Senior representatives from the European Commission's Directorate General for Interpretation visited NUI Galway recently to discuss the University's M.A. in Conference Interpreting. The first course of its kind in Ireland, the M.A. has been designed in direct response to demand for qualified interpreters since Irish became an official language of the European Union. Leagan Gaeilge The Directorate General for Interpretation is the European Commission's interpreting service and the largest of its kind in the world. While it does not train interpreters, the Directorate General cooperates with a small number of universities internationally to develop professionally focused training of the highest quality. In Ireland, it is working closely with NUI Galway's Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge to ensure the new M.A. in Conference Interpreting is of the highest international standards. The new M.A. in Conference Interpreting is delivered by the Acadamh in An Cheathrú Rua where the first intake of students commenced the course in September. Until now, potential interpreters of Irish had to travel to London to complete their training. The select group of existing professional Irish interpreters include two lecturers on the M.A. programme, Susan Folan and Seán Maitiú Ó Carraidh, both of whom have worked as professional interpreters for all of the European Institutions. The Directorate General for Interpretation was represented at NUI Galway by Brian Fox, Director of Interpreters, and David Smith, Head of English and Irish Interpreting. They gave a presentation to students and staff highlighting the merits of an interpreting qualification with Irish, given the current demand for such a qualification in European Institutions. According to Susan Folan, Course Co-ordinator of the M.A. in Conference Interpreting at NUI Galway: "Fact replaced fiction during the visit of the Directorate, who pointed out the official figures regarding the cost of multilingualism and Irish as an official European Language. The total cost of interpreting of all 23 languages costs 21 cent per citizen per year". The M.A. in Conference Interpreting at NUI Galway is supported by Údarás na Gaeltachta and the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. -ends-

Thug ionadaithe sinsearacha ó Ard-Stiúrthóireacht Ateangaireachta an Choimisiúin Eorpaigh cuairt ar OÉ Gaillimh le deireanas le plé a dhéanamh ar an M.A. san Ateangaireacht Chomhdhála atá á thairiscint ag an Ollscoil. Tá éileamh ar ateangairí cáilithe san Aontas Eorpach anois de bharr an stádais oifigiúil atá ag an nGaeilge ó 2007 agus cuireadh an cúrsa M.A. seo, an chéad chúrsa dá leithéid in Éirinn, ar bun chun freastal ar an margadh seo. View in English Seirbhís ateangaireachta an Choimisiúin Eorpaigh is ea an Ard-Stiúrthóireacht Ateangaireachta agus tá sí ar an tseirbhís is mó dá leithéid ar domhan. Cé nach gcuireann an Ard-Stiúrthóireacht oiliúint ar ateangairí, comhoibríonn sé le líon beag ollscoileanna go hidirnáisiúnta le cinntiú go mbíonn an oiliúint atá á cur ar fáil ar ardchaighdeán. In Éirinn, tá sé ag obair go dlúth le hAcadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge, OÉ Gaillimh le cinntiú go mbaineann an cúrsa nua M.A. san Ateangaireacht Chomhdhála na caighdeáin is airde amach. Tá an cúrsa nua M.A. san Ateangaireacht Chomhdhála á chur ar fáil ag an Acadamh ar an gCeathrú Rua agus tá an chéad ghrúpa mac léinn i mbun staidéir ó mhí Mheán Fómhair. Go dtí seo b'éigean do dhaoine a bhí ag iarraidh a bheith ina n-ateangairí le Gaeilge taisteal go Londain le hoiliúint a fháil. Tá Susan Folan agus Seán Maitiú Ó Carraidh, beirt léachtóirí ar an gcúrsa M.A., i measc an ghrúpa bhig ateangairí gairmiúla Gaeilge agus tá tréimhsí caite acu beirt ag obair mar ateangairí gairmiúla in Institiúidí na hEorpa. Tháinig Brian Fox, Stiúrthóir na nAteangairí, agus David Smith, Ceannaire Ateangaireachta Béarla agus Gaeilge, ar cuairt chuig OÉ Gaillimh ón Ard-Stiúrthóireacht Ateangaireachta. Rinne siad cur i láthair do mhic léinn agus d'fhoireann na hOllscoile ag tarraingt aird ar leith ar an tábhacht a bhaineann le cáilíocht ateangaireachta sa Ghaeilge de bharr an éilimh atá ar cháilíocht den chineál sin in Institiúidí na hEorpa