Past Events

The third discussion in our Throwback Thursday series is led by Professor Niamh Nic Daéid, Professor of Forensic Science, University of Dundee and Director of the Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science, who will reflect on her inspirational talk from the RSE’s Women in Science series - an exhibition highlighting some of the most talented leaders, thinkers and practitioners working in Scotland. Part of Niamh’s research is in the application of virtual reality in crime scene, allowing expertise to be brought into the crime scene remotely.

In 2020 a global crisis, embodied in a tiny snippet of RNA, arrived on humanity’s doorstep. It required urgent, evidence-driven, well-coordinated, and cooperative social action on an unprecedented scale. It also required the decisive application of our best science and technology for pandemic control. Many of the most scientifically and technically advanced countries were not up to the task. Why?

The second discussion in our Throwback Thursday series is led by Dr Senga Robertson-Albertyn, Postdoctoral Research Assistant at the University of Dundee, who will reflect on being awarded the prestigious RSE Innovators Prize for Public Engagement in recognition of her contribution to communicating science in a fun and interactive way – at the RSE’s Winter Lecture at Wallace High School for an audience of S3 pupils where Dr Roberton-Albertyn discussed what motivated her to become a scientist and the importance of scientific outreach work.

Amazon Alexa, Apple's Siri or Google's assistant are able to converse with humans using language. The underlying technology - often referred to as spoken dialogue systems - have experienced a revolution over the past decade, moving from being completely handcrafted to using data-driven machine learning methods.

Professor Becky Lunn will reflect on her inspirational talk from the RSE’s Women in Science – an exhibition highlighting some of the most talented leaders, thinkers and practitioners working in Scotland. Becky identified civil engineering’s vital role in improving sustainability, inspired by nature her research involved an alternative to concrete - which contributes around 8% of our global carbon emissions.

Space exploration, Self-driving cars, Factories of the Future -- robots are increasing taking on more autonomous roles but what is the right balance between human control and autonomy? What are the breakthrough technologies driving this disruption, what are its limitations and can they help define the new normal in our post COVID future?

This talk will highlight how implementing AI in health and social care goes beyond developing the technologies - it’s about changing mindsets. Three case studies in social care will be explored in context of Coronavirus - Self-management apps, assistive technology, and robotics. Through these examples, the barriers and opportunities will be discussed.