Contemporary Society and Contemporary Religion
The Christ Church Thinktank has been in existence for over 10 years. It draws on speakers from all the churches in the Lewes area. Our speakers provide their services without charge, so our meetings are free and open to all. Whether you go to church or not, join us whenever the topic interests you.
Our meetings are usually held in the church and are also available via Zoom. The format is 45 minutes talk and 45 minutes discussion and our average attendance is about 30. All meetings are from 7.30 pm to 9 pm.
If you would like to attend any of our meetings by Zoom, please email the Church Secretary for further details.
Meeting on Wednesday 15 May at 7.30 pm
Dr Alan Gunn will be speaking on
"Malaria: a febrile past and an uncertain future "
Alan graduated from Bangor University with a degree in applied zoology and a doctorate on tapeworm biochemistry. After a few years at the University of Reading, he worked for 30 years at Liverpool John Moores University and retired in 2023. Together with his wife Sarah Pitt, he published a successful textbook on Parasitology, now in its second edition, and was the sole author of another on Essential Forensic Biology, now in its third edition. His presentation will introduce parasitology to a non-specialised audience by discussion of malaria, the infectious disease spread by mosquitos. He will show how it has influenced world history from antiquity to the present day, why the disease is so difficult to treat and control, and why it has taken so long to develop a vaccine. He will consider the apparent paradox that humans despair about the extinction of some species but fervently work for the extinction of others. With the drainage of swamps in the warmer parts of Europe and the UK, malaria has been largely eradicated, but some experts argue that, with global warming, the possibility that the disease may return must be taken seriously.