i láthair na huaire. Deir Susan Folan, Comhordaitheoir an chúrsa M.A. san Ateangaireacht Chomhdhála ag OÉ Gaillimh: "Cuireadh fírinne an scéil i láthair le linn chuairt na hArd-Stiúrthóireachta, agus léiríodh na fíorchostais a bhaineann leis an ilteangachas agus leis an nGaeilge mar theanga oifigiúil de chuid an Aontais Eorpaigh. Is é 21 cent in aghaidh an tsaoránaigh in aghaidh na bliana an costas iomlán a bhaineann leis an ateangaireacht do 23 teanga an Aontais". Tacaíonn Údarás na Gaeltachta agus an Roinn Gnóthaí Pobail, Tuaithe agus Gaeltachta leis an M.A. san Ateangaireacht Chomhdhála atá á thairiscint ag OÉ Gaillimh. -Críoch-

"Are we too posh to push?" A 'science café' organised by NUI Galway's Environmental Change Institute, in association with the Galway One World Centre, will explore attitudes to the environment and climate change on Thursday, 20 November at 7.30pm. The discussion will be led by science writer and broadcaster Mary Mulvihill, whose new book on sustainable living, Drive like a Woman, Shop like a Man, will by published by New Island in early 2009. The public are invited to this free event which takes place in the King Head's Ruby Room on Quay Street, Galway. Transport will be one of the topics up for discussion at this unusual pub evening. How will people be travelling in 1,000 years time? Will there still be boats, cars, horses, trains and planes? Will we be using bicycles which offer cheap, efficient and time-saving transport, combined with healthy exercise? How can we persuade people to get on their bike and act more sustainably? Or are we too posh to push? Sarah Knight, Outreach Officer for the Environmental Change Institute at NUI Galway says: "We are delighted to be hosting Mary Mulvihill at NUI Galway, and know that the people of Galway will welcome the opportunity to discuss, with Mary, environmental topics of real-life relevance in this slightly unconventional platform". 'Science cafés' are popular in cities around the world, providing an informal space where people without a specialist background can take part in scientific discussions, and this will be the first such event sponsored by NUI Galway. According to Mary Mulvihill, climate change can be an overwhelming topic: "My goal for the discussion will be to stimulate the flow of thoughts, ideas, and conversation, in a relaxed atmosphere. Questions that might be discussed include: How do we respond to the enormous scale of the climate change problem? What is the best way to motivate people?". Mary Mulvihill added: "When the subject first reached mainstream media 20 years ago, people in Ireland welcomed 'global warming' as something that might bring warm summers and a grape-growing climate! Does it matter what we call the problem: is climate change too benign a term?". Admission to the science café is free, but as space is limited attendees are advised to arrive on time. For further information please visit Mary's blog at http://thelitmuspaper.blogspot.com/ or contact Sarah Knight, Outreach Officer for the Environmental Change Institute, NUI Galway on 091 495061. -ends-

University of Memphis psychology expert Dr Rick Dale is to give a public lecture at NUI Galway on his experiments using the Nintendo Wii to investigate how people think and make decisions. The event will be hosted by NUI Galway's School of Psychology on Wednesday, 12 November, at 7.30pm in the Siobhan McKenna Theatre in the Arts Millennium Building. Apart from being a popular videogame entertainment device, the Nintendo Wii has also been adapted to use for physical therapy and as a form of exercise. Dr Dale and his team took the Nintendo a step further to begin to explore the relationship between the mind and the body. He says: "The Wiimote is in fact the perfect interface to perform these kinds of experiments. As the game itself is already designed to absorb a person's body into the videogame experience, we just have to hook the Wiimote into a lab computer, and we can enjoy the rich streaming data that videogames typically use, but this time track them in experiments". Until recently, many psychologists concluded that thinking and acting were managed by relatively separate subsystems in the human mind. This was reflected in