That's a good question. In the UK it used to be the case that the main funding councils (known collectively as RCUK) would fund any original research based on its contribution to the field. Under the 'Pathways to Impact' criteria all RCUK and most of the other councils require a submission with all applications stating to whom the research might be useful and how they will benefit. In theory there does not need to be an economic benefit provided there is some societal benefit (for example digitising and annotating an original manuscript for distribution via the web). However with science and engineering, commercialisation seems to rate very highly in deciding who gets funded and who doesn't.

There are a few funding councils not part of RCUK that currently do not seem to require impact plans. One is the British Academy, which will fund researchers at any higher or further education establishment in the UK in the same way that they all used to. The trend though does seem to be away from esoteric research and towards more 'results oriented' projects, with data management plans, project management, risk assessment, stakeholder analysis and so on becoming de rigueur even with charity-funded calls.

I don't know about other countries though, it could be that they are looking at us with bafflement wondering how on earth we think we can predict the unexpected outcomes we want before they've happened...

I don't doubt that those who are granted funding at UK universities, having satisfied the 'impact' criteria, will often invent or discover things equally useful but totally unexpected.

What troubles me is that by making every research project comply with the impact criteria, other avenues of inquiry are cut off. At the moment, a proposal to find out (for the sake of argument - I've no idea if it's a good question) why dandelions are yellow would not get funded, but a proposal to boost the yield of rape seed might.

To me it's along the lines of saying that researchers from certain geographical locations, or birthplaces, or with project names beginning with P, will not get funded. It's an arbitrary and misguided hurdle that threatens to kill projects that might otherwise deliver top quality research. No obvious application at the time funding is granted, but subsequently leading to benefits for many.

I mean, there's already lots and lots of commercially focused research, it's not like we're short of people trying to make money...

The funding councils that back research at UK universities now require an 'impact' plan; evidence that what is being funded will have a 'positive' impact in terms of society and commercial interest. This was brought in by the previous government, and backed by the current one. At the time most researchers were set against it, pointing out that so many of the inventions and discoveries that have been so beneficial to us all came not from a will to research a specific issue, but from something else, and hence little more than an accident.

I thinks it's troubling that the idea of research for its own sake seems to be dying. In effect we're limiting the overall breadth of investigation, and perhaps that will result in fewer 'useful' discoveries after all.

If it happened every day it wouldn't be special.

We make all our gifts, the making is part of the celebration. Not many friends and family make gifts for us, but all realise we do not want expensive things and get us stuff that they think we'll enjoy (we particularly like things that are second hand, and appreciate that they will have taken some finding).

Sounding a bit like a hippie, but really it is the thought that counts, and thinking extra hard about people once or twice a year makes everyone feel better.

One pair of 10" HPDs, one pair of 15" HPDs (reconed) and one pair of 3808s.

In my humble opinion they sound better than £4k+ systems I've heard elsewhere...

I just can't be bothered to learn another version of Windows unless I have to, and I've not heard of any compelling reason to move to Windows 7.

If and when XP is no longer an option I'll spend the time become a competent user of linux (as opposed to the barely capable user I am now)

She was generally a pleasant person but distinctly odd. Her father and brother were ASD (her mother told our administrator once when she called about some missing coursework). She was very bright - once spotted an arithmetic error in a 12-page handout within about 10 seconds of getting it, but term marks were always poor, just the bare minimum of effort to get through.

Overall there was nothing very specific that you could call a 'symptom', just inappropriate socially. She would frequently interrupt me in class and wouldn't 'get the message' that the others were irritated. Once another student said 'we hear a lot about you, who are you?' and she replied 'you hear a lot from me, not about me'. Another time she got an Excel handout that began 'double click the icon on the desktop' - she looked, literally, on the desk in front of her, even though we had been using the terminology for weeks in class - it was a different context and the knowledge didn't transfer.

Interestingly I read her 'disabilities review form' and she wrote candidly about what it was like for her. She said that she wished the tutors would 'discipline her for interrupting in class' and that she wished everyone wore name badges. She also said that the reason she chose our university is that we asked the right questions about her condition, and that she turned down places at each institution that referred to wheelchairs (of course most use a single generic form).

So, yes, it was her condition that led to this sort of behavior, but whether it was 'classic' asperger's I couldn't say.

I don't know what this means legally exactly but in UK law there is the defense of 'diminished responsibility'. For example, someone who would normally be convicted of murder may instead be convicted of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility if they were suffering from an abnormality of mind.

