Brain Food Spring 2011

london’s global university

JANUARY–APRIL 2011

brain food

public events at ucl TALKS, EXHIBITIONS, WORKSHOPS & more

www.ucl.ac.uk/events

Welcome to Brain Food. In these pages you’ll find highlights from UCL’s wide range of public events. For a full listing and the most up to date information, please visit our public events website at: www.ucl.ac.uk/events As London’s leading multidisciplinary university, we’re passionate about bringing our research into the community and welcoming visitors into UCL to share in our activities. Everything from talks, workshops and seminars through to film screenings and exhibitions is featured here.

Don’t miss Student Season at the UCL Bloomsbury, with a range of productions by UCL students throughout February and March (see p10). As part of National Science and Engineering Week, the popular Your Universe Festival of Astronomy returns in March along with the chance to find out more about Ancient Egyptian astronomy with UCL Petrie Museum (see p20 & 22).

Sign up online to receive UCL’s events e-newsletter with regular updates about new events www.ucl.ac.uk/events

The majority of UCL events are free, open to everyone and require no booking unless otherwise stated. The events listed in this leaflet are just a small selection of what’s on offer – for a full listing please visit: www.ucl.ac.uk/events If you would like to subscribe to our Brain Food email newsletter, or to receive future copies of the UCL events leaflet, please send your details to: events@ucl.ac.uk or call +44 (0)20 3108 3842.

brain food

public events at ucl TALKS, EXHIBITIONS, WORKSHOPS & more 2 Events diary 14 Lunch Hour Lectures 26 Exhibitions 28 Venue locations 29 Getting to UCL 30 Visitor information

+44 (0)20 7679 2000 www.ucl.ac.uk/events University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT Cover image: Hubble image of nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud. See ‘Your Universe’ event on page 20. Credit: NASA, ESA, and M. Livio (STScI)

events diary JANUARY–APRIL 2011 Thursday 13 January

Soul House: Artist’s talk

6–7.30pm

d.challis@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 4138

(tour starts at 6.30pm) Exhibition Tour UCL Petrie Museum

www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/petrie

Sara Bevan talks about the digital collages she has produced that reflect on the unique space and atmosphere of the Petrie Museum, as well as her work inspired by the myths and magic behind this outstanding collection of Egyptian artefacts. See p26 for details of the Soul House exhibition.

lunch hour lecture Tuesday 18 January

Who enjoys shopping in IKEA?

1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture

Professor Alan Penn (UCL Bartlett School of Architecture)

Darwin Lecture Theatre

+44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

See opposite.

Tuesday 18 January 6.30–8.30pm Film screening JZ Young Lecture Theatre, Anatomy Building A Grant Museum of Zoology event

The Fly (1958) on the big screen zoology.museum@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 3108 2052 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/whats-on/grant_listings

“It’d be funny if life weren’t so sacred,” says one of the film’s characters in this 1950s sci-fi classic. While it’s famous for its special effects and its final, chilling ending, it also challenges science to ask: ‘is progress worth the price of an occasional mishap?’ As usual, the film will be introduced by our resident film boffin, Dr Joe Cain. Presented as part of the Natural Change Season at the Grant Museum.

2 SEE WWW.UCL.AC.UK/EVENTS FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LISTING

3–4.30pm Symposium G06 Roberts Building (reception from 4.30pm)

Ecocide: The 5th crime against peace Polly Higgins (Lawyer and activist) r.osterlund@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7905 2889

Polly Higgins, international environmental lawyer and activist, is leading a campaign to declare the mass destruction of ecosystems an international crime against peace – alongside genocide and crimes against humanity. Join us to explore how ecocide could be established as a crime, how it could be prosecuted internationally and nationally within a short timescale, and what the implications for global health may be.

Part of the UCL Institute for Global Health Symposium Series.

lunch hour lecture Who enjoys shopping in IKEA? Tuesday 18 January 1.15–1.55pm

Professor Alan Penn describes the way architects manipulate space in order to sell you things.

He will demonstrate how space creates patterns of movement that bring you into contact with goods.

In IKEA, the story gets more interesting – here, he says, the designers deliberately set out to confuse you and in this way draw you into buying things that were not even on your shopping list.

feed your mind at lunchtime Watch previous lectures online at www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl or www.youtube.com/ucllhl

events diary

Wednesday 19 January

Wednesday 19 January 5–7pm Lecture G06 Roberts Building

UCL-French Embassy ConférenceDébat Series 2010/2011: Troisième événement: l’Evolution du Climat Jean Jouzel (Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l’Environnement) Professor Chris Rapley CBE (Science Museum, London/UCL Chair of Climate Science) j.okogwu@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 8585

Professor Jouzel will speak on the contribution of paleodata to the evidence for human-induced climate change. In his response Professor Rapley will focus on the importance of effective communication of climate research and monitoring by scientists to the public, policy-makers and politicians. The event is the third in a series in which distinguished researchers based in France and at UCL speak and debate on issues of major contemporary importance at the interfaces between science, technology and society.

lunch hour lecture Thursday 20 January 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Building scientific models with computers Professor Richard Catlow (UCL Chemistry) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

Model-building is one of the oldest scientific activities and is essential for allowing us to understand the complex reality of nature. Modern computers have allowed scientists to develop models of unprecedented accuracy and detail, and this lecture will explore and illustrate some aspects of the contemporary field, using examples ranging from cosmology and geosciences to engineering and materials sciences. This lecture marks 2011 as the International Year of Chemistry.

