Thirsty for a good conversation in a comfortable atmosphere? Do you have questions you would like to ask a scientist or would you just like to sit back, relax and learn something new about the world? Come to a Science Pub for an open, thought-provoking, easy-to-understand discussion.
Based on the Science Cafe model developed in Europe in the 1990s, Science Pubs at Salt hill bring scientists and the public together for informal discussion around topics relevant to your world. A Science Pub is not a lecture but is a good conversation. Enjoy your refreshments or dinner while engaging with your community and local scientists and experts.
These public events are open to all and are held at the Salt hill Pub, 2 W. Park St., Lebanon, NH from 5:30-7:30 pm. The 2012-13 Science Pub season will begin in September and we will meet the third Thursday of most months through May.
Brought to you by Dartmouth College Office of Science and Technology Outreach and Salt hill Pub, Lebanon, with support from NASA.
More Science Cafes in NH and VT: NH Seacoast Science Cafe, Portsmouth, NH, Science Cafe NH, Nashua, NH, Cafe Scientifique, Burlington VT
For More Information about Science Cafes visit: Sciencecafes.org
Since the 15th century, finding a northwest passage linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans was a romantic and heroic quest for maritime explorers. But the formidable barrier of sea ice pushed into the ocean from the Greenland Ice Sheet closed the passage off for much of the year. In recent years, the shrinking of the icepack in the Arctic is opening the Northwest Passage for the longest periods on record, creating new opportunities for commercial navigation. However, other effects of climate warming in the region are of great concern to scientists and inhabitants of the Arctic, with widespread political, economic and environmental consequences for people all over the globe. How do geological records of past glacial advance and retreat help us understand changes we see today? How can we untangle the signal of human activities associated with warming from the noise of natural variation? Where and when will the effects of climate warming in the Arctic be observed in our region? What are the political consequences of the opening of the Northwest Passage? Bring your curiosity and questions to this timely conversation.
Discussion Leaders: Meredith Kelly, Assistant Professor of Earth Sciences; Dartmouth, Ross Virginia, Meyers Family Professor of Environmental Science and Director, Institute of Arctic Studies, Dartmouth; Laura Levy, Ph.D. candidate, IGERT Polar Environmental Change Fellow, Department of Earth Sciences, Dartmouth.
Some would argue that memory makes us who we are. Certainly our memories of people, places and procedures help us navigate daily life, and memories of past experience provide meaning and context to the present. But why do some memories elude recall while others persist? What can we do to improve our memory? Are there ways to help erase traumatic memories we would rather not revisit? New research is finding answers to both of those questions and, surprisingly, the story of memories lost and memories impossible to forget involves the stress response. Do you have other questions about memory? This is your turn to ask!
Discussion Leaders: David Bucci, Associate Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Dartmouth, and Matt Friedman, Professor of Psychiatry and Pharmacology & Toxicology at Dartmouth's Geisel School of Medicine and Deputy Director of the National Center for PTSD at the VA Medical Center in White River Junction, VT.
Imagine an alien invasion of New England, requiring every maple tree to be cut down, town by town. Science fiction? Not at all, as residents of Worcester, Massachusetts can tell you. In 2008, a wood-boring beetle with a taste for hardwood rapidly infested maple trees there requiring 29,000 trees in the city to be cut down in an effort to stem the spread. Scientists warn that the Upper Valley is vulnerable to a similar fate, with devastating consequences for fall foliage, maple syrup, our lush green landscape and the economy of New England.Why is this happening? What can we do? Come join us for a lively discussion about the science of invasive insects and strategies for protecting our forests.
Discussion Leaders: Matt Ayres, Professor of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth, Rhonda Mace, Forest Pest Outreach Coordinator, Vermont Agency of Agriculture
Discussion Leaders: Ryan Hickox, Observational Astrophysicist, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Dartmouth College; Jenny Greene, Astrophysicist, Princeton University
Article about Black Holes and the Growth of Galaxies by Ryan Hickox ; Article on Black Holes by Jenny E. Greene
It's a tempting proposition for an athlete: To increase your stamina and strength, to build muscles faster than workouts alone, just take a pill! That's the promise of anabolic steroids, synthetic hormones that give athletes a competitive edge. But along with those benefits come some serious risks: infertility, behavioral changes, and cancer. There are particularly concerning effects on adolescents. Steroid use has been banned by most major athletic associations, yet news accounts of "doping" continue to appear. Should kids and adults be "allowed" to play by different rules when it comes to taking steroids? As parents, are we unwittingly sending messages to our children that make steroids more appealing? What roles do school coaches and team members play?
Discussion Leaders: Leslie Henderson, Professor of Physiology and Neurobiology at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Mike Jackson, Athletic Director, Hanover High School, and Don Mahler, Sports Editor, The Valley News
Related Articles on Steroids and Adolescents : Article in Pediatrics ; Steroids and Adolescent Girls ; Steroids and Adolescent Boys; Anabolic steroid use by male and female middle school students ; Female Teen Steroid Use Not Limited To Athletes
Declining numbers of bees and other pollinators are raising concerns among scientists and farmers: could decreased pollination affect the world's food supplies? Researchers have been investigating factors affecting bee populations: pesticide use, habitat loss, disease and — most recently — a climate-change driven mismatch between the times when flowers open and when bees emerge from hibernation. What is the difference between native bees and managed honeybees? Why is the health of both important to the diversity of our landscape and local food crops? This is your turn to ask!
Discussion Leaders: Dr. Rebecca Irwin, Ecologist, Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Zak Gezon, PhD Candidate, Dept of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Dartmouth College, Troy Hall, Full-time Beekeeper, Breeder, and President of the Kearsarge Beekeepers Association
Pollinator Links of Interest: The Kearsarge Beekeepers Association ; Knox Cellars Mason Bee House Company ;The specific box Zak recommends as a gift; Discover Life.org-Bees and Citizen Science ;The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation ; Information on pollinators and pesticides
There is good evidence that most of us have a skewed understanding of who scientists are and what they do. The stereotype: a white male with glasses and wild hair wearing a lab coat, bubbling test tube in hand. What are the consequences of this cultural stereotype – and what is the reality? Are scientists super-smart experts on all things science? Do they work alone in those labs? How has the practice of science changed over time? Exactly what do scientists do all day? This is your turn to ask!
Discussion leaders: Robert Hawley, Glaciologist, Department of Earth Sciences, Dartmouth College, Zoe Courville, Research Engineer, Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL), and Richard Kremer, Historian, Department of History, Dartmouth College.
