NUI Galway's Boat Club successfully defended its senior titles and status as kingpins at the Irish National Rowing Championships last weekend in Cork. On Saturday afternoon, the NUI Galway rowers snatched victory in the main event, the Men's Senior Eights, claiming the 'Big Pot' by just 3 feet (0.19 seconds) from Queens University, Belfast who were hotly tipped to topple the reigning champions after a very successful season both at home and abroad. In an almost exact repeat of last year s epic showdown, NUI Galway came from behind to once again win on the line by the narrowest of margins. This year s victory was a more polished and confident performance from a very experienced and much-decorated group of athletes, who after this latest win boasts a staggering total of 75 Irish Senior Championship titles between them. The winning crew was Eddie Mullarkey, Jason Wall, Dave Mannion, Paul Giblin, Evin Donnelly, Alan Martin, Cormac Folan, James Wall and Ruadhán Cooke. The crew was coached by club stalwart Tom Tuohy. Four of the winning Eight had already retained their own Senior Fours Championship the previous day with an impressive display over an in-form UCD crew, recently victorious at Henley Royal Regatta. Male and female crews in the Novice and Intermediate grades represented the club with distinction and can draw inspiration from the success of the senior men for future campaigns. Speaking of the Boat Club s success, Gary Ryan, Elite Sports Development Officer at NUI Galway, said: "It is a fantastic achievement for the crews and their coach to win the two most prestigious men s events at the Irish National Rowing Championships. All of the rowers and coaches across the club deserve enormous credit for their work in making the NUI Galway Boat Club consistently one of the strongest clubs in Ireland and one which we are very proud of". -Ends-

NUI Galway named in top 3 universities to secure research funding Over €60m granted in capital and research programmes 3 new buildings funded at a cost of €50m 14 NUI Galway projects funded in total NUI Galway was named in the top three big winners, securing over € 60 million in research funding under PRTLI Cycle 5 - the Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions, announced today (Friday, July 16), by An Taoiseach, Mr Brian Cowen T.D. The NUI Galway projects funded today include three new world-class research facilities, an Arts Humanities Social Sciences Research Building and two buildings dedicated to Biomedical Science Research, with a combined cost of €50m. The Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences Research Building will provide a unique research environment to transform Galway's rich cultural resources into social and economic opportunity. The new facility will be a national and international resource that integrates research and training in the Humanities, Digital Cultures, Creative Industries, Business, Social Sciences, Rights, Advocacy, and Public Policy. Funded under the theme of 'Advancing Medicine through Discovery', two new buildings for medical science research will enable NUI Galway to build on its existing strength in the biomedical sciences area, established through its National Centre for Biomedical Engineering Science (NCBES). The proposed infrastructure consists of two new facilities, a Biosciences Research Building on the main campus, and a Translational Research Facility, which will house basic, translational and clinical research teams on the site of Galway University Hospital. Today's result is of both regional and national significance as it enhances the infrastructure of the biomedical sciences research hub at NUI Galway, which is located at the centre of the medical device and healthcare industries in Ireland. The new facility will enhance the national capacity and international standing of Ireland in the biomedical sciences arena. In a major boost to graduate education, NUI Galway also received funding to lead two new structured PhD programmes, with a combined cost of €7m. A new Biomedical Engineering and Regenerative Medicine graduate education programme, which includes international and Medical Devices industry partners, will train graduates to be R&D and product development leaders in industry. A second PhD programme in clinical and translational biomedical research will focus on patient and disease oriented research and aims to produce scientists trained to translate discoveries into clinical and commercial application. NUI Galway is also a partner in several other funded projects including a Digital Arts and Humanities structured PhD programme which is linked to the new Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences Research Building. Welcoming the announcement, President of NUI Galway, Dr James J. Browne, said: "I am delighted to welcome this very substantial investment, which is a strong endorsement of NUI Galway's research activities. It is also a recognition of the work of the University's Foundation and its donors, who have provided very significant match funding for the major projects funded today. It is particularly gratifying to note the broad spread of the funding across projects in the Medical Sciences and in the Humanities and Social Sciences." "This is great news for NUI Galway, as well as for the broader higher education sector and for Irish industry. Today's announcement is a clear signal of the Government's commitment to delivering the knowledge economy. The investment in research infrastructure right across the country will have an immediate benefit in bringing much-needed jobs to the construction industry. Concentrating resources on biomedical science and arts, humanities and social sciences research at NUI Galway will have a major impact on the medical technologies and the creative arts industries in the West of Ireland. We have the opportunity now to provide two distinct Irish industry sectors with relevant, world-class research solutions, transforming national leadership into global competitiveness." Ends