4 SEE WWW.UCL.AC.UK/EVENTS FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LISTING

Contemporary Egyptian Film Night

6–8pm

d.challis@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 4138

Film screening UCL Petrie Museum Screening begins at 6.30pm

www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/petrie

Screening of recent short films from Egypt, including part of Wingrave. A classic ghost story in a haunted house, but what haunts and who are the ghosts? Wingrave focuses on the title character, a parapsychologist who is haunted by his knowledge of what lies beyond the veil of the world of the living.

Thursday 20 January 6–7.30pm Lecture G08 Roberts Building

UCL Environment Institute public lecture series: The ingredients of a zero carbon – zero waste city: evolving a ZEDquarter with examples from the ZED factory Bill Dunster (Managing Director, ZEDfactory Ltd) marianne.knight@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7679 0534 www.ucl.ac.uk/environment-institute/

Global oil demand now exceeds supply, gas is running down and even toxic nuclear raw material has a 20 year supply.

The UK has gone from being 2 million in 1700 to a population of 60 million and we import 70% of our food. Even if we build every wind farm and tidal barrage ever proposed, we could never meet our current energy demand from renewable energy sources. Bill Dunster argues that if we reduce demand by 70% this target becomes possible, by working within the sensible limits of renewable energy stocks available within our national boundaries we give every UK citizen their fair quota.

all events are free with no need to book unless otherwise stated 5

events diary

Thursday 20 January

lunch hour lecture Lisbon, 1939–45: the untold story of Portugal and the Jewish refugees Thursday 27 January 1.15–1.55pm During World War II, Portugal was frantically trying to hold on to its selfproclaimed neutrality, and was increasingly caught in the middle of the economic, and naval wars between the Allies and the Nazis. To complicate matters further, thousands of refugees, many of them Jewish, flooded into Lisbon seeking a passage to the United States or Palestine. This talk will present the little known, yet vitally important, history of Lisbon during World War II. This lecture marks Holocaust Remembrance Day.

feed your mind at lunchtime Watch previous lectures online at www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl or www.youtube.com/ucllhl

lunch hour lecture Tuesday 25 January 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Stabilising the global population: Where next for the Millennium Development Goals for health and nutrition?

Professor Anthony Costello (UCL Institute of Child Health) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

In many poor countries the Millennium Development Goals for improvements in nutrition and health, especially of mothers and children, will not be met by the target date of 2015. This talk will review progress towards these targets and consider critical obstacles to success. New strategies will be considered to improve nutrition and to accelerate reductions in death and fertility rates so that the global population will be stabilised by mid-century.

6 SEE WWW.UCL.AC.UK/EVENTS FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LISTING

Thursday 27 January 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Lisbon, 1939–45: the untold story of Portugal and the Jewish refugees Dr Neill Lochery (UCL Hebrew & Jewish Studies) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

See opposite.

Thursday 27 January 6–7.30pm Lecture UCL Petrie Museum Talk begins at 6.30pm

Profane Egyptologists: Alternative approaches to The Book of the Dead Paul Harrison (UCL Museums & Collections) d.challis@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 4138 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/petrie

The Book of the Dead is the modern name for a collation of Ancient Egyptian instructions to assist people’s journey into the afterlife. Paul Harrison, a doctoral candidate at UCL, explores alternative approaches to this book from practitioners in esoteric studies, revealing the importance of the ancient past to many people today.

lunch hour lecture Tuesday 1 February 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Would you give your right arm to protect your heart?

Professor Derek M Yellon (UCL Cardiovascular Medicine) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

While treating a heart attack, the blood supply to the overall heart muscle must be returned as quickly as possible otherwise it will die. Paradoxically, restoring the blood flow can result in significant cell damage to the muscle. We have discovered why this occurs and how we can protect the heart muscle using new and simple techniques This talk will discuss the exciting scientific developments that have occurred in UCL laboratories and how we have translated this to the hospital bedside.

This lecture marks Heart Awareness Month.

please see page 28 for venue locations 7

events diary

lunch hour lecture

Tuesday 1 February 6.30–7.45pm Panel discussion JZ Young Lecture Theatre Anatomy Building A Grant Museum of Zoology event

Changing Science: Would Darwin get a job in science today? zoology.museum@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 3108 2052 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/whats-on/grant_listings

Join us for an evening of light-hearted discussion and debate as we investigate how science has changed over the past 200 years. Moving from a time of gentleman naturalists with the means to explore, experiment and invent, to an era of funding applications and directed research, we ask whether things have got better. With a lively panel of leading scientists we air the issues behind the changing disciplines.

lunch hour lecture Thursday 3 February

Homophobia: a global phenomenon

1.15–1.55pm

Professor Michael King (UCL Mental Health Sciences)

Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

+44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

To mark LGBT History Month, Professor King will look at why homophobia has existed in nearly every society throughout history, and what motivates the hatred of gay people around the world.

