Hello and welcome to this podcast telling you about our annual business exhibition. This year, as always, it will be full of the very best speakers, features and innovations.

Let me start by reading some feedback from James Craig, who's exhibited with us for the past two years. James says, 'I'm director of a company called TalkCon, which is an office phone system. The first year we exhibited, we had a stand in the Business Village, where we made a lot of useful contacts. We also used the Breakout area where people could sit down and relax, and try out our products, and due to popular request we used that again last year. Last year we also sponsored the innovative Business Connections Zone where people could leave their contact details on a board to contact other companies, and that also effectively raised our corporate profile. We're hoping that in the coming exhibition we'll also have a presence in the Digital Marketing centre, which is clearly a key area for our company. And also maybe have our own Talkcon Zone, at some stage.'

The exhibition's open from 8am to 11 pm and there's a range of special events for you to enjoy in the evening.

As well as a unique chance to publicise your company, businesses who exhibit with us can claim discounts on a number of popular brands, including major high street fashion and jewellery outlets, as well as grocery chains. Discounts available range from 3.5% up to an amazing 15%, so you can save a lot of money. In fact, the average saving made by each exhibitor came to over £400! The scheme is available to every member of your organisation so this is a benefit that really does have something for you all.

Now let me tell you about some of our keynote speakers for this year's exhibition.

Jim Clowrie started off selling vegetables from a small plot, then opened a small café. Rather to his surprise this became a bit of a sensation, and in a remarkably short time he had opened an amazing 76 restaurants worldwide. He'll be telling you how it all happened, and how it changed his life.

David France will be giving an inspirational talk about how as a business-minded teenager he managed to set up his own company, and even to be the first person under 18 to get a business bank account. David's company has gone from strength to strength but he isn't just interested in making money - he also makes regular donations to organisations helping those in need both in the UK and elsewhere in the world.

Oliver Stanton was born and educated in the UK, and then went to Malaysia where he set up a rubber-wood furniture business. He then built log houses in the mountains in Japan before moving to Hong Kong to set up a digital marketing business. After that he moved back to the UK with his wife Saiphin, and together they opened a Thai café. He'll be telling you about what he discovered during his travels around the world about business practices in different cultures.

Francesca Heptonstall is a broadcaster and businesswoman who's known for her down-to-earth attitude. After winning a top job in a TV contest, she launched a number of online deal sites. Her main business interest is in technology, but she's also passionate about helping people gain employment and organises an annual jobs fair, so she'll be concentrating on this in her talk.

Salman Khan is the Chief Executive of QBF Enterprises, and has turned around this business from a major publishing business to one of the UK's largest digital marketing service providers. He'll be talking about the need for flexibility to cope with new directions in today's business world.

Finally, Annie Craven is a consultant and coach who works with people to create lasting changes in their business and life. Her session will offer an interactive look at different obstacles in people's own lives, not just in business. She also looks at how you can overcome them, whether you're starting out in business or at the top of your game.

Now let me ...

MIA: You know that joint presentation we've got to do this semester, Leo?

LEO: On houses of the future?

MIA: That's right. I'm a bit concerned - are we meant to come up with creative new suggestions for these houses?

LEO: I don't think so. It's more a matter of reporting and evaluating possible developments. But we mustn't be too general, we've got to support our points by referring to specific cases. So that'll need a lot of work.

MIA: I'm afraid so. When's it got to be done by?

LEO: In about 6 weeks, so that's not too much of a rush.

MIA: Good. We'd better decide now what type of housing we're going to focus on. How about housing for different generations living together?

LEO: We could do. Or accommodation for one person?

MIA: I think someone else is doing that. I was wondering about housing for the elderly? That's likely to become more important.

LEO: Yeah that's true. But I think your suggestion about intergenerational living might be more interesting - let's go with that.

MIA: OK. Now I think the future demand is mainly going to be for accommodation in urban areas. So one way of meeting that demand might be to use existing commercial buildings and adapt them to form accommodation...

LEO: ... or come up with original ways of organising space so that people can live in smaller homes. But I think the solution is to design multi-storey apartment blocks.

MIA: Building up rather than out, yes.

LEO: Let's think of some specific developments for houses of the future.

MIA: OK. How about increased use of roof space on high-rise buildings for gardens.

LEO: Yes. In fact it doesn't have to be high-rise, you can do it on a one-storey building in a suburb, but it would greatly improve how you feel if you live in an urban high-rise.

MIA: Especially if you don't have a balcony.

