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PubhD: Three researchers and a flipchart

February 12, 2018 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Free
PubhD Event Poster

Doors open at 7 … kickoff at 7.30

This special event comes to you in association with our friends from PubhD Glasgow.

The format is nice and simple;

  • Three researchers will each have 10 minutes to talk about their subject area to an interested audience in a pub
  • There will be up to 20 minutes of (friendly!) Q&A per speaker.
  • Each speaker gets at least one pint (or other drink of their choice).
  • A whiteboard/flip chart and coloured pens will be provided.

Confirmed speakers:

HUNTER GABBARD

I’m a first year physics and astronomy PhD student here in the Institute for Gravitational Research at the University of Glasgow. Spent most of my time in the states where I did my undergrad degree at the University of Mississippi. Most of last year I was on a Fulbright Scholarship at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Research studying black holes and neutron star mergers using deep learning (machine learning that mimics the human brain). Most of my work now revolves around using machine learning (artificial intelligence) to look for gravitational waves from the collision of black holes, neutron stars and supernovae!

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away … two black holes merged! Each one (~30 times the mass of our sun) swirled around one another at nearly half the speed of light and in their final death throes merged, creating faint ripples on the fabric of space-time. My job, along with 1000s of other scientists around the world, is to detect these incredibly tiny ripples (less than 1/10,000th the diameter of a proton). My PhD project is to make machines do the hard work for us! Using similar machine learning techniques employed by Google to classify pictures of cats and dogs (yes, yes that is a real thing), I use machine learning to detect some of the most violent events in the known universe, binary black hole mergers!

Unfortunately, I still haven’t figured out how to get these things to make my morning coffee … *sigh*

RAUL ROS MORALES

I am a PhD student in Philosophy (first year). I took my Bachelor’s degree in Spain (where I am originally) and a Master degree in Hull (England). I am interested on questions concerning perception and consciousness. One of the best experiences was my Erasmus Programme, which I took three years ago in Hull. I loved the academic system in the UK and for this reason I decided to progress my career in this country.

I would like to talk about the general idea of my PhD thesis: the nature of hallucination. I think this is an attractive topic since it is something that could happen to everyone and it is fascinating how we could have experiences about something that is not real! Many films and TV shows use this phenomenon as the core of their plot. I will speak about the main goal of my thesis: questioning the nature of the hallucination – whether it is a perceptual or cognitive mistake. I will explain the difference between both and I will conclude that it is possible that some hallucinations do not have sensory qualities (they are not sensory experiences) but rather cognitive mistakes of a different nature, such as the false-belief (delusion) that I am perceiving a ghost in front of me. The nature of hallucination has an important impact in our society, since it will determine how we should treat those patients who suffer from hallucinations.

BRITTNEE LEYSEN

I am a first-year PhD student from the U.S. studying at the University of Glasgow in Celtic Studies, focusing on place-names in New Zealand…it all makes sense, I promise! Having completed my Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology, where I became enthralled with the study of people-watching and cultural patterns, I took the observations I made of the influence of Scottish culture on New Zealand (where I had previously lived for a year) and moved to Scotland to do my MLitt in Celtic Studies. During my time at the University of Glasgow, I began to delve deeper into the study of Onomastics, or name-studies, and eventually came up with exactly how I wanted to analyse the Scottish diaspora to New Zealand- through its place-names. My PhD topic is specifically looking at the Otago region in New Zealand’s South Island, and how introduced place-names can tell a story of settlement patterns, Māori-Pākehā relations, and even the continuation of the Gaelic language into the far reaches of the world. Though I am just getting started, I look forward to sharing a glimpse at some of the 4,000+ Otago place-names I am engaging with through my PhD research.

 

Details

Date:
February 12, 2018
Time:
7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Cost:
Free
Website:
https://www.facebook.com/events/803481449860187/

Venue

The Admiral Bar
72a Waterloo Street
Glasgow, G2 7DA United Kingdom
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