The 2017 R W Thomson Lecture will be held at 7.00 pm on Wednesday 15th November 2017 in the Lindsay Stewart Lecture Theatre of Edinburgh Napier University, Craiglockhart Campus, Edinburgh EH14 1DJ

The 2017 Lecture will be delivered by Professor Peter Skabara CChem FRSC

The title of his talk is:

Plastic Fantastic! A Brief Perspective on Flexible Electronics

Timings
6.30 pm / Registration and Refreshments in The Lindsay Stewart Lecture Theatre Lobby
7.00 pm / Professor Skabara delivers the seventh R W Thomson Lecture
8.30 pm / Close

The dress for the occasion will be lounge suit. Presidents of IOM3 Affiliated Societies are asked to wear their badges of office. Name badges will be provided.

Places are limited and applications will be taken on a first come, first served basis.

Please register on Eventbrite

Professor Peter SkabaraBSc PhD CChem FRSC

Peter Skabara holds the James Young Chair of Chemistry in the Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry at the University of Strathclyde.
Plastics have been around for many decades. They have become ubiquitous in many different forms and they cover an enormous range of functions. We think we know them very well – but do the gadget-minded enthusiasts amongst us truly know what’s out there and what’s around the corner for plastic technologies? A hugely exciting development for polymers has revolutionised the electronics industry through the discovery and application of plastics that can conduct electricity. You’ve no doubt heard of OLED technology (in TVs and smartphones), but do you know what role plastic has in these devices? In the future, can we envisage sheets of plastic lighting up our streets and buildings, replacing energy-wasteful light bulbs forever? Could plastic make WiFi disappear, giving way to a much faster way of transferring data wirelessly? Think about the clothes you wear – could it be possible that the next shirt you buy will be able to charge the battery in your smartphone? Are these prospects stretching the boundaries of plastic too far, or are they real possibilities? Come along and be enlightened!

The R W Thomson Lecture Wednesday 15th November 2017

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Colin Hindle, SPRA Education Officer, School of Engineering & Built Environment, Edinburgh Napier University, Merchiston Campus, Edinburgh, EH10 5DT

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The Mining Institute of Scotland

The seventh in a series of annual Prestige Lectures organised by the:

Scottish Association for Metals (SAM)

Scottish Plastics and Rubber Association (SPRA) and The Mining Institute of Scotland (MIS)

Local Societies affiliated to The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining in memory of Robert William Thomson the prolific inventor from Stonehaven

Robert William Thomson (1822 – 1873)

Born in Stonehaven Robert William Thomson left school aged 14 and spent 2 years in America before returning to Stonehaven where he taught himself the basics of science and mathematics while redesigning his mother’s mangle, building a ribbon saw, and producing a working model for his elliptical steam engine, which he later perfected.

After an engineering apprenticeship in Aberdeen and Dundee he worked for a civil engineering company in Glasgow and then Edinburgh. Here he invented a new way of detonating explosives using electricity, thereby saving many lives in the mining industry world-wide. He was only 23 years old when he patented the pneumatic tyre, a design remarkably similar to the modern radial tyre. However this met with limited success because of the poor quality of roads and the variable quality of vulcanised rubber, the rubber industry still being in its infancy. He turned to solid rubber tyres for his next inventions – an invalid chair, his road steamers capable of hauling up to 40tons and steam omnibuses.

Later inventions included the self-filling fountain pen, a potable steam crane, and a hydraulic dry dock. His many patents included a method for separating rock, stone and coal, improvements to steam gauges and elastic beds and seats.

THE R W THOMSON LECTURE 2017

Plastic Fantastic! A Brief Perspective on Flexible Electronics

Wednesday 15th November 2017 7.00 pm

The Lindsay Stewart Lecture Theatre
Edinburgh Napier University, Craiglockhart Campus Edinburgh EH14 1DJTheatre
Edinburgh Napier University, Craiglockhart Campus Edinburgh EH14 1DJ