Dr Paul March-Russell, Specialist Associate Lecturer in the Department of Comparative Literature and editor of Foundation: The International Review of Science Fiction, has contributed an article to The Conversation on US President Donald Trump’s plans for a ‘Space Force’ from a science-fiction perspective, published today 16 August 2018.

The Conversation is an independent website consisting of news and views sourced from the academic and research community, and delivered direct to the public.

‘The rhetoric of both Pence and Trump, referring respectively to “the boundless expanse of space” and the necessity for “American dominance”, is inherently science-fictional, but of a particularly American kind,’ explains Paul in the article, who places the language and ideas in the context of the traditions of American science fiction.

Comparing Trump’s Space Force plants to Reagan’s earlier Strategic Defence Initiative in the 1980s, which became known as ‘Star Wars’, Paul concludes ‘what we can deduce from the proposal is that we are firmly in the logic of the reboot, that much loved tactic of longrunning movie franchises.’

Read the full article here.

The Department of Classical & Archaeological Studies at Kent is delighted to be hosting the Theoretical Roman Archaeology Conference (TRAC) next year, 11-14 April 2019.

TRAC is an unincorporated voluntary association that has developed from and around the annual series of conferences held since 1991. The first TRAC was held in 1991 to widen the range of perspectives offered, and voices heard, in Roman Archaeology.

The TRAC 2019 Local Organising Committee includes PhD student Philip Smither (Chair), PhD student and Graduate Teaching Assistant Karl Goodwin (Vice-Chair), PhD student Sophie Chavarria, as well as Dr Jo Stoner, Research Associate, and Dr David Walsh, Lecturer in Classical & Archaeological Studies.

The committee are inviting proposals for conference sessions, which will include between 4 and 6 papers, each around 20 minutes, with 10 minutes for questions.

The conference will run three regular parallel sessions alongside an ‘unconference’ of more informal discussion groups. More information on, and ideas for, ‘unconference’ sessions can be found here. If you would like to propose a topic for one of the unconference sessions, please specify this in your proposal. TRAC welcome ideas for sessions outside the traditional presentation format including workshops focused on particular themes and/or theories.

The deadline for the submission of session proposals is Sunday 2 September 2018. Submissions should be sent by email to: trac2019@kent.ac.uk

For further details about call for sessions, please see the TRAC page here.

The latest episode of podcast series on ‘Nostalgia’, hosted by Dr Chris Deacy, Reader in Theology and Religious Studies in the Department of Religious Studies, has just been released.

In this week’s interview, Chris interviews a member of professional services staff at the University of Kent, Silvia Rasca.

Silvia has recently joined Kent as Assistant Project Manager for the Integrating Student Frontline Services Project. In this fascinating interview, Silvia talks about her journey to Canterbury from Romania and the political turmoil in her native country in the late 1980s, when she was born, and the impact it had on her and her family in the years that followed. Silvia reflects on how she has applied the goals and values instilled in her by her family to her new home, where Silvia discusses the importance of challenging and pushing barriers.

Silvia talks about keeping a diary and she explains why she tries not to have any regrets in life. Her grandparents are a particular inspiration for her, and Silvia tells us the secret of why her grandparents’ chickens had to be spoken to in Hungarian. Her father was a professional volleyball player and Silvia talks about how she used to accompany him to matches. We learn about the type of music that her parents disapproved of her listening to, and she confesses to once having taped over her father’s beloved Pink Floyd cassette tape with Aqua’s ‘Barbie Girl’.

Silvia talks about the role that production and scriptwriting played in her degree and why she enjoyed standing in front of a class as it exposed herself to vulnerable situations which enabled her to ‘rise to the occasion’.

The interview concludes with some candid reflections on the role of activism in her native Romania and we learn whether Silvia is a looking back or a looking forward type of person.

The podcast is available here:
https://audioboom.com/posts/6960671-silvia-rasca

One of the leading British Baritones of the 20th century, Sir Thomas Allen, will be performing works from a recently recorded CD including composers such as George Gershwin, Cole Porter and Jerome Kern. Taking place on Friday 21 September at 7.30pm, this is an evening not to be missed!