Friday 4 February 7.30pm Performance UCL Bloomsbury Theatre

Bright Club: Life £5, Pre-booking essential boxoffice@thebloomsbury.com +44 (0)20 7388 8822 www.brightclub.org www.thebloomsbury.com

The night where comedy and intellect collide returns following our sell-out October gig. Join comedians Steve Hall, Nick Doody and Isy Suttie and eight UCL researchers as they explore what life is, how it works and where it’s going. And make lots of jokes. This event is supported by a People Award from the Wellcome Trust.

8 SEE WWW.UCL.AC.UK/EVENTS FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LISTING

UCL Chamber Music Club Concert Series HALDANE ROOM, UCL MAIN CAMPUS check for up-to-date details at: www.ucl.ac.uk/chamber-music Thursday 13 January, 5.30–6.30pm Programme to include Beethoven’s Trio for clarinet, ‘cello and piano in B flat, op.11. and Rutter’s Suite antique for flute and piano.

Tuesday 25 January, 5.30–6.30pm A chance to enjoy a rich variety of music in a relaxed, informal setting. Programme details will be posted on our website.

Tuesday 1 February, 5.30–6.30pm A baroque evening with works by Bach and Handel.

Friday 11 February, 1.10–1.55PM Enjoy a lunch hour performance of Debussy’s String Quartet Thursday 24 February, 5.30–6.30PM A guest recital by cellist Joseph Spooner, featuring some intriguing and unjustlyneglected English rarities.

Tuesday 8 March, 5.30–6.30PM A concert in support of UC Opera’s forthcoming production of Die Drei Pintos, featuring performers from the UCLU Music Society.

Thursday 17 March, 5.30–6.30pm The art of the arrangement: familiar works in unfamiliar guises.

Concerts are free and open to all.

Contact: Jill House j.house@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 4231

UCL Student Season UCL Bloomsbury theatre check for up-to-date details at: www.thebloomsbury.com Lysistrata Tuesday 8–Thursday 10 February UCL Greek & Latin Annual voce production Wednesday 23 February UCLU VOCE Gospel Society & UCLU Stage Crew Society

Lysistrata Illustration: Dashiell Jackson, dashielljackson@googlemail.com

1969 Friday 25 February UCLU Malaysian Society & UCLU Stage Crew Society Rent Thursday 3–Saturday 5 March UCLU Musical Theatre Society & UCLU Stage Crew Society UCLU Dance Society – 25th Anniversary Show Thursday 10–Saturday 12 March UCLU Dance Society & UCLU Stage Crew Society Die Drei Pintos Monday 21–Saturday 25 March UCLU Music Society, UC Opera Society boxoffice@thebloomsbury.com +44 (0)20 7388 8822 www.thebloomsbury.com

Tuesday 8 February –

Lysistrata UCL Greek & Latin

Thursday 10 February

boxoffice@thebloomsbury.com

Various times – contact

+44 (0)20 7388 8822

Box Office.

www.thebloomsbury.com

Performance

See www.thebloomsbury.com for full

UCL Bloomsbury Theatre details.

Tuesday 8 February 1–2pm Lecture

Jeremy Bentham: Prophet of secularism

Cruciform Lecture

Professor Philip Schofield (UCL Bentham Project)

Theatre 2

s.bharadva@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 9764 www.ucl.ac.uk/hr/equalities/training/JBlecture

Bentham’s revolt against religion was evident when, at the age of 16, he resented being forced to subscribe to the Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England in order to take his degree.

Thenceforward he advocated religious freedom, and the abolition of all formal connection between church and state.

lunch hour lecture Tuesday 8 February 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Landing on a planet at 600 miles per hour Professor Alan Smith (UCL Mullard Space Science Laboratory) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

See page 13.

Tuesday 8 February 6–7.30pm (talk starts at 6.30pm) Pre-booking essential Lecture UCL Petrie Museum

Alexander and Hephaestion: Homeric romance?

John J. Johnson (UCL Museums & Collections) d.challis@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 4138 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/petrie

A talk on the nature of Alexander the Great’s relationship with Hephaestion. Were the literary precedents of Achilleus and Patroklos as detailed by Homer and other writers, it’s model? Has this relationship been denied or distorted in modern depictions? Part of LGBT History Month. please see page 28 for venue locations 11

events diary

STudent Season

lunch hour lecture Thursday 10 February 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

From prehistory to the London blitz: foreshore archaeology and a rising river Gustav Milne (UCL Institute of Archaeology/ Thames Discovery Programme) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

When the tide is out, the Thames foreshore is the longest archaeological site in London.

From prehistoric forests to evidence of bomb strikes from the London Blitz, much of this evidence is suffering from the river’s increased erosion or by redevelopment.

The Thames Discovery Programme is training a group of committed Londoners to survey and record the foreshore regularly before its history is washed away forever.

lunch hour lecture Tuesday 22 February 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Sex education via the media: promises and pitfalls Dr Petra Boynton (UCL Division of Medical Education) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

This lecture will draw on Dr Boynton’s experiences of delivering sex advice through the media (Channel 4’s The Sex Education Show). Drawing on research on international media advice-giving, she will highlight where media gets it right and wrong – and how we can inform sex education media for young people and adults through evidence-based practice and research.

