* Caroline MacDonald, assistant principal at the University of Paisley, has been elected chair of the Modern Universities Research Group.

* Margaret Smith, microbiologist at Nottingham University, has been appointed to a chair in microbiology at the University of Aberdeen.

Aberdeen's dean of the faculty of arts and divinity, Iain Torrance, has been appointed moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.

* Goldsmiths University of London has appointed: Pal Ahluwia, former head of the department of politics at Adelaide University, professor of politics; Mark Bishop, former lecturer in cybernetics at Reading University, lecturer; Blake Morrison, poet, novelist and journalist, professor of creative and life writing.

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* The Social Care Institute for Excellence has appointed three trustees.

They are: Peter Beresford, professor of social policy and director of the Centre for Citizen Participation at Brunel University; Jon Glasby, head of the Health and Social Care Partnership Foundation at the Health Services Management Centre, Birmingham University; and Janet Lewis, a board member of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation's task group on housing.

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* In last week's THES , we failed to mention that Stephen Machin, recently appointed director of research at the London School of Economics' Centre for Economic Performance, holds a joint appointment with University College London, where he is head of the department of economics.