News in brief: Cantab makes Oxford bid and SU bans pizza

A light-hearted round-up of Cambridge news from the last week, from storm-trapped influencers to the University’s tech goals

A Cambridge student has put himself up for the Oxford Chancellorship: 'This is democracy manifest'Louis Ashworth for Varsity

Take back Cam-trol

by Varsity News

Sunday October 20 2024, 12:00pm

A plucky Cambridge student has thrown his hat in the ring for the Oxford Chancellor role, going up against former Conservative leader William Hague and New Labour architect Peter Mandelson. Francisc-Eduard Vladovici-Poplauschi, a Girton undergrad, describes himself as “a simple student, a poor immigrant, and a passionate soul”. Making his plea for power over Cambridge’s rival, he said: “This is democracy manifest. Pick me, I promise to give you anything you want, is this a bribe? Officially? No, but unofficially? Perhaps?”

Cambridge SU abolishes… pizza?

The Cambridge Student Union in a shocking and unprecedented turn of events has abolished free pizza at student council meetings. They have opted to replace it with an offering of soup, following rumours that “nobody likes vegan cheese”. In a statement on their website, the SU comments, “Student Council will see the introduction of some exciting new changes designed to enhance the overall experience and its effectiveness”. Abolishing pizza was not previously stated on their agenda.

Calloway controversially centres herself in hurricane path

Ex-Cambridge Art Historian, Caroline Calloway, has caught social media attention recently for her antics amidst Hurricane Milton. Refusing to leave her home in Sarasota, Florida, Calloway has instead been posting about the situation in social media. “So, if you’ve been following Hurricane Milton, um, I’m going to die,” Calloway said on a video posted to Instagram, where she has over 676,000 followers. Calloway refused to leave her home despite it being labelled an evacuation zone. “If I actually die in this storm, my books are going to go WAY UP in price. Order now,” she wrote on Instagram.

Cambridge needs investment, says VC

News in brief: troublesome teens and playful plaques

Vice-chancellor Deborah Prentice has renewed calls for science investment in the Chancellor’s upcoming budget. Writing for The Times, she claimed that “research-intensive” universities can be “genuine drivers of economic growth”. Following a pro-vice-chancellor’s calls for government investment in a new science hub at the University, Prentice claimed that “no single US university” plays a similar national role to Cambridge’s position in the UK science and technology industries.

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