonetik 2009.

Daniel Westman, researcher in law and technology at the Swedish Law & Informatics Research Institute within the Department of Law at Stockholm University, talks about the legal furore around the Pirate Bay trial, the way the law needs to keep up with technological change, the role of legal academics in society, and being in the international limelight.

The Marianne and Marcus Wallenberg Foundation is investing SEK 5 million in a new project at the Department of Literature and History of Ideas: "Fiction and Figuration. Studies in high and late medieval literature."

This year's Bert Bolin Lecture on Climate Research, with international guest speaker Venkatachalam Ramaswamy of Princeton University, USA, will take place at 3.30 pm on May 29, in G-salen, E-Building in Arrheniuslaboratoriet. UPDATE: To be streamed live at 3.30pm.

The Pop Dakar festival is free of charge and open for everyone above 18 years of age. The festival takes place on Saturday 30th of May within the Stockholm University campus area near Gula Villan. The festival starts at 14:30 Saturday and continues until 03:00 Sunday.

Ars Edendi, a research programme based at the section for Classical Languages at Stockholm University is to hold a lecture series at Stockholm University, June 8-9.

Ericsson is offering two prizes of SEK 30,000 each to students who submit English-language research papers on one of three topic areas, selected by Ericsson, in the area of television and media.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Science invites all to attend a public lecture with Alan Sokal of New York University, on the subject of "What is Science and Why Should We Care?". The lecture will take place at 18.00 on Wednesday 27 May at Beijersalen, The Royal Swedish Academy of Science, Lilla Frescativägen 4, Stockholm.

The multi-disciplinary research centre Score, run jointly by the Stockholm School of Economics and Stockholm University, is hosting an open seminar entitled "Learning by Example: Imitation and Innovation at a Global Bank". The seminar will take place in Seminarierummet, Kräftriket, Hus 7A, at 10.00, May 13 2009.

Stockholm University, VINNOVA and the Swedish Research Council invite researchers and potential business partners to an information day on funding possibilities within the EU research and development programmes. The information day targets researchers at companies, authorities, institutes and universities and is to be held on Tuesday 2 June 2009 between 09.00-12.00.

The Swedish Institute is looking for international students who would like to share their experiences and express them by blogging on SwedenInTouch.

The work Stockholm University researchers are doing to tackle climate change was recently highlighted in a special report by the British Broadcasting Corporation, the BBC. The BBC visited Ny-Ålesund in the Arctic – the most northerly human settlement on earth – to see how researchers are measuring changes to the Earth's atmosphere.

There will be a new round of admission for available places within the International Master's Programme in Political Science, starting autumn 2009. The deadline for application is June 10, 2009.

Students at Stockholm University received the first and third prizes in the business plan competition Venture Cup Öst. They will now go to take part in the Swedish finals on June 3.

The Election of the Student Union Board is held annually during the spring semester. The election is now underway, with voting taking place 4-8 May – the last day for casting your vote is Friday!

Stockholm University has named this year’s honorary doctors: Professor Okko Behrends, Germany, and Thomas Hammarberg, the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights, at the Faculty of Law; author and Sinologue Cecilia Lindqvist and Professor Michael Long, USA, at the Faculty of Humanities; Professor Daniel N. Stern, Switzerland and USA, at the Faculty of Social Sciences; and Professors Paulo Artaxo, Brazil, János Mink, Hungary and James Whelan, Australia at the Faculty of Science.

Sweden's application statistics are now available for courses and study programmes beginning during autumn term 2009. The statistics show that Sweden’s most sought-after courses are at Stockholm University.

Vice-Chancellor Kåre Bremer welcomed guest researchers to Stockholm University on Wednesday this week after they were treated to a tour of the campus.

Stockholm University has special open times during the Valborg and May Day festive period.

On April 27 Stockholm University researcher Jan Bogdanski successfully defended his thesis “Experimental multiuser secure quantum communications” for the Department of Physics.

The University's Centre for Learning and Teaching has, on behalf of the Vice-Chancellor and Pro Vice-Chancellor, invited all managers and teachers to a number of seminars to begin work with developing a strategy to prevent plagiarism at Stockholm University.