Wednesday 23 February 2–3pm and 3.30–4.30pm Book reading for famlies UCL Petrie Museum

The Tygrine Cat d.challis@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7679 4138 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/petrie

Inbali Iserles reads from her new book in The Tygrine Cat series and explores the lore of cats in the ancient world. Join Mati for an adventure from the modern to the ancient and find out more about cats in Egypt.

12 SEE WWW.UCL.AC.UK/EVENTS FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LISTING

Landing on a planet at 600 miles per hour Tuesday 8 February 1.15–1.55pm UCL is developing Planetary Penetrators, which aim to land on planets at very high speed, penetrating the planet and implanting equipment just below the surface. This lecture will discuss the engineering difficulties of ensuring delicate instrumentation remains intact and operable after such high impact, and will highlight the biggest hurdle of all – convincing the space agencies to adopt the equipment in the first place!

feed your mind at lunchtime Watch previous lectures online at www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl or www.youtube.com/ucllhl

STudent Season

Annual VOCE Bloomsbury production

Wednesday 23 February

boxoffice@thebloomsbury.com

7.30pm

+44 (0)20 7388 8822

Performance

www.thebloomsbury.com

UCL Bloomsbury Theatre

See www.thebloomsbury.com for full details.

lunch hour lecture Thursday 24 February 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Will robots take over the world?

Dr Kathleen Richardson (UCL Anthropology) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

2011 is the 90th anniversary of the robot, first imagined as a character in a 1921 play.

It is also the 50th anniversary of the first use of robots in industry. Now we see them not as just useful for work, but to act as companions, exercise coaches for the elderly or stroke patients, and assistants for children with autism spectrum conditions. This lecture will explore the history of the robot, and how it has changed and been re-imagined – in fiction and labs – over the last 90 years.

all events are free with no need to book unless otherwise stated 13

© ESA/DLR/FU Berlin (G.Neukum)

lunch hour lecture

January Tuesday 18 January Who enjoys shopping in IKEA? Professor Alan Penn (UCL Bartlett School of Architecture) See page 2.

Thursday 20 January Building scientific models with computers Professor Richard Catlow (UCL Chemistry) See page 4.

Tuesday 25 January Stabilising the global population: Where next for the Millennium Development Goals for health and nutrition?

Professor Anthony Costello (UCL Institute of Child Health) See page 6.

Thursday 27 January Lisbon, 1939–45: the untold story of Portugal and the Jewish refugees Dr Neill Lochery (UCL Hebrew & Jewish Studies) See page 7.

February Tuesday 1 February Would you give your right arm to protect your heart?

Professor Derek M Yellon (UCL Cardiovascular Medicine) See page 7.

Thursday 3 February Homophobia: a global phenomenon Professor Michael King (UCL Mental Health Sciences) See page 8.

Tuesday 8 February Landing on a planet at 600 miles per hour Professor Alan Smith (UCL Mullard Space Science Laboratory) See page 11.

Thursday 10 February From prehistory to the London blitz: foreshore archaeology and a rising river Gustav Milne (UCL Institute of Archaeology/Thames Discovery Programme) See page 12.

Tuesday 22 February Sex education via the media: promises and pitfalls Dr Petra Boynton (UCL Division of Medical Education) See page 12.

Thursday 24 February Will robots take over the world?

Dr Kathleen Richardson (UCL Anthropology) See page 13.

Follow us:

SPRING 2011

Thursday 3 March The Earth bites back Professor Bill McGuire (Benfield UCL Hazard Research Centre) See page 17.

Tuesday 8 March Genetic testing in the 21st century: Should we screen the human embryonic genome before implantation?

Dr Joyce Harper (UCL Centre for preimplantation genetic diagnosis). See page 19.

Thursday 10 March Sex, drugs, the internet and Juries Professor Cheryl Thomas (UCL Laws). See page 19.

Tuesday 15 March Should the brain be left to neuroscientists?

Dr Daniel Glaser (UCL Psychology). See page 21.

Visitor Information 1.15–1.55pm, Tuesdays and Thursdays Darwin Lecture Theatre (see page 28 for map) Free and open to all. No need to book. Places are on a first-come, first-served basis.

Contact Dan Martin +44 (0)20 3108 3840 dan.martin@ucl.ac.uk Watch lectures streamed live online at www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl/streamed or watch after the event at www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl or www.youtube.com/UCLLHL

Coming soon:

LUNCH HOUR

UCL

MARCH Tuesday 1 March The origins of the ‘ndrangheta of Calabria: Italy’s most powerful mafia Professor John Dickie (UCL Italian) See page 16.

LECTURES

2011 ON TOUR JUNE AT THE BRITISH MUSEUM

Thursday 17 March Great 2 meet u IRL :-) Twitter and digital identity Dr Claire Warwick, @clhw1 (UCL Centre for Digital Humanities, #UCLDH) See page 22.

UCL Lunch Hour Lecture Series feed your mind at lunchtime

Thursday 24 February 6.15–7.45pm Reception & Lecture Garden Room (reception) Main campus Gustave Tuck Lecture Theatre (lecture)

Politics, diplomacy, gift exchange and royal marriage in the late Bronze Age Professor Yoram Cohen (Tel Aviv University) s.benisaac@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 3520

This lecture will address the complex social history of and legal interaction between the royal courts of the Late Bronze Age, including Egypt, the Hittite Empire, Babylonia, Assyria and the vassal states of the Land of Canaan. We will see how for a period of over 100 years, diplomacy, gift exchange and royal marriages replaced war as a mode of interaction between the major powers of the time and their vassal states.

