You’re welcome to join us at Café Scientifique, a free online public event where you can explore the latest ideas in science and technology in a relaxed setting. Enjoy listening to a short talk before engaging in debate and discussion with our guest speaker and audience.
We’ll be joined by Dr Sarah Elliott on Tuesday 1 December from 7.00pm until 8.30pm.
Around twelve thousand years ago in the Middle East, the course of human civilisation changed forever – human hunter-gatherers became fully-fledged farmers, trading their small campsites for settled villages. But why? Why did it happen there and why then? Archaeological evidence is often limited or poorly preserved, so researcher Dr Sarah Elliott is looking closer, studying the microscopic traces people and animals left behind to try to solve one of the great mysteries of human history.
“I’m afraid I can’t do that…” a famous line from 2001: A Space Odyssey, in which the AI software HAL rebels to take control of the spaceship. We are now far beyond the year 2001 and we already have our own AI-supported voice recognition devices in our pockets, houses, and cars. Luckily, they don’t rebel against our commands – yet. These devices bring advantages in convenience and accessibility, playing a song has never been easier, but at what cost?
At this month’s Café Scientifique, Ediz Akcay, Lecturer in Digital Marketing at BU discussed the ethics of the many new ways companies listen to, track and store information about us using voice recognition and AI. Ediz explained his interest in marketing ethics started after his PhD research in brand alliances. His views about the topic were previously covered in Campaign Turkey magazine. After presenting his research to the digital marketing agency about the ethical considerations in brand alliances at various conferences, he decided to move the topic into the digital marketing field in which he is now teaching.
Marketing Ethics
Ediz has collected data which includes examples of potential breaches of marketing ethics principles by companies. While collecting the data, the aim was to check if the companies were in line with the main principles of marketing ethics (Elegido 2016) in their digital marketing activities.
Main principles:
Consumer sovereignty
Preserving the conditions of an acceptable exchange
Paternalism
The perfect competition ideal
The Mutuality Principle (MP)
Companies use several tools and technologies in their digital marketing activities to increase their conversion rates and return on investment. Personalisation is one aspect of the digital marketing activities companies’ conduct in which personal data collected from different sources is used to improve the targeting of consumers.
Ediz explained; ‘the data showed that companies violate the principles such as consumer sovereignty, which assumes the consumer will have the control during the interaction in the marketing activities. However, the companies create an information asymmetry about how they collect, process and store the consumer data. The consumers learn about the potential problems only after an event which reveals the ways companies use in their digital marketing activities. While there are new regulations such as GDPR to protect the consumer, the pace of technology makes it harder to adapt the regulations accordingly.’
The examples Ediz presented in his talk were how AI and voice recognition technologies are used to collect, process and store the personal data from consumers for personalisation purposes. Ediz also discussed potential problems and the ways to secure personal data, explaining that the next step in the research which will be collecting data from consumers about their experiences while using digital marketing tools and technologies such as voice recognition devices. The data will reveal how consumers perceive the companies in regard to marketing ethics.
Ediz reflects on his experience of speaking at Cafe Scientifique; ‘It was a great opportunity to present my research about marketing ethics in which I am looking at the data protection practises of companies. In this talk at Cafe Scientifique, I aimed to create awareness about how voice recognition and artificial intelligence are used by companies; the audience was very interested in this research.
‘The questions from the audience ignited more thoughts about this subject matter which will be used to investigate further. I also had the opportunity to see how the perception of the audience towards the topic changed with a live poll before and after the talk. Café Scientifique was the first opportunity to present these examples to understand the perception of the public around this.’
For access to the presentation slides please click here
Enjoy listening to a short talk from our guest speaker before engaging in debate and discussion around that topic.
We’ll be joined by Ediz Akcay on Tuesday 3 March 7:30-9pm (doors open at 6:30pm)
No need to book, make sure you get there early though as seats fill up fast!
