Meeting reports 2020

10th March 2020 :  Professor David Austin -  ‘Excavations at Strata Florida’

‘Excavations at Strata Florida’ was the subject of an illustrated talk to the Club by David Austin, Professor Emeritus of Archaeology at the University of Wales Trinity St. David’s University.  Stata Florida was established in the 12th century by the Cistercians who were the monastic order  of the Welsh princes including the Lord Rhys of Deheubarth, and the site was of key importance in the consolidation of Wales as a nation. It was at the time the largest Cistercian abbey in the British Isles. It was strategically located at the meeting point of two trans-cambrian routes, with easy access to the sea.
The site, including the abbey ruins, cemetery, Mynachlog Fawr farmhouse, outbuildings, and adjacent land was bought in 2016 by the Strata Florida Trust, and excavations had already revealed some interesting features including evidence of  a cluster of holy wells and an old Celtic monastery beneath the abbey itself. The Trust has already restored one building as offices and meetings room and recently also received a £200,000 grant to restore another  -  Tŷ Pair – to house a community education centre. The Trust has worked closely with the Arch family who have owned the site for generations, and local farmers..

3rd March 2020   Dr Debra Croft : ‘Blood and DNA’

Dr Debra Croft, a specialist in Forensic Science and former staff member of Aberystwyth University, was the Club’s guest speaker this meeting. Her subject was Blood and DNA in the context of crime-solving, and she explained the process for analysing evidence, and how the pattern of blood spatter could indicate  detailed factors relating to the event and the persons that were the source of bloodshed. Analysis involved firstly establishing whether the evidence was blood, whether it was human blood and then, what blood type?  The next step was to conduct a DNA  analysis;  as DNA carried genetic information inherited from both parents, it was unique to every individual, except that identical twins have the same DNA combination. In addition to blood, DNA samples can be taken from many aspects of the human body including secretions, hair and skin.  DNA analysis required only small amounts to enable a positive identification to be made.
However, in considering the validity of blood evidence,  caution had be be applied as evidence can be contaminated, falsified or planted at a crime scene in order to cause a diversion.
Dr Croft said that DNA has played a significant part in crime detection for  a number of years, and had been instrumental in solving many cases in which successful conviction might not otherwise have been possible.

 25th February 2020    Huw & Mary Adams: ‘Ride for Rotary’ trip to India

Huw and Mary Adams, of Whitland and Narberth Rotary, vsited the Club to  talk about their recent trip to India when they had participated in a ‘Ride for Rotary ‘  motor-cycle event.  They described the challenge of riding through Mumbai’s chaotic roads, filled with tuk-tuks:  “In India, you just imagine you’re a fish and you weave through the traffic”. The visit had enabled the couple to fulfil their ambition of seeing the Taj Mahal, which was ‘even more splendid that it appears in any picture’.
They,  along with the 25 other participants from several countries, had visited a number of Rotary clubs. Many of the members were young, and in India becoming a Rotarian is considered to be a ‘good career move’. Many members were successful businessmen who donated generously to Rotary.
The party had also visited several schools which seemed ‘reminiscent of the Victorian age here’, and where ‘not a mobile phone was to be seen’.

18th February 2020  :  ‘Give me oil in my lamp’ – Beti Griffiths

Beti Griffiths, former  Headteacher of Ysgol Gynradd Llanilar and Magistrate, gave an amusing talk to the Club, based on her recently published autobiography, ‘Rho i mi nerth’.  Referring to the title, roughly translated as  ‘Give me oil in my lamp’, she said that she had always been more “interested in where I’m going than where I’ve come from”.
She referred to her own education at Lledrod school – now closed, and Ysgol Uwchradd Tregaron where the Head, D Lloyd Jenkins, had introduced her to English literature including Gray’s ‘Eligy’. She recalled a visit to the school by a former pupil, the renowned Cardiologist Dr William Evans.
Beti served as Head at Llanilar for 21 years, and she stressed the importance of a rural school’s role in maintaining a sense of community, working alongside other local organisations such as the chapel and church. During her years on the Magistrates’ Bench, she had seen “human nature at its best and at its worst”.
The proceeds of her autobiography will be divided between the Chemotherapy Unit at Bronglais Hospital,  ‘Uned y Bont’ – the centre at Lampeter for children with special needs, and Felindre Hospital.  _______________________________________________

At the meeting, the Club agreed to donate £100 to the flood disaster recovery fund organised by the Southern Wales District of Rotary.

11th February 2020   ‘Veterinary services in Wales’ : Philip Thomas

The guest speaker this meeting was Philip Thomas from the Llanbadarn Veterinary Centre.
Philip gave an illustrated talk about the changes which have affected the veterinary industry  in Wales since devolution. This included the incidence of foot and mouth in 2001, the appointment  of  a Chief Veterinary Officer for Wales in 2005, the arrival of the bluetongue disease  in 2007, annual TB testing across Wales was introduced for the first time in 2008, followed by a culling and vaccination programme which was introduced in 2011
He also talked about how the large corporate players now dominate the vet practices in Wales, controlling 70% of the service. The principal companies are CVS, Medivett, Vet Partners and Vets4Pets.
Finally, Philip focussed on the importance of local vet practices engaging in research work. In this context he and his partners have been working closely with Aberystwyth University to set up a veterinary science school within the university.  A £4.2m EU-backed scheme will provide a home for the new school in the Carwyn James Building on the Penglais Campus.  It is to be hoped that the appointment of a person to lead the initiative will be announced shortly, and the intention is to admit undergraduate students in September 2021. In all of this there has been, and there will continue to be, a close collaboration with the Royal Veterinary College.

