Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

An exhibition featuring the ground-breaking work of a remarkable Welshman who discovered the process of evolution by natural selection alongside Charles Darwin will be opened by leading Welsh naturalist Iolo Williams at Aberystwyth University’s Old College on Thursday 8 February 2018. Wallace: The Forgotten Evolutionist? tells the story of Alfred Russel Wallace, one of the most prominent evolutionary figures of the 1800s. On loan from Amgueddfa Cymru-National Museum Wales, the exhibition will showcase a striking selection of the natural history specimens collected by Wallace as part of his research, including bugs, butterflies and birds. During his lifetime, Wallace collected more than 125,000 animal specimens, published more than 800 articles and wrote 22 books. Most famously, he had the revolutionary idea of evolution by natural selection entirely independently of Charles Darwin. In officially opening the exhibition to the public on Thursday 8 February, Iolo Williams will speak ab...

Aberystwyth University is pleased to announce the appointment of Dafydd Rhys as Director of Aberystwyth Arts Centre. He will take up his new post at the helm of Wales’s largest arts centre on Monday 5 February 2018. A Council member of the Arts Council of Wales, Dafydd Rhys was Director of Content at S4C from 2012-2016. During this time, he was responsible for leading a team that commissioned a diverse range of programming including the Hinterland detective drama series, which was filmed in Ceredigion and which has been sold across the globe. The Vice-Chancellor of Aberystwyth University, Professor Elizabeth Treasure, said: “Dafydd Rhys has extensive experience in the creative industries in Wales and I am delighted that he will be joining the University as Director of our award-winning Aberystwyth Arts Centre. He brings with him an inspirational vision for the future of the Arts Centre, which plays such a pivotal role in the cultural life of our campus, our community and our nation.”...

The Welsh Historic Gardens Trust is working with Aberystwyth University in a new partnership to develop a long-term conservation plan for the Penglais campus grounds. A joint working group has been set up with representatives from the Ceredigion branch of the Trust, with the first meeting held Monday 16 October 2017, As well as the Trust, the group will include Estates Department staff and the University’s own botanical experts. There will also be consultation with staff and students as part of the development of a conservation management plan for the grounds, which are Grade II* listed by Cadw. Dr Caroline Palmer, Chair of the Ceredigion branch of the Welsh Historic Gardens Trust said: “We are pleased to be working in partnership with the University on what we envisage will be the development of a long-term plan to be rolled out over a number of years. Our joint aim will be to draw up a policy for current maintenance and future aspirations for this designed landscape. We are fortuna...

The deadline for nominations for individuals to be considered for an Honorary Award at Aberystwyth University’s 2018 graduation ceremonies is midnight on Monday 23 October 2017. Nominations can be submitted by members of staff, students and members of the public. The University confers a number of Honorary Fellowships, Honorary Doctorate and Bachelor degrees every year. Honorary Fellowships are awarded to honour individuals who have, or have had a connection with Aberystwyth or Wales in general, and who have made an outstanding contribution to their chosen field. Those honoured in recent years include award winning novelist and The Times columnist Caitlin Moran, journalist and presenter Robert Peston, former Australian Prime Minster Julia Gillard and naturalist and television presenter Iolo Williams. In 2015, the University also began to confer Honorary Doctorate Degrees and Honorary Bachelor Degrees. Honorary Doctorate Degrees may be conferred on those who have been outstandingly...

The quality of English language tuition enjoyed by international students at Aberystwyth University is rated among the best in the UK according to figures published this week. The International English Centre (IEC) at Aberystwyth University has been ranked third in EL Gazette’s league table of university English language centres in the UK. The publication’s University Ranking Table is based on British Council inspectors’ summary statements and an assessment of fifteen areas of activity at university English language centres. The IEC’s most recent inspection took place in March 2017 when British Council inspectors identified ten areas of strength, marking it as a Centre of Excellence. This compares very favourably with the average of four areas of strength identified for British Council language schools. The areas of strength identified at Aberystwyth’s IEC include staff management, student administration, quality assurance, learning resources, course design, learner management, teachin...