The Dark Side of Personalisation: AI, Voice Recognition and Beyond
“I’m afraid I can’t do that…” – a famous line from 2001: A Space Odyssey, in which the AI software HAL rebels to take control of the spaceship. We are now far beyond the year 2001 and we already have our own AI-supported voice recognition devices in our pockets, houses, and cars, used by adults and children alike. Luckily, they do not rebel against our commands – yet. These devices bring advantages in convenience and accessibility, playing a song has never been easier, but at what cost? Join us to discuss the ethics of the many new ways that companies listen to, track and store information about us using voice recognition and AI.
How we experience the environment around us involves the brain combining information from our different sensory systems. For example, signals from our inner ears and joints tell us how we are positioned compared to gravity. The brain then combines this with what we see around us to help us maintain an upright position (i.e. prevent us falling over). Our perception of upright changes throughout our lifetime and different medical conditions can affect this which may make you reconsider whether your picture frames are straight.
For our first Café Scientifique of 2020, Dr Sharon Docherty switched roles from Cafe Sci’s regular host to this month’s speaker. Outlining some of the research she has conducted in the area of perception of visual vertical, Sharon presented findings from a range of studies to illustrate how our perception changes from childhood through to older age as well as how conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, diabetes and neck pain can affect this.
How is perception of vertical measured?
Sharon has spent years developing a computerised test along with her colleague, Jeff Bagust. The test involves moving a line from an angle of 20 degrees into a position you think is vertical. In some presentations within the test, only the line is on the screen, testing your ability to make the judgement without any visual cues from your environment. In others, there is a square frame surrounding the line providing visual cues for both vertical and horizontal. This is known as the Rod and Frame Test. As well as presenting the frame in an upright position, in some of the tasks the frame is tilted by 18 degrees. Tilting the frame provides a confusing visual signal to your brain that affects people’s perception in different ways. It is a measure of how well your brain can adapt to relying on the other sources of information (inner ears, muscles and joints). All of this is conducted viewing the test through video glasses eliminating clues from the external environment. This means the test can be carried out almost anywhere.
As well as measuring the effect of tilting the frame in terms of degrees of error from true vertical, the system also records the amount of time it takes the participant to make the adjustment. Again, the difference between when the frame is tilted and when it isn’t can be quite remarkable for some people. It doesn’t necessarily mean those who take longer are more accurate in either younger or older adults (see graph). Another important aspect that is measured is the consistency with which people are able to judge the vertical position. A review of studies of different clinical conditions that Sharon and Jeff have conducted show that those participants with possible neurological complications had higher individual variability of error than healthy controls.
What does this mean?
The occurrence of above normal errors and high individual variability in those people with possible neurological complications suggests that the test may be a useful screening tool in other conditions such as falls in older adults.
Where to from here?
“We have recently completed a study comparing a group of 20-35 year old’s with a group 60 years and older. The results showed an increase of 2 degrees or more error in the older group. We plan on looking at how the results of the rod and frame test compare with the purely visual task of detecting contrast between an object and its background. This should help us better understand the part deterioration of the visual system plays in perception of vertical.”
“Another phenomenon we have observed is that some people do not seem to understand the task as soon as the frame is tilted, even after a practice run when they have completed it correctly. Instead of aligning to vertical, they carefully move the line to match the angle of the frame. We are able to distinguish these people from those that have genuinely high errors as they consistently position the line within a few degrees of the frame angle. The plan is to combine this with tests of cognitive function to try to explain what is happening.”
Dr Sharon Docherty reflects on her experience of speaking at Café Scientifique: “Following the talk we had a really interesting discussion around the subject. It certainly left me with lots to think about and quite a few new research ideas. It’s not just the audience who have a great time, presenters have left smiling and commenting on how much they enjoyed the experience… often with a few new research ideas courtesy of the audience!”
Audience members share their comments; “It is a really interesting topic and great location.” “Marvellous & stimulating.”
