Public lecture podcasts

In the first of this new series, ‘Policy Matters’, Franz Buscha and Matt Dickson discuss social mobility – what does it mean, how do we measure it, what is it like in the UK and why is it an important issue? From Tony Blair to Theresa May, incoming prime ministers have talked boldly about the socially mobile Britain that their government will create, and social mobility has become a much-discussed topic in academia and public policy debates. But what would it mean to have a more socially mobile Britain, how could it be achieved and what barriers stand in the way? Taking a broad overview of the topic, Franz and Matt consider their own personal mobility and why it is so difficult for the political rhetoric to be translated into effective policy.

Electronic and Electrical Engineering PhD student, Leen Jabban, is researching sensory feedback for hand and arm prosthetics using non-invasive techniques.

Listen to the full discussion from 24 Feb 2021 between our six graduates from our MSc Engineering Business Management and MSc Innovation & Technology Management courses. They talk about their current jobs, the interview process, visas implications and their impact on employability.

In this online lecture, author, broadcaster and Founder Director of Forum for the Future, Jonathon Porritt, discusses decarbonisation and recarbonisation, and how securing a stable climate for the future of humankind depends as much on recarbonising natural systems, as it does on decarbonising our industrial economy. This lecture took place on 24 February 2021.

“Human-robot collaboration is one of the key technologies being developed in pursuit of industry 4.0, the 4th industrial revolution.” James Male, a PhD student in our Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering, discusses his research which looks at developing methods for humans and robots to work together in an industrial manufacturing setting.

In this talk, Professor Mott from the Faculty of Engineering and Design, debates the impact that COVID is having on engineering and technology businesses and how they need to adapt to rapidly changing circumstances.

Three students; Rachelle, Georgia and Millie talk about the assessment period and share tips and experiences they use to look after their wellbeing during this time of year. Views in this podcast are those of the students and do not necessarily represent or are endorsed by the University.

In this online lecture, former Cabinet Secretary and National Security Advisor, Lord Mark Sedwill, discusses global governance in the Covid era. He sets out the global challenges and opportunities we face in 2021 following the Covid-19 crisis in 2020; as the Biden Administration takes office, and the UK takes on the G7 presidency and hosts the COP26 climate change summit. This lecture took place on 14 January 2021.

Additive manufacturing allows us to produce parts at a reduced size and weight. For amputees, this means we can create powered prosthetics that are both durable and a more comfortable fit. Working alongside Moog and Blatchford we set out to bring our powered prosthetics research to the commercial market. Professor Andrew Plummer discusses how this could be game-changing for the prosthetics industry. Transcript: "Imagine you got ill, maybe diabetes or had an accident and had to have a leg amputated. In days gone by, you could get a wooden leg, but that wasn't a great substitute particularly for above the knee amputees. Nowadays you might get a leg made from carbon fibre or light alloys, and subtly designed joints incorporating springs and shock absorbers to give a fairly natural and pleasant walking experience. They might even be computer-controlled. But you'll still be a long way from the league of a bionic man or bionic woman. Walking up slopes or stairs will still be slow and tiring because your new leg will have no muscle power. Your trailing leg really needs to push off every time it leaves the ground to propel you up and along, but building in muscle power into prosthetic legs is a formidable engineering challenge. Using existing technology, the leg ends up being too bulky, too heavy or using too much energy, not to mention the challenge of controlling the leg to automatically synchronise with your movements. I'm Andrew Plummer, Professor in the mechanical engineering department, so I lead the Power Transmission Motion Control research centre here at Bath and we have considerable experience in hydraulic actuation, this provides very high-power density by using pressurised oil, which means we can generate significant muscle power in a light and compact leg. And using additive manufacture we can further integrate these powerful hydraulic actuation components into incredibly light titanium prosthetic joints. At Bath we have been fortunate in having world-leading industrial partners. We were working with Moog and Renishaw on additive manufacture for hydraulic components and independently with Blatchford on smart powered prosthetics. Bringing the two strands of work together was, as they say, 'a no brainer'. I'm convinced this is a game-changer for future prosthetics technology."

Bath, like the rest of the UK, was dramatically impacted by the restrictions imposed by COVID-19. The Institute for Policy Research (IPR), in cooperation with The Good Economy, launched a brief project to find out what the "on the ground" situation was for anchor institutions in Bath and how to rebuild a more sustainable and inclusive economy. In this launch event, co-hosted by the IPR and The Good Economy, co-authors Professor James Copestake, Dr Charlie Larkin and Mark Hepworth discuss their findings, outlined in the new report 'Bath beyond 2020: Creating a resilient economy together'. Featuring contributions from Vice-Chancellor of the University of Bath, Professor Ian White; Chair of RUH Bath, Alison Ryan; and Director of Partnerships and Corporate Services at BANES, David Trethewey. This launch took place online on 14 December 2020. Read the full report: https://zenodo.org/record/4304207#.X9jY1en7Rz-