Thursday 24 and Friday

Pot jigsaws

25 February

d.challis@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 4138

2–4.30pm Drop-in workshop UCL Petrie Museum

www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/petrie

Try your hand at reconstructing broken pots and record their intricate designs. Draw your own designs based on Greek spirals and patterns then use your creations to decorate your own pot. All ages welcome.

STudent Season

1969

Friday 25 February

boxoffice@thebloomsbury.com

7.30pm

+44 (0)20 7388 8822; www.thebloomsbury.com

Performance

See www.thebloomsbury.com for full details.

UCL Bloomsbury Theatre

lunch hour lecture Tuesday 1 March 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

The origins of the ‘ndrangheta of Calabria: Italy’s most powerful mafia Professor John Dickie (UCL Italian) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

See opposite.

16 SEE WWW.UCL.AC.UK/EVENTS FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LISTING

The Earth bites back

6.30–7.30pm

Professor Bill McGuire JZ Young Lecture Theatre (Benfield UCL Hazard Research Centre) Anatomy Building zoology.museum@ucl.ac.uk A Grant Museum of Zoology event

Lunch Hour Lecture Thursday 3 March 1.15–1.55pm Darwin Lecture Theatre

+44 (0)20 3108 2052 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/whats-on/grant_listings

New research on climate change points not only to higher temperatures, bigger storms and more floods, but to a world in which melting polar ice drowns coastal towns and cities across the planet and the crust itself joins in with more earthquakes, submarine landslides, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions.

Is this a world we wish to bequeath to our children and their children? If not, we may have less than 10 years to do something about it. (This lecture takes place twice).

lunch hour lecture The origins of the ‘ndrangheta of Calabria: Italy’s most powerful mafia Tuesday 1 March 1.15–1.55pm In 2007, six young men with origins in the Italian region of Calabria were ambushed and murdered in Duisburg, Germany. This was the worst ever mafia bloodbath outside Italy and the US. In the 90s, the ‘ndrangheta placed itself in a leading position in the European wholesale cocaine market by dealing direct with South American producers. It is now thought to be the wealthiest and most powerful of Italy’s major criminal brotherhoods. But how, when, and why did it first emerge?

feed your mind at lunchtime Watch previous lectures online at www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl or www.youtube.com/ucllhl

events diary

Tuesday 1 March

Thursday 3 March 5–8pm Museum Trail UCL Petrie Museum

Objects from Islamic Egypt Carolyn Perry (UCL Museums & Collections) d.challis@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 4138 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/whats-on

Pick up a trail by Carolyn Perry and look round the museum to find out more about the significant collection of objects from the Islamic periods in Egypt. The collections include beautiful glassware and examples of calligraphy from the Caliphate, Fatmid and Mamluk periods. Sponsored by the British Egyptian Society.

Thursday 3–5 March 7.30pm

Rent boxoffice@thebloomsbury.com +44 (0)20 7388 8822

Performance

www.thebloomsbury.com

UCL Bloomsbury Theatre

See www.thebloomsbury.com for full details.

Contours of global order: Domination, stability, security in a changing world Wednesday 9 March Professor Noam Chomsky will deliver the UCL Rickman Godlee Lecture 2010. He will explore the crucial role of a supportive intellectual culture in an environment of potentially dangerous irrationality in policymaking circles and among sectors of the political class, while institutional structures bar efforts to confront very serious domestic and international issues.

Donna Coveney/MIT

STudent Season

1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Genetic testing in the 21st century: Should we screen the human embryonic genome before implantation?

Dr Joyce Harper (UCL Centre for Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

In preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), embryos are created by IVF and cells removed from these embryos for genetic analysis. Until recently, testing was solely for the disease the couple carried.

New techniques allow all chromosomes and many genes to be examined. The analysis of the whole genome prior to implantation brings ethical concerns. Will healthy couples opt for PGD to select their ‘best’ offspring?

This lecture marks International Women’s Day. Wednesday 9 March 6–8pm Lecture & Reception Cruciform Lecture Theatre 1 Doors open from 5.15pm Pre-booking essential

Contours of global order: Domination, stability, security in a changing world Professor Noam Chomsky (MIT) +44 (0)20 7679 9274; www.ucl.ac.uk/events

See opposite.

Booking for this event will be available from February 2010 at www.ucl.ac.uk/events.

The lecture will be filmed and available to watch online seven days after the event at www.youtube.com/ucltv and at http://itunes.ucl.ac.uk

lunch hour lecture Thursday 10 March 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Sex, drugs, the internet and juries Professor Cheryl Thomas (UCL Laws) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

Why can’t jurors resist Googling the defendant or Tweeting about the case?

This lecture reveals the truth behind a number of widely held beliefs about juries in this country and examines why the internet may now be the biggest threat to our jury system.

please see page 28 for venue locations 19

events diary

lunch hour lecture Tuesday 8 March

Thursday 10 March 5.30–7.30pm UCL Petrie Museum

In stone: Egyptian archaeological stonework d.challis@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7679 4138 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/petrie

Go behind the scenes to find out more about conserving objects in museums.

