north carolina
clock | March 2, 2010At North Carolina State University next week:
Seminar: Wednesday, March 10th, 4PM
Dr. Dan Ariely
James B. Duke Professor of Behavioral Economics, Duke University
Who Put the Monkey in the Driver's Seat?
Venue: Room 101 David Clark Laboratories
The NCSU, W. M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology is pleased to sponsor a seminar by a scholar in the field of Behavioral Economics who is also recognized for his ability to communicate the fascinating findings in this field to the public. When we make "decisions" we think that we are in control. Dan Ariely explains some of the hidden forces that…
clock | March 2, 2010Duke's Periodic Tables at the Broad Street Cafe
March 9, 2010 | 7:00 P.M.
Nanomaterials in Ecosystems: Should we worry?
Nanotechnology has the enormous potential to change our society. New advances in medicine, energy production, environmental cleanup and better access to clean water are just a few of the many possibilities. According to the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies, the number of products that use nanomaterials has increased almost 380% since 2006. But, is it the same special properties that make nanoscale materials so useful that also pose potential risks to humans…
clock | March 1, 2010At Morehead Planetarium in Chapel Hill this week:
SCIENCE & ETHICS: AIRPORT SECURITY
Thursday, March 4, 7 p.m.
Michael Zunk,
Federal Security Director, TSA, RDU International Airport
Come hear Mr. Zunk discuss scanning technologies while busting some popular myths on airport security screening.
Cookies and coffee served.
Morehead Banquet Hall, East Entrance, 2nd Floor. Chapel Hill, NC.
clock | February 24, 2010If you are interested in the topic of science journalism, how it's changing, what's new, and who's who in it, you are probably already reading Knight Science Journalism Tracker. If not, you should start now.
They have recently been digging around and finding projects with which I am involved in one way or another. For example, a few days ago, they profiled science blogs in general and scienceblogs.com in particular, but mainly focused on ResearchBlogging.org which aggregates and gives a stamp of approval to blog posts covering peer-reviewed research. The aggregator is a local thing - it is a…
clock | February 13, 2010Last night, braving horrible traffic on the way there, and snow on the way back, I made my way to the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences for the Darwin Day shark lecture co-organized by NESCent and the sneak preview of the Megalodon exhibit which officially opens today.
I have to say that the trip was very much worth making - the exhibit is excellent! I like the way the exhibit is making good use of the space - so many exhibits feel cluttered and an all-out assault on all of one's senses. Upon entering the room, it looks quite sparse. Yet, once I started going around I saw how much it actually…
clock | February 12, 2010This afternoon, I'll be driving down to Raleigh to the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences for the special Darwin Day event organized in collaboration with the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center.
The evening will start with the sneak-peak pre-opening of the Megalodon exhibit which opens to the public tomorrow. Megalodon was the largest shark ever discovered in the fossil record and the exhibit will, apart from its massive jaws, showcase the evolution of sharks, modern sharks and the conservation issues facing these magificient fish today:
At 60 feet long, Carcharodon megalodon was the…
clock | February 9, 2010At Pizza Lunch talks, we hear a lot about efforts to decipher the physical world. But what about psychological realms? How do you measure them, especially on a large scale among people scarred by trauma? At noon on Thursday, Feb. 18, come hear Dr. Jeffrey Sonis discuss "Cambodian Attitudes and Mental Health on the Eve of the Khmer Rouge Trials." The UNC-Chapel Hill physician and public health researcher is studying how Cambodians are responding to the genocide trials.
American Scientist Pizza Lunch is free and open to science journalists and science communicators of all stripes. Feel free to…
clock | February 1, 2010The National Evolutionary Synthesis Center (NESCent) and the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences invite you to a SHARK FRENZY!
"Big, Fast and Bulletproof: What One Biologist Has Learned From 300 Million Years Of Shark Evolution"**
Free lecture by shark expert and "Finding Nemo" technical advisor Dr. Adam Summers,
Assoc. Director of Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington
Friday, February 12^th
6:30 - 7:30 p.m.
N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences
11 W. Jones Street, Downtown Raleigh
Space is limited. Reserve your free ticket now at https://tickets.naturalsciences.org
While you…
clock | January 29, 2010I had a good fortune to hear Dr. Lefkowitz speak once. Great guy. From the press release:
The prestigious BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Biomedicine category goes this year to Robert J. Lefkowitz, MD, James B. Duke Professor of Medicine and Biochemistry and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) investigator at Duke University Medical Center.
This is only the second year the award has been given.
Dr. Lefkowitz's research has affected millions of cardiac and other patients worldwide. Lefkowitz proved the existence of, isolated, characterized and still studies G-protein-…
clock | January 28, 2010On Tuesday I went to the monthly pizza lunch at Sigma Xi, featuring a guest lecture by Dr. David B. Eggleston, Professor of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Science at North Carolina State University and the Director of Center for Marine Sciences and Technology (CMAST).
