Science panelist Sykes names favourite books

Kathy Sykes, who sits on a U.K. judging panel for a competition to find new faces of science, shares her favourite books, films, music, magazines, etc. in "My media" for the Guardian. In her section about favourite books, Sykes includes, "I have read and re-read Thomas Moore's Care of the Soul, and more recently, The Soul's Religion. Their insight and wisdom have helped me to live better, I think."

Her favourite films? Sykes responds, "I spent three years teaching in rural Zimbabwe, with little access to any screens; there were no televisions in the bush, and on forays to town, I rarely got to see films. This made me lousy at handling violence in film. It still shocks me, and I even avoid great films if necessary. I've loved everything I've seen by Stephen Poliakoff: his pace, and astute observations of the world and human beings."