We’ll be joined by Ediz Akcay who will be discussing;
‘The Dark Side of Personalisation: AI, Voice Recognition and Beyond’
“I’m afraid I can’t do that…” – a famous line from 2001: A Space Odyssey, in which the AI software HAL rebels to take control of the spaceship. We are now far beyond the year 2001 and we already have our own AI-supported voice recognition devices in our pockets, houses, and cars, used by adults and children alike. Luckily, they do not rebel against our commands – yet. These devices bring advantages in convenience and accessibility, playing a song has never been easier, but at what cost? Join us to discuss the ethics of the many new ways that companies listen to, track and store information about us using voice recognition and AI.
There’s no need to register, make sure you get there early though as seats fill up fast!
Find out more about Café Scientifique and sign up to our newsletter to hear about our exciting programme of research events for the public; www.bournemouth.ac.uk/cafe-sci
Enjoy listening to a short talk from our guest speaker before engaging in debate and discussion around that topic.
We’ll be joined by Dr Sharon Docherty on Tuesday 4 February 7:30-9pm (doors open at 6:30pm) No need to book, make sure you get there early though as seats fill up fast!
Crooked picture frames and ageing of perception
How we experience the environment around us involves the brain combining information from our different sensory systems. Something as ‘simple’ as staying upright involves signals from our inner ears, joints and eyes. Join us to discover how our perception of upright changes throughout our lifetime, and how different medical conditions can affect this. It may also make you reconsider whether your picture frames are straight.
As we go about our daily lives our hair is recording evidence of what we consume and of the environments we are exposed to. It can record how much you drink, whether you smoke or take drugs, or live in an environment where drug abuse is prevalent. Hair testing for drugs and alcohol provides evidence to the police, assists with family law issues, and is utilised in workplace testing and a variety of other settings. The interpretation of analytical data from hair testing is challenging however, and research is continuing to improve the validity of the process.
At this month’s Café Scientifique, Dr Richard Paul discussed the science behind hair testing for drugs and alcohol, and reviewed some of the applications of the technique. Richard highlighted how hair testing may be used in cases of drug facilitated crime, the use of hair alcohol testing to determine abstinence or chronic excessive consumption, and finally reviewed how hair testing will be utilised in new research to examine second-hand exposure to new psychoactive substances in prisons.
Drug facilitated crime
The term drug facilitated crime refers to when a person is subjected to a criminal act whilst they are under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Unfortunately in many such cases a victim may experience memory loss caused by certain drugs, or be reluctant or unable to report the crime soon after it has taken place. Certain drugs associated with such crimes are often quickly eliminated from our body through natural processes, rendering blood and urine testing obsolete if too much time has passed following the crime. This is where hair testing has a crucial advantage: once drugs enter our hair they can remain bound and stable for very long periods of time. Richard discussed his research developing new techniques for the investigation of drug facilitated crime and examined cases utilising the technique.
How are drugs incorporated in our hair?
Drugs can enter our hair via three mechanisms;
The bloodstream – every hair on our body has a blood supply, and drugs or alcohol (metabolites) circulating in our bloodstream can access our hair via this system. Once in the hair, compounds can bind strongly to melanin and keratin in our hair.
Sweat and sebum – it has been shown that some drug and alcohol metabolites will be excreted via sweat/sebum, and then re-incorporated in hair that is in contact with sweat/sebum.
External contamination – it has been demonstrated that exposure to drugs that are smoked or snorted can lead to passive incorporation of drugs into the hair of non-drug users. We’ve even shown that some cosmetic hemp-based hair treatments can lead to positive test results for cannabinoids. Laboratories have systems in place to distinguish between drug consumption and passive exposure, but it can be challenging.
