Dr Lucy Rogers MBE FREng – alumna of Lancaster’s School of Engineering – recently delivered a public lecture entitled “Looking Up: Stories, Science, and Surprises” at The Gregson Centre, a community venue in the heart of Lancaster. With a focus on getting people off smartphones and inspiring them to instead “look up” at the amazing scientific phenomena around, Lucy’s lecture was a sell-out event, welcoming some 90 guests to join her in her endeavour to find wonder in the everyday.

Dr Rogers, who graduated with a PhD from Lancaster University in the early 2000s, is an inventor and author whose work blends technical expertise with creative problem-solving. Known to many as a judge on BBC’s Robot Wars television series, she brings a distinctive perspective on how hands-on engineering and making can spark innovation.

Her public lecture was in three parts: the first, an initial interview with Professor Allan Rennie, Associate Dean for Engagement in the Faculty of Science and Technology. This traced a varied career — from her early days experiencing sex discrimination in a male-dominated industry to her more recent attempts at applying to be an astronaut, and her subsequent coaching of other female applicants to various space programmes. In addition, she read some excerpts from her new book Up, released on 16^th April and available to order.

The interview was proceeded by a short talk about some of the natural and fascinating phenomena that appear in the skies above us, covering everything from the appearance of rainbows, to Halley’s Comet (which has been appearing every 75 years or so for thousands of years), to the migratory flights of Monarch butterflies. She shared that not looking up is a recent phenomenon as historically our ancestors had to look up to tell the time and check the weather – something we rely on smartphones for now.

For the final part of the event, Lucy opened up the floor to questions from the audience. There were a variety of engaging questions from various audience members including advice for young women going into engineering, and what is next for Lucy now her book is complete. Once the lecture had finished, one member of the public noted that it was a “wonderful event” with many others commenting on how much they had enjoyed the experience.

Commenting on the lecture, Dr Lucy Rogers said: “It was a delight to share Up with such an engaged audience at The Gregson. The questions and conversations afterwards showed just how much curiosity there is about the world above us - even among those who do not see themselves as ’science people’. It made for a genuinely lively and enjoyable evening.”

Prof Allan Rennie, Associate Dean for Engagement in the Faculty of Science and Technology said: "It was excellent to welcome Lucy Rogers back to Lancaster, and especially to chat with her about her new book, hear some excerpts and to engage in a Q&A with the people of Lancaster. What was clear, was Lucy's passion for what she does and how she strives to share science and engineering as widely as possible, making it readily accessible and understood through her particular style of storytelling. A thoroughly enjoyable evening for everyone."