- Home
- About the College
- Governance
- College Committees & Steering Groups
- College Assembly
- College Council
- College Executive Management Committee
- College Academic Programmes and Curriculum Development Committee
- College Graduate Studies Committee
- College Research & Innovation Committee
- College Teaching Learning and Student Experience Committee
- College Student Recruitment and Outreach Committee
- College Sabbatical Research Leave Committee
- College of SEFS Adjunct Appointments Committee
- International Education Committee
- College Postgraduate Student Committee
- Athena SWAN Steering Group
- College Committees & Steering Groups
- Human Resources (UCC Access Only)
- Annual UCC STEM Awards
- Scholarships and Prizes
- Women in STEM Panel Talks
- Inaugural Professorial Lectures
- Athena SWAN in SEFS
- Proposal Calls (UCC Access Only)
- Photo Gallery
- Contact Us
- Science in Society Public Lecture Series
- Governance
- News
- Staff
- Schools and Departments
- Current Students
- Undergraduate Courses
- Postgraduate Courses
- International Students
- Research and Innovation
- Employability and Careers
- Outreach and Public Engagement
- Science Week
- Transition Year Programmes
Science in Society Public Lecture Series
Introduction
This fascinating weekly lecture series is delivered by world-leading UCC STEM academics and is open to the public.
The lectures will outline the nature of science, the type of knowledge discovered by science and the types of question that science cannot answer. They will look at the role of science in modern society, in the modern developed economy, and the broad ethical issues raised by scientific and technological advances. The interface between science and religion, and science and the environment will also be examined, along with some of the ways in which science can be misused.
Register
Lectures are free to attend and all are welcome. Registration is now closed. The series will recommence in January 2025.
Lecture Details 2024
All lectures in 2024 were held in Boole 2, Boole Basement, Main Campus, UCC
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6.00pm - 7.00pm
Note: schedule may be subject to change. For queries, contact Prof Alan Kelly: a.kelly@ucc.ie
| Date |
Topic |
Lecturer |
| Tuesday 16 January |
How science works |
Prof Alan Kelly |
| Thursday 18 January |
The ethics of science communication |
Prof Alan Kelly |
| Tuesday 23 January |
No lecture |
|
| Thursday 25 January |
What has science discovered about the natural physical world (part 1)? |
Prof Paul Callanan |
| Tuesday 30 January |
What has science discovered about the natural physical world (part 2)? |
Prof Paul Callanan |
| Thursday 1 February |
Prof Jerry Murphy |
|
| Tuesday 6 February |
When science goes wrong; Eugenics and the Nazis, weapons of mass destruction and environmental pollution |
Dr Michael Whelan |
| Thursday 8 February |
The Human Microbiome – Part 1 |
Dr Pauline Scanlan |
| Tuesday 13 February |
Food processing: a problem or a solution? |
Prof Alan Kelly |
| Thursday 15 February |
No lecture |
|
| Tuesday 20 February |
Darwinian evolution I |
Dr Tom Reed |
| Thursday 22 February |
Darwinian evolution II |
Dr Tom Reed |
| Tuesday 27 February |
Science and the environment |
Dr Michelle McKeown |
| Thursday 29 February |
The ethics of artificial intelligence |
Prof Barry O’Sullivan |
| Tuesday 5 March |
Plant based foods: sustainable and nutritious? |
Dr Aylin Sahin |
| Thursday 7 March |
Prof Ger Killeen |
|
| Tuesday 12 March |
Mathematics and society |
Dr Tom Carroll |
| Thursday 14 March |
The Human Microbiome – Part 2 |
Dr Pauline Scanlan |
| Tuesday 19 March |
Can the food we eat really make us smarter? |
Dr Elaine McCarthy |
| Thursday 21 March |
Prof Maria McNamara |
|
| Tuesday 9 April |
Some milestones in Ireland’s scientific heritage |
Dr Declan Kennedy |
| Thursday 11 April |
Obesity: the everyday pandemic |
Dr Majella O’Keeffe |
| Tuesday 16 April |
Evolution of parent-offspring conflict |
Dr Tom Moore |
| Thursday 18 April |
Advances in Genetic Engineering |
Prof Tommie McCarthy |