SCMS Dissertation Award received by Film Studies lecturer

Dr. Brian Jacobson, lecturer in the Department of Film Studies, has received a major award from the Society for Cinema and Media Studies, winning the prestigious Dissertation Award for his work, "Studios Before the System: Architecture, Technology, and Early Cinema." Dr. Jacobson's dissertation was completed at The University of Southern California in 2012 and links
film studies with the history of architecture, and science and technology studies to examine the manner in which the early motion picture studio, as developed by Edison, Méliès, and other pioneers, interpreted developments in urban modernism while also having an impact on early film aesthetics. The formal announcement of the award was made at the Award Ceremony of the 2013 SCMS Conference in Chicago on Friday afternoon, March 8, 2013.

Inaugural Lecture: Prof. Richard English

Professor Richard English, of the School of International Relations and Director of the Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence, will deliver his Inaugural Lecture, "Does Terrorism Work?” in School III, St Salvator’s Quadrangle on Wednesday, 10 April 2013 at 5.15 p.m. All are welcome.

Terrorism, and responses to terrorism, remain central problems for states and citizens alike in the post-9/11 twenty-first century. Despite the huge literature now generated on the subject, more has been written on definitions of terrorism, and on the causes behind it, than on whether it actually works. In this Lecture, Richard English attempts to assess the question, Does Terrorism Work?, as seen historically, and with an eye to closely-focused, first-hand research on the detailed ways in which terrorism has (and has not) worked in practice.

BA Fellowship awarded to Dr Bridget Heal

Dresden’s Frauenkirche

Dr Bridget Heal, Director of the Reformation Studies Institute, has been awarded a British Academy Mid-Career Fellowship for her project on “Lutheran Visual Culture during the Age of the Renaissance and Baroque”. Protestantism was all about the pure preaching of God’s Word. In order to focus parishioners’ attention on the Word, and in order to eliminate idolatry, reformers often destroyed religious images, as the University’s own St Salvator’s chapel shows. Yet unlike Scottish Calvinists, Germany’s Lutherans developed an astonishingly rich visual culture, which reached its highpoint during the early eighteenth century with the construction of monuments such as Dresden’s Frauenkirche. Dr Heal’s project asks why this word-based confession came to value images so highly. Through the example of Lutheran Germany, it will illuminate the ways in which religious identity was constituted and expressed during the early modern period.

Prestigious RTS Programme Award for Operation Iceberg

The Royal Television Society (RTS), Britain’s leading forum for television and related media, announced the winners for the RTS Programme Awards 2012 at a ceremony held in London on Tuesday, 19 March. TV programme Operation Iceberg, whcih included Dr Richard Bates of the Department of Earth Sciences, was the winner of the 'Science and Natural History' category. [news archive] [earlier post]

Company launched with aim to improve fish quality

A new company, which aims to exploit cutting-edge genetics technology to improve the quality of the fish we eat, has been launched in St Andrews. With support from local law firm Murray Donald and the Biotechnological and Biological Research Council (BBSRC), Xelect, is primarily focusing on the development of genetic markers which will pinpoint the most valuable of the natural variations which occur in all fish. Xelect was formed by CEO and Co-Founder Professor Ian Johnston, Director, Scottish Oceans Institute and his former PhD student, Thomas Ashton, Executive Director and Co-Founder. The first products are markers for superior meat yield and flesh quality in Atlantic salmon, which are now available for licensing worldwide. [press release] [more..]

Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellows 2013

The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) has today announced the new intake of Fellows for 2013, which includes three academics from the University of St Andrews:

• Professor Peter Cawood - Department of Earth Sciences
• Professor Moira Jardine - School of Physics and Astronomy
• Professor Alan Sutherland - School of Economics and Finance

This year, there are 47 new UK and International Fellows to add to our 1500-strong Fellowship. Fellows are elected following a rigorous five-stage election process, and will now play an important role in ensuring that the RSE can continue its work for the advancement of learning and useful knowledge.

5 University of St Andrews RSE Young Academy members announced

The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) has announced the second group of RSE Young Academy of Scotland appointments, which consists of 50 new members, including 5 from St Andrews.

• Catherine S J Cazin - School of Chemistry
• Chris S Jones - School of English
• Per Ola Kristensson - School of Computer Science
• Christian Rutz - School of Biology
• Andrew R Timming - School of Management 

The RSE Young Academy of Scotland fosters interdisciplinary activities among emerging leaders from the disciplines of science and humanities, the professions, the arts, business and civil society. Established by the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2011, the Young Academy of Scotland provides a platform for able and innovative young entrepreneurs, professionals and academics to develop a coherent and influential voice, and to address the most challenging issues facing society in Scotland and beyond.