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Private Notes
With the help of immunologist Professor Katie Ewer and virologist Professor Ravi Gupta, Professor Jonathan Van-Tam reveals the inner workings of the virus by blowing it up and inviting the audience to take part in a heist mission. Can they hijack our cell machinery to replicate? Up against the virus is our immune system, designed to fight back. We also dive into a nose to uncover the wonders of snot and whittle down the winner of a game of antibody bingo to crack how our immune system can defeat this invisible enemy.
Professor Jonathan Van-Tam uncovers what drives a virus to world domination and reveals how maths may be the secret weapon to thwart it. Joined by airborne infection expert Professor Catherine Noakes and mathematician Professor Julia Gog, the team face the disgusting fallout of a super-sneeze, reveal the shocking invisible forces inside our masks and unravel the mathematical models of contagion with a gigantic game of lucky dip. In this lecture, no science is off the table. From microbiology to engineering, the Covid-19 pandemic has pooled the talent of scientists in every discipline to work together in ways never seen before. Can the audience be the scientific heroes of the hour and crack the riddle at the end of the show?
Professor Jonathan Van-Tam explores the inner workings of vaccines to reveal how these medical marvels can help win the war on viruses and potentially fight diseases such as cancer. Joined by vaccine scientist Professor Teresa Lambe and microbiologist Professor Sharon Peacock, the team peel away the scabs of smallpox and inject the puss of a milkmaid to uncover the key milestones that led to vaccines over 200 years ago. Science has not stopped since. The Covid-19 vaccines are a triumph, but can the audience take them a step further? Can they use a vaccine to blow up cancer cells on the lecture theatre floor?