the way that when we make decisions, most of us feel like we think and then act. Dr Dale's research shows the systems that control thinking and those that control action are actually deeply intertwined. He explains: "We often begin to act before we think, even when making relatively simple decisions. Some might say that we even think through our actions". One of the experiments at the University of Memphis showed that people have a 'bias toward truth' in that there is a natural tendency to believe things are true. Participants in the experiment used the Wiimote to answer Yes or No to questions such as 'Can a kangaroo walk backwards?'. The results showed that it took longer for participants to decide that a statement was false, rather than true. In many cases, the cursor travelled first toward the yes, and then curved over to no. For the researchers, this indicated two things. Firstly, the body was in motion before the cognitive processing was completed. Secondly, the participants really wanted to believe most of the statements were true, even though they decided quickly that some of them were not. Dr Dale's visit to Ireland is hosted by NUI Galway and supported by the Irish Research Council on the Humanities and the Social Sciences. For further information on the public lecture contact Denis O Hora at the NUI Galway School of Psychology on 091 495126. -ends-

Is é an rothaí cáiliúil Seán Kelly a osclóidh an tIonad Spóirt nua in OÉ Gaillimh inniu (Dé hAoine, 7 Samhain 2008), Ionad Spóirt a chosain €22 milliún. Beidh cead ag mic léinn, ag comhaltaí foirne agus ag an bpobal úsáid a bhaint as an áis iontach seo. Tá achar 6,500 m² san ionad spóirt agus áineasa seo lena n-áirítear linn snámha 6-lána 25 méadar. Is féidir an t-urlár a ardú agus a ísliú inti. Tá cúirteanna scuaise agus raicéadaíochta, halla ina bhfuil trí chúirt cispheile, stiúideonna ilchuspóireacha, giomnáisiam an-mhór agus balla dreapadóireachta ann chomh maith. Is cuid é Ionad Spóirt OÉ Gaillimh de chlár forbartha caipitil €400 milliún, 'Campas na Todhchaí', chun na caighdeáin is airde d'infreastruchtúr fisiciúil a sholáthar ar mhaithe le tacú le feabhas sa teagasc agus sa taighde. Bhí an méid seo a leanas le rá ag Uachtarán OÉ Gaillimh, An Dr James J. Browne: "Baineann suntas faoi leith le hoscailt an Ionaid Spóirt i stair OÉ Gaillimh. Cuirfidh an t-ionad nua-aimseartha seo go mór le sláinte, le folláine agus le hoideachas ár mac léinn agus ár gcomhaltaí foirne mar aon le léargas a thabhairt ar an ról lárnach atá ag an spórt i saol phobal OÉ Gaillimh". Mhaoinigh mic léinn OÉ Gaillimh cuid den ionad, nuair a vótáil siad in 2003 tobhach na mac léinn a mhéadú chun tacú leis an tionscadal. Beidh lascaine shuntasach le fáil do mhic léinn ar mian leo áiseanna an Ionaid Spóirt a úsáid. Thug Atlantic Philanthropies deontas mór caipitil don tionscadal trí shocrú a rinneadh trí Fhondúireacht Ollscoil na Gaillimhe. Cúpla lá ó shin anseo san Ollscoil bronnadh scoláireachtaí spóirt ar fiú os cionn €100,000 iad ar lúthchleasaithe atá ag freastal ar OÉ Gaillimh le cabhrú leo a gcumas spóirt a fhorbairt. Bhí an méid seo a leanas le rá ag Paul Hession, ar bronnadh scoláireacht spóirt air roinnt blianta ó shin, ar mac léinn leighis in OÉ Gaillimh é agus ar lúthchleasaí Oilimpeach é: "Áis den chéad scoth é seo in OÉ Gaillimh a chinnteoidh go dtiocfaidh athrú iomlán ar na deiseanna spóirt a bheidh ar fáil anseo do mhic léinn. Beidh áiseanna traenála den scoth le fáil sa ghiomnáisiam nua, don lucht spóirt gairmiúil cosúil liom féin". Is foirgneamh glas é seo sa chiall gur beag dochar atá á dhéanamh aige don chomhshaol. Sampla den teicneolaíocht atá in úsáid san Ionad is ea aonad Cumhachta is Teasa in Éineacht, a ghineann leictreachas don ionad agus a dhéanann athchúrsáil ar an teas lena úsáid san fhoirgneamh arís. D'oibrigh na hailtirí cáiliúla Faulkner Browns ar an tionscadal, i gcomhar le Holohan Design, mar aon leis na tógálaithe áitiúla Glenman Corporation. Is é Kingfisher Fitness Group a bhfuil sé ionad áineasa acu cheana féin sa tír atá i mbun an Ionaid a rith. Glaoigh ar Ionad Spóirt OÉ Gaillimh ar 091 570 800 nó seol ríomhphost chuig nuigalwayinfo@kingfisherclub.com. Tá eolas breise le fáil ar www.kingfisherclub.com -críoch-