British Society for the History of Science: Global Digital History of Science Festival

Ordered Universe members will be taking part in the Global Digital History of Science Festival, organised by the British History for the History of Science. Tom McLeish and Shazia Jagot, from the University of York, along with Laura Cleaver, School of Advanced Study, London, and Giles Gasper, Durham University, will be presenting a grand tourContinue reading “British Society for the History of Science: Global Digital History of Science Festival”

OxNet Easter School – Online and Virtual

We are very pleased to announce that the Ordered Universe Easter School for the OxNet Access to University scheme, North-East section, will be taking place this week. Originally planned for the school Easter holidays, we have, in the current circumstances, moved the  school to an online format, with a mixture on online exhibitions, pre-recorded films,Continue reading “OxNet Easter School – Online and Virtual”

Things aren’t always black and white

Seminar Four of the OxNet North East programme introduced students to the psychology of colour. They began by discussing ‘The Dress’, and whether it was white and gold, black and blue, or something else. Using an article written by David Brainard and Anya Hurlbert, students applied the concept of colour context to this phenomenon, toContinue reading “Things aren’t always black and white”

The Past is History

OxNet North East students explored the notion of History with Professor Giles Gasper, Durham University, in this year’s third OxNet Seminar. They started by discussing the question ‘Why study History?’ to which they replied – to learn from the past, because it’s interesting, and perhaps to make predictions about the future. They then explored theContinue reading “The Past is History”

And so to Poole

Ordered Universe research featured as part of this year’s Light Up Poole Festival, the 3rd year for the Festival, and a treat to be back again after last year, which saw Brian Tanner and Giles Gasper presenting Grosseteste on Tides, and the European premiere of two

Travels Through Time Podcast – 1215 anyone?

Earlier this month Giles Gasper recorded a podcast interview with Artemis Irvine (third-year history undergraduate at Durham University) for the second season of Travels Through Time. The series asks what year the interviewee would like to go back to, and in this case, it was 1215, the year of the Fourth Lateran Council, Magna Carta, and, possibly, theContinue reading “Travels Through Time Podcast – 1215 anyone?”

Light, Rainbows, and the Medieval Big Bang

The Light Up Poole Festival 2020 opened yesterday and the Ordered Universe Project is delighted to support it, as we did last year to the 40,000 or so visitors who came along.

Let’s Get Physical

Seminar 2 saw students exploring Physics with Brian Tanner, Emeritus Professor of Physics at Durham University. Brian introduced the students to the notion of collaborative reading, looking through Robert Grosseteste’s treatise ‘On the Rainbow’. They read about his various experiments, including looking at light refracting through a urine flask, which they replicated using a vaseContinue reading “Let’s Get Physical”

How (theoretical) physics was born in Hereford…

A wonderful day at Hereford today exploring the life and times of Robert Grosseteste, particularly the years he spent in the city, and his thought on natural phenomena, with excellent questions and involvement from the audience. Brian Tanner, Giles Gasper (from Durham), and David Thomson (now a Herefordian), presented the workshop, which formed part ofContinue reading “How (theoretical) physics was born in Hereford…”

Music of the Spheres

Students launched into the seminar series by exploring the cosmos with Richard Bower, and comparing medieval and modern views on the universe. They considered questions of how it was created – was it designed by a ‘craftsman’ or did it always exist – and compared the theories of thinkers like Plato and Aristotle, and howContinue reading “Music of the Spheres”