On Tuesday April 21 a panel discussion took place at Aula Magna in response to the ruling in the Pirate Bay case. Members of the panel included Magnus Eriksson, co-founder of Piratbyrån (The Bureau of Piracy), Håkan Hydén, professor of the sociology of law, Jan Rosén, professor of civil law and the government-appointed investigator for overhauling Swedish copyright legislation, and Daniel Westman, a doctoral student specializing in law and informatics. The moderator was Peter Wahlgren, professor of law & informatics.

Lawstudents Sofia Bergmark, Louis Bonnier, and Ása Sigríður Hallsdóttir came second in this year’s international European Law Moot Competition. Only one point separated the Stockholm University team from Belgium’s Collège d’Europe, who won for the third year in a row.

On 23 April 2009 the Research Liaison Office organised an information day about funding opportunities for incoming and outgoing researchers. Representatives from VINNOVA, the Swedish Research Council, the Swedish Council for Working Life and Social Research, the Fulbright Commission and the Swedish Cancer Society spoke in front of an audience of researchers planning a postdoc, and established researchers who want to receive postdocs with funding.

Law students from Stockholm University have won first and second prize in the sixteenth annual Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot.

The Swedish Prime Minister's Office and the British Embassy are holding a seminar entitled "Growth and Jobs - the Challenges for Europe". The seminar will take place in the University's conference centre Aula Magna, on 28 April, between 2.30 p.m. and 3.30 p.m.

The differences are great between Muslim-profiled schools in Sweden and England. The fundamental reason lies in the frameworks that are set up as conditions for getting permission to start and operate a school with a confessional orientation in the two countries. This is shown in Åsa Brattlund's doctoral dissertation in international education at Stockholm University, which will be submitted on Friday, April 24.

Open hours for Stockholm University campuses.

The Research Liaison Office invites researchers at Stockholm University to a half-day course on how to write a competitive proposal for the EU 7th Framework Program. The course targets researchers from all faculties and is to be held on Wednesday, September 2, 2009, between 09.30-12.30.

The Research Liaison Office invites researchers to an information day about funding opportunities for incoming and outgoing scientists on 23 April 2009.

The Research Liaison Office and the Conference Services Unit are organising a tour of the campus for guest researchers on Wednesday, April 29 at 15:00.

A new study from Stockholm University's Department of Psychology shows that over half of all children who undergo an intensive one-session treatment are freed from their phobia.

Ola Hössjer, Professor of Mathematical Statistics at Stockholm University, is one of five recipients of the Göran Gustafsson Prize, which is the largest national prize for scientific research in Sweden, with prize-winners sharing a total of SEK 23 million in prize money.

Six weeks have passed since readers met Master's students Yenenah Haileselassie, YouJin Chong and Sara Mehrabi and Exchange student Jenny French. The four students were interviewed in late January on one of their first days at Stockholm University. We caught up with them last week and spoke to them about their experience of life in Sweden so far.

The Internet could be used as an early warning system for potential ecological disasters say researchers from Stockholm Resilience Centre and University of East Anglia.

A seminar on the theme of Climate, Ecosystems and Development is to be held at Beijer Hall, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Lilla Frescativägen 4, Stockholm on Thursday April 30, 2009, 10.00-13.00.

Blasting on the north side of the Arrhenius Laboratory will occur at specified times throughout the day on March 23.

The Department of Cinema Studies and the Department of English, are collaborating with The National Library of Sweden, with support from the Granholm Foundation and the U.S. Embassy, Stockholm, in hosting a conference under the title of Rethinking American Studies — Media, Languages and Geographies. The event takes place on March 19-20 in the Auditorium (Hörsalen), at the National Library of Sweden (Kungl. biblioteket).

Curious about student life in Sweden? Studyinsweden.se has produced a series of video interviews with students at Swedish universities. The videos offer a glimpse of how international students think and feel about their student activities and their new life in Sweden. Check out the film called Linköping, Mälardalen and Stockholm—here you can see Stockholm University student Serkan Ceylan talk about his experience of studying in Sweden.

The Department of Psychology is organising a seminar entitled "The Rationality and Irrationality of Feelings: Applying Psychology to the Problem of Genocide", to be conducted by leading researcher Paul Slovic, of Decision Research and the University of Oregon. The seminar will take place on Thursday March 19, 13.30-15.00, in U34, Frescativägen Hagväg 8.