Investigate the materials and technologies behind stone objects. Conservators and students will be on hand to talk through the latest scientific advances in conservation.

Hands-on activities will illustrate the threats to and preservation of stone objects.

STudent Season Thursday 10–12 March

UCLU Dance Society – 25th anniversary show

7.30pm

Tickets: £10, £8, £5

Performance

boxoffice@thebloomsbury.com

UCL Bloomsbury Theatre +44 (0)20 7388 8822 www.thebloomsbury.com

See www.thebloomsbury.com for full details.

Friday 11– Sunday 13 March Friday 11 March: 10.30am–8.30pm (for school groups) Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 March: 11am–8pm (general public/families) UCL Main Campus

Your Universe 2011 Dr Francisco Diego (UCL Physics & Astronomy) fd@star.ucl.ac.uk

Your Universe, the UCL Festival of Astronomy (now part of the 2011 National Science & Engineering Week) will take place on 11 March (for school groups) and on 12 & 13 March for the general public and families). There will be exhibits, demonstrations, telescopes and prestigious public lectures. The festival is partially supported by the Royal Astronomical Society.

For programme details please visit: www.ucl.ac.uk/youruniverse.

20 SEE WWW.UCL.AC.UK/EVENTS FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LISTING

Tuesday 15 March 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Should the brain be left to neuroscientists?

Dr Daniel Glaser (UCL Psychology) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

Since the ‘decade of the brain’ in the ‘90s an increasing range of taboo subjects have been examined by neuroscientists.

These include autobiographical memory, aesthetics, love and consciousness itself.

Other disciplines within the arts and sciences have also put the brain at the heart of their project. How effectively has neuroscience integrated these approaches into its work? Should the direction of brain research be left to scientists? This lecture marks Brain Awareness Week, 14–20 March.

Tuesday 15 March 1–8pm Open Day UCL Rockefeller Building

The Grant Museum reopens – first chance to see zoology.museum@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 3108 2052 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/whats-on/grant_listings

See below.

The Grant Museum reopens – first chance to see Tuesday 15 March After eight months of packing, design, construction, unpacking, screwing skeletons together and re-organising 68,000 dead animals, the Grant Museum opens its doors. Join us on launch day – staff will be around until late to chat about the new museum.

We’ve maintained the unique atmosphere, but this incarnation of the Grant starts discussions about issues in the life sciences today and invites visitors to tell us what a museum should be. Eventually your feedback will inform how the museum will be rebuilt in a few years time.

events diary

lunch hour lecture

Wednesday 16 March 6–7.30pm Lecture UCL Petrie Museum

Reading the stars: Ancient Egypt and astronomy Marek Kukula (Royal Observatory Greenwich) d.challis@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7679 4138 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/petrie

Join Marek Kukula, public astronomer from the Royal Observatory Greenwich, to find out what the Ancient Egyptians saw in the skies at night. Part of National Science and Engineering Week.

lunch hour lecture Thursday 17 March 1.15–1.55pm Lunch Hour Lecture Darwin Lecture Theatre

Great 2 meet u IRL :–) Twitter and digital identity Dr Claire Warwick, @clhw1 (UCL Centre for Digital Humanities, #UCLDH) +44 (0)20 3108 3840; www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl

Is Twitter an ephemeral technology, consisting of mundane personal chatter?

Or can a study of its use help us to understand how we express our identities on and offline? Should we try to separate our public and private digital personae?

This lecture will address such questions, with slides of 140 characters and live tweets from the audience and online. Co authors: Melissa Terras, @melissaterras, #melissaterras; Claire Ross, @clairey_ross; Anne Welsh, @AnneWelsh. This lecture marks the 5th anniversary of Twitter.

Saturday 19 March

Fossil forage

Activity

zoology.museum@ucl.ac.uk

10am–4pm UCL Grant Museum of Zoology

+44 (0)20 3108 2052 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/whats-on/grant_listings

Visit the brand new Grant Museum and take the opportunity to sieve through our genuine fossil-rich sediment from a time when London was patrolled by sharks and rays. Explore some amazing fossils from pre-historic creatures with our interactive specimen-based games.

22 SEE WWW.UCL.AC.UK/EVENTS FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LISTING

Die Drei Pintos

Monday 21–26 March

boxoffice@thebloomsbury.com

7.30pm

+44 (0)20 7388 8822

Performance

www.thebloomsbury.com

UCL Bloomsbury Theatre

See www.thebloomsbury.com for full

Tickets £24, £16, £8

details.

Tuesday 22 March

Inherit the Wind (1960) on the big screen

6.30–9pm

Dr Joe Cain (UCL Science & Technology Studies)

Screening

events diary

STudent Season

JZ Young Lecture Theatre zoology.museum@ucl.ac.uk Anatomy Building +44 (0)20 3108 2052 A Grant Museum of Zoology event

www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/whats-on/grant_listings

Based on the 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial – when an American school teacher was arrested for teaching evolution – this Hollywood classic tells the story of the showdown between science and religion: God vs. Darwin. Introduced by Dr Joe Cain.

