Lorna presented her mathematics research to dozens of politicians and a panel of expert judges, as part of the poster competition SET for Britain on Monday 9 March.
Her research was judged against 31 other shortlisted researchers’ work and came out on top.
Lorna said, “It was really exciting to be a part of the SET for Britain final and to be able to discuss my work with Members of Parliament. There seemed to be a lot of interest in the engineering and mathematics session which was great to see and I was glad to be able to find a few moments spare to take a look at some of the other work presented. The standard was very high so I didn't expect to come away with anything. I'm very grateful for the support and guidance from my former PhD supervisor, Nigel Peake, and to those who have provided me with funding during my PhD (EPSRC and Rolls-Royce) and current fellowship (Sidney Sussex College).”
Sir Adrian Smith, Chair of the Council for the Mathematical Sciences (CMS), said: “The CMS is delighted that the mathematical sciences have been involved in this prestigious event for the second, successive year; it is a wonderful opportunity to showcase the importance of the mathematical sciences to a wider audience. It is paramount to encourage early-career research scientists, engineers, technologists and mathematicians and the SET for Britain event is a very effective way of doing this. We have been encouraged by the enthusiastic response from early-career researchers in the mathematical sciences and feel sure this will this continue in the future.”
Andrew Miller MP, Chairman of the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee, said, “This annual competition is an important date in the parliamentary calendar because it gives MPs an opportunity to speak to a wide range of the country’s best young researchers.
“These early career engineers, mathematicians and scientists are the architects of our future and SET for Britain is politicians’ best opportunity to meet them and understand their work.”
SET for Britain aims to help politicians understand more about the UK’s thriving science and engineering base and rewards some of the strongest scientific and engineering research being undertaken in the UK.
Image:( L-R) Dr Stephen Benn (Director of Parliamentary Affairs for the Society of Biology), Andrew Miller MP, Dr Lorna Ayton, and Professor Dame Celia Hoyles (Representing the Council for the Mathematical Sciences).
SET for Britain
SET for Britain is a poster competition in the House of Commons - involving approximately 210 early stage or early career researchers - judged by professional and academic experts. All presenters are entered into either the engineering, the biological and biomedical sciences, the physical sciences (chemistry), the physical sciences (physics) session, or the mathematics session, depending on the researcher’s specialism.
Each session will result in the reward of Bronze, Silver and Gold certificates. Bronze winners will receive a £1,000 prize; Silver, £2,000; and Gold, £3,000. There will also be an overall winner from the four sessions who will receive the Westminster Wharton Medal.
SET for Britain was established by Dr Eric Wharton in 1997. Following his untimely death in 2007, the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee, with support from Council for the Mathematical Sciences, The Royal Academy of Engineering, The Institute of Physics, the Society of Biology, The Royal Society of Chemistry, The Physiological Society and the Society of Chemical Industry, is working to further his legacy.
The Parliamentary and Scientific Committee run the event in collaboration with the Society of Biology, the Council for the Mathematical Sciences, the Institute of Physics, The Physiological Society, the Royal Academy of Engineering, the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Society of Chemical Industry, with financial support from INEOS, BP, Essar, Clay Mathematics Institute, Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG), Institute of Biomedical Science, Wiley and the Bank of England.
The competition is open to early stage or early career researchers, which includes university research students, postgraduates, research assistants, postdocs, research fellows, newly-appointed lecturers, part-time and mature students, returners, those people embarking on a second career, and their equivalent in national, public sector and industrial laboratories, and appropriate final year undergraduate and MSc students, all of whom are engaged in scientific, engineering, technological or medical research.
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Contact
For further information, please contact:
Jesse Garrick
Tel: 020 7927 0805
E-mail: [email protected]
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