Elgan Davies : ‘League of Nations Congress, 1926,  meets at Aberystwyth ’: 20th January 2020

The International League of Nations’ visit to Aberystwyth was the subject of a talk by Elgan Davies. He commenced with an outline history of the League’s formation at the end of World War I. Inspired by US President Woodrow Wilson, the League was established ‘to guarantee the political independence and territorial integrity of states’. In Britain, the League’s  activities were mainly financed by  David Davies of Llandinam –businessman, benefactor and former MP for Montgomeryshire.

The attitiude of many Welsh people towards the war changed following the 1918 National Eisteddfod at Neath, and David Davies suggested the formation of a Welsh League of  Nations Union, saying that Wales as a nation had a role to play in the campaign for world peace. To further these aims, his sisters Gwendoline and Margaret Davies gave £20,000 (£1.5 million in today’s money) to the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth (as it then was) to create a Department of International Politics – the first such academic department in the world, with an endowed headship titled the Woodrow Wilson Chair.

David Davies also set up an endowment fund to establish a Welsh National Council to further the ideals of the League, and was active in promoting its work throughout Europe.

After a series of annual conferences in major cities across the continent, Davies’ offer of Aberystwyth as the venue of the 1926 Congress was accepted. He arranged, at his own expense,  a special train to bring 200 delegates from London to Aberystwyth. The conference was reported at length in the 2nd July 1926 edition of the Cambrian News. Its main venue was the University Hall, a large wooden building in North Road which was burnt to the ground in 1933.

The event included a pilgrimage to Tregaron, the birthplace of Henry Richard MP, the ‘Apostle of Peace’, and concluded with a large public meeting at the Hall, attended by over 2,000 people, during which the head of the German delegation, Count von Bernstorff, was heckled by a man in the audience. As Elgan Davies commented “the long shadow of the First World War had fallen over the proceedings at Aberystwyth”.

However, the League of Nations did not give up its intention of meeting in Germany, and in 1927 the Congress was held in Berlin.

Dr Toby Driver : ‘Aerial photography in Wales’ : 14th January 2020

 ‘Aerial photography and discovery in Wales during the great drought of 2018’ was the subject of an interesting illustrated talk by Dr Toby Driver. Dr Driver is Senior Investigator (Aerial Survey) for the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historical Monuments in Wales. Its aerial reconnaissance programme uses a hired 4-seater aircraft to conduct surveys of 5-6 hours duration; drones can also be used for small localised surveys.

The summer 2018 drought provided an exceptional opportunity to identify  ancient and prehistoric sites, such as burial chambers and Roman sites, which are not normally visible. Surveys on arable land have to be done  before the  grown crops have obstructed the view of the ground. Surveys in the Aberystwyth area have shown up prehistoric  sites such as a burial mound near Goginan, a Roman dwelling at Llanon, and the large Roman fort site which straddles the main road at Trawscoed. Excavations of the villa at Abermagwr nearby had unearthed amazing examples of Roman glassware. Some imagery obtained by aerial photography in 2018 even showed the entire floor plan of a Roman villa.

Photographic surveys were an essential method of revealing the secrets of the past, and of meeting the increasing academic and public interest in archaeology. New techniques such as magnetometry and geophysical surveys were also being developed for identifying new sites.

Professor Tim Woods     New Year meeting –Tuesday 7th January 2020

Aberystywyth University Professor Tim Woods was the guest speaker at the Club’s new year meeting. Having joined the staff in 1990 as lecturer in English and American Literature, he is currently Pro-Vice-Chancellor with responsibility for Learning, Teaching and Student Experience.

On the basis of annual UK-wide surveys of student opinion, Aberystwyth has been ranked in recent years among the best universities in terms of student experience and satisfaction; it was named ‘Times Higher’ Welsh University of the Year for 2020, and received the same publication’s award as University of the Year for Teaching Quality in successive years, 2018 and 2019. Retaining this high reputation requires vigilance and proactive development in terms of  new academic disciplines and updating of resources and equipment.

Many of the new curriculum developments, Professor Woods said,  are ‘motivated by addressing the needs of  the wider local community’. The Postgraduate Certificate in Education has been strengthened by the reinstatement of Primary training, the return of some  key subjects to the Secondary programme and the strengthening of the Welsh-medium school training. ‘The model is not just to focus on Primary and Secondary, but also to train teachers who can work across the age-divide’.

There are firm plans to establish, the first ever Welsh Veterinary Schoolat Aberystwyth, with the first entry of students in September 2021. The training of Nurses was another area in which the University is planning to become involved, with a view to supplying the needs of Bronglais and the cottage hospitals and community nursing programme in Ceredigion and mid-Wales.

Within the Arts Centre, the recent refurbishment of Theatr y Werin will be followed by plans in due course for improvements to the Great Hall. Neuadd Pantycelyn was being refurbished and modernised with en-suite student accommodation, with a view to reopening as a Welsh hall in September this year.

Professor Woods also outlined the University’s ambitious redevelopment plans for Old College, and when completed ‘its impact will be felt not just within the town and  region but more widely across Wales’. Led by Vice-Chancellor Professor Elizabeth Treasure, he said, there is a ‘clarity of vision’ for the future as the University heads for its 150th anniversary celebrations in 2022.