Alcohol testing
Alcohol itself (ethanol) is not tested for in the hair, the compound is too volatile. Instead researchers look for metabolites of ethanol in our system, focusing on ethyl glucuronide, and ethyl palmitate. These are biomarkers of alcohol consumption, and when found in hair samples above a certain concentration, provide good evidence of alcohol consumption. Hair alcohol testing is widely utilised in family law cases, often in child custody disputes. If one parent accuses the other of being an alcoholic, a court may request a hair alcohol test to provide evidence. Our research examines the factors that may influence the incorporation of alcohol biomarkers into the hair, as well investigating fingernails as an alternative testing matrix to hair.
New psychoactive substances in prisons
Richard discussed his latest research project investigating second-hand exposure to new psychoactive substances in prisons. NPS are new narcotic or psychotropic drugs many of which pose serious health risks. The abuse of such drugs in prisons (including Spice and similar compounds) is a significant problem and one which is experienced to different levels across many European countries.
Richard’s team are using a range of analytical techniques to assess the prevalence of NPS abuse in UK prisons and will also be assessing the extent to which prison staff are exposed to secondary drug fumes during their employment.
Dr Richard Paul reflects on his experience of speaking at Café Scientifique: ‘Presenting my research at Café Scientifique was an excellent opportunity to engage the public in debate around the applications and validity of hair testing. The audience was lively and focused, and we had a lot of excellent, thought provoking questions.’
We are taking a break in January but we’ll be back on Tuesday 4 February 2020!
Enjoy listening to a short talk from our guest speaker before engaging in debate and discussion around that topic.
We’ll be joined by Dr Richard Paul on Tuesday 3 December 7:30-9pm (doors open at 6:30pm) No need to book, make sure you get there early though as seats fill up fast!
The secret information hidden in your hair
As we go about our daily lives, our hair is recording evidence of what we consume and of the environments we are exposed to. It can record how much you drink, whether you smoke or take drugs, or live or work in an environment where drug abuse is prevalent. Join us to learn about the technology used to analyse hair and how it can be used in criminal cases to investigate drug facilitated crime, monitor alcohol consumption, and assess the exposure of prison guards to new psychoactive substances in UK prisons.
Have you been doing research that you are itching to share with the public?
Do you want to increase your public engagement and have fun doing it?
We are looking for two academics to fill our Cafe Scientifique spots in June and July. If you would like to get involved please email the Public Engagement team!
We are ready and rearing to go for the first Café Scientifique of 2018!
We will be joined by Dr. Phillipa Gillingham, who will be discussing whether managing protected areas is a wise way of spending conservation resources.
Recent climate change has caused many species to change their distributions to try and track suitable conditions. However, borders of the areas that we are managing and protecting do not move, potentially being a waste of time and money.
What’s your opinion? Come on down to Café Boscanova on Tuesday 6th February to join the discussion. Find out more on our website.
Dr. Gillingham is currently working on the likely impacts of climate change on protected areas in the UK.
Few weeks after Café Scientific (details here: http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/research/?p=64189), I received an email from Devon Biddle and Sacha Gardener regarding the opportunity to be interviewed on the importance of public engagement activities and how my projects had benefited from them, not only during the recruiting process but also in expanding my research horizon and raising awareness on what I am doing (details here: http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/research/?p=53295 )
Therefore, in just a couple of days, thanks to the staff of the Orthopedic Research Institute who provided the location, we started shooting, and here is part of the interview:
I would like to thank Davon, Sacha and all the BU staff for this interview, it was great, and I really hope that helps to have more people involved in public engagement activities.
Following the full script of the interview.
Could you tell us a little bit of your self
My name is Francesco Ferraro, and I am a PhD Student here at Bournemouth University. Currently, I am working on a project which aims to understand the effects of inspiratory muscles training on balance and functional mobility for healthy older adults. The goal is to develop an innovative and effective training for falls prevention.
Before arriving here at BU, I obtained a Bachelor Degree in sports science from University of Rome Foro Italico while in the meantime I was working as a football coach and after I moved to Naples for complete my Master Degree in sports science prevention and wellness. There I worked on motion analysis in young adults, while in the meantime I was a trainer of the Italian Federation of Weightlifting.
