NEWS IN BRIEF

LECTURERS OUTPERFORM STUDENTS IN BED

Cock-sure casanovas on campus who consider themselves “kings of the bedroom” will be shocked to find that their lecturers are probably better in bed. Male students in their twenties perform poorly in comparison to men aged between 30 and 60, who are able to maintain erections for longer. Lorraine Boule who headed the study at Sheffield University found that the quality of sex improves with age.

£10,000 REWARD FOR INFO

A £10,000 reward is being offered in the hunt for James Scott, a Stanmore man who has been missing since November. A murder enquiry was launched in January but his body has not yet been found. The 47 year-old plasterer, known as Scotty, was last seen on 16 November in Wealdstone. A man is on bail in connection with his disappearance and is due to return to Harrow police station on 2 April.

DRINKING BEER CAN IMPROVE BRAIN POWER

It is the news all students have been waiting for – drinking alcohol can actually improve brain power! Students who drink half a pint of beer after learning new information are significantly more likely to be able to recall the information a few moments later. Researchers at Northumbria University think that alcohol helps to better code information making it easier to recall.

HUNT FOR CONMAN

Harrow police are to show pictures of a local conman on BBC’s Crimewatch. A pensioner was conned out of £2,500 by the fraudster posing as a water company official on 7 March at 12.15pm in Kingshill Drive, Kenton. The conman is described as white with receeding black hair and an Irish accent. He was wearing a blue shirt and tie and driving a dark hatchback. Contact Andy Grant on 8733 3434 with information.

RAPIST CHASER CONGRATULATED BY POLICE

A Harrow man has been congratulated by police after chasing an attempted rapist away from his stepdaughter. While attempting to escape the man, she dialled 999. Her stepfather began searching for her after police called at their home informing him that someone had called 999 from a phone registered at his address. A search was launched and he found his stepdaughter being attacked on Bridgewater Road in Wembley. He chased after Ramesh Meghji, 22, and detained him until police arrived. Maghji pleaded not-guilty to attempted rape at the Old Bailey and was sentenced to six years in jail.

BODY IN PARK IDENTIFIED

The young man whose badly burned body was found in a park in Kingsbury has been identified as Sri-Lanka-born Supenthar Rachmandran, 18 of Wembley.

GET TO TOWN FAST
A fast new rail link through Harrow to the West End is planned. The scheme would provide a fast link between Harrow and Paddington, and then a new rail tunnel to Liverpool Street. The route is expected to become a reality within ten years as part of the proposed Crossrail scheme.

CHEWING GUM IS KEY TO EXAM SUCCESS

Students who want to improve their exam results should chew gum, according to a new study. Chewing can improve long and short-term memory by up to 35% according to researchers at Northumbria University. Chewing gum is shown to increase heart rate and blood flow to the brain, and could increase insulin release causing a bigger uptake of sugar by the brain. The study is due to be published in the Journal of Appetite later this year.

STUDENTS TO REVIEW COURSES

University students are to be asked what they think of their courses as part of a revised auditing system. Students’ opinions will form part of the reviews of university subjects carried out by the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education. Margaret Hodge, the minister for higher education, said she wants to put students “centre stage” to raise standards.