NUI Galway will hold their annual Open Days this Friday, 1 October and Saturday, 2 October. An important occasion for prospective students, Open Days provides an opportunity to talk to NUI Galway students and staff, explore the campus and find out more about courses of interest. Friday's Open Day, on 1 October, is aimed at school groups, although individuals are also very welcome to attend. Saturday's Open Day on 2 October, is for students thinking about university and their parents and families. With over 60 degree programmes on offer at NUI Galway, lecturers and Deans will be on hand at exhibition stands to answer questions on courses, CAO points and career paths. A talk specifically for parents at 11am on Saturday will give an overview of the career paths of NUI Galway graduates, as well as looking ahead to the job market of the future. Many of the newer courses at the University have been designed to be responsive to the changing needs of the employment market and meet the needs of the Smart Economy. The Open Days will feature a mix of taster sessions and short lectures to provide a feel for university life. Events will include hands-on science workshops, interactive demonstrations with cameras, media equipment and podcasts and interactive sessions with IT systems and robotics. According to NUI Galway President, Dr James J. Browne, the Open Day is an ideal opportunity to find out exactly what the University has to offer: "Our Open Days offer prospective students the opportunity to meet our lecturers and find out about courses which might be of interest. NUI Galway has a long-standing reputation and dedicated staff, many of whom are world leaders in their fields, committed to delivering the highest quality education and student experience. The Open Day will help students make an informed decision when it comes to filling out the CAO form." During the Open Days, tours of the campus will allow prospective students to visit the Sports Centre, home to 45 student sports clubs, and Áras na Mac Léinn, the base for over 100 student societies. The tours will also take in, among other elements, accommodation and library facilities. For further details on NUI Galway Open Days, visit http://www.nuigalway.ie/opendays/. -Ends-

NUI Galway today (Monday, 27 September) launches a new website which aims to educate travellers to high altitude and their healthcare professionals about the effects of altitude on the human body. The website was developed by Dr Gerard Flaherty, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Medicine and Medical Education at NUI Galway, in collaboration with medical students completing the special study module in High Altitude Medicine. The website www.highaltitudemedicine.ieprovides useful information on the physiological effects of altitude and acclimatisation to high altitude environments. It also includes information and advice on the recognition, management and prevention of high altitude illness, and useful facts about aviation medicine. There is also a collection of referenced essays on the historical aspects of high altitude medicine, adaptations of native high altitude populations, and the effects of high altitude training on elite sports performance. There are also useful updates on the website on important research findings in high altitude medicine from the published literature as well as links to other relevant websites. A novel feature of the website is a video demonstration on the use of a portable hyperbaric chamber, which is a sealed chamber that lowers the altitude by increasing the ambient barometric pressure in an effort to increase the oxygen levels in the blood of a victim suffering from high altitude illness. The video was filmed and edited by the students themselves. Dr Flaherty, who is an experienced travel medicine physician with a particular interest in high altitude medicine, explains: "Travel to high altitude destinations, especially in the Alps, the Andes, the Himalayas and East Africa, has become a popular vacation option for people of all ages. The highly specialised information required to travel safely to high altitude is often not accessible to travellers or their healthcare professionals. We identified a need for a non-commercial educational website which would help to ease the anxiety associated with travel to high places and hopefully make such travel safer and more enjoyable." The website will become a valuable learning resource for medical students at NUI Galway and other educational institutions as well as trekkers, mountaineers and healthcare professionals offering them pre-travel health advice. Dr Flaherty, who is President-elect of the Travel Medicine Society of Ireland and a Fellow and external examiner of the Faculty of Travel Medicine at the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons in Glasgow, added: "This is an example of how our innovative special study module programme at the School of Medicine in NUI Galway is capturing the imagination of our medical students and the wider public. The students learned a lot about teamwork, attention to detail, original scientific writing and responsibility from preparing material for our website. These are all essential attributes for our medical doctors of the future." -Ends-

