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The assessment of research activity in universities is now undertaken regularly in a number of countries, with resources then being allocated according to the results of those evaluations. Such an exercise (a Research Quality Framework – RQF) has recently been proposed for Australia. This paper suggests likely consequences of such an exercise for geography in Australian universities, given its current situation there, on the basis of experience with the Research Assessment Exercises undertaken in the UK since 1986. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given recent advances in phasing methods, those new to protein crystallography may be forgive for asking ’what problem?’. As many of those attending the CCP4 meeting come from a biological background, struggling with expression and crystallization, this introductory paper aims to introduce some of the basics that will hopefully make the subsequent papers penetrable. What is the ’phase’ in crystallography? What is ’the problem’? How can we overcome the problem? The paper will emphasize that the phase values can only be discovered through some prior knowledge of the structure. The paper will canter through direct methods, isomorphous replacement, anomalous scattering and molecular replacement. As phasing is the most acronymic realm of crystallography, MR, SIR, SIRAS, MIR, MIRAS, MAD and SAD will be expanded and explained in part. Along the way, we will meet some of the heroes of protein crystallography such as Perutz, Kendrew, Crick, Rossmann and Blow who established many of the phasing methods in the UK. It is inevitable that some basic mathematics is encountered, but this will be done as gently as possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Small-group teaching and learning is traditionally central to UK Higher Education. This paper explores how disciplines differ in their use of information and communication technologies (ICT) to support small-group activities. A framework for considering discipline differences and evidence from surveys and case studies conducted by the ASTER Project are presented. While many uses of ICT are common across the disciplines studied (drawn from the Humanities, Physical Sciences and Psychology), there are also some striking differences, in particular the infrequent use of ICT to facilitate discussion in the Physical Sciences compared to the pattern of use in the other disciplines studied. It is vital that such differences are considered when advising on the take-up of innovative teaching and learning methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]