Undergraduates who study maths-based subjects are more likely to achieve Firsts than students on arts or social sciences courses, according to the University’s newly released Finals statistics.

The data also confirms the existence of a continuing gender gap, with men consistently out-performing women in finals.

Males remain more likely to get Firsts than females, gaining almost 200 more last year, with 34% of men getting top honours at finals compared with 23% of women last year.

The percentage of women gaining Firsts has remained at 23% for the last 4 years, while the percentage of men rose 3% from 31% the previous year.
 One explanation offered for the continuing gender gap is that men are more drawn to maths-based subjects.

Mathematics & Computer Science students were the most successful last year, with 9 of 11, (82%), gaining Firsts. Of the more widely read subjects, Mathematics and Physics, when taken to Masters, were the most successful, with 51% of 94 students and 49% of 89 students gaining Firsts respectively. Males outnumbered females in all of these subjects.

 David Ferris, a first-year physicist, denied that the higher percentage of Firsts meant Maths and Physics were any easier, “I doubt they’re particularly easy compared to other subjects. Maths and Physics are the sort of subject that people don’t just choose in order to get a degree, they do it specifically because they want to do the subject, which usually means they’re pretty good at it.”

Jurisprudence and Economics & Management students struggled most, out of the popular subjects, to gain the top class, with 17% of each gaining Firsts. The most difficult subjects to gain a First in were Archaeology & Anthropology, Classical Archaeology & Ancient History, and PPP, where the percentages of Firsts barely passed 10%.

More generally, students reading in Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences (MPLS) gained over 10% more firsts last year than those reading Humanities, Medical Sciences, or Social Sciences.

39% of MPLS students received a first class degree, in comparison to 26% of Humanities students, 25% of Medical Sciences students, and 23% of Social Sciences students.

However, MPLS subjects also topped the tables for 3rd class honours. Only 3 students of 28 receiving 3rds were from non-MPLS subjects, and there were none from Social Sciences. 

A spokesperson for Oxford University commented, “The distribution of firsts appears to have varied by subject groups for a long time and the same sort of distribution appears to occur in other Russell Group universities. Each division reviews the figures across its group of subjects and the Education Committee looks at the figures across the board.

“Research [into the gender gap] has been carried out for over 10 years and has failed to reveal any significant factor that influences examination results…Marking of examination papers has been carried out anonymously for many years.”

Disproven Hypotheses for the cause of the gender gap include such theories as natural differences in intelligence and mathematical ability as well as the effect of PMS. These have been researched by Oxford.

Suggested “Unproven Hypotheses” include teaching styles, examination anxiety and perfectionism.

Louise Privett, an Engineering undergraduate, agreed that the gender gap may be caused by teaching style, “Oxford’s pretty much all taught in lectures and tutes, maybe girls learn better in school style classes – it’s well-known girls do better at school.”

Ellie Kaminski, a first-year biologist, on the other hand, claimed that boys simply work harder, “Boys are more nerdy in general. They spend more time studying and less time washing their greasy nerd hair.”

Only 8% of black students gained first class honours last year, with every other ethnic group gaining 25% or over, according to newly released statistics. This is reinforced by previous year’s statistics, where the split in different classes of degrees were first publicly recorded for different ethnicities, as black students again underperformed, gaining between 4% and 16% firsts (variability having been added for data protection purposes), in comparison with 29% of white students.

Nathan Roberts has resigned again as JCR President of Queen’s College.

He announced his decision in a letter to the JCR which was sent on Monday night.
In the letter he stated that he was leaving the role because, “I don’t want to be JCR President in the current circumstances. ” Roberts’ decision was influenced by an email sent by the Dean to Queen’s undergraduate body last week, which adocated Roberts’ resignation.

In a statement to Cherwell, Roberts said, “I will definitely be challenging both the decisions made and the way they’ve been made. I’m currently in discussions with OUSU about the best way forward, but any challenges I make will not be in my role as JCR President.”

There has been a lot of support in Queen’s for Roberts, who has now effectively been elected three times.

However, a petition was brought to the JCR meeting on Sunday night calling for Roberts to resign. The student who started the petition claimed that it had sixty signatures, including some from people on the JCR Committee.

One student from Queen’s said that there were vocal supporters on both sides.

They commented, “There was a heated discussion. Some people just want a JCR President who can function and to sort out the issues that surround Nathan separately. There are those who feel that his resignation means the fight is lost, and that the real issue is JCR independence.”

Oxford tutor Dr Stewart Wood has this week joined the group of politicians and advisors involved in the Gordon Brown bullying allegations.

Wood, who works as Brown’s chief foreign policy advisor, explained an altercation with Gordon Brown to journalist Suzie Mackenzie. “[Brown] was in a really bad mood,” he said. “He walked up the stairs. And I leant forward and he went, “Outta my way!” And did that [Dr Wood makes a sweeping gesture with his arm] “Get outta my way!” Then he walked off…He

‘s never punched me. He did push me aside.”

Suzie Mackenzie, a journalist in regular correspondence with Wood, released details of a recorded conversation the two had concerning the Prime Minister. This was despite having an understanding with Wood that he would be made aware of what information she was releasing.

Wood, also a Politics tutor at Magdalen College, had been working closely with Mackenzie over the past few years as she conducted extensive research for her character study on Gordon Brown.

Describing their interviews, the journalist said, “We meet regularly, always with a tape on, and I should say here that our understanding has always been that I would not reveal what he has said without discussing things with him first.”

Mackenzie disclosed the discussion of Gordon Brown’s outbursts to The Mail on Sunday, which published an article detailing the conversation last weekend.

