Latest news with #TrinityCollegeDublin
Irish Independent
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Meet the Wexford woman who will conduct BBC's The Traitors Prom – ‘It's a huge deal'
Enniscorthy Guardian Today at 12:57 A Wexford woman will be at the helm of this year's BBC's The Traitors Prom today, where she will conduct the orchestra through some of the most iconic music featured in the tv show phenomenon and more. Karen Ní Bhroin from Ferns has quickly established herself as one of Ireland's foremost young conductors, with a career that spans both sides of the Atlantic. A music education graduate of Trinity College Dublin, she earned her Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting at Kent State University, Ohio, where she studied with Dr. Jungho Kim as his Graduate Assistant Conductor.
Irish Independent
4 days ago
- General
- Irish Independent
Mystery of vanishing old Irish street signs sparks concern in Dún Laoghaire
Today at 07:59 A series of bilingual street signs, with distinctive Gaelic typefaces, have gone missing from streets around Dún Laoghaire. Fine Gael councillor Lorraine Hall was contacted by two separate residents' associations in recent weeks about the sudden disappearance of three of the distinctive green-and-white signs. All three were located within close proximity of each other, on Silchester Road, Royal Terrace East, and Woodlawn Park. 'These lovely, very old green signs with the Irish Gaelic script on them have gone missing in recent weeks,' councillor Hall said. 'They're really beautiful. People really appreciate these signs. They have emotional and sentimental importance, and there's a strong heritage value to them too.' Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council has confirmed it was not responsible for their removal, raising suspicions that the signs may have been taken, or stolen, without authorisation. 'We suspect they are being taken because they're quite attractive,' Cllr Hall said. 'They look very nice in pubs or private collections. But they belong to the community.' The signs, often featuring cló Gaelach, a stylised Irish-language typeface historically associated with cultural resistance, date back to around the 1950s and 60s and are now considered rare. While some are protected in architectural conservation areas, most are not, and there is currently no statutory provision under the Official Languages Act for the preservation of these original designs. 'These signs can't really be replicated today,' Cllr Hall said. 'They're not just practical markers. They represent something deeper – our shared identity and history.' Cllr Hall has issued a public appeal, asking residents across the county to check if similar signs have vanished in their areas. The issue comes as researchers at Trinity College Dublin document the capital's remaining examples of the bilingual signage. As part of a digital humanities initiative called the CLÓSCAPE project, members of the public are being asked to submit photos of old green street signs to help build a digital archive before more are lost. This script, once considered a form of 'silent rebellion' against British rule, is used in Irish manuscripts, on shop and pub fronts, and on our distinctive old street signs. When the Irish state was founded, there was 'huge pressure' to use Gaelic in educational materials, on street signs, and in books as a symbol of reinforcing Irish identity. Little is known about the roll-out or distribution of these signs, and the project aims to collect photographic evidence, both past and present, to reconstruct the historic placement of Irish typeface signs and preserve them for future generations. Many signs are subsequently replaced by modern blue-and-white signs with Roman fonts, with no provision for the use of cló gaelach in the current Official Languages Act.
Irish Examiner
5 days ago
- Science
- Irish Examiner
Richard Collins: A joy to learn about extinct and 'resurrected' creatures
'Ireland's Last Great Auk, Extinct 1844 — donated by Dr Robert Burkitt' reads an inscription on a display case in Trinity College Dublin's zoological museum. The large flightless seabird is the institution's most popular exhibit. The Unnatural History of Animals — Tales from a Zoological Museum, just published, describes the celebrated creature's demise. The book's author, Dr Martyn Linnie, is the Museum's curator. He tells us that Burkitt did not realise at the time just how valuable this now priceless exhibit would become. His nose was out of joint so, to bury the hatchet, the College awarded him an annual 'Great Auk Pension' of £50 — a considerable sum at the time. Such colourful asides make this a lively and fascinating book. The sign for the Tetrapod Trackway on Valentia Island, County Kerry The great auk is the best known of the Museum's 25,000 specimens, but Ireland's main claim to palaeontological fame also features in Dr Linnie's account. Mr James Dickinson of Lancashire Conservation Studios, Preston, works on the preservation of TCD's Great Auk, in 2009. Picture: TCD The creature whose footprints are preserved in 385-million year old rock on Valentia Island, was 'a fish out of water'... one of the earliest land vertebrates. The ancient tetrapod is long extinct but specimens of a lungfish and a salamander, thought to be its oldest living relatives, feature in the Museum's collection. The Japanese giant salamander has the distinction of being the world's largest extant amphibian. Path of tetrapod on Valentia Island, County Kerry, just below and to the right of the seaweed. The tetrapod was a predecessor of mammals and lived 385 million years ago in the Devonian period. Picture: Dan MacCarthy But the museum, established as an aid to zoology students, is no parish-pump operation. All animal life, from the leeches used to treat Napoleon's haemorrhoids to the senseless massacre of the passenger pigeon, one of the world's most numerous birds, features in the book's 40 chapters. Nor is this museum just another memorial graveyard — many of the creatures it displays are alive and well. Some of them have even arisen from the dead... ...One such is the world's most famous fish. In recounting its story, one museum curator celebrates the work of another member of his profession. Drawing by Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer of the strange fish recovered in East London, RSA, on Dec. 22, 1938, part of a letter to J.L.B. Smith, sent the next day, and preserved in the SAIAB, Grahamstown, RSA. Picture: On the morning of July 30, 1938, curator Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer was working in South Africa's natural history museum, when local fishermen brought in a fish, the likes of which neither she, nor they, had ever seen previously. Aged just 24, little did Marjorie know that her glamorous name was about to become known worldwide. The 1.5 metre-long carcass, weighing 55kg, reminded Marjorie of depictions she had seen of pre-historic marine creatures. The local mortuary and food wholesalers refused to deep-freeze the smelly specimen, but she stuck to her guns, leaving no stone unturned until the strange fish's identity had been established. It turned out to be a species of coelacanth — a creature thought of have been extinct for 70 million years. Palaeontologist JLB Smith of Rhodes University named the species Latimeria chalumnae in her honour. I peruse newly-published wildlife and natural history books from time to time. They are mostly rather worthy tomes, some offering new information and fresh insights. However, not all of them are easy to read and ploughing through some of the offerings can be tedious. But there are exceptions. Dr Linnie's history of his museum is one such — beautifully illustrated and full of colourful anecdotes, it is a joy to read. I found it hard to put down. Martyn Linnie. The Unnatural History of Animals — Tales from a Zoological Museum . 2025
