Dr Rebecca Flemming is Exet University

Dr Rebecca Flemming has been named the first University of Exeter AG Leventis Chair on Ancient Greek Scientific and Technological Thought.

Dr. Flemming is renowned for her world-renowned scholarship on ancient medicine, particularly as it intersects with the social and cultural history of the Greco-Roman world and the topics of women, sexuality and gender.

The AG Leventis Chair in Ancient Greek Scientific and Technological Thought is generously supported by a donation from the AG Leventis Foundation. The start of this position in 2022 marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the successful partnership between the AG Leventis Foundation and the University of Exeter.

This staffed position is part of the Department of Classics and Ancient History in the College of Humanities, a leading international center for the study of all aspects of the ancient world, its reception and its legacy, with a strong tradition of scholarship in ancient medicine and the scientific imagination.

Dr. Flemming will engage in innovative teaching, research and outreach activities. It will strive to communicate the importance of ancient science and technology to a wide and diverse audience, through an innovative public engagement program, aimed at bringing new participants into discussions around ideas and practices. classics.

Dr Flemming is currently a senior lecturer in the Faculty of Classics, University of Cambridge. She said: ‘I am delighted to take on this timely and prestigious position and look forward to fostering new inquiries and conversations in the fields of ancient science and medicine as they include debates about the links between the environment, health and disease, for example, as well as on methods of argument and proof.

Professor Jo Gill, Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean of the College of Humanities, said: “We are delighted to have received this significant philanthropic gift to establish the AG Leventis Professorship in Ancient Greek Scientific and Technological Thought. . There is growing recognition of the need for a major expansion of research into ancient medicine and science, both to improve our understanding of ancient Greek culture itself and to help us address some of the global challenges we face today. By bringing Rebecca to the University of Exeter as the inaugural holder of this chair, we look forward to further developing this important area.

Scientific and technological innovation is a fundamental aspect of ancient Greek culture and its continuing legacy. Developments in philosophy and empirical research have led to important innovations and broader intellectual interest in a range of fields including medicine, astronomy, zoology, botany, physics, ecology , mechanics, engineering and automation. There were major developments in the scientific imagination, with a burgeoning interest in speculative thought about the universe and the beginnings of what we would now recognize as science fiction. The Department of Classics and Ancient History at the University of Exeter has already established a strong reputation in the field, not least through its recently established Center for Knowledge of Culture in Antiquity and Beyond .

Chairman, Anastasios Leventis of the AG Leventis Foundation, said: “Over the past 25 years we have built a successful partnership with the University of Exeter and we are delighted to extend our relationship with the support of this new pulpit. This is an extremely important area of ​​research and teaching and we look forward to following Dr. Flemming’s progress and seeing the impact this work will have.

The ambition of the AG Leventis Foundation is to disseminate Greek cultural heritage in a new and engaging way and to transform the role of the discipline of classics within contemporary society.

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