The allegations against the Prime Minister of abusive behaviour towards his staff first emerged in political journalist Andrew Rawnsley’s book The End of the Party. Published on the 1st of March, it charts the decline of New Labour and the relationships between the key party figures.

Mackenzie raised the subject of Brown’s allegedly abusive behaviour with Wood over a lunch-time interview at popular Westminster restaurant The Cinnamon Club on 14th January.

The journalist felt driven to publish this information after hearing Brown categorically state that he had “never, never hit anybody” or shoved them, during an interview on 28th February on Channel 4 News.

She was so incensed by his denial that she published Wood’s statements to contradict what she felt was a falsehood from the Prime Minister.

Mackenzie said, “I believe that what is being revealed here is a matter of public interest, that the time has come for transparency and honesty – most particularly in the run-up to an election.”

The journalist acknowledged the moral ambiguity of releasing details of a conversation which was agreed as off the record. “Some people will find what I have done unconscionable. I accept this,” she said.

Dr Wood responded to the media frenzy with the following statement, “Allegations that Gordon struck or punched me are totally wrong. As I recall, he was in a hurry that day, and barged past me . . . but he didn’t shove me. It did annoy me at the time, but it was an isolated incident”.

The Mail on Sunday, which published Wood’s comments, has not responded to requests for a statement.

John Radcliffe Hospital has suspended paediatric cardiac surgery while it investigates the deaths of four children who underwent heart operations there in recent months.

The deaths have all occurred in the past four months.

In a statement, the hospital said, “The families of children awaiting cardiac surgery are being contacted and we will be placing those patients who need to be seen urgently with other hospitals. We are reviewing each of these patients to ensure that they are not put at risk by any delay in their treatment.”

They further stated that the children had been “very sick”.
An external review will be carried out to see if there are any common factors linking the deaths.

Those requiring urgent treatment have been transferred to other hospitals.
The John Radcliffe Hospital carries out about 100 heart operations on children every year.

Beth Evans, OUSU VP-Elect for Graduates, received 24% RON (Re-Open Nominations) votes in Thursday’s by-election.

This is the largest percentage of RON votes of any OUSU candidate in the past three years.

Forty people voted RON, while 129 voted for Beth Evans, who ran unopposed.
The online by-election was held because nobody came forward to run for the position last term.

The turnout of 160 from a potential electorate of 8,101 graduates was higher than usual in an OUSU by-election.

New College’s pet kitten Otis has been returned home after being discovered in Cowley on Tuesday night.

The cat, whose disappearance was reported two weeks ago in Cherwell, is said to have been “unscathed but confused” when found by RSPCA workers.

Zoe Norridge, Fellow in African and Comparative Literature, who oversees the welfare of the College pet, has thanked everyone who helped in the search for Otis.

“Thank you for all the messages, help with putting up posters, late night walks around the University Club pitches calling out his name and so on.”

Otis, who had disappeared on Monday 8th February, is now said to be “purring and curled up on the sofa” . Norridge said, “We’ll keep Otis in for a week or so but look out for him around college towards the end of term!”

Magdalen students suffering at the hands of an anonymous prankster have appointed a member of the JCR to protect them.

Matthew Shribman, a third-year Chemist, has been appointed as the college Sheriff, in order to catch the person behind the mystery persona of ‘John the Porter’.

The JCR motion granting him this position passed unanimously last Sunday.
The JCR was also mandated to provide the Sheriff with a badge, and to ask Dr Ralph Walker, Vice-President of the college, to present it to him.

The motion notes, “Someone in the college has created the fictional character of ‘John the Porter’ and has pulled stunts such as: (a) Calling numerous room phones, and telling undergraduates that they have to urgently report to the Porters Lodge to see John the Porter. The undergraduates in question arrived to find that John the Porter does not exist. (b) Turning furniture upside down in undergraduate rooms and leaving ominous notes such as ‘John the Porter is watching you’.”

Speaking to Cherwell, Shribman outlined the situation. “John the Porter is prolific. People have been affected in Magdalen, New College and Christ Church; he is growing ever more existentially portly and, though I’m doing my best, I cannot keep up.”
He further noted, “I am an experienced solver of idealistic college-based mysteries and a prolific vigilante.”

The motion noted that Shribman “would make an excellent Sheriff in solving this mystery.”

Shribman said, “The JCR voted unanimously in my favour, throwing all of their weight behind my bid to become Sheriff. This is undoubtedly a step in the right direction. I believe that the title of Sheriff will help me to speed up my investigations, especially at the more administrative end of things.

“Everybody takes Sheriffs seriously. There’s no namby-pamby with the Sheriff,” he said.

Confusion reigns over the identity of John the Porter. A number of members of college apparently believe that Shribman himself is the mysterious joker. However, the sheriff insists that those who know the culprit’s true identity are working to keep it under wraps.

“Not everyone is happy about my new appointment,” he said. “On Tuesday, just before noon, Hattie Huston, Lincoln College, attempted to crush me between the moving stacks in the Magdalen College library, stalling my investigation… of the stacks.”
Harry Maltby, a second year PPEist at Magdalen, confirmed that there was real fear surrounding this episode. “This John the Porter is no myth. Every time the phone rings I am terrified that it might be him. I am glad that college is talking the threat seriously in the appointment of the Sheriff. We students can now rest assured that something is being done.”

One Magdalen student however, who asked to be described as “a friend of John the Porter” said that Shribman would be ineffective, claiming that “John don’t fear no Sheriff.”

Tom Meakin, JCR President, was happy to see the motion pass, commenting, “I think it’s great that every once and a while colleges can take a step back and not take themselves too seriously. I wish Matthew every luck in his quest to pin down this elusive villain.”

Shribman declared that he “will retain the title of Sheriff until The Land Before Time is brought out on DVD.”