Part of the ‘Natural Change Season’ at the Grant Museum.

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ON ITUNES U: http://itunes.ucl.ac.uk ON youtubE: www.youtube.com/ucltv E-Newsletter: www.ucl.ac.uk/events

Thursday 24 March 6–7.30pm Lecture UCL Petrie Museum Talk begins at 6.30pm

Monday 28 March 6pm Seminar UCL School of Public Policy Council Room Pre-booking essential

Objects from Islamic Egypt Carolyn Perry (UCL Museums & Collections) d.challis@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 4138 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/petrie

See below.

Judicial diversity Professor Dame Hazel Genn (UCL Laws) v.spence@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)20 7679 4977 www.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit/events/ public-seminars-10-11/judicial-diversity

Professor Dame Hazel Genn will discuss strategies to enhance judicial diversity.

In 2009, Professor Genn was appointed to the government’s Advisory Panel on Judicial Diversity. In a recent report, the Panel noted that there is a strong case for a more diverse judiciary. However, there is no ‘quick fix’.

Objects from Islamic Egypt Thursday 24 March Carolyn Perry introduces some of the most important objects from the fascinating but little–known collection of objects from Islamic Egypt in the museum. The Petrie Museum collections include beautiful glassware and examples of calligraphy from the Caliphate, Fatmid and Mamluk periods. Talk starts at 6:30pm.

Sponsored by the British Egyptian Society.

5–8pm Quiz night UCL Petrie Museum

Lates at the Petrie: Ancient Egypt ‘Pub Quiz’ Night d.challis@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7679 4138 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/whats-on

Put your knowledge of Ancient Egyptian trivia to the test with our pub-style quiz at the Petrie Museum. Groups of four or five can compete for the Petrie Quiz Pharoah award.

Round one starts at 6pm.

Monday 11 April to Wednesday 20 April 1–5pm weekdays Family activity A Grant Museum of Zoology event

Easter egg-laying animals zoology.museum@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 3108 2052 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/whats-on/grant_listings

For the Easter holidays, the Grant Museum is exploring the wonderful world of eggy animals. From penguins to platypuses, sharks to snails and bullfrogs to butterflies, our fantastic specimen-based activities will help you investigate the best of shells and spawn. Come and unscramble our games and whip up some eggcitement with our amazing animal specimens.

Wednesday 13 April

The new localism

6pm Seminar

Professor Tony Travers (The Greater London Group, LSE)

UCL School of Public

v.spence@ucl.ac.uk; +44 (0)207 679 4977

Policy Council Room

Decentralisation of power from central and regional governments to local authorities is an important policy for both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.

In Feb 2009 the Conservatives launched a major policy green paper outlining plans to give power back to local communities.

These policies will guide the Coalition as it seeks to rebalance the relationship between central and local governments. Professor Travers will discuss the proposed reforms and assess their impact on local government.

all events are free with no need to book unless otherwise stated 25

events diary

Thursday 7 April

exhibitions 5 January – March 25

Soul House: Exhibition by Sara Bevan

1–5pm

Dr Debbie Challis d.challis@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7679 4138

Exhibition UCL Petrie Museum

Following a project funded by the Arts Council of England and UCL Collections, this exhibition of digital collages by Sara Bevan reflects on the unique space and atmosphere of the Petrie museum.

She has also produced a series of works inspired by the myths and magic behind this outstanding collection of Egyptian artefacts.

8 February – 25 March 1–5pm Exhibition UCL Strang Print Room

The Age of Expression: 20th Century Northern European prints from the Barber Institute college.art@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)207 679 2540

This exhibition includes works by Max Beckmann, George Grosz, Käthe Kollwitz, Franz Marc, Emil Nolde, Egon Schiele and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff on loan from the Barber Institute of Art, University of Birmingham. Many of the artists featured in the exhibition were asssociated with German Expressionism. The works respond to the First World War and its aftermath using familiar print techniques such as woodcut and drypoint with an innovative simplicity and directness to evoke powerful emotional states.

26 SEE WWW.UCL.AC.UK/EVENTS FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LISTING

1–5pm Exhibition UCL Petrie Museum

Typecast: Flinders Petrie and Francis Galton Dr Debbie Challis d.challis@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7679 4138

In 1886, Francis Galton commissioned Flinders Petrie to take photographs of different “racial types” that were present in or enemies of Ancient Egyptian civilization.

This exhibition displays some of those photographs and explores their contentious legacies, examining and inviting comment on Galton and Petrie. Part of the Legacies of Galton: Centenary Programme at UCL. The photographs and information about them will change throughout the duration of the exhibition.

