Reading in the news - Mon 5 Jan

(republished by ) reported on the University’s 100-year anniversary celebration, with an interview with Vice-Chancellor Professor Robert Van de Noort.

Professor Anna Horwood (Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences) received an MBE in the King’s New Year Honours list. The news was covered by: , , The Times (print), , , , , and various outlets. Professor Horwood spoke to BBC Radio Berkshire about the award. From our story: Vision science pioneer awarded MBE

Health and wellbeing:

• and highlighted comments from Professor Ciara McCabe (Psychology) on dopamine rewards.
• , , and (republished by ) quoted Dr Simon Clark (Biomedical Science) on a new strain of flu.
• Dr Tijana Blanusa (Agriculture, Policy and Development) was quoted by (republished by ) on the benefits of houseplants. From our story: Attractive houseplants give biggest well-being boost
• and mention Reading research into why champagne can help prevent dementia. The same Saga article references another Reading study which found that champagne can benefit heart health.

Food and farming:

• BBC Radio 4 spoke to Dr Ollie Douglas, Curator at the Museum of English Rural Life, on the accuracy of the farm life portrayed in George Orwell’s Animal Farm.
• Professor Gunter Kuhnle (Food and Nutritional Sciences) was quoted by (republished by ) on nutritional differences between farmed and wild smoked salmon.
• featured quotes from Professor Richard Tiffin (Agri-Food Economics and Marketing) on the climate impact of vegan diets.
• (republished by ) reported on a study by Professor Julie Lovegrove (Food and Nutritional Sciences) which found eating apples lowers cholesterol.
• Dr Daniel Lamport (Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences) was quoted by and about the cognitive benefits of orange juice.
• An article in highlights a Reading study about the benefits of increased fibre intake. From our story: Getting fibre into British diets will take teamwork and guts

#PlanetPartners: working with global partners to protect the environment

• and featured comments from Professor Chris Hilson (Law) on net zero discussions from the .
• republished an article from which quoted Dr Jess Neumann (Geography) on droughts in 2025.
• featured a study by Professor Nigel Arnell (Meteorology) on the UK’s potential climate impacts. From our story: UK’s worst-case climate risks laid bare for lawmakers
• Professor Hannah Cloke (Geography/Meteorology) was quoted by and on UK flood defences.
• mentioned research into how climate change affects rainfall.
• Professor Mike Lockwood (Meteorology) was quoted by on solar eclipses.
• Dr Rob Thompson (Meteorology) spoke to BBC Radio Berkshire about cold snaps during December. Dr Akshay Deoras (Meteorology) spoke to LBC News on the same topic and yellow weather warnings from the Met Office.
• , , , , and other outlets (republished by ) mentioned research from Professor Paul Williams (Meteorology) on increasing flight turbulence, with an interview by CBC Radio. From our story: Turbulent flights to continue as warming world shakes skies

Business and society:

• Professor Michael Schmitt (Law) was quoted by on the US blockade on Venezuelan oil tankers.
• Following the US-led capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, Professor Schmitt was also quoted by (republished by , and ) on the legality of Trump's order, with comments from Professor Marko Milanovic (Law) featured by (republished by and ).
• and republished an article from on fast fashion, written by Dr Yang Ding and Dr Xuchang Chen (both Henley Business School).
• Dr Melissa Carr (Henley Business School) spoke to on changes to diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace.
• Dr Dominic Lees (Film, Theatre and Television) was quoted by , , and , , , and various other outlets on using AI in movies.
• An article about work-life balance in Latin America mentions Henley Business School research on the benefits of four-day working weeks.
• included comments from Professor Chris Hilson (Law) on potential future agri-food sector lawsuits.
• , , , , (republished by and ) and various outlets reported on research from Dr Katie Gray (Psychology) on detecting AI faces. From our story: Five minutes of training could help you spot fake AI faces
• Dr Naeema Pasha (Henley Business School) was quoted by , , and various outlets on combating inequality in the workplace.
• and (republished by and ) reported on a study by Professor Benjamin Laker (Henley Business School) on the effect of meetings on workplace productivity.
• and (republished by ) highlighted a study by Dr Nicholas Hedger (Psychology) into flinching during films. From our story: Why watching someone get hurt on screen makes you wince
• Sarah Leach (Henley Business School) was quoted by (republished by , , and ) on returning to work after the holidays.
• Jon Foster-Pedley (Dean, Henley Business School Africa) wrote for  on success and becoming significant.
•  profiled Dr Radhika Shrivastava, Vice President of Business Development at XSAV Lab, who is a Henley Business School doctoral candidate.

Heritage and culture:

•  quoted Professor Hella Eckhardt (Archaeology) on a Roman mosaic depicting the Trojan War story.
•  featured a new book, The Black Cross, by Dr Aleks Pluskowski (Archaeology) about Christianity in the Medieval period.
•  highlighted an excavation led by Professor Gabor Thomas (Archaeology) on an 8th century monastery in Cookham.
• Dr Helen Parish (History) spoke to BBC Radio Berkshire about New Years celebrations throughout history.
• Professor Adrian Bell (Henley Business School) co-wrote an article in  (republished by and ) on the careers of English soldiers in the Hundred Years’ War.
• BBC Radio Berkshire highlighted a study by Dr Rebecca Pitt (Archaeology) on health in Roman-era Britain.
•  and Doncaster Free Press (print) reported on the University-produced play Glitch, which will be touring the UK next year, with  (republished by ) reporting on the cast list.
• Research from Dr Ken Dark (Archaeology/History) into Jesus's birthplace was highlighted by .
• highlighted research from The Museum of English Rural Life on the origin of turkey as a Christmas tradition.

#UniForReading: our role as a civic university

• The University’s School of Biological Sciences is in partnership with the Living Rainforest conservation centre, reports  and .

Other coverage:

•  (republished by ) reported on a trial in relation to bomb hoaxes at the University in 2023.
• Research from Dr Brian Pickles (Ecology) found a way to use lichens to discover dinosaur fossils, reports . From our story: Lichens and drones reveal dinosaur bones
•  highlighted The Museum of English Rural Life in a list of things to do around Reading, with BBC Radio Berkshire mentioning the wooden wagon collection.

Alumni:

• The Guardian (print) featured an obituary for Reading Typography graduate and Graphic Designer John Morgan.
• Reading graduate Richard Lennox has been appointed Chief Marketing Officer for Macy’s, reports .
•  provided an obituary for Nigel de Gruchy, General Secretary of NASUWT, who studied Economics and Philosophy.
• Henley Business School graduate Russell Shackleton has been listed by , , , , and additional outlets as a speaker at a course about non-executive directing.
•  (republished by ) featured a memoir written about Neil Marsden, Reading graduate and Environmental Health Officer.
• Environment and Development graduate Fermin Koop wrote for  on climate change driven migration in Fiji.
• Agricultural Economics graduate and Resident Representative of UNDP India, Dr Angela Lusigi, wrote for  on the success of India’s public support systems.
• reported that Henley Business School graduate Amer Nawli, founder of Liban Fresh, was featured on the Forbes Middle East 30 Under 30 2025.
• Reading graduate and type designer Shaqa Bovand was interviewed by on Arabic type design.
• Reading graduate Dr Paulo Bártolo has been appointed Advisor for the Portuguese Diaspora Council, reports .