Blood transfusion is a life saving medical treatment. The blood currently used for transfusion is provided by donors but some people have very rare blood types and it can be hard to find an exact match. Exciting recent breakthroughs in cell culture have made it possible to generate red blood cells in the laboratory from adult stem cells that are present in the blood. However, this technology is prohibitively...

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Bristol Bright Club is the thinking person's variety night - the show that takes folks from the region's top academic institutions and turns them into stand-up comedians for one night only. (tickets on sale here) Featuring: Jared Hardy, comedian Tom Carvell, experimenter in nano-majobbies – the NATURE of things Beth Atkinson, woodland ecologist – back to NATURE James Bell, keeper of crawly things – NATURE of the (mini)beast...

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The world’s energy supplies are changing massively in the coming years with the decline of fossil-fuel availability, the scaling-down of nuclear power in many countries and the growth of renewables such as wind and solar.  How will this affect us as individuals? How will home energy systems cope with fluctuations in supply, when the wind doesn't blow and the sun doesn't shine? The UK Government are committed to rolling out...

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Although heart disease has only gained recognition as a major cause of death in the last 125 years, post-mortem studies on Egyptian Mummies have confirmed that this disease has been affecting humans for centuries. More recently, our understanding of the complex condition "atherosclerotic plaque rupture" - the underlying ailment that causes heart disease - has rapidly progressed. We now know that inflammation plays a prominent role in...

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