Interviews for Air Quality News, Infotech, Macclesfield Now, Social Care Today

I posted last year a bunch of interviews I conducted for technology news site Infotec. Since then, I've done a load more for Infotec and the other titles published by Spacehouse. Here they are:

Air quality in the archives

The Borthwick Institute for Archives, in York, boasts thousands of precious old documents — including the archives of Frankie Howerd and Sir Alan Ayckbourn — and closely monitors air quality to hold back the ravages of time. I spoke to Gary Brannan, Keeper of Archives and Research Collections. 

Reducing falls in care homes with Earzz acoustic monitoring

Dr. Pradyumna Thiruvenkatanathan, Founder and CEO of Earzz, explained to me how intelligent acoustic monitoring can transform the provision of care, with benefits for residents and staff.

Air quality for monsters at Millennium FX

Award-winning prosthetics in TV and film are made using hazardous chemicals. I spoke to Neill Gorton at Millennium FX about the tech employed to keep his staff safe from the creatures they’re building.

Shirah Bamber, Preston’s new Innovation Ambassador

Preston City Council has announced the appointment of Shirah Bamber as its new Innovation Ambassador, tasked with raising the profile of the city as a place for all things tech.

Mapping safe cycle routes across Oxfordshire

Easy-to-use Cyclox mapping software provides safe routes for cyclists across the city of Oxford and the whole of Oxfordshire. The result is more people than ever getting on their bikes. I spoke to Cllr Emily Kerr from Oxford City Council and Robin Tucker, Co-chair of the Coalition for Health Streets and Active Travel (CoHSAT), to learn what was involved.

Sensory Inclusive Schools

Beth Smithson is a former occupational therapist in the NHS who now helps to tackle school avoidance and refusal by better understanding our senses.

Air taxis in the UK

Flying cars were once a dream of science-fiction but eVTOL air taxis now offer a real prospect of greener, cleaner transport. I spoke to Jeremy Howitt (Future Flight Campaign Lead at the Snowdonia Aerospace Centre), Shazan Siddiqi, (Senior Technology Analyst at IDTechEx) and John Goudie (Founder and CEO of SLiNK-TECH).

Thought Formation newsletter

Dr Niall Boyce produces a free weekly newsletter that aims to keep us up-to-date on the latest advances in mental health science.

Schoolkids swim the Channel

Each year, pupils aged 12-15 from Beech Hall School in Tytherington swim the English Channel. Yes, really! I interviewed headteacher James Allen about the ambitious programme.

Sparta Global kickstarts careers in tech

David Rai, Co-Founder and CEO of Sparta Global, told me how his company has gone about training thousands of people from diverse backgrounds in tech-based skills, and found them new careers.

Central Heating for Cities

Luca Grella, Innovation Programme Delivery Manager at UK Power Networks, told me about the Heatropolis heat network being developed in the Kings Cross area of London to provide heat and power to premises including Google and Nike’s UK HQs, and 2,400 homes.

Keeping children safe online with Ontaro

Ontaro is an online safety app that monitors content, manages screen time and filters websites to ensure children are kept safe — while respecting their privacy. I spoke to director and founder Tony Paskin.

The Exchange shares the reactions of people in social care to lockdown

Helen Slevin (Co-Director of Filament Projects CIC) and Barney Heywood (Co-Artistic Director of Stand + Stare) told me about the touring listening booth that allows us to hear service users and those working in the social care sector speak about their experience of the Covid 19 lockdown.