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SLOW CRAFT: REUSE AND CREATIVITY IN TEXTILES - Tanvi Kant
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In the world of contemporary fashion, there is a dominant culture of consumption. Material production today takes place on a greater scale than ever before. The impact this has on our world is significant. So how can we restore the balance - as individuals and collectively? Focusing on the possibilities for reusing and recycling textiles as part of a meaningful creative process, Tanvi Kant reveals how we can all be inspired to rethink our relationship with fabric.
Tanvi Kant is a contemporary textile artist-jeweller who works in hand-constructed techniques to extend the life of unwanted textiles, saris and dressmaking offcuts. Her award-winning jewellery was created in response to our fickle attachment to clothing. Since her MA at Royal College of Art her studio practice has evolved into leading activities to spark the innate creativity in all of us. Her work focuses on people, encouraging instinctive responses to materials and colour to promote wellbeing through shared artistic activities. |
Going Underground: Buried London - Paul Duncan McGarrity
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From whole streets and buildings to pits full of bodies, the London we see today is built on the London which came before, and the things that you can find just below the tarmac will surprise and delight you. Archaeologist and comedian Paul Duncan McGarrity presents a guide to the city like no other.
Paul Duncan McGarrity combines his day-job as a Public Engagement Archaeologist with Museum of London with his performances on the UK comedy circuit. He has gigged in castles, museums and comedy clubs across the country, appeared on The Big Dig on BBC4, and has written for Radio 4. He is also the host of the 'Ask an Archaeologist' podcast. |
Smart Materials: The Future of Stuff - Dr Anna Ploszajski
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Within our lifetimes, solid objects will react, sense, change and move according to their surroundings. This won’t be a result of fancy robotics or cunning electronics, but rather the fundamental properties of the materials themselves. In years to come, we will be living in self-regulating houses, riding self-fixing bicycles, and driving on self-illuminating roads, all thanks to smart materials. These are metals, plastics, fabrics and fluids that react to the outside world without any human involvement, and they promise to change the way we live our lives forever.
Dr Anna Ploszajski is an award-winning materials scientist, engineer and communicator. Named Young Engineer of the Year 2017, Anna is one of the UK’s leading communicators of materials and engineering. By day she is a Research Fellow at the Institute of Making, but by night she performs stand-up comedy about materials in the UK’s comedy basements. Anna is also a writer and produces a podcast about materials called ‘rial Talk. In the summer months, Anna can be found in wellies at the UK’s top festivals, performing her one-woman show about Smart Materials, or alternatively, swimming the English Channel. |
Where Are the Women? Female Poets Through History - Ana Sampson
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Anthologist Ana Sampson seeks out the hidden talent of female poets of the past. Who are these women and why do we not already know their names? From the innovative to the inspirational, discover the stories of suffragettes, aristocrats, schoolgirls and medieval visionaries who make up the hidden history of women's poetry.
Ana Sampson is editor of poetry anthologies.. Her latest book is She Is Fierce: Brave, Bold and Beautiful Poems by Women (Macmillan). Ana lived in South West London for fifteen years but now lives in Surrey with her husband, two small daughters and two cats. |
Motherhood Before Nationalism - Alev Scott
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The Ottoman Empire (1299-1923) encompassed millions of people of different ethnicities, languages and religions in an era before the nation state. Inspired by her own mother's heritage, Alev discusses the importance of the family unit and matriarchy in the Ottoman world..
Alev Scott was born in London to a Turkish mother and British father. She moved to Istanbul in January 2011 to cover Turkish politics for the British press. She now lives between Athens and London, writing about Greece and other topics for publications including the Financial Times and the Times Literary Supplement. |
What Happens When Computers Are Smarter Than Us? - Rowena Barber
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We've all seen that computers can beat the world's best chess players and learn to play Go, but what happens when those computers get as smart as humans ... or even smarter? Join Technology Strategist Rowena Barber to find out how artificial intelligence is influencing our lives already, and how we can ensure it remains a positive influence when it achieves human level intellect.
Rowena Barber is a senior Technology Strategist at IT Consultancy firm Accenture and a leading expert on Agile Enterprise Transformations. She works with Executive-level teams across a range of global organisations, focusing mainly on the Banking sector, helping them to understand emerging technology trends and future-proof their organisations. |
Can Whisky Save the Wildcat? - Lucy Eckersley
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The Scottish wildcat is going extinct, in fact, it may already be extinct, we just don't know... Hunting and habitat loss are secondary issues for this medium-sized predator. Find out what their biggest problem is, and how whisky could be the way to save them.
Lucy Eckersley, also known as Punk Biologist, is a live and dead animal wrangler. She has worked with animals from seals to stick insects, and her recent research has looked at the last remaining wild cat in Britain. She is also a science comedian and presenter working at venues across the country. |
Jurassic Park: Could It Really Happen? - Dr Susie Maidment
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In the film Jurassic Park, dinosaur DNA is discovered preserved in the abdomen of a mosquito. Dinosaurs are brought back to life and chaos ensues. Dr Susie Maidment explores the science behind Jurassic Park, her research on the geological preservation of soft tissues, including dinosaur blood cells, and the advances in our understanding of the palaeobiology of dinosaurs.
Dr Susie Maidment is curator of non-avian archosaurs at The Natural History Museum. and a dinosaur researcher with a particular focus on the stegosaurs. She has a five-year old daughter and live in Lewes, East Sussex. |
Bacteria And You - Dr Charlotte Mykura
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From the moment we leave our mothers we are coated with them, they populate our guts and infiltrate our lives. But do bacteria affect the way we think and feel? Which disorders we might develop? How easily we put on weight? Join Charlotte as she explores the deepest darkest corners of your gut.
Dr Charlotte Mykura is a London-based geneticist and scientist with a passion for guts! |
The Climate Majority - Leo Barasi
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Does climate change matter? And if it does, why is the world doing so little about it and what could change that? Leo Barasi talks about what climate change means for us and our children, why governments so often ignore it and what might make the world start to take it more seriously.
Leo Barasi is an expert in public opinion, campaigns and climate change policy, and author of "The Climate Majority".. He has worked with political candidates, charities, campaigns and private companies, to help them understand and shape public opinion, and is a regular writer and commentator on politics and climate change. |
A Unifying Theory of Gay - Cerys Bradley
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For decades, science has been fascinated by the LGBTQ+ community. What makes gay people gay? How does sexuality affect one's behaviour, appearance, or ability to raise children? PhD student (and lesbian) Cerys Bradley will discuss the scientific research into the LGBTQ+ community as well as its societal and political implications.
Cerys Bradley is a PhD student in the Crime and Security Department at UCL. Outside of their research, they like to read old scientific papers about the LGBTQ+ community. Is this because it is interesting? Terrifying? Upsetting? Who knows. But they love, love, love to talk about it in talks, in stand-up comedy and to strangers at parties. |
The Hidden Stories In Our DNA - Dr Lucy van Dorp
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We all carry the DNA of our parents, who carry the DNA of their parents, who carry the DNA of their parents. Going back through time this means that DNA carries a record of our past interactions and can be thought of as a historical document. Dr Lucy van Dorp explains how she goes about comparing the DNA sequences of different people across the world and what this can tell us about our own ancestry, evolution and history.
Dr Lucy van Dorp is a geneticist working at University College London Genetics Institute. She spends her days analysing patterns in DNA to learn about evolutionary processes. She’s fascinated by what DNA can tell us about our own history and loves getting to tell people all about the science she does. |