Reading in the news - Mon 13 Apr

Chicken or the egg? Dr Jacob Gardner (Biological Sciences) spoke to BBC Radio Oxford about how dinosaurs can be used to answer the question of whether the chicken or egg came first.

Health and wellbeing:

• Professor Gunter Kuhnle (Food and Nutritional Sciences) was interviewed by  (republished by  and ) on the health risks of consuming too much Nutella.

• Professor Gunter Kuhnle was also quoted by  (republished by  and ) about the nutritional benefits of eating smoked salmon.

• Dr Ian Jones (Biomedical Sciences) was quoted by and  about a new covid variant.

• ,, , , ,and other outlets reported on a study which found a more effective way to treat UTIs, mentioning Dr Oliver Hancox, CEO of University-founded company Astratus. From our story: Rapid urine test could select UTI antibiotics within hours

• Research led by PhD student Holly Giles (Food and Nutritional Sciences) on improving the taste of protein shakes was featured by . From our story: Your post-gym protein shake may get a taste upgrade

Food and farming:

•  and  featured research from Dr Stephen Elmore (Food and Nutritional Sciences) which is producing wheat with reduced levels of asparagine, a toxic compound.

• Dr Stephen Elmore was also quoted by  about colour changes to crisps over the past 20 years.

• Professor Tom Sizmur (Geography and Environmental Science) was quoted by  on the benefits of using wool-based fertiliser for plants.

#PlanetPartners: working with global partners to protect the environment

• ,, , and republished an article written by Dr Jess Neumann (Geography and Environmental Science) in  about signs that a river is polluted. 

• BBC Radio Berkshire highlighted a new book from Dr Stephen Burt (Meteorology) which compiles two centuries of weather observations in Reading. From our story: Reading’s weather history retold in new book

• Dr Stephen Burt was quoted by  about observations from the University’s Atmospheric Observatory showing Wednesday 8thof April was the earliest temperatures have reached 25 °C on record. From our expert comment: Reading experiences its earliest 25 °C day on record

Heritage and culture:

•  (republished by , , and ) featured an obituary for the late Professor Giulio Ciro Lepschy.

• Professor Federico Faloppa (Languages and Cultures) will take part in an upcoming talk on using language for inclusion and empathy, reports .

• ,, , and  (republished by  and ) reported on a new project at Reading Museum being put together in partnership with the University, highlighting research from Professor Michael Fulford (Archaeology).

•  featured celebrations at Heley Business School Africa for Reading’s 100th anniversary, quotingVice-Chancellor Professor Robert Van de Noort, Frempong Acheampong, Deputy Dean and Academic and Governance Director of Henley Business School Africa and Director Jon Foster-Pedley. 

Other coverage:

• A discovery made my Dr Thomas Clements (Biological Sciences) about a fossil mistaken to be the world's oldest octopus was featured by , , , , and various global outlets. From our story: ‘Oldest octopus’ fossil is no octopus at all, scans reveal.

•  quoted Professor Robert Van de Noort, Vice-Chancellor, about the University’s placement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject. From our story: Agriculture top in UK in QS subject rankings 2026

•  reported on a collaboration with the University to improve local health and care services.

Alumni:

•  and  highlighted an upcoming exhibition from artist and Reading graduate Stella Sevastopoulos.

• Kyriaki Christodoulou, Quantity Surveying graduate and Group Finance Director of Pafilia, was interviewed by .

•  (republished by ) profiled Managing Director of Toyota Nigeria Kunle Ade-Ojo, who studied Mechanical Engineering.

• Rionna Ronni, Henley Business School graduate and Senior Manager at Nedbank was profiled by  and .

•  interviewed Nontobeko Magala, Director of Coah Network, about her experience studying at Henley Business School Africa.

• Nhu Quynh Ha Dang, Education graduate, was listed by  as a speaker at an upcoming talk on how to study effectively.