This week sees see the return for the fifth consecutive year of Whizzkids Summer Camps to NUI Galway. The summer camps offer fun and varied multimedia training to children and teenagers aged 8-15 years. The camps take place over two weeks, the first began on Monday, 12 July, and the second on will start on Monday, July 19. Children can engage in these hi-tech camps that cover web-design desktop publishing, movie-making and a host of hi-tech challenges in their "Spy Academy". Designed for children of all abilities, the week-long camp mixes indoor and outdoor action, with sports, stop-motion video, video game programming, code breaking and Crime Scene Investigation (CSI). The structured programme combines education and entertainment in way that allows children to explore the creative side of technology while acquiring valuable skills along the way. Participants of each camp have the opportunity to use state-of-the-art equipment that is normally only available to third level students. Each child has access to their own computer and get hands on time with mobile technologies such as digital cameras, Personal Digital Assistants (PDA s) and Blackberrys. The "Spy Academy" has proven a very popular facet of the summer programme during which children go on "missions" using digital cameras and hand held computers. Throughout the camp, attendees will learn to design their own website. They will also create a movie by putting together a storyboard, shooting the scenes on campus and editing the film. The videos are premiered at the end of the week on the big screen and each Whizzkid receives a copy of their video on CD along with their website as a keepsake. Garry Lowe, General Manager of Whizzkids Summer Camps, says "NUI Galway is the ideal setting for our hi-tech summer camp. The computing facilities are first class and the beautiful campus has a range of old and modern buildings that we can use for backdrops to our movies which range anything from a Harry Potter spoof to Espionage thrillers." Classes in the camp are broken up by age and those attending are supervised at all times by fully qualified teachers. There is a maximum of 60 places per week of camp and these are broken into three groups of 20. Full day camps are offered to 9-15 year olds from 9.30-3.30 each day. Half day camps are available for 8-ll year olds from 9.30 to 1.00 each day. For further information contact: 061 339178 or visit www.whizzkids.ie Ends

Researchers at NUI Galway, developing innovative orthopaedic implants for hip and knee replacements, have been awarded an Enterprise Ireland Commercialisation Fund Technology Development Grant. The new implants will be more effective for patients with decreased bone stock in the joint, particularly those who are receiving an implant for the second time and have lost bone from surgery to remove the first implant. Dr Pat McDonnell and Dr Noel Harrison, based in the Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering Department at the National Centre for Biomedical Engineering Science (NCBES) in NUI Galway, were awarded €400,000 to build on work completed from a previous Enterprise Ireland Commercialisation Fund Technology Proof of Concept grant. The award will also see the continuation of a successful collaboration with orthopaedic consultant surgeon Bill Curtin of Merlin Park University Hospital, Galway. The implants will be made from titanium and will be designed to give better bone in-growth into the implant to improve the lifespan. Over 3,000 hip replacements are performed in the public sector in Ireland each year. Professor Frank Barry, Director of the NCBES, said: "The use of new engineering approaches to develop orthopaedic implants with enhanced properties is a central part of the NCBES research effort. I am delighted to see that this exciting and innovative project will be initiated in the near future". The project will run for two years where world-class biomechanical engineering facilities will allow the researchers to carry out detailed design, mechanical testing and histological analysis of the new implants, in order to validate the technology to attract potential industry partners and investors. The goal of the project will be to develop the technology to a stage where a partner orthopaedics company can be identified to bring the new implants through to clinical trials. This will be achieved with the support of the Technology Transfer Office at NUI Galway. Professor Peter McHugh, Head of Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering at NUI Galway, said: "This project demonstrates the wonderful synergy that can be achieved by integrating engineering, biology and clinical applications; this approach has been the cornerstone of NUI Galway's international achievements in biomedical engineering and of the development of the crucially important medical technology industry sector in the West of Ireland". Dr McDonnell and Dr Harrison both completed their PhD theses in the Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering Department while based in the NCBES in recent years, and their success in achieving this grant demonstrates the progression from fundamental research to innovative product development that is crucial for the enhancement of the knowledge economy in the West of Ireland. -Ends-

CAO First Preferences for NUI Galway increase by 18% in 2 years Figures released by the Central Applications Office (CAO) following the Change of Mind deadline of 1 July show another dramatic rise in demand for places at NUI Galway. First preference applications for undergraduate degrees at NUI Galway have increased by almost 18% in the last two years, as the University's popularity continues to soar. The current Sunday Times University of the Year, NUI Galway's share of the University sector's first preference applications now stands at 14.3%. President of NUI Galway, Dr James J. Browne, commented on the rising demand to study at the University: "We are seeing a phenomenal demand for places at NUI Galway. This is driven in part by the 20 new undergraduate courses which we have brought on stream over the last three years. There are also a range of new sports, arts and academic facilities on our state-of-the art campus. Another critical factor in attracting applicants is the University's commitment to providing our students with a learning experience that has relevance for the real world". Newer courses at NUI Galway include the extremely popular Energy Engineering, which was developed in direct response to calls from the energy sector for more energy engineers with the right combination of skills. Also popular is the new Engineering Innovation degree, combining traditional electronic engineering with business and entrepreneurship. The University also offers a Sports and Exercise Engineering degree, which is the first of its kind available in Ireland, and new students can look forward to the opening of a stunning new €40 million Engineering Building next year, which will be the largest School of Engineering in the country. Of the University's traditional courses, the Commerce degree has seen a huge increase in popularity, with a 25% increase in applications in recent months. Much of this success is due to innovative programme developments over the last year, including the addition of an industry-led module on innovation, creativity and enterprise where students are mentored by business leaders. The latest figures also show a dramatic increase of more than 60% in first preference applications to the Computer Science and Information Technology programme at NUI Galway. NUI Galway has also brought eight BA Connect degrees on-stream, in a radical departure from traditional Arts degrees. These four-year degrees are designed to increase the employability of graduates by developing distinctive skills and creating connections with life beyond the campus. This year, a new BA Connect degree with Latin American Studies was introduced, alongside the existing BA Connect programmes with either Children s Studies, Creative Writing, Film Studies, Human Rights, Irish Studies, Women s Studies or Theatre and Performance. At present, NUI Galway is the only Irish university offering a denominated degree in marine science and it now has the highest concentration of marine scientists of any institution in Ireland. This degree also offers training on board national training vessels in the third year of study. NUI Galway is also offering the first Podiatry degree in Ireland, which will train healthcare professionals who specialises in the medicine of the foot and leg. -Ends-