Food

Pint of Science: Dementia

Mice, men, mad cows, cannibalism and…dementia?

Dementia is a name for a group of diseases which cause reduced brain function. Dr Francesco Tamagnini and Dr Patrick Lewis will introduce two types of dementia: Prion disease and Alzheimer’s disease. This is an excellent event for anyone who wants to learn something new about dementia and hear about the research on it that scientists are doing at the University of Reading. Suitable for all audiences – no science knowledge needed.
To see the full details of the event or to book tickets, click here.

This event takes place at the Three Guineas in a self-contained cellar bar, with a separate entrance from the main bar.

Heritage in Times of Conflict: film and panel talk

Internal Event – University of Reading staff and students only

We cordially invite you to the H&C Academic Forum for the Summer Term 2018 which will focus on the theme of Heritage in Times of Conflict.

As part of the event, we are holding a film viewing of ‘The Destruction of Memory’, followed by a panel discussion that will consider challenges around the preservation and protection of cultural heritage in today’s world. This important event will be of major interest for researchers whose work touches on heritage and conflict, and it will provide colleagues with an opportunity to ask questions and network more widely.

The ‘Destruction of Memory’ film is based on the book of the same name by Robert Bevans. The film includes interviews with the Director-General of UNESCO, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, as well as many international experts, including archaeologists. The film’s website is here http://destructionofmemoryfilm.com/

The film covers the following topics:

  • The devastating effects that ‘A war on culture’ has on today’s society and the challenges it causes in preserving and protecting history
  • Destructive behaviour of Daesh (ISIS) and how their actions attempt to obliterate culture and memory
  • Measures currently being pursued to protect, salvage and rebuild the history that has been lost as a result of cultural destruction.

The panel will be chaired by Professor Roger Matthews, Professor of Near Eastern Archaeology, University of Reading and President of RASHID International (Research, Assessment, Safeguarding the Heritage of Iraq in Danger) and will represent a variety of expertise from across the University and beyond. These include:

  • Tim Slade – Writer, Director and Producer of the film ‘The Destruction of Memory’ for Vast Productions, USA
  • Dr Lisa Purse – Head of Department and Associate Professor in Film, Theatre and Television, University of Reading
  • Professor Rosa Freedman – Professor of Law Conflict and Global Development, University of Reading
  • Dr Dina Rezk – Lecturer in Middle Eastern History (19th / 20th Century), University of Reading.

Please register with Chris Anderson in the Research Deans’ Office by e-mail on researchdeansoffice@reading.ac.uk. As catering will be booked for this event, please confirm whether you have any dietary requirements.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Professor Roger Matthews (Archaeology) and Professor Roberta Gilchrist (R Dean H&C)

Fairbrother Lecture 2018: Would you let your phone tell you what to eat? Designing technology for personalised nutrition advice

Would you let your phone tell you what to eat? Designing technology for personalised nutrition advice

The Graduate School is delighted to announce that the Fairbrother Lecture 2018 will be delivered by current doctoral researcher Rodrigo Zenun Franco who is undertaking a PhD in Computer Science.

Rodrigo will be talking about his research on online personalised nutrition advice. He has developed an app to assess dietary intake and propose valid personalised nutrition advice for adults. This web application has been designed to be simple to use and can be accessed on a range of devices including laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Rodrigo hopes that the app will help make personalised nutrition widely available, thereby enabling more people to benefit from tailored diet advice.

The work is supported by the British Nutrition Foundation and the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq).

Rodrigo undertook an undergraduate degree in Brazil, before coming to Reading for his MSc. His PhD is supervised by Dr Faustina Hwang (Biomedical Engineering, School of Biological Sciences) and Professor Julie Lovegrove (Hugh Sinclair Unit of Human Nutrition, School of Chemistry, Food & Pharmacy).

Accompanying the lecture, there will be a display of work by a number of other outstanding doctoral researchers from across the University: Vincent DeLuca (Psychology & Clinical Language Sciences); Anna Freeman (Geography & Environmental Science) Rita Goyal (Henley Business School); Sophie Payne (Literature and Languages) and Suzannah Ravenscroft (Psychology & Clinical Language Sciences).

Alexandra Harris: The March and the Visitor

MERL SEMINAR SERIES: RURAL RIDERS AND RADICALS

THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LITERATURE AND MERL SPEAKER SERIES 2018

Booking recommended – BOOK TICKETS

VENUE: The Museum of English Rural Life, Redlands Road, RG1 5EX

A series of lunchtime talks organised by the Department of English Literature and the Museum of English Rural Life, in celebration of their ongoing collaborations. Events in the series feature (alternately) writers with a national profile, and academic authors showcasing new and exciting research.

