Liba Taub from the Whipple Museum at the University of Cambridge delivered the Society's 2010 Annual Invitation Lecture held for the tenth year running at Antiquaries Hall, part of the Burlington House complex, on the subject of 'Collecting Challenges for the Future'. What instruments should (or indeed can) a museum, even one of the larger ones, collect for the future when stores are already full? The speaker pointed out that scientific instruments may bring further challenges with them, for instance if an object is contaminated with radioactivity. A large audience, swelled by some of Dr Taub's Cambridge students, listened intently to one of the best annual lectures in years, profusely illustrated with photographs of instruments (some small and some very large) from the Whipple Museum's collection including a 19th century fume cupboard from the all-womens Newnham College chemistry laboratory...they were not allowed to use the lab facilities in the men's colleges.

Part of the lecture tied in very nicely with the Society's trip to the University of Cambridge's radio astronomy dishes after the AGM last July. The problems of representing their history was brought out in the discussion of the Jodrell Bank telescopes - a 1966 dish may be protected by planning restrictions, but the original 1940s hut which was swept away to build it survives only as a black and white photograph. Bringing her lecture right up to date Dr Taub even read out some emails she had received the day before by way of demonstrating the scale and scope of the offers that the museum receives on a weekly basis. There were plenty of questions put to the speaker including a suggestion that science museums maybe concentrate too much on material that illustrates the scientific investigative approach and not enough about the products of science...although ironically the oldest items in most science collections are precisely that latter thing, such as the grand orreries from stately homes. 

Afterwards our Chairman was delighted to present Dr Taub with the Society's Medal and the usual high quality buffet was enjoyed by those who had pre-booked and a handful of special guests of the Society. We were also delighted that our President Paolo Brenni was able to attend thus year and he gave short speech before the lecture encouraging members and their guests to continue supporting the Society which has grown into a flourishing concern from such small beginnings.