Exam chiefs knew of error in maths paper
The examination board Edexcel had been warned of a mistake in one of its AS-level maths papers but did not tell students in Britain, it emerged last night. Students in Hong Kong sat the exam eight hours ahead of 2,500 pupils taking the paper in Britain and uncovered an error in one of the diagrams. (Guardian, Independent)
Cash boost for top university research
The government yesterday unexpectedly put an extra £30 million into supporting research at top-rated university departments next year to boost world-class work by academics. However, the Higher Education Funding Council for England estimates British universities will still fall £170 million short of expectations. (Financial Times)
Brown's deficit hits £10bn
A spending surge across Whitehall to repair Britain's rundown public infrastructure helped generate the largest deficit in the state's finances in six years last month, according to government figures released yesterday. (Guardian, Daily Telegraph)
Charity brims with publisher's £50m legacy
Miles Blackwell, 56, and his wife, Briony, ten years younger, died within three weeks of each other, only months after retiring from the family publishing business last year. But the childless couple's generosity has transformed a small charity, the Tubney Charitable Trust, into one of Britain's biggest. (Independent)
Canadian woman wins T.S. Eliot prize
Canadian poet Anne Carson last night became the first woman to win the £10,000 T.S. Eliot prize, for her book The Beauty of the Husband . (Guardian)
UK applications for US scholarships rise
Applications from British graduates for prestigious scholarships to study in the United States have increased by 30 per cent since the terrorist attacks of 11 September, figures from the Fulbright Commission reveal. (Independent)
Welsh dragons prepare for fiery debate
The financial and academic survival of Wales's system of numerous small, diverse and spread-out universities is up for debate today in the Welsh Assembly. (Guardian)