Join us for an evening of true, personal stories with a science twist. Five storytellers plucked from the festival line-up will share their exciting tales of how science has touched their lives.
Stories by:
Juliet Bedford is the Founder and Director of Anthrologica, a research-based organization specializing in applied anthropology in global health. She holds a D.Phil from the University of Oxford, where she is a Research Associate at the School of Anthropology. Juliet is also an Adjunct Professor at the Global Institute of Public Health at New York University and is an Affiliate at the Centre for Evidence in Disability at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. From October to December 2014, Juliet was appointed the lead anthropologist for the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response.
Pankaj Chandak is a Specialist Registrar in Transplant Surgery and Honorary Lecturer King's College London, Research Fellow KCL and Royal College of Surgeons of England. He has lectured and presented research papers internationally and appeared on TV and taken part (and choreographed) a surgical scene in the film Crown (directed by Stephen Daldry). He successfully pioneered 3D Printing for complex pediatric transplantation -- a world first -- and received international acclaim and multiple awards including The Royal College of Surgeons Joseph Lister Prize and Medal.
Emily Grossman is an expert in molecular biology and genetics, with a Double First in Natural Sciences from Queens' College Cambridge and a PhD in cancer research. She also trained and worked as an actress, and now combines her skills as a science broadcaster, writer and educator; teaching maths and sciences at all academic levels and explaining science for a wide range of TV and radio programs and at live events.
Eight years ago Danielle Sellwood cofounded sportsister.com in a bid to create a media platform for women’s sport (both participation and elite). Her roles before that include sports trend forecasting in the fashion industry at wgsn.com, designing sportswear for major brands and canoeing for Team GB.
Vincent Walsh is Professor of Human Brain Research and Royal Society Industry Research Fellow at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, UCL. He has published over 300 scientific articles and several books and specializes in the how the brain achieves all the things we take for granted: How do we see? How do we remember? How do we learn? How do we read? How do we count? How do we know how long thing takes? " In his own research Professor Walsh uses methods of brain stimulation to investigate the how of what the brain does. By passing electrical currents into people's brains, he can stop them from working normally while people try to read or count or speak. "It sounds dramatic, but the changes we make to the brain are very small and it's totally safe." He is now working with industry to develop and promote human brain stimulation in the treatment of illnesses such as depression and he is applying his knowledge of brain development and learning in the sporting world.