In Egyptian mythology Isis is the goddess of fertility and motherhood. Her presence in ISI-S is therefore to help create a nurturing environment conducive to the birth of ideas. Ancient stories describe Isis as having great magical skill, and although said to be human in form, was often depicted wearing the horns of a cow. Her personality is believed to resemble that of Athor, the goddess of love and gaiety.

The Thames, England’s principal river, flows 210 miles eastward across the south through London to reach the North Sea. The city of Oxford, once a trading town and frontier fort, now with its population of 113,847 is host to some of the finest academic minds in the world. When these two meet, the Thames becomes the Isis (after the Roman Tamesis), and overlooked by the dreaming spires of Oxford, passes through land that has been devoted to agriculture for centuries. Where boats can row, ideas flow; where searches mind, great secrets find; together priceless ... ISI-S.