Explore our research

Chickens’ diffusion to the west – through India, the Near East, Mediterranean and northern Europe – has been almost completely neglected in academic research. But the outcomes from this significant research project show just how important understanding the subject is.

BU’s Professor Khan has discovered a clean, sustainable and renewable way of meeting our future energy needs.

Foot drop is a temporary or permanent muscular weakness or paralysis that affects people’s ability to lift the front part of the foot and move their toes. FES is a method of externally and electrically controlling muscles to generate movement.

The Neolithic in southwest Asia (c 11,700-7800 cal BP) is an important period in human history which saw the advent of sedentism, agriculture, and ultimately, the rise of complex societies...

Find out how BU researchers have applied their ecological tipping points research into society, with the uptake of their recommendations by the Forestry Commission and further research now extending to all types of ecosystems.

The hump-backed mahseer population has decreased by 90% in the last 15 years but due to a case of mistaken identity, the fish disappeared unnoticed from South India’s River Cauvery until research led by Adrian Pinder, director of Bournemouth University’s Global Environmental Solutions and director of The Mahseer Trust, highlighted the giant carp’s plight.

People with exceptional facial recognition skills account for a small proportion of the population – but in areas such as security, their abilities can make a big impact.

After succeeding in making face blindness an officially recognised condition, researchers from Bournemouth University are now trialling effective treatment for those with prosopagnosia.

Read how 3D rainforest mapping is informing conservation plans that are key to assuring the survival of species such as gibbons, siamangs, orangutans and elephants.

Extensive geophysical surveys of Avebury World Heritage Site address big academically and societally relevant questions, such as the social use of space at different times in the past.

Researchers in BU’s Psychology department are leading the way in transforming the building and design guidelines of dementia care homes in the UK, helping residents with their navigation and orientation skills, which will improve their independence and quality of life.

Investigating the origin and development of large-scale monuments, and the emergence of early complex societies, on the north European Plain, to examine the relations between monumental building and social structures after the emergence of sedentism at around 4100 BC.

The Smart Ports Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Development (SPEED) project aims to improve ports in Belgium, France, the Netherlands and the UK by using new advances in technology and data science.

PATH is an EU-funded project which will enable women, families and healthcare professionals to prevent, diagnose, and successfully manage mild to moderate perinatal mental health issues.

Reducing nutrient levels in coastal ecosystems (RaNTrans) aims to improve the ecological status of transitional waters in England and France.

The SAMARCH project aims to provide new scientific evidence to inform the management of salmon and sea trout (salmonids) in the estuaries and coastal waters of the French and English sides of the Channel.

The ECHO project will deliver an organised and coordinated approach to strengthen proactive cyber defence in the European Union, through effective and efficient multi-sector collaboration.

Woolcombe is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. During the 1960s the Austin family, then owners of Woolcombe Farm, became interested in the archaeological resource of their home and carried out some limited excavations.

The 3DPARE project is working to deploy and monitor artificial reef blocks in the Atlantic ocean which have been designed and fabricated using innovative 3D printing technology and sustainable, low-impact bio-receptive materials.

ADDISONIC is finding new ways of fatigue-testing materials to more accurately predict and extend their lifespan, reducing the amount that ends up in landfill. 

AiBle is a 3-year UK/France cross-border EU Interreg project to improve the recovery experience of stroke patients with better treatment effects and efficiency by developing an upper-limb rehabilitation exoskeleton robot based on AI and cloud computing.

The Archaeological Investigations Project (AIP), funded by English Heritage, systematically collected information about the nature and outcomes of more than 80,000 archaeological projects undertaken between 1990 and 2010.

BU established The Centre for Face Processing Disorders (CFPD) to provide cognitive screening and training programmes to improve recognition skills for affected adults and children.

The objective of the MARINEFF project is to develop a new approach to the design and construction of maritime infrastructure. MARINEFF strives to enhance and protect coastal and transitional water ecosystems in cross-border Channel regions.

Building on an excavation and insights from the early 1970s, discover how BU academics and undergraduate students have worked together to discover more about a possible Roman fortlet in Dorset.

This innovative programme of archaeological science will characterise stone and ceramic building materials and explore the contexts within which they were produced.

Discover how BU’s work, alongside partner institutions, is helping to improve the understanding of computational intelligence for multiple audiences – and garnering tens of thousands of online views in the process.

Find out how BU revived a post-excavation project to report findings from fieldwork and excavation activities that were completed more than 30 years ago.

The team are reasearching digital addiction (DA) as an emergent research area and are exploring the problematic usage of digital media. They particularly focus on aiding people to adjust their usage style through the use of digital technology itself.

ECO-CODING is a Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF) funded project that will bring the technology of DNA barcoding to BU, collaborating environmental organisations and local school children.

BU’s software engineering research has focused on the improvement of software development methods with a particular emphasis on the ‘upstream’ or requirements phases.

Experiment driven and user experience-oriented analytics for extremely precise outcomes and decisions

The Wayfinding Research Centre (WRC) at BU conducts laboratory-based research, strongly informed by theory, to conceptualise the processes underlying human navigation. 

Fair access – or widening participation (WP) – is an area of considerable interest in the UK’s higher education sector. Its impetus is on breaking down barriers that prevent people from diverse backgrounds from entering higher education, and flourishing when they do.

