6 January 2006
Discovery Days 2006
The University of Dundee plays host to two of the most exciting and stimulating days in the academic calendar next week - Discovery Days 2006.
Eighteen new chairs in a variety of disciplines from philosophy and fine art to pharmacology and photonics will be given the floor for 15 minutes each to showcase their leading-edge research. Each of these professors is working at the `knowledge frontier’ in their particular specialist area, and the flow of ideas running through the two days is highly dynamic.
"Over these two stimulating days you can expect a sense of the excitement, the innovation and the promise of a broad sweep of academic activity in research and - for the first time - teaching," said Sir Alan Langlands, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University.
"Our Discovery Days will leave an invigorating impression of the bold and promising worlds of knowledge being uncovered by our inaugural professors."
The admissibility of torture evidence in the UK courts; how academia can pursue drug discovery for neglected diseases; the research behind the next generation of electronic devices; the life and death of cancer cells; social exclusion; cultivating enterprise and the heady philosophy of hermeneutics… all are among the varied topics over which the Discovery Days audiences will range.
An additional session will be dedicated to `inspirational learning’ outlining the exciting developments taking place in finding new ways of delivering higher education at Dundee, which was named by The Times in 2005 as first in the UK for teaching quality. The initiatives which will be explored at Discovery Days include the University’s achievements in developing e-learning, flexible learning programmes and new methods of delivering history, chemistry and medical education to students.
Discovery Days 2006 shows how Dundee is leading the way in many areas, not least in creating a more balanced academic community. At a time when women account nationally for only 10% of professors, it is notable that more half of this year’s Discovery Days professors - 10 of the 18 - are women.
Some of Scotland’s leading decision makers and opinion formers will chair the Discovery Days sessions, among them Jack Perry, Chief Executive Officer of Scottish Enterprise, BBC Scotland’s political editor Brian Taylor, Shona Cormack CEO of Scottish Enterprise Tayside and Sir Alan Langlands.
Dundee first established the Discovery Days format two years ago, giving a wide range of newly-appointed Professors the forum to present their research, all in quick, snappy 15-minute mini-lectures.
The format proved an instant hit, making leading academic research instantly accessible and helping develop links across the University community. The format provides a unique test for the professors, who are asked to condense often complex and wide-ranging work into their 15 minutes, but it is a challenge they have constantly risen to. It will be fascinating to see how this year’s cohort present their own ideas.
The days will be accompanied by a stunning exhibition of posters.
Discovery Days 2006 take place in the Tower Extension Lecture Theatre at the University of Dundee on Thursday January 12th and Friday January 13th. The full programme, with details of each speaker and their subject, is available at Discovery Days 2006.
The Discovery Days sessions are free and open to the public. Tickets are available from the Tower Reception.
Notes for editors
Advance texts on each presentation are available to the media from the press office. Images are also available on request.
For more information contact:
Roddy Isles,
Head of Press
University of Dundee
Tel: 01382 384910,
Email: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk
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