News and Activities

The Friends of the Thackray Museum would like to invite you to the Thackray Museum on Saturday 4th September from 10am for a lecture entitled 'The Birth of and Idea'.

The speakers on this occasion will be Dr Kersten Hall, Centre for History of Philosophy of Science, University of Leeds and Dr Robert Newton, Reader in Clinical Epidemiology and Honorary Consultant in Public Health Medicine, Hull York Medical School.

Dr Kersten Hall will be giving a talk on “The Astbury Legacy”. The talk looks at William Astbury who became a lecturer in textile physics at the University of Leeds in 1928. He used X-ray diffraction to show the structure of keratin in wool fibres then investigated large biological molecules including fibrinogen (a factor in blood clotting) and myosin (a component of muscle). He also worked on thymonucleic acid which was later renamed deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). His reseach student Florence Bell worked on collagen and other complex molecules including DNA, which was known to be closely associated with chromosomes and proteins. Elwyn Beighton in Astbury's laboratory produced the characteristic diffraction picture of DNA in May 1951, but it was James Watson who recognised from a photograph taken by Rosalind Franklin in 1952 that the appearance was due to a double helix. The double helix mechanism proved to be the key to understanding genetics and also cancer formation or carcinogenesis. It can be used to explain how radiotherapy works on cancer and is the key to future development of anti-cancer drugs.

Dr Robert Newton will be giving a talk entitled “Infections and Cancer - a brief history”. It is estimated that 20% of human cancers (about 2 million cases anually worldwide) are attributable to viral, bacterial and parastitic worm infestation. Collectively this group is only second to tobacco as causative agents. The first human tumour virus was isolated in 1964, since then many new infections have been identified and their control or elimination (by vaccination for example) hold great promise for cancer prevention.

The cost is £11 per person (£10 concession for Friends of Thackray Museum, pensioners and students). Refreshments will be served during the break, and those attending the lectures are welcome to visit the museum free of charge on the day of the lecture.

If you require any further information, or for details on how to book, please call Rachel on; (0113) 205 6526 or (0113) 244 4343.