New Generation Thinkers

Two researchers from Cardiff University are among this year’s New Generation Thinkers, the initiative from BBC Radio 3, BBC Arts and the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).

Historian Dr Emily Cock and archaeologist Susan Greaney, both from the School of History, Archaeology and Religion, will have the opportunity to share their research through the media, making programmes for Radio 3 and other BBC outlets, as well as taking part in the 2019 Being Human Festival and contributing to wider media through the AHRC.

Leverhulme Research Associate Dr Emily Cock is exploring changing attitudes towards facial disfigurement from the 17th century to today.

Emily said: “I’m thrilled for the opportunity to share my fascination with historical faces with the BBC audience, and perhaps to challenge people to think about how we engage with our own and others’ physical differences in our daily lives. I am also looking forward to some fascinating discussions with the other New Generation Thinkers from across the humanities.”

AHRC-funded PhD candidate Susan Greaney is unearthing the attitudes of Neolithic people to the ground beneath them and the underworld.

Susan said: “I'm really looking forward to working with the BBC to share my research into Neolithic monuments with new audiences, particularly introducing people to the completely different views and beliefs about the world that people may have had in prehistory. Surprisingly, these can help to challenge our modern-day perceptions about how we interact with the natural environment and about our unequal social relationships.”

The final ten Thinkers for 2019 also hail from Birkbeck College, University College London, the Universities of Cambridge, Reading, Huddersfield, St Andrews, and the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. They join a list of 80 New Generation Thinkers in this ninth year of the initiative.

All of the New Generation Thinkers will be using their air time to showcase a vibrant mix of research from across the arts and humanities with a view to capturing the public imagination.

Professor Andrew Thompson, Executive Chair of the AHRC, said: “The New Generation Thinkers scheme is all about helping the next generation of researchers to find new and wider audiences for their research by giving them a platform to share their ideas and allowing them to have the space to challenge our thinking.”

Follow the New Generation Thinkers on Twitter with #NewGenerationThinkers