However what you seem to be suggesting is that if someone with a previously diagnosed condition would like it to be taken into account, then they shouldn't if sufferers of that condition usually try to get on with their lives? If so I think that's a difficult point to argue. Those with schizophrenia try to live normal lives and take responsibility for their actions but surely no one would claim that a sufferer who commits a crime whilst experiencing delusions was responsible.

It's a matter of degree. I once had someone with asperger's in one of my classes and it was very difficult indeed. She once walked into my colleague's office, ignoring him completely, and began browsing his bookshelf! Now, if she had walked out with one of those books, would she have been responsible for theft? Legally? Of course. Compassionately? I would make allowances based on her condition...

It's a 'voluntary' scheme whereby the biggest six ISPs implement a block list maintained by an organisiation called the 'Internet Watch Foundation'. They claim that only child pornography sites are blocked, but of course there's no way to know what is on the list.

Recently the first efforts to expand block lists to include 'other illegal' content have been made, and to set up a list for copyright-related restricted sites.

It seems governments have realised that legislative oversight is a bit of a nuisance, and it's just easier to coerce and/or bribe big business to get what you want.

Would you consider posting a link to your paper? Or perhaps just the bibliography? It would be nice to see some authoritative sources in support of your view.

Saccadic movements have been understood for a very long time, and it has pretty much always been assumed that part of their 'function' was to prevent the Ganzfeld effect and to facilitate in the construction of a representation in the mind of a wider field of view. It has also been known for a long time that the superior colliculus and brain stem are involved in those movements.

This work has begun to identify highly specialised structures in the superior colliculus that seem to control the saccades, and that *has* furthered our understanding of this aspect of perception.

I'd be surprised if the researchers themselves believe that most people thought saccades were 'mere 'motor noise''. I think when Krauzlis says 'scientists have debated the function, if any, of these fixational eye movements' he's being a good scientist and making a statement that does not have to be qualified to be true.

Of course you are dead right, but you know how it is in HE - you have your friends and family locally, there aren't that many alternative places to work in commuting distance if you want to stay in HE. Otherwise you have to move house.

When we get a task I offer it up to my team. By default it goes to the first person that asked for it, but sometimes I intervene. My demands are straightforward; complete the task, don't bother me unless you need help, if you need help then I expect you to ask in good time, if you need help you'll get it - I promise. I'll check progress at half-time so make sure you can show that you've begun the task by then!

If your team always delivers, but your methods don't fit?

I can't wait to retire...

Traditionally in the UK if you work for the public sector you accept a lower salary - in return you benefit in ways that don't suit everyone, but to some are quite valuable;

Good pension - Government backed final salary scheme so that at age 65 you take (in my case) one third of your final salary until you die. Your salary is deducted each month to fund it, but the deduction is tax free.

Job security - your employer won't 'go out of business', so if you get made redundant you'll get a week's pay for every year you've worked, and so you'll have time to get another job.

Public Service - I can't speak for everyone else but in my case I get a lot of satisfaction from helping others. It's not in the same class as medicine or mountain rescue, but I go home happy when one of my students says 'I've just been accepted onto a graduate training scheme and I couldn't have done it without your support...'

There are plenty of studies that show that bullying is far more prevalent in the public sector than private industry, but it's the general perception that's crucial. My colleagues, and friends that have moved to other HE institutions, are thinking that it's worth the risk moving to the private sector.

It's not so much that it's categorically better in the private sector, it's that so many feel it can't be much worse, and so perhaps it's worth a try.

I'm all right Jack, I'm staying put. It's the other buggers that I feel sorry for...

Sorry yes HE is higher education - first degrees and above (undergraduate and postgraduate). FE is further education - 'A level', Certificate and Diploma, and some offer 'Foundation Degrees', usually accredited by a local HE institution.

In the UK the education system is, for the majority, as follows;

You attend 'school' from the age of 4 (rising 5s) til the age of 16 where you take 'GCSE' examinations in your final year. You then either leave and get a job, leave and go into FE, or stay on at school to the 'sixth form' where you take 'A levels'.

If you go into FE you can take A levels there, or you can study for a Certificate or a Diploma, or possibly a Foundation Degree.

If you gain A levels or above you can apply to go into HE and study for a degree.

There are all sorts of variations on this of course.

For HE, most of the funding comes from HEFCE (Higher Educational Funding for England) and its sister organisations, and is based on various metrics including measures on performance for research and teaching. FE is mostly funded by the LSC (Learning and Skills Council), which is a central UK government body. Some funding also comes from LEAs (Local Education Authority) which shares out cash to schools and FE institutions.

FE is very much more closely allied with vocational courses; HE tries to include vocational elements and FE aspires to academic excellence, but there's a lot of historical baggage and also a lot of prejudice in the way qualifications are viewed by employers.