Page 4 - The Malvernian - December 2023

THE MALVERNIAN
Lucretian Society – Finding the Spice in Science
Attendees of the talk were in for a treat at the latest Lucretian Society lecture, entitled Finding the Spice in Science, which was given by Professor David Julius through video call. Professor Julius, who currently teaches and conducts research at the University of California, San Francisco, won a number of awards, most notably the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2021, for the discovery of receptors for temperature and touch, which is highly relevant to humans’ perception of pain. In his lecture, Professor Julius discussed how components of spices such as capsaicin in chilli peppers were linked to pain detection.
After starting with sharing his thoughts about being a scientist, including its importance and benefits, Professor Julius touched on the five sensory modalities and how they could differ between humans and other animals, as well as the purposes and problems of pain, before going into how pain is perceived and the vast array of substances which bound to the same receptors as hormones and effectively triggered the transmission of the same signals.
He also linked it to real life, such as how birds have receptors of a different structure and therefore taste chilli differently, as well as experiments carried out on mice suggesting that deleting a gene could alter pain perception, in addition to how technology assists in these discoveries. Following the lecture, which was informative but at the same time condensed enough for students to understand, Professor Julius responded to a number of questions from enthusiastic students who clearly enjoyed the talk.
Kristy Wong, Upper Sixth (No.8)
To view the lecture, scan the QR code or click the link
bit.ly/3TshZBs
Design and Technology Trip to London
On Thursday 12 October the GCSE and A Level students of Design and Technology travelled to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
We had an early start to our day, arriving at the museum at around 11 o’clock, armed with sketch pads, pencils and cameras ready to find inspiration for our projects. Once split into our groups, we were free to roam through the multitude of vast rooms the museum had to offer. There were endless numbers of pieces from clothing and tapestries, sculptures and paintings to 3D design, photography and so much more. It is clear that there was something for everyone, no matter their interests. It was interesting to be able to view pieces from different cultures and timelines, this enabled us to gain new perspective on our own projects.
The textiles students studying at A Level and GCSE were fortunate to view the DIVA exhibition which was on offer at the V&A. This was an incredible experience and we saw outfits from Beyonce, Lady Gaga and Amy Winehouse. My favourite part of this exhibition was being able to see these outfits up close and to gain inspiration from them.
We all enjoyed our trip thoroughly and thank Mrs Young and Mr Stokes for organising it for us. We look forward to more experiences like this, in the future.
Immy Round, Lower Sixth (No.8) Textiles Scholar
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THE MALVERNIAN