Could you tell us your favourite public engagement opportunity at BU?
It is hard to tell, I have enjoyed all the events in which I took part including Pint of Science, Café Scientific, The Festival of Learning, lecturing at University of Third Age and others.I gained something from each of them, and I gave something at each of them. But if I have to pick one, and only one I would say the Festival of Learning. Among all the events FOL is the one who gives you the opportunity to meet all kind of people.
You have the opportunity to explain your research to a very young audience, as well as people with excellent knowledge in your field, while surrounded by members of the BU Staff, BU students and colleagues that are there to help you and motived you.
Why do you find public engagement a good asset to both your research and the community?
My study aims to understand the effect of inspiratory muscle training on balance and functional mobility. My final purpose is to develop a strategy to prevent falls accidents in people over 65.
Therefore it is a research for the community as any other research, especially in health and social science, is done for the people. Hence what would be the point to work for the community and do not explain to them what you are doing? As researchers we have the opportunity to share with others much more than a picture on Twitter, or Instagram, we have the opportunity to share knowledge, ideas and instead of likes, we will have more questions, more curiosity and the chance to give to the audience our ideas.
At Café Scientifique, the public was really engaging in the fact your research was trying to better the wellbeing of the older generation. Why do you think people are so engaged in your research?
At Café Scientifique I was able to give to them my idea. Instead of explaining right away what my research does I told them the idea behind it and why is important to research on it. The reason why we had a great respond must be sought in my past years of work in the public engagement.
Any research is fascinating in is way, but is crucial to share it with others, not only peers and experts but also with the people for which the research is done.
You use your public engagement to advertise the need for participants in your current research, is this an effective way of getting the participants you need?
Yes, it is. But it is not the reason why I do public engagement. I have been introduced to public engagement by my supervisors: Alison McConnell, James Gavin and Thomas Wainwright with the aim to share what learned and discuss it with others.
If you were to advice new researchers about public engagement, what would you say to them?
Do it if you want to do it.
Public engagement is not easy especially if you do it because you “have to”. Do it if you want to share your research if you want to challenge yourself, if you want to meet the community then you will make a great event. You must have the right motivation if you do it just to “hunting” participants it won’t be neither correct or fun, and people will understand, with the result that you and your research will lose trust.
What do you gain most from public engagement?
Motivation – to work more for the community, to help people to learn and understand what we are doing here at the BU and how it helps their wellbeing.
Confidence – have the opportunity to talk to 50, 100 or even 200 people at each event, has grown my confidence inside and outside the University.
Knowledge – I do believe that everyone has a story to tell and you can learn a lot from it. I am always surprised at the questions that I receive.
People curiosity drives my curiosity as well and helps me to think and re-think at my research.
What are you going to do next?
I do have a couple of projects going on, but I will take part in the next Festival of Learning (third year in a row), and I will see what other opportunities the public engagement team will give to us.
Café scientific was one of the best public engagement activities that I have done in the past years, and I do recommend going there and deliver your talk to the public.
In all my past experiences (including pint of science, the festival of learning, U3A, the Air Show and others) I have always met great people who were interested to know and learn more about what we are doing here at BU, and at Café Scientific, it was no different.
I arrived there 1h before the talk, the café (vintage/steampunk style), was already set up for the event, thanks to the great work of the Public Engagement Team. So I had all the time to calm down and get ready.
At about 19:30 the place was packed, and few people had to listen to the talk standing up.
A sample of the presentation is available on Youtube:
Even if the room was fully booked, the audience was very quiet and focused on listening to the 40 minutes presentation.
However, the best part was at the end, and I am not referring to the delicious brownie cake that Boscanova Café made for celebrating the 5th birthday of Café Scientific, but for the questions.
I was happily surprised to have so many interesting questions, which made me think again about my projects.
