Dr Sebastian Breitenback is a German research associate at the Department of Earth Sciences at Cambridge University. His work focuses on climate change, paleoclimate systems and Earth-Ocean-Atmosphere systems, with a particular interest in clumped isotope paleothermometry and carbonates. His most recent paper created a great deal of buzz as he and his colleagues uncovered ancient Chinese cave drawings linked to climate change. We have...
Melanie Keene is the Director of Studies for History and Philosophy of Science at Homerton College, Cambridge. Her research focuses primarily on the history of science for children in the 18th and 19th centuries, particularly in Britain. In 2015 her first book was published, ‘Science in Wonderland: The Scientific Fairytales of Victorian Britain’. That really sprouted this whole interest in how children began to...
The Reverend Richard Coles is a musician, journalist and priest. He had a number of top ten hits with his band The Communards in the eighties. After leaving the band, he gained a BA in Theology at King’s College London before being ordained a priest in 2005. He is often referred to as being a very ‘modern vicar’, helped by his hosting slots on...
Francesca Stavrakopoulou is Professor of Hebrew Bible and Ancient Religion in the Theology and Religion department at the University of Exeter. She is a regular on television panel shows about religion and presented a three part-documentary series for the BBC on the Bible and archaeology entitled ‘Bible’s Buried Secrets’. A staunch atheist, Francesca’s work involves looking at ancient religious texts from a scientific viewpoint,...
Leonie Rennie is an Emeritus Professor in Science and Technology Education at Curtin University in Western Australia. After studying geology, Leonie has gone on to a long and distinguished career where she has worked in, and researched, science education resulting in her publishing over 200 refereed journal articles, served on the boards of countless science education initiatives and has had key roles in many...
Professor Anthony Clifford “A.C.” Grayling is a philosopher and founder and first Master of the New College of the Humanities, an independent college in London. He is the author of over 30 books on philosophy. His main interests lie in metaphysics and philosophical logic and he is often associated with the new atheist movement. He also sits on the board for a number of...
Mark Henderson is Head of Communications at the Wellcome Trust, a global charity supporting and celebrating biomedical research and the medical humanities. Previously he was the science editor of the Times newspaper in the UK. He is the author of two books, ‘The Geek Manifesto’ and ’50 Genetic Ideas You Really Need to Know’. What I think is really exciting are the teachers who...
Fran Scott describes herself as ‘not your typical scientist’. She is an experienced science demonstrator, translator and developer for both children and adults alike on stage and screen. Whilst her degree is in neuroscience, Fran has been known to tackle all aspects of science and engineering in her shows, making sure the scientific concepts are accessible to a wide ranging audience. I always...
Professor Raymond Tallis has been listed as one of the top living polymaths in the world. He is a philosopher, a poet, novelist, critic and a retired physician and clinical scientist specialising in geriatrics. Ray is a distinguished supporter of the British Humanist Association and a patron of Dignity in Dying. True science is full of bitter disappointments, only charlatans win a prize...
Richard Wiseman is Professor of the Public Understanding of Psychology at the University of Hertfordshire. Wiseman’s career began as a magician, before graduating in Psychology from University College London (UCL) and obtaining a PhD in Psychology from the University of Edinburgh. Wiseman is best known for his critical examination and debunking of ‘paranormal phenomena’. He has written a number of bestselling books on...
Dr Roger Highfield is currently the Director of External Affairs at the Science Museum in London. He was previously the Science Editor of the Daily Telegraph newspaper and also the Editor of New Scientist magazine. He has also written seven science books and was the first person to bounce a neutron off a soap bubble. I realise that in 2013 it seems more amazing...
Greg Foot is a science presenter. He was first on screen presenting the children’s science show ‘Whizz Whizz Bang Bang’ in 2007, where he made a variety of ridiculous inventions. Since then he has presented what might be called ‘extreme’ science shows, often involving stunts to test scientific theories. I’ve been shot, frozen, burnt, electrocuted, all for science. On getting interested in science....
Dr Alice Stevenson is the curator of the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology in London. Her work is primarily in Egyptian prehistory which focuses on the millennia before the construction of the first pyramids. So we’ve got the Ancient Egyptians, five thousand years ago, stumbling across a meteor and going, that is extraordinary. On getting interested in science and archaeology I was just...
Dr Brenna Hassett is a dental anthropologist and bioarchaeologist. After working on dig sites across the world, she is now working on post doc research at the Natural History Museum in London determining childhood experiences from the examination of teeth. Her focuses include searching for archaeological evidence during the transition from agriculture to sedentism in SE Asia and the transition to urban life in...
Tania Browne spent 20 years working as a chef before deciding to return to school to study epidemiology and health science. She writes about health, science and statistics for a number of different sites including SciLogs and the Guardian. When I was a kid I didn’t really think that science was something that I could possibly do. On getting involved with science My...
Jo Cartwright is a biomedical graduate who, having spent time working in palliative care, gained an in-depth knowledge of the issues surrounding choice and compassion at the end of life. She is currently the press manager at UK charity Dignity in Dying who campaign to legalise assisted dying for terminally ill, mentally competent adults. I think at the core of what Dignity in...
Michael Marshall is the co-founder and vice-president of the Merseyside Skeptics Society and appears on the ‘Skeptics with a K’ and ‘Be Reasonable’ podcasts. Besides organising the national and international 10:23 Campaign against homeopathy, he writes about the often-unsuspected role of PR in modern media. Michael has written for the Times, the Guardian and the New Statesman, and has lectured as part of...
By day, Jonny Berliner is a physics teacher but he is also an acclaimed songwriter and performer. Jonny’s music generally focuses on conveying complex scientific ideas and theories via simple explanatory song. I think kids need to discover things for themselves and realise that science, in many ways, is play. On first memories of science I guess it’s probably first learning science in...
Until recently, Ginny Smith was a researcher at Cambridge University where she gained a degree in psychology. Now Ginny is a science communicator across many fields, working with The Naked Scientists, The Cambridge Science Centre and Things We Don’t Know. There’s just so much we don’t know about the brain. On becoming interested in science I’ve always loved science, ever since I was...
Alom Shaha is a physics teacher in London. He has also worked in a variety of roles in television on shows such as ‘Science Shack’ and ‘Horizon’. His creative approach to science communication saw him recognised with a fellowship from Nesta, a charity with a mission to help bring great ideas to life, and in 2012 he released his first book, ‘The Young...
Alok Jha is a physics graduate of Imperial College London who has gone on to become a science journalist. Alok is one of the lead science correspondents for the Guardian and hosts their weekly science podcast. He also is a regular presenter on the BBC show ‘Dara Ó Briain’s Science Club’ and has written two popular science books. As a citizen I’m really...