The Mind of a bee!See Professor Lars Chittka's talk for the society "The Mind of the Bee" from January 2021. Bees have a diverse instinctual repertoire that allows the functioning of the beehive like a smoothly oiled factory, with different workers specialising in comb construction, climate control system, defence and foraging for nectar and pollen. However, the richness of bees’ instincts has traditionally been contrasted with the notion that bees’ small brains allow little behavioural flexibility and learning behaviour.
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The Origins of GenocideWhen he receives an invitation to deliver a lecture in the Ukrainian city of Lviv, international lawyer Philippe Sands begins a journey on the trail of his family’s secret history. In doing so, he uncovers a series of unlikely coincidences that lead him halfway across the world, to the origins of modern international law, in the 1945 ‘moment’ and at the Nuremberg trial. ‘East West Street’: on the origins of genocide and crimes against humanity, on the individual and the group. See Prof Philippe Sands lecture for the Royal Phil.
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SOCIETY INAUGURATION0n the 5th November 1802, three Glaswegian gentlemen, John Roberton, William Douglas, and Peter Nicholson, acting on behalf of a number of others in the city who were ‘interested in the prosperity of the Trades and Manufactures of their country’, and anxious for ‘the improvement of the Arts and Sciences’ ...
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Our New HomeWe are really excited to be moving into our new home (as soon as conditions allow) in the brand new James McCune Smith lecture theatre, part of the new development at Glasgow University. There we will have the latest facilities for our talks and social activities.
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What has the pandemic taught us about human nature?
Professor Stephen Reicher
The 18 months of the Covid pandemic have taught us much about the importance of understanding behaviour and the problems of getting it wrong. I shall point to three key…
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Discovering the Picts: From Enemies of Rome to Powerful Kingdoms of Early Medieval Scotland
Prof Gordon Noble
The Picts were first mentioned in late Roman sources and went on to become powerful rulers of northern Britain in what is now Northeast Scotland. Bereft of detailed historical…
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Bestriding the world stage like a Colossus? Or “Doomed, we’re all Doomed!”
Baroness Young, Chair of the Woodland Trust
In the lecture, I would lay out the scale and nature of the twin and interlinked challenges we face, the steep decline in biodiversity and the challenge of climate…
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Nature and Climate: an Emergency Response
Francesca Osowska, CEO of NatureScot (formerly Scottish Natural Heritage)
Ten years to save the planet. It doesn’t sound long enough. But our response to COVID-19 shows what we can do when we put our minds to it. While COVID-19…
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The climate emergency in Scotland – what can we do about it?
Pete Smith, Director of Scotland’s Climate Change Centre of Expertise
Climate change is an existential threat and time to tackle it is rapidly running out. In light of this, the UK and Scottish Governments have both declared a climate emergency.…
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Is vitamin D the ‘sunshine superstar’ or is it all media hype? Professor Susan Lanham-New
Vitamin D is an extraordinary nutrient – indeed it is not a ‘vital-amine’ in the true sense of the word but instead a prohormone. It is the only nutrient where…