Ceredigion Autism Spectrum team and Aberystwyth University Student Support Services are hosting an Autism conference at the Old College in Aberystwyth today, Friday 31 March 2017. Now in its fourth year, the conference brings together people on the autism spectrum, parents, carers, supporters, and professionals from health, social care and education. The one day conference marks World Autism Awareness Week which runs from 27 March to 2 April 2017, and World Autism Day which is on Sunday 2 April 2017. Carys James, Head of Adult Social Care and Commissioning, Ceredigion County Council commented: “We are pleased to be working with Aberystwyth University to arrange the Ceredigion Autism Conference and to build on the success of previous years. With a range of expert speakers, the event promises to bring new insight and understanding of a condition that affects at least one in every hundred people”. The conference will open with a presentation from Dr Jill Bradshaw of the world renowned Tiz...

Beyond Impressionism: The Legacy of Gwendoline and Margaret Davies is the title of a talk to be given in Carmarthen next week. The talks is by Professor Robert Meyrick of Aberystwyth University. Details - Friday 7 April 2017, 2pm Admission Free Talk in Carmarthen Library followed by tea and cake at the Oriel Myrddin Gallery. Discover how the philanthropic Davies sisters from mid Wales gave back to the Welsh communities who helped make their fortune and amassed one of the great 20th Century art collections, bequeathed to the National Museum of Wales, providing a valuable cultural resource for the nation. If you’re not a member of U3A come along to find out more about it. The event is part of Oriel Myrddin Gallery's 50+ programme.

An International Politics doctoral researcher from Aberystwyth University has played a key role in organising an international touring exhibition that aims to raise awareness of Mexico’s disappeared. Danielle House is part of a collective which has organised the exhibition ‘Footprints of Memory: Searching for Mexico’s Disappeared’, which will be on display in the Art House – Ty Celf, 1 Laura Place, Aberystwyth, from 3-8 April 2017. It will then go on tour to Paris, Nice, Rome, Florence, Turin, Barcelona and Berlin. The project 'Footprints of Memory', begun by Mexican artist Alfredo Lopez Casanova, tells the story of people who have gone missing in Mexico since 1969, 30,942 people since 2006, and the desperate search by their family members to find them. The exhibition has been organised by the Footprints of Memory Collective and the Department of International Politics at Aberystwyth University, and funded by Aberystwyth University’s interdisciplinary Performance and...

One of the UK’s leading constitutional experts will use a public lecture at Aberystwyth University to critique the latest attempt at a Welsh devolution ‘settlement’. Professor Richard Rawlings will examine the implications of the Wales Act 2017, which marks the fourth main phase of Welsh devolution in just twenty years. His lecture Strange Days? Reworking the Welsh Devolution ‘Settlement’ will be held at 5pm on Wednesday 22 February 2017 in the Main Hall of the Department of International Politics. Speaking ahead of the event, Professor Rawlings who is Professor of Public Law at University College London and Honorary Distinguished Professor of Law at Cardiff University, said: “Partly framed by the work of the Silk Commission, and also influenced by Scottish constitutional developments in the wake of the 2014 independence referendum, the process of developing the legislation has been an elongated and commonly painful one. “It is a process which has stretched from incoherent party pol...

Aberystwyth University students will be encouraging children and young people to get creative in a series of practical art workshops at the National Library of Wales between 22 and 25 February 2017. The workshops explore the legends of Wales and tales of ancient heroes, mystery and magic, with sessions on making masks, working with clay, painting and creating self-portraits. There will also be a session dedicated to the mysterious world of the Aztec. Developed around the theme ‘We are Legends’, the week’s activities build on Visit Wales’ ‘Year of Legends’ campaign and have been devised by a team of volunteer students on the University’s Museum & Gallery Education and Interpretation module. Alison Pierse, Art and Design Coordinator for the School of Education and Lifelong Learning, said: “Students have taken it on themselves to run this volunteer programme for many years, delivering lively learning opportunities for local youngsters and families. “For the students, it offers an in...