The Korean Department of the University's Department of Oriental Languages is holding a seminar entitled "Korea-Sweden relations: the 50th Anniversary and beyond - a Korean Perspective". The seminar will be conducted by Cho Hee-yong, Ambassador, Republic of Korea, on Thursday March 26, 2009, 13:00-15:00 in the Aulan (Auditorium), at the Department of Oriental Languages in Kräftriket.

The Nordic Network of Narrative Studies is holding a conference on the theme of Nordic Narratology. The conference will take place on March 27-29, 2009 in the Auditorium, at Humanistvillan, Frescativägen 24, Stockholm University.

Professor Markku Kulmala, recipient of the King Carl XVI Gustaf Visiting Professorship in Environmental Science, is to spend his time as guest professor at the Department of Applied Environmental Sciences at Stockholm University, and two departments at Lund University: Physics, and Physical Geography and Ecosystems Analysis.

On Wednesday, March 18, the main library at Frescati will be closed between 9.00 and 13.00, whilst librarians inspect the library and bookshelves are cleaned.

Stockholm University's landlord, Akademiska hus, has taken a decision to increase parking fees from April 1, 2009.

A delegation from Stockholm University, led by Vice-Chancellor Kåre Bremer, arrived in India this week to sign an exchange agreement with Jawaharlal Nehru University and to discuss a possible agreement with the University of Delhi.

350 participants from business, industry, academia and government authorities visit the Mobile Life Centre in Kista today, where an open house is being held.

This year marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, as well as the 150th anniversary of his groundbreaking work "The Origin of the Species". At Stockholm University Library, however, another Darwin-related event is being celebrating—the return of a stolen first edition of Darwin's book, "The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex". The book was recently returned to the library, after having been offered for sale on a web-based auction site in the USA.

A fire broke out on Friday evening in a room in C-huset, floor 5, Arrhenius Laboratories.

There are still places available on the English version of the study courses University Pedagogy 1 and 2. The courses are aimed at enabling participants to fulfil the requirement for education and training in learning and teaching in higher education, which is compulsory for doctoral students who teach and new teachers at Stockholm University.

The Swedish government has unveiled the contents of a bill dealing with the abolition of compulsory student union membership, which will be presented to parliament in March. The proposal, which will now be examined by government legal experts, means that compulsory student union membership will be abolished from July 1, 2010.

The Swedish capital is to be the first European Green Capital in 2010, it was announced yesterday. The European Commission, which has conceived the European Green Capital Award as a way of promoting and rewarding the environmental initiatives of local authorities, announced the first award winners at a ceremony in Brussels on 23 February 2009.

Today is the so-called Fettisdagen in Sweden – or directly translated, "Fat Tuesday"! Shrove Tuesday, as it is generally known in English-speaking countries, is the day when Swedes (and other Scandinavians) eat semla, a traditional pastry long associated with this day.

The Vice-Chancellor recently passed a resolution regarding the arrangement of the academic year 2009-2010. The autumn term 2009 will run from 22 August-23 December 2009, and 1-16 January 2010. The 2010 spring term runs from 17 January 2010 to 5 June 2010.

See an advance preview of a unique site-specific sound installation, made for Stockholm University Library by Åsa Stjerna, from 25-28 February. The installation will be on view in Glasburen, located on floor 4 of the E-Building in Södra huset, at Stockholm University's Frescati Campus.

Professor Nancy W. Brickhouse will hold a public lecture on the 28 April 2009, 16.00–18.00 in Dahlströmsalen, Campus Konradsberg.

The Department of Environmental Chemistry at Stockholm University, together with other departments and organisations, are to hold the 12th EuCheMS International Conference on Chemistry and the Environment at Aula Magna, Stockholm University's conference centre. The event will take place 14-17 June 2009, in Stockholm, Sweden.

The Mobile Life Centre at Stockholm University is a hotbed for Swedish research and development for the next generation of mobile services.

