Members Annual General Meeting (NB 6.45pm start) followed by a recital by an ensemble from the Bardi Wind Orchestra, conducted by Mr David Calow. Wine will be served in the … Continue reading Members Annual General Meeting and Recital (6:45 PM start) →

To be given by Professor Sir Kent Woods: Epidemics of smallpox in the mid-19th century prompted legislation making smallpox vaccination of infants compulsory. Leicester became a focus of national protest and the law was later amended to allow conscientious objection. Ninety years later, smallpox became the first infectious disease ever to be eradicated globally by vaccination yet the questions raised by the Leicester Anti-Vaccination League must be rigorously answered for every new vaccine.

To be given by Andrew Ellis, Director Art UK. The talk will explore the benefits and challenges of bringing together the UK’s national collection of art on one digital platform. Art UK shows art by 50,000 artists, including approaching 10,000 living artists. Over 3,300 UK institutions are represented, making it one of the largest arts partnerships in Britain.

To be given by Professor Caroline Kennedy Pipe: The lecture is an analysis of how a warming Arctic has affected the geopolitics of that region. Although Ukraine may seem a world away from the North Pole, the war in Europe has had many ramifications for Arctic states and the relationship with Russia in the High North.

To be given by Professor Mary Fowler: Ernest Rutherford (1871-1937), father of nuclear physics, has much to teach us today, both in his extraordinary scientific insights, in his skills in reaching out to the wider community, in administration, and in his international outlook. Awarded a Nobel Prize in 1908, he dominated early 20th century experimental physics. Throughout his career he created an extraordinary team of students and colleagues, and his last great work, with Einstein as his deputy, successfully rescued over a thousand, scientists, mainly Jewish, from Nazi Germany.

To be given by Professor Fiona Stafford, FBA, FRSE: Trees are a perennial source of inspiration for poets, artists, and storytellers. The lecture will range through some of the trees that feature in poems and paintings, exploring their roots in the lived experience of their creators.

To be given by Professor Paul Monks, Chief Scientific Adviser, Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy. Achieving Net Zero emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050 requires an economy-wide transformation. The talk will explore the basis for Net Zero and challenges for both science and policy in framing a sustainable and resilient pathway to it. It will show that a systems of systems approach is required to deliver Net Zero in a timely and cost-effective manner.

To be given by Professor Nick Jennings: In our increasingly connected world, computation is everywhere. This talk will explore how humans and artificial intelligence (AI) systems can work together. In such partnerships, the humans and the AI systems complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses, leading to a rise in the humans, as well as in the machines. The limitations of current AI systems are discussed, as well as the associated ethical and societal implications of their widespread adoption.

To be given by Professor Kamlesh Khunti: The risk of Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) is two to four-fold higher in ethnic minority populations compared to white populations and is also associated with increased risk of certain macrovascular and microvascular complications. Diabetes is also a major risk factor for severe COVID-19 and the combination of ethnic disparities in diabetes care has been a significant contributor to the disparities in COVID-19 outcomes for ethnic minority populations.

To be given by Dr Dean Lomax: In January 2022, news broke of one of the greatest finds in British palaeontological history, a 10-metre-long giant ichthyosaur found in Rutland. Dubbed the ‘Rutland Sea Dragon’, this remarkable fossil is the largest skeleton of an ichthyosaur, or any prehistoric reptile ever found in the UK. Excavation leader and world ichthyosaur expert, Dr Dean Lomax, will take us on a Jurassic journey and talk about the discovery and excavation of this exceptional Jurassic giant.

To be given by Professor Katie Normington: The late medieval and early Tudor world was one where entertainment played a key role. This was also the case in Leicester where the Guildhall hosted visits by over 56 acting companies in the 16th century, including one which was associated with Shakespeare, meaning it was likely he visited Leicester. This talk will outline the range of performances that occurred in late medieval Leicester and the function that it served for citizens.

To be given by Dr Felicity Crotty: This lecture will aim to provide an overview of the fascinating life found within the soil, how soil management changes the structure, chemistry, and biology of the soil, and overall what this means to “soil health”. This talk will also include how changing land use and climate change will have an impact on healthy soils, maintaining food security and improving biodiversity within the soil habitat.