Irish Independent
6 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Independent
See photos of Kerry event attended by businessman Denis O'Brien and host of well-known speakers
The prestigious Lecture took place last Thursday and Friday at the historic cable station on the island. It focused on 'Ireland's Place in the World of 2040'. The event is held each year to commemorate the world's first transatlantic cable, which was laid between Valentia Island and Heart's Content in Newfoundland, Canada. The laying of the cable resulted in the first ever message to be transmitted across the ocean in 1858, from Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom to President James Buchanan of the United States of America. This year's edition of the Lecture saw a number of keynote speakers provide a range of perspectives on history, the arts, media, politics, society, technology and business. The speakers included historian Professor Jane Ohlmeyer of Trinity College Dublin, journalist Mick Clifford, Minister of State Michael Healy-Rae, as well as Denis O'Brien. Each of the speakers' presentations were followed by a panel discussion with four of Ireland's 'future leaders', all aged in their 30s - the same age as Cyrus Field when he led the transatlantic cable project in the late 1800s. More than 30 of the future leaders, with expertise in business, politics, academia, media, government, arts and sport, participated in panels. The Irish Ambassador to Canada, John Concannon, also visited the Lecture alongside James Moloney, MP at the House of Commons in Canada. The Canadian Embassy in Dublin was represented at the event by the head of political and public affairs, Mr David Kyffin. A number of Dáil deputies from all over the country and prominent business executives were also in attendance at the event. Kerry Mayor Mike Foley welcomed the guests to Valentia at a gala dinner at the Royal Hotel and Ambassador Concanon delivered a special after-dinner address.
RTÉ News
21-07-2025
- Science
- RTÉ News
Coastal erosion threatening Ireland's ancient forts
Climate change is threatening the remains of hundreds of ancient forts dotted around Ireland's coasts, which are vulnerable to coastal erosion. The Copper Coast in Co Waterford is particularly rich in archaeology. Old mine workings are visible in many places and there are also at least 20 promontory forts, which were built on headlands or promontories. Surrounded by sea cliffs on three sides, the forts were protected by defensive ditches and banks on the landward side. Many were inhabited in medieval times, but it is believed some may date back to the Iron Age and contain evidence of trading links to Britain and further afield. Along the coast is Illaunobrick promontory fort, one of many examples of an archaeological site which has been made inaccessible by coastal erosion. Home to the O'Bric family for centuries, older maps show it used to be connected to the mainland, however coastal erosion has now made it too dangerous to access. Maritime Archaeologist on the Discovery Programme Dr Edward Pollard has recorded and explored many of the forts. Old maps studied by Dr Pollard and his colleagues show that coastal erosion has been changing the outline of the Copper Coast for centuries, something they have also witnessed since they started their own survey work. On a headland above the beach at Annestown, a ditch and bank which protected the Woodstown promontory fort for centuries, shows signs of collapse. Dr Pollard said that from the examination of 19th century maps, there has been at least 25 metres of erosion since about 1840 along the bank. "When the people built it, they used a weakness in the rock to actually build their ditch and build their bank but that is also the weakest part where the erosion is going to happen as well. So we can see that it's gradually being turned into an islet as it is eroded away." Professor Mary Bourke, Professor of Geomorphology at the Department of Geography in Trinity College Dublin, said sea level rise is occurring now and is going "to happen around every single part of the coastline of Ireland". She said everyone understands the concept that sea level rise brings a rise in water levels, but said "that's the water you see. It's also going to change the water that you don't see". She explained that there is "like a wedge of salt water that exists under my feet ... and that's going to expand and move further inland ... (that) will affect the processes that are operating, because it'll wet and weather a lot of the rocks from underneath upwards." Climate change is also expected to bring more extreme weather events, with floods and storms becoming more frequent and intense. "The height of the waves and the energy of the waves may be stronger and they may occur more frequently and together with sea level rise, it means that the area inland that will be affected by these coastal storms will actually increase," Prof Bourke added. She said that while storms and sea level rise undermine coasts, heavy rain is the threat from above. "Rain has a lot of energy, with it. So, it will wet our soft coasts and cause more landslides. And we can see that from the research that we've already done." Catherine Casey, Head of Climate Change at the Heritage Council, said Ireland's built archaeology is "being pummelled by more rain, more storms. Our wildlife, our mature trees, for example, are being threatened by droughts, by wildfires. "But also what we don't always think of is our cultural heritage, if a piece of ground is lost, or God forbid if a community has to move, their stories could be lost, the place names, the folklore, the genealogy in the graveyards." She said it is important to highlight not just what is vulnerable, but also projects which give an example of what can be done "to focus our minds really on where action is needed, to help to focus resources, to identify the highest priorities and to target government, national and local action".