The Department of Economic History, Stockholm University is hosting a conference entitled "A Green New Deal for Sweden? Transformation of Ecological, Energy and Economic Systems in the 21st Century". The event will take place on 9 - 10 March 2009 in 'G-Salen', Arrheniuslaboratorierna, Campus Frescati, Stockholm University. The deadline for registration for this event is February 27, 2009.

Chemist and Nobel Laureate Svante Arrhenius was one of the greatest naturalists of our times and one of the first scientists to discover the greenhouse effect. Stockholm University celebrated Svante Arrhenius' 150th Anniversary on Thursday, February 19 with a special event in Aula Magna, the University's conference centre.

Stockholm University has initiated a partnership with the University of Oxford to provide professional public administration training.

The scientific journals Science and Nature have both recently published articles referring to the controversy around the Israeli company Nemesysco's threat to sue Stockholm University professor Francisco Lacerda and his colleague Anders Eriksson of Gothenburg University. The reason for the threat was that the researchers criticised the technology behind the company's lie detectors in a scientific paper - which has subsequently been withdrawn by the publisher, under pressure from Nemesysco.

Issue 1/2009 of Stockholm University's staff magazine, Universitetsnytt, is now available – the first of the year. All members of staff receive a printed copy of the magazine in their post boxes. The magazine is also available in digital form, via this webpage.

Researchers from Stockholm University have found that the invasive comb jelly Mnemiopsis leidyi, which has had an enormous ecological impact in the Black and Caspian seas, has expanded its distribution to the European Atlantic coast and Baltic Sea.

Yesterday, February 5, a seminar was held with Benny Dagan, the Israeli Ambassador to Sweden, on the elections in Israel, which are due to take place on February 10. During the seminar a shoe and books were thrown at the ambassador. Police officers on the scene arrested two people. The event is now a police matter.

The number of first-choice applicants to international Master's programmes at Stockholm University has increased by over 30 percent since last year. The Master's programme Programme in Banking and Finance has attracted the greatest number of applicants.

A number of high profile events have taken place so far this year to mark the beginning of International Year of Astronomy 2009. Most recently, on 29 January, the Year of Astronomy was celebrated by the release of a series of postage stamps with a space theme. PoGOLite, an international collaborative space project with researchers from Stockholm University and the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), is the inspiration for the design of the new stamps. Another important event in which scientists from Stockholm University participated was the launch of Sweden's largest telescope at Albanova University Center, which took place on 8 January.

The University's Research Liason Office is organising a seminar for researchers in humanities, social sciences and law focusing on European research funding in the Framework programme 7 (FP7). The seminar will take place on 9 February.

Karolina Ekholm, associate professor with Stockholm University's Department of Economics, has been appointed as Sweden's central bank's new Deputy Governor.

Stockholm University's Vice-Chancellor Kåre Bremer has been writing a blog in Swedish since June 2005, under the heading of 'comments on current events.' January 2009 marks the launch of the Vice-Chancellor's new English-language blog. The blog will focus on issues in higher educational and research from an international perspective, with particular emphasis on issues affecting Stockholm University.

The Centre for Research in International Migration and Ethnic Relations (CEIFO), at Stockholm University, together with Uppsala University's Department of History and Centre for Multiethnic Research and the Section for Research in Educational Science at Södertörns högskola are to hold a conference at Stockholm University, 5-7 March 2009, entitled the Stockholm International Conference on the Discrimination and Persecution of Roma, Sinti and Travellers.

The Research School of Aesthetics Campus Conference at Stockholm University is holding a conference entitled The Arts and the Senses; Intermediality and the Multisensorial, to take place in Humanistvillan at Stockholm University's Frescati campus on February 19-20 2009.

The Swedish National Agency for Higher Education has released an updated version of its Swedish-English online word list, aimed at those working within the higher education sector in Sweden.

Francisco Lacerda, a professor of phonetics at Stockholm University, is one of two scientists threatened with legal action after the publication of a scientific article condemning the use of lie detectors. The Israeli company Nemesysco, which manufactures detectors, has written in a letter to the researchers' publishers that the researchers may be sued for libel if they continue to write on this subject in the future.

The databases DiVA and OPUS will be shut down for the registration of new entries from Monday February 23. During week 9, at the end of February, all items in OPUS and DiVA be converted and transferred to the new DiVA.