FishE is exploring the factors that can negatively affect fish populations, and find effective strategies to prevent their decline.

The FoodMAPP project will enable local providers to supply and sell produce directly to consumers, reducing waste and food miles. 

These projects include academics from the Faculty of Science and Technology, the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, and the Faculty of Media and Communication.

Green tribology provides answers to friction and wear problems within an ecological and environmentally sound context. 

BU is a partner in the Human Henge project co-ordinated by the Restoration Trust and also involving Richmond Fellowship, English Heritage, and The National Trust. Using natural and constructed landscapes to promote health and well-being has a long and distinguished history stretching back to the pilgrimages of medieval times.

The Hybrid Digital Physical Space research cluster is developing a deeper understanding of human behaviour and emerging technologies in hybrid spaces. 

BU researchers are interested in how surgeons are affected personally and professionally when things go wrong, and in developing interventions to mitigate the impact of adverse events on surgeons

Discover how BU is working in partnership with Coda Music Centre and SEN schools to make music more accessible to all children.

ASPIRE is part of the Interreg VA Channel programme and will run from September 2019 to February 2023. The project has a total budget of over €10million and involves partners from the UK and France.

Extensive data analysis based on fieldwork conducted between 1993 and 2009 has enabled BU to report on a fascinating ceremonial and funereal landscape in east Dorset.

Survey and excavation in the UNESCO World Heritage landscape of Avebury, to discover more about the people that inhabited it and the ways they lived. 

Investigating the development, social context, and landscape-setting of Malta’s Neolithic temples by focusing on the site of Skorba and its surroundings.

Archaeological evidence from sites in and around Novgorod, Russia, is being used to map nearby forests and document their exploitation.

The MINE team are combining cognitive neuroscience, clinical and social psychology with virtual reality (VR) to develop new insights into understanding and changing people's behaviour.

Developing a suite of modelling tools to support economic forecasting.

The Neolithic Flint Mines project was established in order to fully record and widely disseminate the results of the early 20th century investigations for the first time.

Co-created by older people and academic researchers, this project will explore what it means to be an older person in a digital world.

Background

In 1912, the discovery of human skull fragments, an ape-like jaw and crudely worked flints close to the quiet Sussex village of Piltdown was hailed by the world’s press as the most sensational archaeological find ever, the ‘missing link’ in the ‘chain’ of human evolution.

Discover how gamification can improve the quality and efficiency of police training, including the core curriculum area of Stop and Search.

A European project exploring how artificial intelligence and big data can help detect and investigate crime. 

‘REGNVM: the First Kingdom’ is an ongoing project using archaeological and historical evidence to reassess the nature of cultural change across central south eastern Britain from the 1st century BC to the 4th century AD, examining in particular the nature of trade, globalisatio

Exploring ways to improve mental well-being with therapeutic activities in ancient landscapes

An interactive mobile phone app to aid understanding and adherence to the UK’s 5-a-day fruit and vegetable recommendations. 

Find out how BU researchers have created a system that provides timely advice to balance the requirements of coastal bird conservation with those of society.

Investigating approaches to reducing free sugar intake and the impact of limiting exposure to sweet taste. 

New modelling technology is helping preserve historic tanks, and other unique vehicles and structures, for generations to come.

The Durotriges Project is an intensive, multi-disciplinary investigation into the prehistoric and Roman societies of central south western Britain, conducted by staff and students of the Department of Archaeology, Anthropology and Forensic Science of Bournemouth University working in co-operation with students from other universities, schools, sixth form colleges and team of dedicated local volunteers.

Functional Electrical Stimulation, or FES, is a method of externally controlling muscles when signals from the brain can no longer control movement.

The Wessex Portal and the Dorset Coast Digital Archive aims at promoting a better understanding of the unique natural environment and heritage assets.

The Imperial Image Database was set up in 2010 with the aim of generating three-dimensional (3D) scans of Roman portraiture recovered from different contexts across southern Britain.

Fruits and vegetables are fundamental to a healthy diet. High fruit and vegetable consumption has been associated with reduced risk from a number of chronic health conditions, including cardiovascular disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, and dementia and cognitive decline, yet fruit and vegetable consumption across the UK, Europe and the US remains lower than recommended by the World Health Organisation.

Why are some people highly engaged by political communication, while others are not? Why do some people believe spurious claims of political actors while others approach them all with cynicism?

Funded by the first Egyptological ERC Advanced Grant, the Hyksos Enigma Project sees BU working with researchers all over Europe, under the direction of renowned Egyptologist Manfred Bietak and the Austrian Academy of Sciences.

Virtual Avebury is an AHRC/EPSRC funded project under the 2017 Immersive Partnerships call.

The Vlochos Archaeological Project (VLAP) is a collaboration between the Ephorate of Antiquities of Karditsa and the Swedish Institute at Athens, with participating archaeologists from the University of Gothenburg and Bournemouth University, examining the extensive remains of a Classical-Hellenistic urban site at Vlochós in the municipality of Palamás.

Building on understanding of the Waddon Hill Roman Fort in Dorset and the history of the site. 

This study is crucial to understand how communities living in the Channel coastlands became interdependent at a time when trade in tin and copper was strengthening the foundations for an extensive prehistoric European union.