Human Resources Division
WiSETI Annual Lecture
This is WiSETI's flagship annual event where a distinguished woman scientist is invited to speak about her life and work. One of the aims of the Lecture is to highlight the issues that particularly affect women in STEM and contribute to low retention rates in these subjects. The Annual Lecture speakers explore how these issues impacted on them personally and discuss approaches to managing obstacles and succeeding. It is a popular and well attended annual event which is hosted by the Vice-Chancellor. The WiSETI Lecture is sponsored by Schlumberger Cambridge Research which is a leading oilfield services provider with many sites around the world.
The 2010/11 lecture was held on 16 March 2011 which coincided with the University's two week programme of events for International Women's Day (8 March) and the Cambridge Science Festival. The speaker was Professor Sunetra Gupta, Professor of Theoretical Epidemiology in the Department of Zoology at the University of Oxford. Professor Gupta spoke about her life as a successful scientist, an acclaimed novelist and a mother.
The 2012 lecture will be given by Professor Carol Robinson FRS and is entitled ‘Finding the Right Balance’. Professor Robinson is a distinguished British chemist and is currently a Royal Society Research Professor at the Physical and Theoretical Chemistry Laboratory in the University of Oxford, as well as the Dr. Lee's Professor of Chemistry-elect. She was previously Professor of Mass Spectrometry at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Cambridge. Professor Robinson's career has been an interesting and inspiring one; she left school at 16 to be a lab technician and took an eight year career break to have three children. She was the winner of the 2011 FEBS/EMBO Women in Science Award which recognised her pioneering work in the development of mass spectrometry as a tool used for investigating the structure and dynamics of protein complexes and also for her support and mentoring of women pursuing careers in science.
The lecture will be held on Thursday 22 March 2012, in the Auditorium at Robinson College, from 5 to 6pm (doors open at 4.30pm), and will be followed by a drinks reception.
To find out more information please email us at equality@admin.cam.ac.uk.
Past lectures
2011 ‘Thinking in Two Languages: My Adventures in Science and Literature’
This lecture was given by Professor Sunetra Gupta, Professor of Theoretical Epidemiology in the Department of Zoology at the University of Oxford. As well as being a successful scientist whose work focuses on the evolution of diversity in pathogens, Professor Gupta is also an acclaimed novelist. She was awarded the Rosalind Franklin Award from the Royal Society in 2009.
2010 ‘From short cracks to glass ceilings, or an engineer in wonderland’
Professor King has had a fantastically diverse career, after sixteen years as an academic researcher and university lecturer at Cambridge and Nottingham universities, Julia King joined Rolls-Royce plc in 1994. At Rolls-Royce she held a number of senior executive appointments, including Director of Advanced Engineering for the Industrial Power Group, Managing Director of the Fan Systems Business, and Engineering Director for the Marine Business. In 2002 Julia became Chief Executive of the Institute of Physics, and in 2004 she returned to academia as Principal of the Engineering Faculty at Imperial College, London. In December 2006 she became Vice-Chancellor of Aston University.
2009 ‘My life in neuroscience’
This lecture was given by Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell, FRS, FMedSci, MRC Research Professor and Vice President for Research, University of Manchester.
2008 ‘My life among quarks’
The lecture was given by Professor Christine T. H. Davies, MA, PhD, CPhys, FInstP, FRSE, Professor of Physics and Research Group Leader of the Particle Physics Theory Group in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Glasgow.
2007 ‘Towards a science of the web: the power of networks’
The lecture was given by Professor Wendy Hall, Professor of Computer Science at the University of Southampton.
2006 ‘My life in functional genetics’
The lecture was given by Professor Kay E. Davies, MA, DPhil, FRC Path, FMed Scie, CBE, FRS, Dr Lee's Professor of Anatomy and Head of Department, Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford. Honorary Director and Co-Director, MRC Functional Genetics Unit.
2005 ‘Why engage with the public?’
The lecture was given by Professor Kathy Sykes, Collier Chair of Public Engagement in Science and Engineering, University of Bristol. In her talk, Professor Sykes told the audience that scientists, in fact all academics, need to get better at engaging with the public to inspire the next generation, sharing the beauty of the subjects they study and to help society make wiser choices about issues around science affecting all our lives. But most importantly, scientists need to inform the debate, to actively listen and understand the problems concerned in order to try and broaden their views and make wider choices.
2004 ‘The biggest splash’
The speaker was Professor Julia Goodfellow CBE, Chief Executive of Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). In her talk, Professor Goodfellow covered a range of topics relevant to the roles that women play in science. She spoke about her own career path and research interests, trends in modern biology, gender differences in University choices and careers, and the historical and sociological perceptions of women who engage in scientific endeavour. Professor Goodfellow's talk was reported in the Times Higher, on 4th June, 2004.
2003 ‘How on Earth did I get here?’
The second lecture was given by Professor Dame Julia Higgins, DBE, FRS, FREng, Foreign Secretary of the Royal Society, Professor of Polymer Science in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Imperial College of Science, Technology, and Medicine, (London). Professor Higgins talked about her life and work in Engineering and Science, making references to her current research.
2002 ‘When I grow up I want to be an astronaut’
The first lecture was delivered by the NASA astronaut, Dr Bonnie Dunbar. In her talk, Dr Dunbar spoke of what it is like to be an astronaut and how this childhood dream can become a reality. She also encouraged the girls in the audience to consider a career in science, proving by example that it is not just a job for boys.