Exeter Uni News

Memorial trees planted at Royal Devon hospitals to honour health workers

Trigger warning: This references National Suicide Memorial Day for Health and Care Workers. We appreciate that this topic might be difficult for some colleagues, but we think it is vitally important to raise awareness. There is more information on support and training at the end of this post. A memorial tree has been planted outside the Medical School’s Research, Innovation, Learning and Development (RILD) building at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (RD&E) as a way to remember…

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Specialist laboratory exploring experimental techniques to improve the resolution of analyses on the felled Sycamore Gap tree 

Specialist laboratory exploring experimental techniques to improve the resolution of analyses on the felled Sycamore Gap tree 

A university laboratory specialising in digital preservation and the digital display of historic artefacts is playing a key role in efforts to commemorate the felled Sycamore Gap tree. The Digital Humanities Lab at the University of Exeter is exploring computer vision and imaging techniques on a slice of the tree to assist Historic England in more accurately dating its age. Specialists in the team have produced an array of models of the wood’s surface and structure to make…

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Oil rig study reveals vital role of tiny hoverflies

A study of migratory hoverflies on a North Sea oil rig has revealed their vital role as long-distance pollen transporters.    Researchers studied 121 marmalade hoverflies that landed on an oil rig in the Britannia oil field, 200km off the coast of Scotland. Pollen was found on 92% of the hoverflies and – with no vegetation on the rig, and no land nearby – this shows they can transport pollen over great distances, potentially linking plant populations that…

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Celebrating National Postdoc Appreciation Week

We are joining the global celebration of National Postdoc Appreciation Week – an initiative dedicated to acknowledging, recognising, and celebrating the outstanding contributions of postdocs and early career researchers (ECRs) to research, teaching, mentoring, outreach, and much more. The Public Health and Sports Sciences department is immensely proud of our ECRs, whose dedication, innovation, and hard work continue to advance knowledge and make a real impact in their fields. Dr George Pavis Dr Pavis joined the Nutritional Physiology…

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Coral reefs set to stop growing as climate warms

Most coral reefs will soon stop growing and may begin to erode – and almost all will do so if global warming hits 2°C, according to a new study in the western Atlantic. An international team, led by scientists from the University of Exeter, assessed 400 reef sites around Florida, Mexico and Bonaire. The study, published in the journal Nature, projects that more than 70% of the region’s reefs will stop growing by 2040 – and over 99%…

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University of Exeter Business School among world’s best in QS Business Master’s Rankings 2026

The University of Exeter Business School’s Master’s programmes have improved their placing in the QS Business Master’s Rankings 2026. The annual rankings highlight postgraduate programmes with strong links to industry, positive alumni outcomes and excellent return on investment. They assess a range of indicators including diversity, employability and thought leadership. The Business School’s programmes enjoyed success, either improving or maintaining their year-on-year ranking position. Both MSc Marketing and Finance ranked in the top 100 programmes globally, and the online MBA, part…

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Exeter-Hong Kong collaboration opens doors to brain science research

Researchers specialising in fields related to the workings of the brain are being invited to apply for new starter grants available through an international partnership with City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK). Up to £30,000 is available across an estimated six collaborative projects in brain science, encompassing neuroscience, psychology, linguistics, mathematics and computing. The call for applications was opened at a September event at CityUHK, which showcased the progress of four inaugural Initiator Projects that have been running…

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South West Water and University of Exeter collaborate using AI in bid to make water network lead free

South West Water is working in partnership with the University of Exeter through the Centre for Resilience in Environment, Water and Waste (CREWW), to develop an upgraded model to predict the location of lead pipes across its network. This work is a key part of South West Water’s lead strategy for the next five years, which includes removing between 20,000 and 40,000 lead pipes. It also supports the company’s long-term commitment to be completely lead-free by 2050. A…

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Government must overhaul SME climate policy with less focus on ‘low-hanging fruit’

Experts have called for the UK government to overhaul its decarbonisation strategy for small and medium-sized businesses. In a study published in the journal Energy Research and Social Science, they criticise current green initiatives for failing to deliver lasting emissions cuts despite receiving £1.57 billion in support from the European Regional Development Fund from 2014-2022. Interventions have been too focused on short-term quick fixes such as getting SMEs to switch to LED lightbulbs rather than more transformative, practice-orientated…

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