Sir Thomas Allen is an established star of the great opera houses of the world. At the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, where in 2011 he celebrated the 40th anniversary of his debut with the company, he has sung over fifty roles.  The same year he also celebrated the 30th anniversary of his debut at the Metropolitan Opera, New York. He returns to the Metropolitan Opera in 17/18 for his acclaimed portrayal of Baron Zeta (The Merry Widow).

In addition to his dizzying list of performances in iconic roles in his 40+ year career, Allen has shot into 2018 off 2017 opera appearances that include Music Master (Ariadne auf Naxos) at Glyndebourne Festival Opera and Roc in The Exterminating Angel (Thomas Adés) at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.

An Evening with Sir Thomas Allen will be held in the Colyer-Fergusson Hall at Gulbenkian on Friday 21 September. Tickets: Full £15 / Student £10. For more information and tickets please visit the Gulbenkian website or call 01227 769075.

Try your hand at Japanese crafts and watch performances during our A Taste of Japan event on Wednesday 15 August from 17.00-18.30 in the Chipperfield Building, Canterbury campus.

The event is hosted and performed by Japanese university students studying on the Centre for English and World Languages’ Short Courses.

Entry is free – just turn up on the day!

For more information, please email cewl@kent.ac.uk or phone 01227 824401.

Academics and students at a university in Ecuador have been inspired to employ new interdisciplinary research methods and seek greater international collaboration following a visit by Kent Law School Senior Lecturer Dr Luis Eslava.

Dr Eslava was visiting the Universidad del Azuay, in Cuenca, where he delivered a presentation to students at the Faculty of Juridical Sciences on Kent’s distinctive critical approach to studying and teaching law. He also delivered a lecture to academics from across the university, had informal conversations with researchers and met with key Faculty and Law School staff.

During his visit, Dr Eslava ran a three-day workshop on ethnographic research methods and interdisciplinary perspectives for academics. The workshop on ‘Global (Dis)order and Critical Thought: Ethnography, History and Law’ included a short fieldwork exercise held in the city centre and was attended by staff from the schools of economics, medicine, engineering, psychology, architecture and law.

Faculty of Law Vice Dean Dr Sebastián López Hidalgo said that whilst critical approaches to law are beginning to be employed across the curriculum and in research projects at the Universidad del Azuay, interdisciplinary methodologies are still new: ‘Our institution is pursuing the professionalisation of faculty, and is particularly interested in creating international networks to put researchers in contact with experienced academics all over the world. In this context, Dr Eslava’s visit was a great opportunity to support junior faculty members in positioning their perspectives and methodologies.’

Dr Eslava has research expertise in international law. He is,Co-Director of the Centre for Critical International Law (CeCIL) at Kent, a Senior Fellow at Melbourne Law School in Australia and an International Professor at Universidad Externado do Colombia. He also serves as a core faculty member of the Institute for Global Law and Policy at Harvard Law School.

Following on from their very popular 2016 production of Pride & Prejudice, the University of Kent Players are proud to present Sense & Sensibility at the Gulbenkian Theatre from 6-8 September.

The University of Kent Players is largely made up of current and former members of staff, so come along and support them in this lively production of a much-loved Jane Austen classic. A fun evening is guaranteed to be had by all!

Tickets are on sale now either from the Gulbenkian box office. 

£12 adults

£10 concessions

Did you know ALL Kent staff and students can get Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation treatments for ONLY £10!?

The Sports Ready Clinic based in Medway Park is a student run clinic offering assessments, treatments, rehabilitation and injury prevention to ALL University of Kent staff and students and offer 50% DISCOUNT. And School of Sport and Exercise Sciences get access for FREE!

So whether you’re suffering with an annoying everyday niggle, struggling to start or progress your training or wanting to prevent injuries get in touch, were here to help.

 To book an appointment, please contact sportinjury@kent.ac.uk and we can get you booked in!

 To keep up to date with the latest events and offers, follow @SRCKent on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, or visit our website for more information.