On Sunday, November 10th, SRAP organised a Research Bites event at The Spanish Club – Hogar Español Melbourne (57 Johnston St, Fitzroy, Vic, 3065). It’s the second event this year with the title “Talks about researching in Australia in Spanish”. Hosted by SRAP Victorian’s Representative, Mr Iván Martínez Botella, Research Bites invited the audience to learn about research in different topics like astronomy, biotechnology, and anthropology from two different perspectives with talks in Spanish by three members and the president of SRAP. The event was well received, the attendees enjoyed the talks and the opportunity to network over tapas and drinks during the event.
Opening the event, Ms Margarita Ros, Spanish Club President, talked about the Spanish Club history and presented information related to current activities.
(Top) Ms Margarita Ros presenting
(Bottom) SRAP Research Bites Victoria Nov. 2024 speakers. From left to right: Miguel Gomez-Hernandez, Cesar S. Huertas, Margarita Ros (Spanish Club President), Ángel R. López Sánchez (SRAP President), John Postill, and Iván Martínez Botella (SRAP Victorian Representative)
Over 25 members of the Spanish speaking community in Victoria attended the event and participated in conversations related to the talks presented. The event was broadcasted live on YouTube and the recording can be accessed following this link: Research Bites Nov. 2024 Recording
Attendees at the Spanish Club – Hogar Español networking and enjoying and tapas
The first speaker was A/Prof Ángel R. López Sánchez, SRAP president, science communicator and astrophysicists at the faculty of science and engineering, Macquarie University. Ángel spoke about his career and the role of SRAP in the Australia-Pacific community. Ángel also presented an astronomy talk about his research. See A/Prof Ángel R. López Sánchez’s bio below.
A/Prof Ángel R. López Sánchez presenting
The second speaker was Dr César S. Huertas, SRAP member and Head of Biomedical Applications Team – Integrated Photonics and Applications Centre; Postdoctoral Researcher, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University; and Co-founder HatiSens Pty Ltd. César spoke about his life, trajectory, and his research regarding the Lab on a Chip as a biomedical technology to improve the diagnostic and treatment of illnesses like cancer. See Dr César S. Huertas’s bio below.
Dr César S. Huertas presenting
The third speaker was Mr Miguel Gómez-Hernández, SRAP member and PhD candidate at the Emerging Technologies Research Lab, Monash University. Miguel spoke about his trajectory, and PhD research in futures of smart-home technology for older adults. Miguel was interviewed by BSB radio ahead of the Research Bites event, to listen to Miguel’s interview follow this link: Miguel’s SBS interview. See Mr Miguel Gómez-Hernández’s bio below.
Mr Miguel Gómez-Hernández presenting
The fourth speaker was Dr John Postill, SRAP member and social anthropologist at RMIT University. John spoke about the online culture wars with a global perspective. John presented his latest book entitled: “The Anthropology of Digital Practice” published this year. See Dr John Postill’s bio below.
Dr John Postill presenting
Speakers’ bios:
A/Prof. Ángel R. López-Sánchez
Angel is an astrophysicist and science communicator working at the School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Macquarie University (MQ). He is a recognised expert in the study of how the gas is converted into stars in galaxies and how this affects galaxy evolution.
He graduated in Theoretical Physics at the University of Granada (2000) and completed his PhD Thesis in Astrophysics at the “Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias” (IAC, Spain) and the University of La Laguna (Spain) in 2006. He moved to Australia in 2007, joining CSIRO “Astronomy and Space Science” to perform radio-interferometric observations of gas-rich galaxies at the Australian Telescope Compact Array. In 2011 he joined the Australian Astronomical Observatory and Macquarie University combining instrumentation support, research, lecturing, and outreach. He was appointed as full-time research academic at the School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences at Macquarie University in May 2023.
He is the president of the association of Spanish Researchers in Australia-Pacific (SRAP), being one of its founding members, and actively participates in RAICEX (the Network of Associations of Spanish Researchers working abroad). He is a globally recognised science communicator, with visibility in Spanish and Australian printed, broadcast, and social media.
He is also a passionate amateur astronomer that uses his own equipment for capturing the beauty of the Cosmos. His stunning astronomy time-lapse videos and photos have received +1/2 million views in YouTube and have been seen in textbooks, TV channels in USA, Australia and Spain and science museums worldwide.
Dr César S. Huertas
PhD (he/him), Head of Biomedical Applications Team – Integrated Photonics and Applications Centre (InPAC); Postdoctoral Researcher, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University; Co-founder HatiSens Pty Ltd.
César S. Huertas is the Bioanalytical Applications Team Leader at the Integrated Photonics and Applications Centre (InPAC). His research aims at the creation of innovative biomedical lab-on-a-chip devices based on photonic and microfluidic technology capable of reflecting the internal state of our body by analysing biofluids, cells, or tissues, with a focus on biomedical research and diagnosis in the areas of immunology, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer. He works closely with doctors, biomedical groups, and industries to create analytical devices for diagnostic and biomedical analysis that are easy to use, instantaneous, and portable. These devices can be used directly at the patient’s point of care. In 2021, he co-founded HatiSens Pty Ltd, a medical technology startup committed to improving the efficiency of heart attack diagnosis.
Mr Miguel Gómez-Hernández
PhD candidate at the Emerging Technologies Research Lab – Monash University.
Miguel is a design anthropologist pursuing his PhD at the Emerging Technologies Research Lab in Monash University, Australia. He is researching how older adults and the AgeTech industry envision different future lives for older people with smart-home technologies. He also teaches courses on anthropology, health humanities, and design thinking. Previously, Miguel researched and developed guidelines to design mobile apps for older people. His academic background is an MSc in techno-anthropology in Denmark, and a Dual BA in sociology and political science in Spain and Finland. He also lived in Russia.
Dr John Postill
Social anthropologist – RMIT University
John Postill is an Anglo-Spanish anthropologist (PhD, UCL) currently based in Melbourne, Australia where he is a Senior Lecturer in Communication at RMIT University. He specialises in the study of media, communication, and socio-political change. To date he has conducted long-term fieldwork in Malaysia, Indonesia, Spain and (online) in the Anglosphere. He is the author of five books, including The Anthropology of Digital Practices: Dispatches from the Online Culture Wars (2024, Routledge) and The Rise of Nerd Politics (2018, Pluto). At present he is writing a book on the globalisation of the culture wars.