ANNOUNCEMENT: Winners of the TORCH Humanities and Science Essay Competition

We were absoultely delighted by the number and quality of submissions for the TORCH Humanites and Science Essay Competition. In each category we are awarding one grand winner, and two runners up.

Under 18

Winner: 'Hutton's Unconformity', by Olivia Allen 

The Judges' comments: 'Crisp, authoritative and engaging... a focused piece of writing that makes its case clearly and compellingly, evoking both its subject and its importance for science.'

Runners Up

'To what extent is the potential of scientific discoveries such as vaccines limited by society?', by Oluwatomisin Precious Rotimi-Fabolude 

The Judges' comments: 'A very engaged and passionate piece about the importance of communication and human behaviour to the effectiveness of vaccines, well rooted in a good range of literature, and linking the history of the subject to the present moment.'

'Humanity’s War Against Infection', by Carys-Anne Earl  

The Judges' comments: 'Terrifically researched and covering a lot of ground, with a strong awareness of both the positives and the negatives of antibiotics.'

Over 18 Category

Winner: 'When The Crickets Hesitate', by Niya Shekerova 

The Judges' comments: 'A thoughtful reflection on the work of Rachel Carson, that is quietly effective in its evocation of her legacy and its relevance today.'

Runners Up

'The Doctor and the Stethoscope: a match made in nineteenth century fact and fiction', by Dana Macmillan

The Judges' comments: 'This is perceptive and ingenious, and oscillates nicely between fiction and the history of science and medicine, the nineteenth century and the present.'

'Forensic scientist, the one-man (or woman) band of crime fiction', by Elena Scialtiel 

The Judges' comments: 'A persisent piece of writing that toggles nicely between life and art, with a sense of the strange progress of science in the detection of crime.'

Many thanks to our judges: Professor Philip Ross Bullock, and Professor Wes Williams,