TURNING GRAVITY UPSIDE DOWN Dr Ana Mijic Says Now Is the Time for Professors Claudia De Rham and Andrew Copyright © 2019
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Im Imperial/47 THE MAGAZINE FOR THE IMPERIAL COMMUNITY WINTER 2019/20 £7.95 WHERE SOLD pe Returning to Imperial was the best decision “With Executive Education, rial I benefited once again from outstanding academics delivering invaluable, current content and methodologies for immediate, real-world applications.” Jon Lipton, Management Consultant, Executive MBA 2017 graduate and Complete Course in Risk Management /47 2019 attendee TURNING GRAVITY All Imperial alumni are eligible for a 20 per cent discount UPSIDE across our range of short courses spanning finance, management, innovation and health. DOWN Visit imprl.biz/Imperial-alum Contact us: Im +44 (0)20 8742 3355 marti nrandall.com ATOL 3622 | ABTA Y6050 | AITO 5085 pe From Dubrovnik to Bengal, CONTENTS rial cruises with cultural depth. The world looks diff erent from the water and our journeys by sea and river are full of fresh Sailing the Dalmati an Coast perspecti ves. As well as the pleasure of travelling through spectacular scenery in a privately 25 April–5 May 2020 chartered fi rst-class vessel, each voyage promises to excite the mind, whether it’s exploring 5–15 May 2020 /47 ancient towns on the Dalmati an Coast, hearing concerts in historic venues along Europe’s Music Along the Rhine great rivers or cruising through India’s layered past – all in the company of expert lecturers. 30 June–7 July 2020 ‘I loved every day, every lecture and every port that we visited. The Danube: The Dalmati an Coast was the most beauti ful adventure I could have ever imagined.’ Celebrati ng Beethoven 06 34 24–31 August 2020 Best Special Interest Holiday Company | Briti sh Travel Awards 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Bengal by River 16–27 November 2020 Publisher Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ Regulars Features www.imperial.ac.uk Editorial enquiries 02 LETTERS 12 THE CAT THAT GOT THE CREAM [email protected] As Felix turns 70, some of its leading +44 (0)20 7594 6703 04 FROM THE PRESIDENT players – past and present – give us www.imperial.ac.uk/imperialmagazine Professor Alice Gast discusses the the stories behind the headlines. Alumni enquiries importance of making connections. [email protected] ANTIFUNGAL RESISTANCE +44 (0)20 7594 6138 18 www.imperial.ac.uk/alumni 06 ADVENTURES IN ... Fungi are evolving but, thankfully, DEEP TIME DIVERSITY Imperial researchers are leading the fight Imperial is published by YBM Ltd on Professor Peter Allison’s passion for rocks. behalf of Imperial College London to protect us all. Communications and Public Affairs IMPERATIVE www.imperial.ac.uk/communications 11 24 TURNING GRAVITY UPSIDE DOWN www.ybm.co.uk Dr Ana Mijic says now is the time for Professors Claudia de Rham and Andrew Copyright © 2019. The opinions new ideas in water management. Tolley have a new theory on gravity, and it expressed in Imperial are those of challenges our very understanding the contributors and not necessarily 40 SOCIETY those of Imperial College London. On the streets with the Soup Run Society. of what it is and how it works. Editor: Mira Katbamna 30 FAKE NEWS Managing Editor: Steve McGrath 42 PUZZLES Art Director: Finnie Finn The ultimate prize puzzle challenge. Do bots help to spread fake news? Project Manager for Imperial No, but they could be part of the answer. College London: Abby Bolt Cover photograph: 44 OUR IMPERIAL We look at the truth behind the headlines. Professors Claudia de Rham and Andrew Tolley, Three alumni discuss what’s behind their photographed by Sophia Spring choice of career in the world of politics. 34 THE SEARCH FOR A CURE For the past 25 years, Imperial has been If you enjoy reading Imperial, we hope DATASET at the heart of the hunt for a cure for you will consider supporting the College 46 through a voluntary subscription to the Professor Eric Aboagye and the fight HIV. This is the story of that search: magazine, using the form enclosed with this against the silent killer – ovarian cancer. of the highs, the lows, the setbacks – issue. As long as your address details are up and the breakthroughs. to date, you will continue to receive Imperial, 47 DISRUPTOR regardless of whether you choose to donate. Success shouldn’t just be measured in grades, says Dr Freddie Page. 48 MY IMPERIAL Medical student Arian Arjomandi Rad shares his love of Hyde Park. Facebook “f” Logo CMYK / .eps Facebook “f” Logo CMYK / .eps Social icon Rounded square Only use blue and/or white. For more details check out our Brand Guidelines. 