Staff and Student Wellbeing Information – Ramadan
Dear colleagues,
You may be aware that we are soon to enter the month of Ramadan. For our Muslim students and staff, this is an important time of fasting so as to grow in their faith through discipline and devotion. We wanted to help you understand what our Muslim students and colleagues may be experiencing in the weeks to come so you can help in their support.
Ramadan begins on 2 or 3 April this year. The fasting period is from before dawn to after sunset and includes abstaining from all food and drink, including water. Those keeping the fast will have their last food and drink each day before fajr, or morning prayer. In April, this is probably about 5am. The fast is usually broken each evening with family and friends, first by sharing dates and water and then by sharing a full meal together, called iftar. Iftar in April is probably around 8.30pm and is followed by night prayer, called taraweeh. Ramadan ends with the celebration of Eid, which is a feast day. This year, Eid will be probably around 3 May, though the exact date isn’t known until nearer the time, as it is based on a sighting of the moon.
What does this mean for our students and staff? Some of our Muslim students tell us that it can make concentration in the afternoon even more difficult than usual, and this is no doubt true for staff as well. Where possible, some may choose to shift their study/sleep schedule to become largely nocturnal. Early morning sessions may be more challenging for some than they would normally find them. It may be the case that our Muslim colleagues need to change their working patterns during this period too. Colleagues may also ask for annual leave during this time to help them manage their faith commitments.
How can we support our Muslim students and staff during this time? Don’t be afraid to wish them Ramadan Mubarak, which is to wish someone a ‘blessed Ramadan’. You might like to ask how their fast is going, as some of our Muslim students and staff tell us it gets easier as a rhythm of fasting and prayer builds. You might also like to be aware that this faith practice might impact the rest of their day. It is worth noting this as we start to enter the period of exam revision and assessments. Managers may wish to adjust timings of meetings in liaison with colleagues to accommodate staff need.
So, to all those keeping the fast, we wish you Ramadan Mubarak!
Kara Cooper, Spiritual Care Coordinator
Akhtar Zaman, EDI Manager
Philip Simpson
Physics garden and entrance cleaning
Facilities has informed us that on Monday 11th April the spine area outside physics will be cleaned. Please be alert to trip hazards and standing water as you come towards the building.
Shonah Ion
Research Software Skills Workshops
After the success of these courses in the Michaelmas term, we are delighted to announce another programme of workshops aimed at skills development for Computationally Intensive research, courtesy of our new N8CIR Research Software Engineer Robin Long. All the workshops are designed to help researchers (PhD students and staff) with the skills, they need for using and developing software as part of their research. If you have any questions about these workshops, or if you are unsure whether they are the correct ones for your needs, please email Robin Long at rse@lancaster.ac.uk.
This terms schedule (starting in week 21)
Week 21 (28/04/22): Introduction to Linux and the command line.
Want to know how to navigate the Linux command line, and use it to automate
your research? Then this course is for you.
https://lancaster-uk.libcal.com/calendar/dsi/rse-linux
Week 23 (12/05/22): Version Control with Git
This course introduces the concept of version control and teaches it using
Git. If file names such as mycode_version5 and mycode_fixed look familiar
to you then you need this course!
https://lancaster-uk.libcal.com/calendar/dsi/rse-git
Week 25 (26/05/22): Plotting in Python, part 1
This course introduces python with learning to load in and plot data as the
motivation. If you have never used Python before and want to learn, or even
if you want to improve your skills, this is the course for you.
https://lancaster-uk.libcal.com/calendar/dsi/python-1
Week 27 (9/06/22): Plotting in Python, part 2
This is the second part of the introduction to Python course. Here you
will learn about how to run the same tasks multiple times with loops;
getting your code to run depending on the data with if statements; re-using
code with functions and more.
https://lancaster-uk.libcal.com/calendar/dsi/python-2
Week 29 (23/06/22): Git 2: Sharing your development with others using Github
This course will show you how to take your usage of Git and Github to the
next level by harnessing the power of GitHub for collaboration.
Have you ever been confused about how to start a Pull Request or how to fork
a repository and merge your changes back? Perhaps you know and want to gain
confidence in doing so? This course will teach you how to collaborate using
git, and give you an environment in which to practise.
https://lancaster-uk.libcal.com/calendar/dsi/rse-git-intermediate
Robin Long
Manus Hayne
Workshop: how to write an Expression of Interest (EOI) in response to research funding calls
Thursday, 5th May 2022 – 2:00-4:00 pm
Due to popular demand it has been decided to run the above workshop again.
This Workshop will run on Thursday, 5th May 2022 from 2:00-4:00 pm. The workshop will be held in MAN – Mngt School Dormer LT14 WPA002.
Purpose: EOIs are an increasingly important stage in the process of acquiring funding for research. Calls involving EOIs are often highly competitive and can be reviewed by panellists who are not domain experts, therefore it is important that researchers approach the writing of EOIs with this in mind. This workshop is designed to help you write a competitive EOI.
The session will be organised jointly between LUMS and FST and will be led by Professor Nick Race (Dept of Computing & Communications) who has a strong track record of funding success from UK Research Councils, the European Commission and Industry. In preparation, you will be provided with a set of example EOIs and asked to review these prior to the workshop.
We only have limited availability, so please confirm your place ASAP.
Participants will be asked to work in groups, therefore attendance in person will be required.
Should you like to attend, please contact me, Teresa Aldren (t.aldren@lancaster.ac.uk) to register for the workshop.
Teresa Aldren
EPSRC CASE Awards: Call for applications
EPSRC CASE Awards: Call for applications
Submission date: Friday April 22nd, 2022
Please send applications to: Simon Vaukins – s.vaukins@lancaster.ac.uk
EPSRC continue to encourage industrial collaboration through CASE awards in science and engineering. These awards are a type of doctoral studentship designed to incorporate an element of collaboration and industrially related training to broaden experience. As part of delivering economic impact and increasing company involvement in provision of doctoral training, the EPSRC are committed to increasing impact by increasing the proportion of collaborative studentships within the DTP. To support this, institutions in receipt of DTP have a target of converting 10% of the funds into CASE awards (DTP CASE-conversion).
Further details can be found here: EPSRC CASE Award guidance 2022
If you have any further questions, please contact Simon Vaukins – s.vaukins@lancaster.ac.uk
Philip Simpson / Simon Vaukins