I posted a brief summary of the talk on the Science In The Triangle blog.
clock | January 24, 2010Our first 2010 American Scientist pizza lunch is scheduled for noon, Tuesday, Jan. 26. at Sigma Xi in Research Triangle Park. No doubt you've heard about the many forces degrading coastlines. This time we'll hear from someone intimately involved with the challenges of conserving and restoring North Carolina coastal ecosystems, especially oyster reefs. That would be David Eggelston, a marine biologist and director of the Center for Marine Science and Technology at N.C. State University.
American Scientist Pizza Lunch is free and open to science journalists and science communicators of all…
clock | December 17, 2009Although I've known Craig McClain for a few years now, both online and offline, I only had some vague ideas about what kind of research he is doing. I knew it has something to do with the Deep Sea and with the evolution of body size, but I did not know the details. So, when the opportunity arose to hear him give a talk summarizing his work, I jumped to it and went to see him on Tuesday at Sigma Xi as a part of their pizza lunch series.
First I have to say that Craig is a great speaker (if you are looking for one for a seminar series, this is useful information for you) - it was fun and very…
clock | December 14, 2009Please join us on NC State's Centennial Campus on Wednesday, Dec. 16, from 6 to 8 p.m. for two special speakers.
Our "seasonal" speaker is Dr. Larry Silverberg (aka Dr. Silverbell), NC State professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering and world-renowned expert on the "Science of Santa." Dr. Silverbell will present his latest research on the advanced material properties of Santa's sleigh and review previous research on toy delivery and time travel.
Continuing with the theme that science and engineering can be fun and educational, Dr. Laura Bottomley, electrical engineer and director of…
clock | December 14, 2009Next Sigma Xi pizza lunch science talk:
Pizza lunch returns at noon, Tuesday, Dec. 15 with a talk by marine biologist Craig R. McClain, assistant director of science for the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center in Durham. McClain conducts deep-sea research and has participated in expeditions to the Antarctic and to remote regions of the Pacific and Atlantic. Expect him to dive into puzzling realms with his talk: An Empire Lacking Food: The Astonishing Existence of Life on the Deep Sea Floor.
American Scientist Pizza Lunch is free and open to science journalists and science communicators of…
grrlscientist | December 11, 2009tags: Hickory, North Carolina, street map, city planning, comedy, humor, fucking hilarious
Image: Google Maps [larger view].
This is the Google street map for Hickory, North Carolina. Take a close look at this map and then tell me that the city planner wasn't high on some seriously mind-altering drugs. I'll bet this city requires a PhD for its pizza delivery people and postal workers, and no formal education at all from its city planners (courtesy of my friends at Reddit).
clock | December 1, 2009You can follow the event virtually in Second Life - just click here and teleport.
clock | November 30, 2009TECHIE TUESDAY
"Celebration of Life"
Research Triangle Global Health Excellence & World AIDS Day
Date: December 1, 2009Time: 4:30 pm to 7:30 pmLocation: RTP Headquarters - 12 Davis DriveCatering By: Nantucket Café & Neomonde
Did you know the Triangle region is a center of excellence in global health?
Help celebrate World AIDS Day and find out how RTP companies and stakeholders are making an impact on HIV/AIDS and other important global health concerns.
Global health organizations in the Park are helping people live longer, more productive lives by working to address HIV/AIDS and…
clock | November 24, 2009Last couple of weeks months were awfully busy, on many fronts, not least finalizing the ScienceOnline2010 program, herding cats almost 100 moderators/presenters to do various stuff (e.g., respond to my e-mails) in a timely manner, and making sure that registration goes smoothly. This is also the time of year when activation energy for doing anything except going to bed to hide under the covers is very high for people suffering from SAD. Thus, you did not see many 'original' posts here lately, I know.
But, it's not that I have been totally idle. Apart from teaching my BIO101 lab again, I also…
clock | November 20, 2009The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences hosts the final offering of its Charles Darwin Lecture Series on Tuesday, November 24 -- the 150th anniversary of Darwin's landmark publication of "The Origin of Species." Join Museum paleontologist and science historian Paul Brinkman for a free presentation titled "Charles Darwin's Beagle Voyage and the Origin of 'The Origin.'"
Dr. Brinkman completed his PhD in History of Science at the University of Minnesota with research in the history of 19th-century natural sciences, especially geology and paleontology. He has published a number of articles…
clock | November 18, 2009NESCent and SCONC:
What: November SCONC-fest
When: Thursday November 19th , 6-8pm
Where: National Evolutionary Synthesis Center in Durham
Please join us to commemorate Charles Darwin's 200th birthday and the 150th anniversary of "The Origin of Species."
Learn about the wild world of Ice Age carnivores, brainy birds, and other creatures Darwin missed. Our tour guides will be four postdocs on the frontiers of biology.
We'll begin at 6pm at the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center in Durham. Parking is free.
National Evolutionary Synthesis Center (NESCent)
2024 W. Main Street, Suite A200…