Inaugural Professorial Lectures

Professor Rhonda Rosengren's Inaugural Professorial Lecture. Tuesday, 6 October 2015.

Professor Christina Hulbe gave her Inaugural Professorial Lecture on the 1st of September 2015. She talked about her work on mapping deformations in West Antarctica, and how GPS technology has changed her work. Satellite imagery of meltwater ponds has led to a clearer understanding of the creation of deep crevasses and shattering of icesheets.

Professor David Bryant delivered his Inaugural Professorial lecture on July 21st 2015. He gave an overview of his work, modelling genetic information to assist with tracing points of origin for plants or animal species.

Professor David Tombs holds the Howard Paterson Chair in Theology and Public Issues and is Director of the Centre for Theology and Public Issues at the University of Otago. His Inaugural Professorial Lecture discusses Latin American liberation theology and its ongoing legacy. 8 September 2015

Professor Liz Slooten delivered her Inaugural Professorial Lecture to a packed theatre on Tuesday 24th of August. The lecture gave an overview of Professor Slooten's work documenting populations of Hector's and Maui dolphones aorund New Zealand's coast as well as tracking and documenting bahaviour of sperm whales and right whalee. Professor Slooten's work highlights the dangers of gill-net fishing and the impact it has on endangered species of marine mammals.

Professor Phil Seddon discusses the pros and cons of re-introducing species that have become extinct; the possibilities of reviving populations by translocation; the need to re-aquaint ourselves with the wildlife on our doorstep, in an increasingly urbanised world.

Professor Steve Wing's research explores the interconnectedness of ocean ecosystems - the physical and chemical processes and how they impact on the food webs, how spatial factors impact on population resilience and so on. This work has been applied with considerable success in the Fiordland area where marine reserves have led to stronger populations across the ecosystem.

Professor Phil Bishop talks about his lifelong fascination with amphibians in general and frogs in particular. He discusses the importance of frogs as an indicator species for the wellbeing of our environment, and delivers lessons in acoustic identification - as each species of frog has a unique sound. The inaugural professorial lecture was delivered on May the 5th 2015.

Professor Takashi Shogimen of the Department of History & Art History delivers his Inaugural Professorial Lecture: “Reshaping the Baton: The enduring relevance of intellectual history”. 21 April 2015

Professor Richard Gearry's Inaugural Professorial Lecture. Wednesday, 25 February 2015.

Professor Michael Williams' Inaugural Professorial Lecture. Tuesday, 24 June 2014.

Professor Blair Blakie's Inaugural Professorial Lecture was delivered on the 6th of May 2014. Blair talked about ultra-cold atoms, superfluids and superconductors, how useful quantum physics can be to explain other complex and unpredictable systems in nature, and techniques for cooling atoms down to a billionth of a kelvin above absolute zero. Seriously cool...

Professor Steve Higgins delivered his Inaugural Professorial Lecture on the 3rd of June 2014. Steve talked about the challenges of forecasting ecological developments, due to the many and varied factors that come into play. Humboldt's descriptive empirical work is contrasted with MacArthur's theoretical work, and the usefulness of modeling, in spite of its contingencies and complexities, is outlined.

Professor Halberstadt discusses the way that morphing faces makes them more attractive. he discusses te idea of fluency, or the ease of processing for the brain that makes something more appealing to us, simply because it s easier to figure out. Professor Halberstadt gave his Inaugural Professorial Lecture in the 19th of November 2013

Professor Craig Rodger delivers his IPL in energetic style - outlining the nature of radiation belts and his research into solar wind, the ionisation of the ozone. The lecture was delivered on the 18th of March

Professor Tony Harland, Head of the Higher Education Development Centre, delivers his Inaugural Professorial Lecture: “Slow Scholarship and Deliberate Spaces for Thinking and Learning”. 2 September 2014

Professor Sean Fitzsimons of the Department of Geography delivers his Inaugural Professorial Lecture: “Is the present the key to the past? Lessons from Antarctica and the Southern Alps”. 8 July 2014

Professor John Crump's Inaugural Professorial Lecture. Tuesday, 27 May 2014.

Professor Alison Heather's Inaugural Professorial Lecture. Tuesday, 20 May 2014.

Professor Michael LeBuffe, University of Otago Chair in Early Modern Philosophy, of the Department of Philosophy delivers his Inaugural Professorial Lecture: “Pocket Hobbes” 13 May 2014