03 Letters WRITE TO US Email: [email protected] Letters: Abby Bolt, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ @imperialcollege, #OurImperial fb.com/alumni.imperialcollegelondon Please mark your letter ‘For publication’. Letters may be edited for length. Fascinating read Battery memories Puzzling it out DIGEST — — — As an alum of Imperial, I always read I was fascinated by the feature on We’ve had a great response to our new your magazine with interest, and issue batteries in the last issue (Imperial puzzle section, so thanks to everyone 46 had a number of fascinating articles. 46), especially so because of a story who has been in touch so far. It was great to see Imperial starting passed down through my family. Some of you wrote to say that to get involved in the future of At some time in the early part of question three, relating to a house batteries, for example. We need a real the 20th century, my grandfather, number and a PIN number, wasn’t an breakthrough in battery technology to Richard Alfred Hardway, along with entirely unknown quantity! “I first came enable our future in electric cars and a couple of other men, invented across the ‘magic number 1089’ in a solar/wind-based renewables. The a battery that was a considerable short little square book called Oddities,” comparison of a Tesla to 5,000-8,000 advance on anything current at the writes Simon Potter (PhD Chemistry AA batteries puts the challenge into time. They planned to put this into 2000), while Ray Cook (PhD Metallurgy context. It would also be great to find production, and a very substantial and Materials Science 1985) says that he out what Imperial is doing with the sum was raised to do just that. has “known that trick for 66 years!” hydrogen economy, as I see this as a Alas, one of the financial team In general, though, you seem to be more practical way forward. members oversold the number of enjoying the challenge: “It was pretty And having lived and worked in shares – leading to his prosecution – fun working through them! Please Africa for more than 12 years of my life, and the battery was never produced. keep up the great stuff and hard work,” I really see the challenges the continent However, that did not stop callers says Yue Guan (Life Sciences 2013); offers, and enjoyed the feature (albeit sometimes appearing at the door of “Those were some brilliant puzzles! that the headline may have over- my grandparents’ house in Ilford I look forward to seeing more!” says dramatised the situation slightly with considerable sums of money, Jack Fenton (Mathematics 2018); and – Africa’s GDP is only about 60 per in guineas, to try to get details of the “I was grateful for the distraction as the cent that of the UK!). Africa needs an prototype from my grandmother – rain continues to fall without end!” says agricultural revolution to create jobs if she was the only person at home. John T. Davies (Chemistry 1969). and empower its economy; it could She did not divulge! Winner Graham Perry (Aeronautics become a breadbasket for the planet As this all predates my birth I have 1965) says: “Thank you! You have made without destroying any more forest. not, so far, been able to establish any an old man very happy,”, while fellow GLOBAL HEALTH RESEARCH CENTRE Imperial has a real role to play here to further details about the case, though winner Rosco Paterson (Mathematics help improve agricultural productivity I would love to do so (ideas welcome!). 1976) adds: “What a lovely surprise!” J-IDEA to transform international public health response – indeed, the financial examples Your published article brought it all Finally, thanks to Rob Stott — (EcoCash and Diamond Bank) will back to mind! (Mechanical Engineering 1968, MSc help people in trading and developing Management Science 1971) for pointing A new research institute based at expertise in epidemiology, biostatistics global solutions, and collaboration is Professor Nicholas Grassly, Professor of their economy, but the continent Dr Raymond Hardway out that the correct address for the Imperial will use state-of-the-art and data science to improve global at the core of J-IDEA. Over the last Infectious Disease and needs more grassroots investment into (Charing Cross Hospital solutions to the puzzles in issue 46 data analytics to identify and combat health and wellbeing. Its findings will 20 years, we have seen an explosive Vaccine Epidemiology, agriculture to help it leapfrog the rest Medical School 1952) should be www.imperial.ac.uk/be- worldwide disease threats. provide the evidence base for effective growth in data, covering almost every in Nigeria during a study to detect poliovirus in of the world! inspired/magazine/issue-46/brain-power. The Abdul Latif Jameel Institute interventions in the fight against crises dimension of human life and activity. sewage, in collaboration Thanks, and keep up the great work. for Disease and Emergency Analytics such as Ebola and MERS, alongside For health researchers, this represents with the World Health > Are you receiving the alumni (J-IDEA), co-founded by Imperial longer-term global priorities.