The School of Mathematics, Statistics and Applied Mathematics at NUI Galway will host a number of events as part of Maths Week Ireland from 9 to16 October. During this week, various fun activities have been organised to promote awareness, appreciation and understanding of maths among the general public. On Monday, 11 October, one of Spain s best known mathematicians- Fernando Blasco who is also a magician, television personality and author of several books, will give a talk in the Colm O hEocha Theatre, Arts Millennium Building at 7pm. The talk is open to the general public, and he will perform some tricks involving elementary mathematics. Topics such as prime numbers, sudoku, which are Japanese number puzzles, and the Rubik s cube are among the facets of mathematics to be explored. On the following day, Fernando will perform more of his magic and maths aimed specifically at primary and secondary school audiences. During the second half of the week, there will be several special maths workshops held to highlight the importance, usefulness and enjoyment of mathematics. These workshops will be aimed at primary and secondary school students. Topics explored at these sessions will include: "How Julius Caesar used maths to protect his empire"; "How blind people do and read maths", delivered by Dr David O Keeffe and an exploration of Einstein's famous theory entitled "Special Relativity Made Easy" by Dr Patrick Browne, both of the School of Mathematics, Statistics and Applied Mathematics, at the University. NUI Galway's Dr David O'Keeffe says: "Maths can often be a bit of a mystery to the wider public, a subject that may feel inaccessible to them. But in actual fact, it doesn t need to be the case. Everywhere around us, maths is in use. When you strip away the details on how modern technology operates; for example mobile phones, iPods, computers etc., it all boils down to doing mathematics. The Maths Week events in NUI Galway will act as a bridge to connect young and old with maths in a fun and interactive way. Maths is more than something that remains in the clutches of academia and we want to show people that it can be useful to everyone." Schools throughout Galway are encouraged to participate in these special events to make maths accessible to a wider audience. Maths Week Ireland is a partnership of universities, institutes and groups working together to promote awareness, appreciation and understanding of mathematics to all. From a national perspective, events will be happening at institutes of technology, universities, museums, libraries, visitor centres and other venues. -Ends-

NUI Galway invites graduates from the classes of 1970 and 1980 to attend a reunion day on Saturday, 9 October. The reunion will begin at 3pm in the Quadrangle with a reception and photo exhibition, followed by a bus tour of campus. The celebrations will continue later that evening in the Hotel Meyrick on Eyre Square with a reunion dinner. A 60s/70s/80s disco will follow to round off the evening with some musical memories. JB Terrins, Director of Alumni Relations at NUI Galway, encourages alumni to come along: "Reunions are special opportunities for graduates to revisit NUI Galway and renew old acquaintances. Many alumni from the classes of 1970 and 1980 have already booked their places and many are returning from outside of Galway to be here. These events come around only every decade and our alumni never regret grabbing this chance to roll back the years with old friends". The Alumni Association at NUI Galway serves 70,000 alumni worldwide with an extensive range of programmes administered by the Alumni Office. These include alumni groups, both national and international, publications, reunions and alumni awards. Visit www.nuigalway.ie/alumni-friends for further details. For further information on the reunion or to book your place contact Colm O'Dwyer in the Alumni Office on 091 493750 or email alumni@nuigalway.ie. -Ends-

Moffetts Restaurant at NUI Galway has been listed in the top five restaurants in Ireland in Institutional Catering by the Hotel & Catering Review Gold Medal Awards. Moffetts is operated by Masterchefs Hospitality, a brand leader in Fine Dining who also operate three other outlets on Campus. A team of expert judges travelled all over the four provinces of Ireland during the summer months seeking out the best in the business. "What makes these awards so special is we are assessed by our peers, experts in the industry, and it reflects a tremendous effort by our team lead by General Manager Grainne Barrett and Head Chef Paul Gannon. We work hard to maintain very high standards of food and service and we are delighted that out efforts have been recognised" said Managing Director Pat O' Sullivan. Moffetts Restaurant opens from 8.30am to 4pm, Monday to Friday and is available for private bookings outside of these hours. Tel 091 525423. -Ends-