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Reflections on previous Talking Points

Conrad Cohen, a pupil in S6, made notes on some of the lectures in 2008-2009:

27 February - DCS John Carnachan, Head of the Violence Reduction Unit for Central Scotland

DCS made it very clear that he and his unit do not deal simply with violent crime, but with violence on the whole, and stressed that it was thusly everyone's issue, not just for those who live in more 'dangerous' areas of Glasgow. According to the DCS, the prevention of violence altogether is the key issue. The average homicide rate per 100,000 people is 1 in England and Wales, whereas in Scotland it's at just over 3, and at just over 5 for Scottish males aged 10-29. In some areas in Glasgow, murder is in fact the highest cause of death in young males. The volume of murders costs the Scottish taxpayers up to £517 million pounds a year, which includes policemen, lawyers, court officials and many others. The DCS then went on to talk about alcohol and gangs in both East Glasgow and in Glasgow as a whole, explaining that alcohol comes leaps and bounds before any illegal drugs in the cause of violence. So to sum up, the DCS's talk on violence in Glasgow was both considerably informative and enjoyable for both staff and pupils.

6 February - Nicola Sturgeon, MSP and Depute Leader of the SNP

Nicola was asked about almost every political issue under the sun, from Europe to the Middle East, and from the economy to the issue of fat, lazy people not being bothered to vote. Despite dodging a few questions on the issue of Scottish independence, and having to answer some gruelling questions courtesy of our own Head Boy, this talk was received very well by staff and from Hutchie's own future voters.

6 March - Lord McGowan Memorial Lecture - Tom Thomson OBE- 'The World of News'

Mr Thomson showed how the traditional tiers of the media, particularly the newspaper industry, are drastically changing due to the internet. The circulation of newspapers is decreasing greatly, which in turn causes a fall in the number of adverts which continues as a downward spiral as papers are finding it harder and harder to make money from advertising. The reasons: we get our news in so many other ways, such as the internet or from the television. The economic climate has been affected by the slowdown in the property and car industries leading to a reduction in advertising from those industries. Competition from businesses who don't need to turn profits- such as the BBC (TV licenses) and the Guardian (Scott Trust) - poses another threat. Mr Thomson finished by asserting there still is a future for the media industry through new technologies which could allow people to view newspapers online for the 'price' of looking at some adverts.

13 March - Sir Alexander Stone Memorial Lecture - Philip Rodney - 'Leading a Professional Services Firm'

Philip Rodney, chairman of the law firm Burness LLP, delivered this year's esteemed Sir Alexander Stone Memorial Lecture on the subject of "Leading a Professional Services Firm". This talk gave the audience an n insight into how leadership is one of the most important qualities in the successful running of a modern day business, especially in such a volatile and tense economic climate

27 March - Martin Taylor, Hypnotism without Hypnosis

Very entertaining! Martin Taylor explained that hypnosis does not exist - what actually happens is the illusion of a trance is created.

This is done using three things: suggestion, peer pressure and obedience. Suggestion is the practice of putting an idea or image into someone's head. Mr Taylor conveyed this by telling the audience not to swallow, and then vividly describing saliva. We all felt our mouths becoming wetter as the saliva consciously built up. Social pressure exists especially on stage, surrounded by peers and not wanting to 'let the side down'. When you are surrounded by friends, you subconsciously wish to do the same. The third technique - obedience - exists on an even deeper level; we have all grown up doing what we have been told to do, by our friends, family and colleagues. And we usually listen and obey because, usually, that has good results.

Martin Taylor explained that will has much to do with what he does. He makes his 'volunteers' want to do what he tells them so much that they simply do. He compared it to waking up and not wanting to get out of bed; there is nothing physically stopping someone from getting out of bed, but the psychological will to stay in bed is (very often) far too great. Pupils were subjected to some fantastic arrays of 'non hypnosis', including laughing at a maths textbook, not being able to separate their hands, tasting their favourite drink when they drank water and everyone's favourite: seeing a large elephant waddle into the auditorium.