Designing the Future: Digital Creativity & Personalised Pharmacy

Inspired by the Cottingley Fairies and the science-fantasy worlds of Terry Pratchett and Neil Stephenson, Dr Hannah Steventon will explore how children, through creative physical computing, gain the ability to manipulate technology, becoming its creators and controllers. From children’s code that has run computers on the International Space Station, to a fire-breathing, wing-flapping, tail-twisting dragon zoo, via a fleet of junk robots roaming school corridors, she will share what happens when children are equipped with tools to code and make creatively. When technology is demystified, children become powerful makers, shaping and navigating their own digital worlds.

The talk will introduce bioacoustics and spatial ecology in an accessible way, and show how listening to nature can help us understand how species respond to environmental change. Covering the tools and techniques used in bioacoustics research, how the data is used to answer real questions about distributions of ecologically significant species and anthropogenic activities like logging and hunting, and what makes these methods so powerful. The talk will also explore future opportunities for citizen science and highlight how everyday people can get involved with data collection and support conservation efforts.

Pharmacist Dr Georgina Marsh will showcase how 3D printing is shaping the future of healthcare in this innovative talk. Inspired by her current research, she’ll explore how 3D printing is making medicines more personalised and effective for patients, from producing child-friendly formulations and tailored dosage forms, to biomimetic designs inspired by nature.
Dr Marsh is leading the new Pharmacy programme at the University of Suffolk where she is developing the course to equip future pharmacists with the scientific expertise, clinical skills and patient-centred mindset that they will need in a changing world.