To be given by Professor Lynne Frostick: Climate change is already impacting the rivers and coasts of our country. River flow records are exceeded on a regular basis and sea level rise is accelerating. Even if the world population agreed to stop emitting carbon dioxide today there is at least a hundred years of embedded change already in progress. This lecture will outline past and present trends in flood risk and then suggest ways society can adapt become resilient to the threat of flooding.

To be given by Professor John Butt: The two greatest composers of the early eighteenth century often engender their own devotees, but very little attention is given to what actually divides them. Given that the two come from very similar backgrounds, their careers went down radically different paths. At a technical level they inevitably share many characteristics, but the differences in mindset, musical hearing and narrative musical consciousness might well reveal much about the sheer breadth of early eighteenth-century thought – right on the cusp of the modern world.

The Members AGM will be followed by a concert given by the Chamber ensemble from the Bardi Wind Orchestra conducted by Mr David Calow. Non-members may also attend the concert. … Continue reading Members’ Annual General Meeting followed by a Concert →

The President’s Address, to be given by  Mr Michael Taylor, BA, DipTP, MA, MRTPI, IHBC.  Town planner and conservation specialist The lecture will  trace the origins of British conservation philosophy … Continue reading When Ruskin meets Thunberg: historic buildings in the age of climate crisis →

A lecture to be given by Professor Rosemary Sweet, FSA, FRHistS. Professor of Urban History, University of Leicester The ‘discovery’ of the Alhambra in Granada, and by extension the architecture … Continue reading British Travellers and the Discovery of the Alhambra, 1750-1830 →

A lecture to be given by Professor Charalambos P Kyriacou, FMedSci. Professor of Behavioural Genetics, University of Leicester The lecture will outline how working in a very esoteric and rather … Continue reading From fruitfly biorhythms to a weekend in Stockholm →

A lecture iven by Dr Bernard Greaves LLD, DipArch, BA A transcript of this lecture is available by clicking here. The lecture will present a brief outline of the extent … Continue reading Responding to David Attenborough’s Challenge  – a new view of economics →

The Arthur and Jean Humphreys Lecture to be given by Professor Christine van Ruymbeke, Ali Reza and Mohamed Soudavar Professor of Persian Studies, University of Cambridge This talk examines how … Continue reading Persian Tales of Love and Friendship →

A lecture to be given by Sir Nicholas Green the Rt Hon Lord Justice Green, Former Chairman of the Law Commission for England & Wales (2018 – 2023); Lord Justice … Continue reading Judges, Politics, and the Public: A Judge’s View from Inside Westminster →

Sponsored by Loughborough University  Dr Afzal Ashraf QCVS, CEng. Visiting Fellow in International Relations and Security, Loughborough University For most living in western societies, extremism is assumed to be an … Continue reading Extremism among us →

Sponsored by the Royal Society of Chemistry   Professor Saiful Islam FRSC, FIMMM. Professor of Materials Science, University of Oxford The supply of low carbon energy is one of the … Continue reading Green Energy Materials in 3D – Crystal Gazing on the Atomic Scale →

Sponsored by De Montfort University Professor Gabriel Egan, Professor of Shakespeare Studies, De Montfort University    Shakespeare is often credited with coining many of the familiar words and phrases now … Continue reading Is Shakespeare’s language unlike that of his contemporaries? →

Natural History Section Joint Lecture  Professor Rosemary Collier, FRES. School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick Synthetic pesticides have been available to farmers and growers since the 1940s and their … Continue reading Managing pest insects without pesticides →

The F. L. Attenborough Lecture Dr Mike Rands, BSc, DPhil, DSc. Master Darwin College, and Founding Director, Cambridge Conservation Initiative, University of Cambridge   Nature has never been under great … Continue reading Collaborating to conserve the natural world →

Joint Lecture with the Museum and Art Gallery Professor Jenny Powell, Director and Barber Professor, The Barber Institute of Fine Arts, University of Birmingham In 1930 a reviewer of an … Continue reading Sculpture and Geology: Modernism, Interdisciplinarity and the Museum Today →