Hay Lectures at British National Science Fiction Conventions

Each year the Science Fiction Foundation sponsors the Hay Lecture at the British National Science Fiction Convention - known as Eastercon. The Hay Lecture is given by a working scientist, or exponent of science, to an audience of educated science fiction fans, on the subject of current work in his or her field. The Hay Lecture is named for the late George Hay, one of the founders of the SFF and a keen exponent of science education and awareness.

Hay Lecturers:

 

2013

At EightSquaredCon in 2013 in Bradford, Dr Henry Gee, Senior Editor at Nature magazine - Behind the Scenes at an international science journal.

Henry will be familiar to many in the sf community as the moving force behind the 'Nature Futures' weekly short SF story (http://www.nature.com/nature/focus/arts/futures/).

 

2012

At Olympus 2012 in London: Dr Lesley Hall, Senior Archivist at the Wellcome Library, London - Invisible Women? The Scientists People Don't See.

http://www.lesleyahall.net/

 

2011

At Illustrious 2011 in Birmingham: Dr Dave Clements, Imperial College, London - Secrets of shrouded galaxes newly revealed.

http://astro.imperial.ac.uk/dclements/home

Dr Dave Clements is a Lecturer in the Astrophysics Group of the Physics Department in the Science Faculty of Imperial College.  His research uses mid- to far-infrared and sub-millimetre wavelength radiation to 'see' through obscuring cosmic dust to uncover the stories of shrouded galaxies in the history of the universe. Dr Clements is also a published SF writer, of stories including "Last of the Guerilla Gardeners" in Nature Futures, and also stories in Analog and a number of anthologies. He is also the Education Officer for the SFF.

 

2010

Hay Lecture 2010 from Science Fiction Foundation on Vimeo.

Oliver Morton gave the Hay Memorial Lecture at Odyssey, the 2010 Eastercon. Oliver Morton is the Energy and Environment Editor of The Economist, and his Lecture was on the subject of Geoengineering.

Geoengineering - the use of technology to cool the planet - is often taken as an alternative to the more conventional approaches to global warming: emitting fewer greenhouse gases and adapting to the changing climate. Framing geoengineering this way allows advocates to sell it as a quick fix, and opponents to see it as a dangerous, possibly disastrous, distraction. Oliver argued that this way of thinking is a blind alley. We are not dealing with either/or, but with both/and. It is time to explore geoengineering's potential not as an alternative to other approaches, but as a tool to improve their chances of success.

Oliver Morton is a writer and editor who concentrates on scientific and technological change and their effects. He is currently the Energy and Environment Editor of The Economist. He has also been the Chief News and Features Editor of Nature, and the Editor in Chief of Wired UK. He's won a few awards, and his first book, Mapping Mars (which deals, among other things, with terraforming, geoengineering's twin technology) was shortlisted for a British Science Fiction Award. In explaining his books, Mapping Mars and Eating the Sun, to people he often says that they are basically non-fiction SF. He blogs at heliophage.wordpress.com, and used to blog at mainlymartian.blogs.com.

 

2009

2009 at LX2009 in Bradford: Dr Adrian Bowyer, University of Bath - 3D Printers.

Still at Bath and working with the RepRap project:
http://people.bath.ac.uk/ensab/
http://reprap.org/bin/view/Main/WebHome

 

2008

2008 at Orbital in London: Professor David Southwood, ESA - Running a Space Agency in Fact and Fiction.

Still at ESA as Director of Science and Robotic Exploration:
http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/About_ESA/SEMFUS1YUFF_0.htmlbr/>

 

2007

2007 at Contemplation in Chester: Dr Guillaume Thierry, Bangor University - Visual Illusions and Reality.

Now Professor Thierry, still at Bangor:
http://www.bilingualism.bangor.ac.uk/people/GThierry.php.en

 

2006

2006 at Concussion in Glasgow: Dr Alice Jenkins, University of Glasgow - Science in C19th Literature.

Still at Glasgow:
http://www.gla.ac.uk/%7Eaj12x

 

2005

2005 at Paragon 2 in Hinckley: Dr Armand Leroi, Imperial College - Human Mutation.

Now Professor Leroi, at Imperial College:
http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/people/a.leroi

 

2004

2004 at Concourse in Blackpool: Francis Spufford - Behind the Backroom Boys.

Now a Trustee of the Science Fiction Foundation, author, and Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Goldsmiths, University of London.

 

2003

2003: Professor Simon Conway Morris, University of Cambridge - Evolution.

Still at Cambridge:
http://www.esc.cam.ac.uk/people/academic-staff/simon-conway-morris

 

2002

2002 at Helicon 2 in St Helier, Jersey: Dr Alastair Reynolds, European Space Agency - Novel Astronomical Detectors.

Now a full-time sf writer:
http://www.alastairreynolds.com/

 

2001

2001 at Paragon in Hinckley: Dr Helen Priddle, Roslin Institute - Cloning.

Now at the University of Nottingham: 
http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/human-development/staff/Priddle.htm

 

2000

2000 at 2Kon in Glasgow: Dr Amanda Baker, Cardiff University - Cosmology.

Now retired.