On Wednesday 28 January, at 17.00, Dr. Costas Panagopoulos, Director of the Center for Electoral Politics and Democracy at Fordham University, New York, will give his perspective on President Obama’s successful campaign, as well as what we can expect from an Obama administration in terms of foreign policy.

The start of the spring semester 2009 at Stockholm University sees an influx of International Master's students from around the world, attracted to studying in the Swedish capital. Many new Master's students attended the orientation day, where they were given an introduction to student services at the University– and a warm welcome from Pro Vice-Chancellor Lena Gerholm.

Scientific expeditions play a crucial roll in pushing forward research within the areas of climate and environment. During 2008 archaeologists, geologists, meteorologists, glaciologists and zoologists from Stockholm University took part in Polar research expeditions. The researchers' films, photos and stories of everything from cloud formation and Arctic foxes to climate research in the Antarctic are on display during 2009 at one of Sweden’s foremost tourist attractions – ICEHOTEL in Jukkasjärvi.

The weather in Sweden is as exotic as the culture for many of the around 250 new exchange students arriving at Stockholm University this spring.

Stockholm researchers hit international headlines recently when news of their research was featured in acclaimed magazine New Scientist.

Professors Denny Vågerö and Olle Lundberg, both at Stockholm University's Centre for Health Equity Studies (CHESS), are appointed to the British government's new commission to examine health inequalities in the country.

This semester Stockholm University will be holding three different sets of orientation days to welcome new students. The orientation days are designed to help students find their way around the University, and to find their feet in the first days of the new term. There are orientation days for international exchange students, international master's students and Swedish students from all groups.

If you are planning to apply for a Master's programme at Stockholm University beginning this autumn then you should ensure that you have sent in your application via Studera.nu, the nation-wide higher education applications website, by midnight Thursday, the 15th of January 2009 (GMT+1).

Every year Stockholm University publishes a vast number of articles and books, both in printed and digital form.

Need to take a pause? 'Andrum', which means something like 'breathing space' in Swedish, is the name of a room for prayer and meditation, open to all at Stockholm University irrespective of religion or creed. The 'Andrum' can be found at room E 407, in Södra huset, Frescati campus and is open between 8am and 8pm.

IT Services has issued a warning to all students and staff concerning false emails, so-called 'phishing' emails, where a third party attempts to trick the recipient of the false email into revealing secure information, which will then be used for criminal purposes.

Researchers from Stockholm University have recently caught the attention of the international media with a study published in the journal Global Biogeochemical Cycles, which revealed large pollutant loads from land to the sea are missed by existing monitoring efforts.

Stockholm University researchers at the Stress Research Institute made international headlines recently with the revelation that a bad boss can be bad for your heart.

The University produces the staff magazine, Universitetsnytt, six times per year. As well as a substantial body of articles in Swedish, each number contains a two-page summary in English, with the frequent addition of an English-language column on the back cover.

December 3 2008 marked the opening of the Stockholm Centre for Healthcare Ethics (CHE).

Stockholm University welcomes researchers, university teachers, administrators, gender equality practitioners and student union representatives to the 6th European Conference on Gender Equality in Higher Education. The theme of the conference, to take place 5-9 August 2009 will be "Changing the Gender Order".

The Department of Law is to host an open lecture on the theme of "International Law for the Post-Torture Era". The speaker is Professor Mary Ellen Ocónnell, Robert & Marion Short Chair in Law, University of Notre Dame and the event will take place December 18, 2008.

Whilst early December might mean the imminent arrival of Christmas to many, in Sweden it is also a time when a select band of the world’s leading scholars come to Stockholm to receive the Nobel Prize.

Today, 10 December 2008, Stockholm University's School of business launched a new website. The new website, based around the University's recently developed visual identity is available in both Swedish and English.

On the 10 December the Centre for Fashion Studies at Stockholm University is holding an open lecture entitled Cross-Dressing Fashion and Furniture: Giorgio Armani and the Limits of Design and Space.

On December 3 the Nordic Confucius Institute of Stockholm unveiled a two-metre high statue of the philosopher Confucius, a gift from the Provincial People's Govemment in Shandong, eastern China.

This year's Nobel Laureates in Chemistry and Physics, as well as the winner of the Economy Prize, are to give the official Nobel Lectures at Stockholm University's Aula Magna conference centre on Monday 8th December 2008.

