Other facts and figures

Here are other facts and figures about the University that you may not know...

Researchers at the University have developed:

Our researchers (including student researchers) at the University have also:

Successfully used a herpes vaccine to attack and kill cancer cells
Explored the benefits of using sugar as a natural, clean and cheap alternative to conventional treatments for wounds
Proved that, despite being considered an island, the UK was attached to mainland Europe as recently as 7,000BC
Identified the cultural shift of allotments from a source of cheap food into a worthwhile form of recreation
Found that people in happy marriages have a higher level of antibodies to fight off flu

Our researchers at the University are still:

Assessing 400 people born in 1946 as part of a wider long-term study of ageing that began just after World War II: it monitors the passage from birth to old age
Finding new ways to encourage teenagers to make energy savings
Collaborating on whether mass reading events and book clubs are attracting new readers and marginalized communities

We own or host many great resources for undergraduate study and doctoral research, including:

Over 2.5 million books including our Special Collection of over 80,000 pre-1850 books and 3-million manuscripts dating from 1471
The Mingana Collection of Middle Eastern manuscripts, the largest such collection after the Vatican and the Bibliothèque nationale de France
The largest superconducting magnet for molecular imaging in the UK – housed in the University’s Henry Wellcome Building

University of Birmingham