April – May 2011

Slade/Strang 2011: The Exhibition

(check website for exact dates)

college.art@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7679 2540

Exhibition

While a new generation of Slade students

UCL Strang Print Room

strive to create new work, just 100 yards away is a magnificent collection of art by Slade alumni, as well as revered Old Masters. The annual Slade/Strang collaboration is an invitation to today’s

Ryan Riddington

artists to develop their own practices using contemporary media and modes of thinking, while taking time to appreciate what has gone before. This exhibition showcases the exciting results. www.ucl.ac.uk/museums

please see page 28 for venue locations 27

exhibitions

11 April – 22 December

Venue Locations

5 UCL Darwin Lecture Theatre Darwin Building, Malet Place, London, WC1E 6BT

1 UCL Main Campus Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT +44 (0)20 7679 2000 www.ucl.ac.uk

6 UCL Grant Museum of Zoology Rockefeller Building, 21 University Street, WC1E 6DE Monday–Friday, 1–5pm zoology.museum@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 3108 2052 www.ucl.ac.uk/museums/zoology

2 UCL Art Collections (Strang Print Room) South Cloisters, UCL Wilkins Building, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT Monday–Friday, 1–5pm college.art@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7679 2540 www.artmuseum.ucl.ac.uk

7 UCL Anatomy Building Gower Street, WC1E 6BT 8 UCL Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology Malet Place, UCL, WC1E 6BT Tuesday to Friday 1–5pm and Saturday 10–1pm petrie.museum@ucl.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7679 2884 www.petrie.ucl.ac.uk

3 UCL Cruciform Lecture Theatres 1 & 2 Cruciform Building, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT 4 UCL Bloomsbury Theatre 15 Gordon Street, WC1H 0AH +44 (0)20 7388 8822 www.thebloomsbury.com Check online for full Bloomsbury Theatre event listing U The Wellcome

Euston

Trust

Archway campus 0.8 km

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9 UCL Roberts Building (G06, G08,106) Torrington Place, UCL, WC1E 7JE Entrance on Malet Place

Euston Square

P

GOWER

PLACE

ENDSLEIGH GAR DENS

6

Bloomsbury Theatre

STREEET

4

2

10

Grant Museum

SQUARE GORDON

GOWER MEWS CHENIES

HUNTLEY

PLACE

TORRINGTON SQUARE

Darwin Lecture Theatre Lunch Hour Lectures tures Z

28 SEE WWW.UCL.AC.UK/EVENTS FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LISTING

WOBURN

TORRINGTON PLACE

BEDFORD WAY

GORDON SQUARE

Russell Square

BYNG PLACE

C

Waterstone's British Museum

13

TAVISTOCK SQUARE

9

SQUARE

Roberts

GORDON

5

8

SQUARE

Goodge Street

PLACE

Petrie Museum

Darwin

SHROPSHIRE PL

TORRINGTON

The Rubin Building

Anatomy

CAPPER STREET

ENDSLEIGH PL

GORDON SQUARE

7

MALET

MORTIMER MARKET

STREET

Rockefeller

Strang Print Room

11Quadrangle

Wilkins

N

STREET

STREET

1 Chadwick

UNIVERSITY

Main

STREET

3 Cruciform

GORDON

Haldane Room

ENDSLEIGH

12

WAY

TAVITON

GRAFTON Z

STREET

GOWER CT North Cloisters

TOTTEN

X

11 UCL Chadwick Lecture Theatre UCL Chadwick Building, UCL, Gower Street WC1E 6BT 12 Wilkins Haldane Room UCL, Gower Street WC1E 6BT 13 UCL School of Public Policy

29/30 Tavistock Square, London, WC1H 9QU

Getting to UCL

By Tube Underground stations near to UCL’s main campus: Euston Square (Circle, Metropolitan, Hammersmith and City Lines) Goodge Street (Northern Line) Warren Street (Northern and Victoria Lines).

By Rail Mainline train stations near to UCL’s main campus: Euston, King’s Cross and St Pancras International

By Bus Buses serving Gower Street 134, 390, 10, 73, 24, 29, 14

By Car The Bloomsbury area has metered parking and visitors are strongly advised not to travel to UCL by car.

UCL Grant Museum of Zoology Relocation Notice The UCL Grant Museum of Zoology, one of the country’s oldest and most important natural history collections, is moving to a new site. Highlights of the 180-year-old collection include several extinct animals, such as the Tasmanian Tiger or Thylacine, the Quagga, and the Dodo.

Over a period of eight months, staff at the Grant will be dismantling, packing and moving around 67,000 specimens to a new space in the UCL Rockefeller Building. The museum is scheduled to re-open in its temporary home in March 2011.

venue locations / getting to UCL

10 Gustave Tuck Lecture Theatre UCL Wilkins Building, UCL, Gower Street WC1E 6BT

visitor information

BEFORE YOU VISIT UCL ADMISSION All events are free and open to everyone with no need to book in advance – unless otherwise stated.

WATCHING ONLINE If you are unable to attend any of our lectures, many are now being filmed and are available to download for free from our website or on iTunes U. further information For further information please contact individual events or visit www.ucl.ac.uk/events term dates 10 January – 25 March 2011

KEEPING IN TOUCH If you would like to receive future copies of Brain Food please email your contact details to events@ucl.ac.uk

Please note: Listings correct at time of going to press.

Please check event details online at www.ucl.ac.uk/events

ACCESSIBILITY UCL aims to provide accessibility to all its events. If you require any information about any accessibility requirements please contact UCL Disability Services on +44 (0)20 7679 0100 disability@ucl.ac.uk GENERAL ENQUIRIES Main Switchboard: +44 (0)20 7679 2000 Main address: University College London Gower Street London, WC1E 6BT For further information about any of our events please visit our website www.ucl.ac.uk/events

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