An Italian who has lived in Wales for 15 years and is now an undergraduate at Aberystwyth University is organising a rally of fellow students and staff as part of a worldwide day of action in support of migrants and refugees. Irene Cuogo says she has seen a rise in racist and xenophobic behaviour in many parts of the United Kingdom since the Brexit vote in June 2016. She wants to show that Aberystwyth University, the town and Ceredigion are welcoming, inclusive and global in their outlook. As part of an international campaign called One Day Without Us , Irene is calling on fellow students, staff and members of the local community to gather on the piazza outside the Arts Centre at 1pm lunchtime on Monday 20 February. “Ceredigion is a very important and dear county for the ethos it holds in regards to us immigrants, migrants and refugees, and how its people demonstrate their support and appreciation towards our group on a daily basis since Brexit,” said Irene. “More specifically, the v...

The language of William the Conqueror has received a major boost with the announcement of a further Arts and Humanities Research Council grant for the Anglo-Norman Dictionary based at Aberystwyth University. A form of French brought to Britain following the defeat of the Anglo-Saxon King Harold in 1066, Anglo-Norman was widely used in Britain until the end of the fifteenth century – the late Middle Ages. Such was its influence, more than 50% of English words in use today are derived from Anglo-Norman. Amongst the many culinary English words used today that have an Anglo-Norman origin are ‘soup’, ‘lettuce’, ‘pheasant’, ‘pastry’, ‘ginger’, ‘sauce’, ‘chestnut’ and ‘mustard’. In its heyday it was widely used as a language of literature, trade, law, education and administration, well before Middle English emerged in the thirteenth century. Documents such as the Magna Carta and the laws of William the Conqueror, originally composed in Latin, were translated into Anglo-Norman, and medieval...

The Aberystwyth Students’ Union Teaching Awards, now in their sixth year, are open for nominations. Organised annually by Aberystwyth Students’ Union, and supported by the University, the awards offer the opportunity to recognise the contribution of staff (both teaching and non-teaching) and academic representatives across the University for the work they do throughout the academic year. Students are currently being invited to recognise staff and fellow student representatives by nominating individuals or departments for one of thirteen awards. The award categories for 2017 are: · Lecturer of the Year · Support / Service Staff Member of the Year · Academic Representative of the Year · Supervisor of the Year - Postgraduate · Supervisor of the Year - Undergraduate · Department of the Year · Hyrwyddwr yr Iaith Gymraeg (Welsh Language Champion) · Postgraduate Teacher of the Year · Innovative Teaching Award · ...

The UK’s leading computing conference dedicated to encouraging more female students to enter the world of computing and IT will celebrate its 10th anniversary at Aberystwyth University in April 2017. The BCSWomen Lovelace Colloquium is the brainchild of Dr Hannah Dee, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Computer Science at Aberystwyth University. This year’s conference takes place on Wednesday 12 April, with events planned for the previous evening and the following day. Named after the mathematician Ada, Countess of Lovelace, who is known as the world’s first computer programmer, the one-day conference brings together women students, senior women in technology and employers. This year’s conference keynote address will be given by Dr Sue Black OBE, founder of BCSWomen and founder and CEO of TechMums, a social enterprise that provides technical training for mothers in deprived areas. Other confirmed speakers include Milka Horozova from Google and Carrie Anne Philbin, Director of E...

Dr Owen Bennett-Jones to deliver two talks at Aberystwyth University on 20 February Renowned print and broadcast journalist Dr Owen Bennett-Jones will reflect on his career as a BBC correspondent and journalist, and discuss the rivalry between Al-Qaeda and Islamic State in two public lectures at Aberystwyth University on Monday 20 February 2017. In ‘Nation shall speak unto Nation: Reporting in War and Peace from Beirut, Bucharest, Hanoi, Kabul and Islamabad, 1981-2017’, the veteran reporter and journalist of over thirty years’ standing will reflect on the evolution of the ‘foreign correspondent’ in a rapidly changing world. The lecture takes place at Lecture Theatre A12, in the Hugh Owen Building on Penglais Campus and starts at 3pm. The rivalry between Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, often considered ideological bedfellows, will be the subject of his second lecture. In ‘Al-Qaeda and Islamic State: Brothers in Arms or Rivals?’ Dr Bennett-Jones will draw on his long and rich e...

