Forthcoming events, courses

• Prof. Robert Hollander Emeritus professor in European literature at Princeton University, New Jersey, USA, will give a talk entitled ''Dante's 'Sympathetic' Sinners'" on Thursday at 6 p.m. in Lecture Theatre 1, as part of the Faculty of Arts' literature and comparison research seminar series.

• A blood drive on the University campus will be held on Wednesday and Thursday in the canteen. It is being organised by the Malta Medical Students Association's standing committee on public health in collaboration with University Students' Council (KSU). Donors are to bring their ID cards. Organ donation forms can be filled at a stand outside the canteen. For further information e-mail: kyky_cam@hotmail.com or lentini@maltanet.net.

• John P. Portelli, professor and co-director of the Centre for Leadership and Diversity of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto will deliver a public talk on Friday from 5.30 to 7 p.m. at Lecture Theatre 2 on the subject 'Evidence-based policy/practice/ education: Whom does it serve?'

The lecture is organised by the Journal of Maltese Educational Research (JMER) in collaboration with the Department of Youth and Community Studies. JMER editor Carmel Borg will introduce the talk.

• The University Gozo Centre in Xewkija is hosting a 50-hour foundation course in economics and accounting offered in collaboration with the University's Faculty of Ecomomics, Management and Accountancy.

The course starts on Friday, and lectures will be held on Fridays from 5 to 8 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon. The course fee is €232.94. Applications are to be submitted by tomorrow. For further information, contact the centre on tel 2156 4559/2054 or e-mail ugc@um.edu.mt.

• Teatru Qroqq is organising a theatre production of Roald Dahl's popular children's story Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on Saturday at 5 p.m. and Sunday at 7 p.m. at St James Cavalier. For bookings call 2122 3216.

The play is directed by Marcelle Teuma and produced by Isabelle Gatt, a lecturer in the Expressive Arts at the Faculty of Education, who also runs Teatru Qroqq, a project made up of B.Ed. and theatre studies students working with a team of theatre practitioners.

• Prof. Catriona Seth from the Université de Nancy 2, France, is to give the following public lectures on 18th-century French literature:

Les enfants trouvés dans la littérature on April 28 from 4 to 5.30 p.m, in room OH112;

Le tremblement de terre de Lisbonne, de Voltaire à Mme de Genlis on April 29 from 5 to 6.30 p.m. in room MI 127;

Aspects de l'épistolarité dans les 'Lettres persanes' on April 30 from 4 to 5.30 p.m. in room OH112.

The lectures are organised by the Department of French within the framework of the Erasmus/ Socrates staff mobility exchange programme that the University of Malta has with the French university.

• Elizabeth Belton, a senior lecturer in Nutrition and Dietetics at Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, Scotland, will deliver a lecture on 'Dietetics - Old and New' on April 29 at 1 p.m. at the Mater Dei Hospital, Auditorium Block A, organised by the Institute of Health Care.

• Dorothée Schmid, researcher on Mediterranean and Middle East issues at the Institut Français des Relations Internationales, will deliver a lecture about 'The Union for the Mediterranean: French Track or New European Policy?' on April 29 at 6 p.m. at the Corinthia Palace Hotel, Attard, organised by the European Documentation and Research Centre (EDRC) in conjunction with the Malta European Studies Association (MESA) with the support of the French Embassy in Malta. To book a seat phone 2340 2136 or e-mail doris.mangion@ um.edu.mt by Friday.

• The Department of Industrial Electrical Power Conversion at the Faculty of Engineering is offering an M.Sc. in Electrical Power Conversion. The degree is open to graduates with an honours degree in Electrical Engineering. Selected candidates will follow some modules at Nottingham University between October and June 2009 and complete the rest of the modules and main thesis at the University.

For further information contact the department on Tel 2133 3995.

Interested parties are to submit a CV to the department and also apply to participate in the Erasmus scheme by May 2. Erasmus applications may be downloaded from website: www.eu-unit.um.edu.mt/erasmus/erasmus.html. For further information contact Annhelica Scerri at the International and EU Office via e-mail: annhelica.scerri@um.edu.mt or Tel 2340 2804.

• An exhibition of tins of chocolate sent by Queen Victoria to her troops fighting in South Africa as a New Year's gift for 1900 is currently being held in the University library's exhibition area till May 9. There are also items of memorabilia dating to the Boer War (1899-1902), some of which have a Malta connection.