We’re excited to once again be sponsoring the IoP Winter Lecture Series in Edinburgh.

Join us on Tuesday 9th December for this talk by Dr Graham D Bruce from the University of St Andrews.

By measuring the light scattered by everyday objects, we can uncover hidden details about their composition, and assess whether they are safe to consume, use, or even touch. In this talk, we’ll explore how spectroscopic sensing is helping tackle three different challenges.

First, we’ll look at how whisky and other alcoholic drinks can be authenticated through sealed packaging, addressing a counterfeiting problem that costs EU governments an estimated €1.2 billion annually in lost revenue.

Next, we’ll travel to Ghana, where we’re using portable spectroscopy to detect substandard and falsified medicines, an issue affecting 10.5% of pharmaceuticals in low- and middle-income countries, and up to 80% in parts of West Africa.

Finally, we’ll delve into the world of Victorian bookbinding, where vivid green book covers can be revealed to contain toxic pigments. Hundreds of thousands of these books have been withdrawn from public access as a precaution, but now our efforts have created an instrument to screen these books and return non-toxic ones to circulation.

Through these examples, we’ll see how light-based sensing techniques can illuminate hidden risks and help protect public health, heritage, and consumer trust