Professor Samuel Weber, of Northwestern University Evanstone/Chicago, is to give a lecture under the title of Self, Singularity, Credibility: Thoughts on the Current "Credit" Crisis. The lecture, organised by the Research School of Aesthetics, is open to all and will take place on the 8th December 2008 at 16.00 in the auditorium at Humanistvillan.

Researchers and experts from Europe gathered last week at Stockholm University for the Nordic conference, NordLib 2.0 - Get Inspired by Web 2.0 for Libraries, which took place at the Aula Magna conference centre. Keynote speakers included prominent Swedish researcher Dr. Richard Gatarski, and Brian Kelly, UK Web Focus at the University of Bath.

Professor Zhang Jun of Fudan University in Shanghai is to give this year's Nordic Confucius Institute Annual Lecture, which is entitled "Thirty Years of Transformation: What is Special about China's Economic Experimentation?" The lecture will take place on the 18th November at 16.30 in Philipsalen, School of Business, Stockholm University.

On 7 November researchers at Stockholm University's Stress Research Institute published an article that describes how heart rate and sleep in boys are affected by the playing of violent video games.

The University has a wide variety of attractive profile products – clothing, pens, mugs, and so on, decorated with the University's emblem. These items can be purchased at the University's supplies store, the SU-butiken.

Professor Thomas Helleday, cancer researcher at Stockholm University and Oxford University, received the top award during the Swiss Bridge Award 2008. The distinction was given for the research project "Novel Therapy for PARP inhibitor resistant BRCA1 or BRCA2 tumours" which focusses on breast and prostate cancer.

Prof. John R. Porter, Department of Environment, Resources and Technology, University of Copenhagen is to conduct an open seminar, entitled “Globalised agroecosystems – play, fast-forward, rewind or pause?” at Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, on 20 November 14.00-15.00.

This year Sweden joins the Country Brand Index in tenth place worldwide. The index, now in its fourth year, maps trends in the travel and tourism sector.

The Department of Psychology is holding an open-house event with a focus on eye-tracking technology. The event will take place at Frescati hagväg 9, Thursday, 20 November 2008, 13:00-16:00.

The Department of Scandinavian Languages is to hold the Second International Interdisciplinary Conference on Perspectives and Limits of Dialogism in Mikhail Bakhtin, at Stockholm University, June 3-5, 2009.

Abba star and composer Benny Andersson was awarded an honorary doctorate by Stockholm University's Faculty of Humanities on the 26 September 2008. On the 30th October he visited the University's lecture theatre and conference centre Aula Magna for a conversation with music professor Holger Larsen on his music and its composition.

A new series of interviews has been commissioned to highlight the work being done by researchers at Stockholm University, within law, the humanities, science and the social sciences. The first phase of these interviews is now complete and five new articles have been added to the section of the University's international website entitled Researcher profiles.

The fifth number for 2008 of Stockholm University's staff magazine is now available for download in digital form.

The Cern facility in Geneva has the world’s largest particle physics centre. When the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) particle accelerator went into operation in September this year, it marked the start of a new era in particle physics.

Structural chemistry professor Osamu Terasaki has been selected by Science Watch as one of the world’s most quoted researchers in the field of mesoporous materials.

The curious behaviour of the Bluestreak Cleaner fish, which works in pairs to give better service to its clients is the subject of an article in the international science magazine Nature, which has published findings from a research project in which Stockholm University's Department of Zoology plays a leading roll. This week details have been released of the first sighting of the Round Goby fish in Swedish waters have been confirmed by Stockholm University researcher Gustaf Almqvist.

Professor Gunnar von Heijne of the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics is one of five Swedish researchers awarded an Advanced Grant by the European Research Council (ERC) in the field of Life Sciences.

A seminar in honour of Professor C.S. Holling, recipient of the Volvo Environment Prize 2008 will be held on Wednesday, 5 November, 2008, 13:00-16:30, at the Beijer Hall, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Lilla Frescativägen 4, Stockholm. The event is free of charge and open to all.

On the 1st October this year, 400 international guest researchers visited the City Hall for the annual reception, hosted by the City of Stockholm and Stockholm County Council.

