The Sci-Tech PGR conference is an annual conference of oral and poster presentations by postgraduate researchers (PGRs) in the Faculty of Science and Technology at BU. Each year, the conference, organised by PGR representatives from each of the departments in the Faculty, provides a platform for PGRs across the Faculty to meet and share their research with their peers in a welcoming environment. The conference also provides valuable practice for PGRs in presentation and networking skills vital to a successful career in research. This year, the SciTech PGR Conference Committee hosted the Conference virtually via Zoom on Friday 9 October 2020 which saw fourteen PGRs from across the Faculty presenting their research in either oral presentation or digital poster format. To kick things off, Professor Tiantian Zhang, Deputy Dean of Research and Professional Practice, opened and closed the conference with an address to the participants and audience members, noting the importance of the event and praising the quality of the PGR presentations. More than 40 PGRs and Sci-Tech staff also tuned in to listen to the talks, join discussions, and support the presenting PGRs.

The conference had previously been scheduled for May 2020 but was postponed to October 2020 due to Covid-19 restrictions. While in previous years the conference was held in-person at BU’s Talbot Campus, this year the conference took place virtually over Zoom. While hosting a virtual conference may have felt like unchartered territory for those on the planning committee, the conference was a great success! During each of the four sessions chaired by PGR representatives,  several PGRs from different Sci-Tech departments shared their screens to deliver fascinating presentations about their research.

Mixing different presentations from different departments in each session encouraged PGRs to tune in to a variety of research talks. During the course of the conference, four PGRs from the Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, three PGRs from the Department of Computing and Informatics, two from the Department of Psychology, and one each from the Design and Engineering, Creative Technology, and Archaeology and Anthropology Departments gave overviews of their research during presentations. Additionally, two PGRs from the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology provided digital posters to be viewed by conference participants, which can also be viewed here. At the end of each session, time was devoted to allow the audience to pose questions to the speakers. The presenting PGRs ranged from Master’s students through to first, second, and third year PhD students, allowing an array of research progress to be put on display. The talks ranged from, but were not restricted to, microplastics in fish, mangrove conservation strategies in Kenya, the mechanisms of fake news, ancient ports of trade, threat detection in computer vision, and malicious automotive devices. It was a good day for Sci-Tech PGR research at Bournemouth University!

Although 2020 has been a bit of a crazy year, it is so impressive that the PGR community in the Faculty of Science and Technology have been able to band together to support each other and to continue developing their research. This conference could not have happened without the support of faculty and staff in the Sci-Tech Faculty, and particularly the Research Administrators Naomi, Emily, and Karen. A huge thank-you for all the support! And of course, thank you to the staff and students who made up the audience. And we’d be remiss to not thank the conference presenters for their fabulous contributions!

Here’s to another exciting year of PGR research!

The 2020 Sci-Tech PGR Conference committee

The SciTech PGR Conference Committee are delighted to showcase the following virtual posters as part of the SciTech PGR Conference on the 9^th October 2020:

Filling the gap: Validation of 3D point cloud data for the excavation and recording of mass graves

Samantha De Simone, Martin Smith, Andrew Ford, Ellen Hambleton, & Paul Cheetham

Click the image below to enlarge

The application of digital technologies occupies a crucial role in the forensic arena, from the examination of injuries on a victim body and to capture a visual and spatial record of the crime scene. In order to obtain quality data, the analyses need to be performed with robust techniques, that must be able to meet the standard of accuracy, validity and reliably required in a courtroom. Among the novel technologies largely applied both during fieldwork and laboratory analyses is multi-view-stereo structure-from-motion (SfM-MVS) photogrammetry. SfM-MVS allows the generation of three-dimensional point (3D) cloud data from a set of overlapping photographs at different viewing angles, representing an accessible and affordable medium for forensic practitioners. Due to its accessibility and time effective aspect, SfM-MVS has been implemented as a recording tool in situ. Therefore, this study focuses on the validation of SfM-MVS for the recording the excavation and relationships of complex deposits in mass graves, where human remains may have high levels of fragmentation and commingling. The aim of the research is to reconstruct the entire excavation sequence in a single 3D point cloud. A complete sequence of the grave with point cloud data would serve as a permanent record and could fill the gap between experts working in the field and laboratory practitioners, enhancing the re-association of disarticulated and fragmented skeletons and facilitating the identification of individuals from their human remains.

The digital advantage: How 3D digitisation can aid in trauma analysis on human remains

Heather Tamminen, Martin Smith, Kate Welham, & Andrew Ford

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The benefits of recording cultural heritage through digital three-dimensional (3D) media are well-documented; the ability to analyse objects without damage, study items off-site, and compare remains that cannot otherwise be in the same vicinity are all important advantages. Increasingly, human remains are being digitised for respectful preservation and display, however a lot of work still needs to be done to test the quality of these models and their utility for detailed analysis. In 2009, construction of the Weymouth Relief Road led to the discovery of a mass burial with evidence for dramatic events occurring prior to their death. Dating from the 10th Century AD, the individuals were later identified as having originated in Scandinavia and North-Eastern Europe through their isotopic signatures. They had suffered widespread sharp force injuries and whilst these injuries were documented by conventional manual recording methods, more can be done to investigate them, especially with advances in technology. Due to the unique provenance of this collection, it was thought to be an ideal case study to investigate the potential of Multi-View Stereo Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry to generate 3D visualisations of injuries to skeletal remains which are of a quality high enough to study. Current results are promising and indicate that the models can provide detailed replications of the trauma that can be effectively studied without risk of damaging the specimens. The important question then remains of why this is something that researchers would want to spend time and energy doing when studying sharp force trauma. Therefore, this poster delves into the questions of why creating 3D models of sharp force trauma can help our understanding of past peoples and why this has the potential to be an excellent resource for individuals studying trauma both in archaeological and forensic situations.