There were questions about: the effect of singing and yoga exercises on balance; why not make a POWERbreathe that instead of a mouthpiece has a nosepiece; how much the improvement in balance was due to the strength of the muscles trained and not just the ability to breathe deeper; why not test the effects of meditation, and others very intelligent questions.
Finally, it was challenging and I hope that all the audience received the right message: research can be fascinating and fun, especially if you can share it with others.
If you are interested in know more about how to breathe your way into balance, contact me at fferraro@bournemouth.ac.uk
We are looking forward to our October Cafe Scientifique next week! Francesco Ferraro will be talking to us about how inspiratory muscle training helps to improve balance.
Join us at Cafe Boscanova on Tuesday 3 October – our 5th Birthday!
In the run up to our next Café Scientifique event, we wanted to remind you of some of the brilliant speakers we have had in the past. Check out the video below to watch the fantastic Dr John McAlaney explaining our addiction to anything digital.
Our next event has Professor Jessica Teeling from the University of Southampton, sharing the impact of age on the immune system and how this damages tissue in our retinas, consequently making us lose our sight. It is an interactive Café Scientifique that definitely shouldn’t be missed!
We look forward to seeing you at Café Boscanova on the 5th September.
We have a brilliant Café Scientifique coming to Café Boscanova on September 5th. Professor Jessica Teeling will be joining us from the University of Southampton to help shed some light on our vision, helping to understand why we lose our sight when we get older.
As a professor of Neuroimmunology, as well as a founding member of Genmab NL – a company that produces therapeutic antibodies for cancer and inflammatory diseases – Professor Teeling is certainly someone to listen to when it comes to the central nervous system and the ageing process.
This interactive Café Scientifique will help you understand all there is about the eye, whilst explaining the role of the immune system in tissue damage to the ageing retina. It’s certainly not something to miss if you are interested in the ageing process of the body, or a fan of Neuroimmunology!
If you are free on the 5th September around 7:30, there’s no better place than Café Boscanova. We will see you there for a relaxed atmosphere of education and discussion with others hungry to enrich their learning experience.
We are looking for BU Academics, Researchers, PGR students and URA students to present a Lightning Talk on their Research as part of Cafe Scientifique on Tuesday 5th April.
What is a Lightning Talk; In essence it is a short, to the point talk on a particular subject.
If you are interested in taking part in this event and sharing your research in an enganing and lively manner then please contact Rhyannan Hurst in RKEO on 61511
BU staff can login below:
Other services
Don’t miss a post!
Subscribe for the BU Research Digest, delivered freshly every day.
At this month’s 
If you have any questions please do 
What does this mean?
If you have any questions please do 
As we go about our daily lives our hair is recording evidence of what we consume and of the environments we are exposed to. It can record how much you drink, whether you smoke or take drugs, or live in an environment where drug abuse is prevalent. Hair testing for drugs and alcohol provides evidence to the police, assists with family law issues, and is utilised in workplace testing and a variety of other settings. The interpretation of analytical data from hair testing is challenging however, and research is continuing to improve the validity of the process.
Dr Richard Paul reflects on his experience of speaking at Café Scientifique: ‘Presenting my research at Café Scientifique was an excellent opportunity to engage the public in debate around the applications and validity of hair testing. The audience was lively and focused, and we had a lot of excellent, thought provoking questions.’
BU PhD Candidate Shares Transportation Expertise at Dorset COP 24
SUNRISE: collaborative project with Universiti Sains Malaysia supporting sustainability research
Join our November CMWH seminar – two fabulous speakers!
Check out the artwork from the ESRC funded project, Communities of wellbeing: the digital lives of LGBTQ+ young people.
Horizon Europe – ERC CoG and MSCA SE webinars
ERC grants – series of webinars
Blindness and Media Engagement
MaGMap: Mass Grave Mapping
Last reminder – MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2024 internal deadline next week