On 30th September 2008 the Swedish Institute launched a new network, called SwedenInTouch.se, aimed at international students, scholars and professionals with academic links to Sweden. The purpose of the network is to bring together students and professionals and help them to stay updated and in touch with Sweden.

This year three lectures will be held in English during Stockholm University's 2008 Researchers' Days, which take place on the 7th-8th October. These lectures are open to all and free of charge.

On the 3-4 October 2008 the Centre for Fashion Studies at Stockholm University presents its annual symposium – Interactions – where international scholars within fashion studies will present their research.

The Research Liaison Office and the International Exchange Unit at Student Services invite all interested staff and students to a thematic seminar on Japan.

On Friday 26 September Stockholm University conducted its annual academic ceremonies, in which doctoral degrees and honorary doctorates were awarded to successful candidates. 153 new doctors degrees and nine honorary doctorates were conferred this year. The occasion also saw the inauguration of twenty-seven new professors.

The Swedish Agency for Higher Education’s new online dictionary translates words and terms of relevance to higher education.

This autumn the Swedish Government plans to submit a proposal to parliament for the introduction of fees for non-European students (from non-EU countries).

Researchers from the Department of Applied Environmental Science (ITM) made international headlines this week as they revealed there is evidence of large releases of methane into the atmosphere from frozen seabed stores off the north coast of Siberia.

Are you interested in starting up a university big band? Do you play an instrument, and are you an employee or student at Stockholm University?

On 15 August, smoke-free zones – or no-smoking zones – were introduced around all University buildings in Frescati, Kräftriket and Sveaplan.

Professor Boris Gasparov, of Columbia University New York, is to give a short series of lectures at Stockholm University.

The University produces Universitetsnytt six times per year. As well as a substantial body of articles in Swedish, each number contains a two-page summary in English, with the frequent addition of an English-language column on the back cover. The first number of the 2008 autumn term was released last week, and contains a wide range of news and updates.

Pay phones are to be removed from Campus Frescati and Campus Konradsberg in the near future, after telephone operator Telia cancelled their contract with Stockholm University.

The University's 'Annonstorg', a classified ads page, has now been retired from use.

More than 500 new exchange students from around 40 different countries have arrived at Stockholm University with the hopes of having a true Sweden experience.

This year Master's students have in some cases received different kinds of identity numbers than in previous years.

At the end of June this year Stockholm University's Vice-Chancellor Kåre Bremer signed an bilateral exchange agreement with the University of Michigan.

Stockholm is the sixth most competitive knowledge economy in the world according to newly published results from the World Knowledge Competitive Index 2008.

The effect of human activity on the biosphere is one of the most important issues of today – and tomorrow. We live on a planet that, ever since the dawn of mankind, has been affected by human beings, but today, changes to climate and ecosystems are happening faster than ever before, and on a larger scale. Stockholm University was among the first to realise the importance of environmental research.

If you are a student or researcher in Stockholm who has arrived early before the term starts you may be looking for things to do. Here are a few tips for the coming month.

Discussion is an important part of learning in most disciplines. It is not easy to initiate a useful and productive discussion, and even harder to sustain it. This workshop addresses these important issues in teaching and learning.

The IT Helpdesk has now moved from its previous location (in the foyer of the A Building in Södra huset) to a new location in the same building: Room 201, Floor 2, B Building, Södra huset.

AlbaNova University Centre, in Stockholm University's Frescati campus area, is hosting this year's Identification of Dark Matter conference – idm2008. The conference is now currently underway, and continues until August 22, 2008.

New digital maps are available for all Stockholm University locations in the Stockholm region. The digital maps are available from the new international website, in conjunction with the launch of a new dynamic Google map function.

The Centre for Gender Studies at Stockholm University welcomes feminist researchers to an international conference on research methods and methodological issues and dilemmas. The conference is to take place 4-6 February 2009 at Stockholm University.

The New York Times is running an article entitled The Nose, an Emotional Time Machine, which describes the latest research around the olfactory sense - the sense of smell.

The Department of Psychology is holding an open-house event with a focus on eye-tracking technology. The event will take place at Frescati hagväg 9, Thursday, 20 November 2008, 13:00-16:00.