An 11-foot long dinosaur built by a Penparcau community group for Aberystwyth’s annual carnival is to feature in a Jurassic heritage exhibition in Old College. Dave the Dinosaur will be on display in the Quad alongside the main Archaeopteryx exhibition, which will be officially opened by wildlife expert and television presenter Iolo Williams at 6.30pm on Tuesday 14 February. The lifelike model of a Tyrannosaurus Rex was made by members of the Penparcau Community Forum, an organisation set up to develop sustainable and inclusive activities and facilities for the benefit of local people. Complete with moving jaws and a thunderous roar, Dave formed the centrepiece of the Forum’s Jurassic Penparcau float at the 2017 Aberystwyth Carnival and was awarded the prize for Best Overall Float. Visitors to Old College will walk past Dave on their way to the main exhibition featuring Archaeopteryx, a bird-like dinosaur with sharp teeth and claws. Funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), th...

Aberystwyth University’s Welsh Students’ Union UMCA is on a mission to collect the tales of Welsh language bands with strong links to the college. The aim is to create a lasting record of different groups who honed their musical skills during their time as Aber students and made a contribution to the wider Welsh music scene. Some of the musicians who’ve been talking about their experiences are looking back at a career spanning several decades – among them, Linda Griffiths (Plethyn, 1976) and Dr Rhodri Llwyd Morgan (Cerrig Melys, 1989). Others such as Gruff Lynch (Yr Ods, 2007), Lewis White (Yr Eira, 2013) and Iolo Jones (Ysgol Sul, 2015) have more recent memories to share. UMCA President and Welsh Affairs officer for Aberystwyth University’s Students Union, Rhun Dafydd, is behind the project: "The aim is to show Aberystwyth’s huge contribution to the Welsh music scene and the way in which UMCA has been able to offer a platform to a range of early career bands.” “The town itself ...

Wildlife expert, television presenter and Aberystwyth University Honorary Fellow Iolo Williams is to officially open a ‘Jurassic Heritage’ exhibition in the iconic Old College on Tuesday 14 February 2017. The centrepiece of the exhibition will be Archaeopteryx, a bird-like dinosaur with sharp teeth and claws. Dating from the late Jurassic period around 150 million years ago, Archaeopteryx is believed to be the link between prehistoric dinosaurs and the modern bird. As well as opening the exhibition, Iolo Williams will take part in two question and answer sessions which are free and open to all members of the local community. · 6pm: Iolo Williams talks about his work as a naturalist and television presenter, taking questions from an audience of young people. Seddon Room, Old College. · 6.30pm: Iolo Williams officially opens the Archaeopteryx exhibition · 7pm: Q&A session with a panel of experts including Iolo Williams, Dr Caroline Buttler (Amgueddfa Cymr...

Aberystwyth University’s support for Welsh music and culture continues this month with sponsorship of the annual Welsh rock and pop awards Gwobrau’r Selar which take place at the University’s Students’ Union on Saturday 18 February 2017. On the eve of the awards (Friday 17 February), the University’s Neuadd Pantycelyn will host an evening to celebrate a lifetime’s contribution by singer and poet Geraint Jarman. The University also has four tickets to give away for Gwobrau’r Selar. For a chance of winning, entrants just need to share the Gwobrau’r Selar message on the University’s @prifaber_ir twitter account, or like, share and comment on the Gwobrau’r Selar entry on the University’s Facebook pages @prif.aberystwyth The competition closing date is Friday 10 February at 3pm. In addition to being a major sponsor, Aberystwyth University is also sponsoring the event’s top award for Best Band. Shortlisted for the award this year are the 2015 winners Sŵnami, 2014 winners Candelas and Y Ban...

Leading Welsh diplomat and Chancellor of Aberystwyth University Sir Emyr Jones Parry will deliver a keynote address on the likely impact of Brexit on the UK’s relationship with the world today, Thursday 2 February. The lecture, entitled ‘The Challenge of Implementing Brexit and the Implications for British Foreign Policy’, takes place at 4pm in the Main Hall of the Department of International Politics, Penglais Campus. As the UK’s former Permanent Representative to the United Nations and a member of the Welsh Government’s advisory group on Brexit, Sir Emyr will deliver his lecture against a backdrop of intense foreign policy activity as government ministers battle to maintain influence and secure global trade deals in what is anticipated to be a turbulent period for British foreign relations. Milja Kurki, Director of Research at the Department of International Politics, is urging students, staff and residents alike to attend what is certain to be an informative presentation. Professor ...