18 JANUARY – ALEXANDRA HARRIS – THE MARSH AND THE VISITOR

Alex will introduce and read from recent essays about an area of Sussex which she finds familiar from her childhood, but which she has experience increasingly as unknown territory.

Alexandra describes herself as a “literary critic, cultural historian, lover of buildings, landscapes, seasons, stories”. Her books include Romantic Moderns (2010) and Weatherland: Writers and Artists under English Skies(2015). The latter is an exploration of imaginative responses to the weather in England across the centuries. She is a Birmingham Professorial Fellow at the University of Birmingham.

In this talk, Alex will introduce and read from recent essays about an area of the Sussex countryside which is familiar from her childhood, but which still feels like unknown territory. She will be in conversation with Paddy Bullard, considering differing forms of country knowledge, distance, belonging, and the way we write about it.

Find out more about Alex and her work at www.alexandraharris.co.uk 

This talk is part of Rural Riders and Radicals, a series of lunchtime talks in collaboration with the Department of English Literature at the University of Reading. Events in the series feature writers with a national profile, and academic authors showcasing new and exciting research.

PUBLIC LECTURE – The Bee’s Needs: How to Save the World’s Pollinators

Honey Bee pollinating sunflower.

The Bee’s Needs: How to Save the World’s Pollinators

Wednesday 14 March, 19:30-20:45

Location: G11, Henley Business School, Whiteknights campus

This event is free to attend.

Registration in advance is not required, but is recommended as public lectures are often full. Click here to book your place >

Bees and other insects are crucially important, helping pollinate crops and support our wild ecosystems. The University of Reading is at the forefront of research into the decline of insect pollinators and understanding how valuable they are for crop production.

The lecture will outline current evidence on the status of pollinating insects in the UK and across the globe. The crucial role pollinators play for crop production will be explored as well as ways we can help protect these iconic species for the important role they have providing vital ecosystem services.

Dr Mike Garratt, a Senior Research Fellow in the School of Agriculture Policy and Development, will present the latest research on pollinators and what we can do to help protect them.

Japan Society for the Promotion of Science – Research Funding Opportunities for UK Researchers

Research Funder Visit:

Japan Society for the Promotion of Science – Research Funding Opportunities for UK Researchers

Tuesday 5 September, 10.30am-12.00pm

Chancellor’s Building, Room G02

The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) is Japan’s leading funding agency and supports research across the sciences, social sciences and humanities. JSPS run multiple funding programmes and seminars for UK-based researchers and PhD students to support new and existing research collaborations with researchers in Japan.

Representatives from their London office will speak about the range of funding opportunities available:

  • Overview of JSPS and Funding Schemes
  • International Fellowship Programmes
  • Experience of a UoR academic (Dr John Brazier, Pharmacy)

JSPS’s International Fellowship Programmes supports researchers at all career stages (from pre/post-doctoral to professor) to conduct collaborative research in Japan (see guide attached). Therefore please pass on this invitation to research students and postdoctoral researchers in your group who may be interested.

If you wish to attend the event, could you please email James Church james.church@reading.ac.uk  by Wed 30th August.

If you already have collaborators in Japan, you may be interested in the two current calls highlighted below. For further information on JSPS and their funding schemes please visit:

http://www.jsps.org/index.html (JSPS London)

http://www.jsps.go.jp/english/index.html

Academia/Industry Careers Event

Academia/industry Careers event

6th September 2017

Programme includes:

  • Research careers panel: find out what it’s really like from researchers in different roles in Industry, Academia and government research
  • Alternative careers panel: what else is out there? Hear about science communications, policy, clinical trials management and more
  • Becoming a group leader: what’s it like in different environments?
  • Keynote from Simon Lovestone: hear about his career journey, and how best to work with people from every sphere to push dementia research forward
  • Posters & Networking: Discover local research from academia and industry

Contact:

Francesca Nicholls
francesca.nicholls@psych.ox.ac.uk

Mark Dallas
M.Dallas@reading.ac.uk

Institute of Molecular Biology and Applied Biology Seminar

Dr Mark Bücking (Head of Department Environmental & Food Analysis) and Dr Matthias Kotthoff (Head of Laboratory Environmental & Food Analysis) from the Institute of Molecular Biology and Applied Biology (IME), Fraunhofer Research Organisation in Germany are presenting on the research activities of IME, and discuss the potential for collaborative opportunities.