SURHUL – Page 2 of 3

1Nov

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Sports & Socs

#BearsDay- Disappointment for Women’s 1st Fencing

After narrowly missing promotion to the Premier League last year, the start of the new season saw the Women's 1st Fencing team put our brand new pistes into action. This week's opponents were new to our league; having risen through the ranks of South Eastern 2A, the Kings College London team earned promotion, and it showed. Our first weapon of the match was foil, with ex-Captain and resident foilist, Lyndsay Galpin, new blood, Chloe Hooper, and current Captain Verity Ridgeon, who having switched to Sabre hasn't picked up a foil in 11 years. The KCL girls started strong with a 15-1 lead, but after the third bout we started to warm up. Verity began to pull us back with impeccable footwork and timing, Chloe began finding her feet again after two years out of fencing, and Lyndsay looked lik...

1Nov

By Laura DenhamNo Comments

Opinion

The Mona Lisa Re-born?

It’s a miracle like no other. The Student’s Union of Royal Holloway has seen a truly remarkable rebirth. It’s the return of the Mona Lisa, widely criticised to have a smile so true to life it’s almost as if you only had to step into a room and grin at yourself in the mirror to merely replicate it. A smile, which has kept many an art historian busy for centuries, that is so completely between innocence and invitation that the distinction is beyond reckoning. Such a miracle can be found, miraculously, on the latest Student Entertainment posters advertising function nights at the SU throughout October including one, hastily replaced on the 13th October, publicising Come in Your Kit. They are NOT a true representation of our student body, as they are, and particularly not of women in sport....

28Oct

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Sports & Socs

#BearsDay- Fencing to Victory

"Come home with your shield or upon it" tweeted President Mike Smith at the Men's first fencing team on the first #BearsDay of the year. If we had shields, we would have returned with them, in style. The match saw our Men's 1st team play the Sussex 2nds team, resulting in what I'd call a pretty impressive start to the year. We started out with Epée, featuring myself, President Mike Smith, and our STARS fresher Elliot Grover. There was a flurry of blades and 50 minutes later we had secured a 45-23 lead- a rare score in a Epée, as a weapon regarded as very balanced in scoring. We can owe our lead in part to the fact that I was particularly on form and only conceded 4 points, which we can't expect every match. Next came foil, an all-freshers team so talented that they have kicked me off it ...

28Oct

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Sports & Socs

#BearsDay- Shocking! Pre-initiations match to be more than actual initiations!

On the 15th October, the Women's 2nd Lacrosse team played their first BUCS match ever. It was an interesting experience, leaving me unable to disclose the score for reasons of pride... By the time we got to Brighton everyone in the SSHH bus, except for 3 people (including the driver) who were doing karaoke to 'Blue - Da-ba-dee-da-ba-da', was asleep. The other half of our fun crew, who were driving, almost didn't make it at all past the M25 because of their car's bad temper. With transport problems solved, we woke up, proceeded to the changing rooms, were amazed by the fact that they had a swimming pool (so unfair), warmed up, realised that we forgot half the stuff we needed in the changing room, went back, got it, and became more organised. All in all, everyone managed to get shoes on, ...

14Oct

By Laura DenhamNo Comments

Features

General Meeting 14/10/2014: ‘The Devil is in the Detail’

Excited chatter fills the SU Main Hall as students file in, more or less thrilled about being at the year’s first General Meeting (GM). As the clock strikes 18:08, we’re still waiting to begin. Purple dots the SU Main Hall as the Executive Committee 2014-15 file in and spread out across the hall. Tonight, the students are joined by SU Contract staff, here to learn more about the GM and the democratic structures in place at the SU, in line with CEO Ian Dancy’s policy of taking staff back to the floor. Finally starting at 18:24 (24 minutes later than planned, but 6 minutes earlier than expected), Chair, Gillian Craig makes a tentative start, explaining how the GM works to newcomers: the fact that the GM is a safe space, that all are invited to speak and express their opinions, and that...

28Sep

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Sports & Socs

JOIN BIOSOC

BIOSCIENCE STUDENT? Yes, we’re talking to you! BioSoc this year will be BIGGER and BETTER than ever! We’re looking forward to bringing you MORE socials, MORE events and all that is missing is YOU. We’re inviting you to join the most improved society of 2014 and we guarantee that you will not regret it. As well as bringing crazy fun to our students, we know how to work hard and play hard - the first commandment of living the BioSoc life, we also offer academic support to all years. There will be bio-mentoring sessions and careers events popping up throughout the year and the social highlight for this year is our trip abroad, which you can believe will be AMAZING, so keep an eye out for that! Not only is this a chance to meet other people in the same boat, it is a chance to be part of ...

28Sep

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Sports & Socs

An Introduction to Femsoc

Interested in feminism? Or simply finding out more about what exactly that means? The definition of feminism is ‘advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality’; we aim to work towards equality of the genders. As one of the first UK universities to accept women, Royal Holloway has a rich feminist history which we try to keep alive through our society. We meet weekly for friendly discussion with likeminded people, usually followed by a social. In the second week of term we will be holding an open session to give a feeling for the society before you pay membership, so don’t believe the ‘man-hating’ stereotype, come and meet us for yourself! We invite in a variety of speakers and hold charity and campaign events as well as a great mixture of soc...

Check out Royal Holloway’s Cricket Club! OPEN TO ALL

28Sep

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Sports & Socs

Check out Royal Holloway’s Cricket Club! OPEN TO ALL

Whether you’re already a skilled player or haven’t yet picked up a cricket bat, cricket has something for everyone! There are many reasons why you should pursue this brilliant sport. This sport not only improves your overall health and fitness but also develops your rhythm and coordination skills. There is a strong team spirit both in training sessions and on the pitch.. If you have previously played hockey, golf, tennis or another racquet sport you would be well suited to giving cricket a try! Alternatively if you simply thrive off competition and get a thrill from winning then you should pick up this sport now! Cricket is all about socialising with your teammates and enjoying yourself both on and off the pitch. There is nothing more thrilling than a game which is taken to the last ...

28Sep

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Sports & Socs

NASA say ‘BOUNCE’

Do you fancy increasing your fitness, having a blast and learning something new? How about hurtling yourself into the air and plummeting back down to land on your front, back and, occasionally, your feet? If so, trampolining is the perfect sport for you! NASA has even approved the sport with a study revealing that trampolining is 68% more efficient than running. Nearly all muscle groups are engaged, yet bouncing places less strain on your joints. If NASA says so it must be true! Trampolining is a competitive gymnastic sport that involves performing acrobatic moves between bounces. RHUL Trampolining welcomes members from all ability levels. If you’re a complete novice our fully qualified coach will build your confidence on a trampoline before progressing to more complicated skills. For m...

28Sep

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Sports & Socs

Geology Rocks

The Lyell Geoscience Society works in conjunction with the Geology department and has a well-established tradition of organising events throughout the year, the most important of which is Lyell Day. This is an annual celebration of distinguished geologist, Charles Lyell, taking place in the spring. Lyell Day is marked by a series of lectures given by RHUL Earth Science lecturers and invited guest speakers, who are experts in their field. It's an opportunity for the department and distinguished lecturers to present their latest research to the Earth Science students at Royal Holloway. Lyell day culminates with a formal dinner held in the prestigious Picture Gallery, inviting guests such as Lord Lyell. We run an annual Lecture Series that invites guest lecturers from around the UK to p...