From today's UK papers

FINANCIAL TIMES

Scientists from Lucent Technologies have found a way to wring more bandwidth from the mobile phone spectrum, increasing the data-carrying capacity of radio signals by a factor of three.

THE GUARDIAN

Oxford and Cambridge universities could be violating the Human Rights Act by preventing students from applying to both, Tony Higgins, the head of the national admissions service, will warn.

Sean Dodson looks at the pros and cons of online course work, which the government is encouraging the universities to provide.

THE INDEPENDENT

National guidelines to eliminate possible bias in university admissions are to be drawn up for the first time by the Quality Assurance Agency.

Andrew Oswald, professor of economics at the University of Warwick, argues that the Research Assessment Exercise will mean the death knell of originality and they should stop it now.

Chris Brown says that "webucation" is set to become the real big business of the 21st century and British universities want to cash in, but they must protect their reputations.

DAILY MAIL

Universities should be "culturally sensitive" in deciding who should be offered places, says John Randall, chief executive of the Quality Assurance Agency.

DAILY TELEGRAPH

Daniel Johnson talks to Baroness Warnock, who says she will vote against the government's bid to extend her original legislation on embryo research.

THE TIMES

Eileen Fursland says that undergraduates are benefiting by using their spare time to mentor secondary pupils.

MISCELLANY

The Royal Bank of Scotland is looking for ways to extricate itself from the uncomfortable position as banker to Huntingdon Life Sciences as it emerged that one of America's largest banks had severed its ties with the controversial animal-testing laboratory ( FT, Guardian, Independent, Telegraph )

The government has signalled its intent to drive through legislation, perhaps as soon as tomorrow, aimed at preventing animal activists violently intimidating staff at research laboratories ( Guardian, Independent, Telegraph )