LEO: Yes. I think homes of the future will all need access to a shared working space, somewhere in the same building or group of houses, where people can go and work instead of just having a laptop on the kitchen table.

MIA: Yes, so they aren't having to travel to an office but can still interact with others. That's often how new ideas get generated - by chatting to someone from a different profession.

LEO: Yeah. I read about a type of design where the internal walls of an apartment are moveable, so the space can be adapted over time as people's needs change. Like when children leave school and start working but still continue to live with their parents for many years? Or when an elderly relative moves in with the family... it would mean they could still have their own space, specially designed for their needs.

MIA: Yes. Have you heard about those smart bathroom mirrors which can monitor people's health? They recognise signs of illness and contact a doctor automatically?

LEO: Hmm, not so sure they're a good idea.

MIA: Nor am I. People might worry about conditions which aren't serious at all.

LEO: What about transport? Wouldn't it be good if there were bike sheds with charging points, so people could store their electric bikes securely and charge them up at the same time.

MIA: Yes. That would encourage more people to cycle, instead of using their car. Much better for the planet.

LEO: I read about one housing development where cars had to be left just outside it, so the centre was all a pedestrianised area. Great for families with children.

MIA: Maybe. But what if you're disabled or elderly, and can't walk far? It wouldn't be so good for people like that.

LEO: No.

MIA: I saw a scheme for communal vegetable plots, where neighbours could decide what to grow together. That'd be a great way for older people to get to know one another, especially if they're no longer going out to work.

LEO: Yes, doing something together's always more enjoyable, isn't it? Do you think...

Today's lecture is about studies that look at how music therapy can be used to help patients who undergo surgery. Now, most people undergo a surgical procedure at some point in their lives. And more than fifty-one million operations are performed annually in the USA. But there's no escaping the fact that most patients feel uncomfortable following surgery. They may have difficulty mobilising, and even sitting up in bed can feel too much. They may also be negatively affected by having their routine disturbed, you know, like if they can't do the things they normally do, or have to devote a lot of time to appointments such as physiotherapy, to aid their recovery.

Currently, the main strategy for improving recovery is medication to control pain, and this can be administered to patients in the short, medium or longer term, depending on the extent of their surgery. But music is still not an everyday part of the post-surgical phase, despite a wealth of relevant studies supporting its potential in recovery.

Earlier this year, a research team set out to assess all the available evidence so that they could highlight the potential for music in surgical recovery. They identified nearly a hundred trials involving a total of seven thousand patients who were played recorded music as part of their post-operative care. The researchers then looked at what impact the music had on the patients. They discovered that patients who had been played music reported feeling happier and more satisfied in the post-operative phase, and the length of their stay was shorter than for patients who had not listened to any music.

The researchers also explored the patients' choice of music, and their findings showed that a wide variety of music styles was evident. However, a common factor was that the chosen music had a calming quality. Some of the patients listened to music with headphones, but it was quiet enough not to prevent them from being able to communicate with nurses and other staff. More often though, the mode of delivery was by what are known as music pillows. These broadcast sound that is only audible to the person lying on them. The research involved testing music before, during or after operations or a combination. Some patients listened to the music just once a day, while others had several episodes a day.

When asked to report their experience of listening to music, surgical patients said that either they had no feelings of anxiety at any point, or those feelings were only slight. Patients who hadn't listened to music, on the other hand, reported higher levels of dissatisfaction. This feedback from all of the patients was then cross-checked against their medical notes. And in every case, those who were given music to listen to didn't need as much medication to ease their pain as those patients who weren't played music. The type of music, patient choice and timing, before, during or after the surgery didn't make much difference. And it even worked when patients were played music under general anaesthetic, although the positive effects were greater when patients were awake.

All the evidence suggests that music has a positive effect on post-operative patients, but it's not entirely clear how or why this is the case. A lot of people listen to music in daily life as a way to relax and forget their problems, but the researchers came to the conclusion that it worked on patients by distraction. I suppose it was something familiar and gave them something they could control.

The researchers say there is now sufficient research to demonstrate that music should be available to all patients undergoing operations. They say patients should be able to choose what they'd like to listen to, and if they prefer, recordings taken from nature can be just as good as music. Surgical teams may prefer patients to listen to music before the procedure or as soon as they arrive back onto the ward. Clearly, there's more to learn about this area, and the team now plan to focus their next research on the most appropriate volume to play the music at. And I look forward to reading the results of their study.

It will be interesting to see ...