Global warming is “Simple, Serious, and Solvable”, but denial of the science is still rampant in the US. To exacerbate the general distrust of scientists in certain groups, a vocal minority of pseudo-experts regularly broadcast their half-baked ideas to cast doubt and downplay the seriousness of the problem. These ideas span a wide range from conspiracies about greedy, corrupt scientists to alternative, factless theories of climate system processes, or complete denial of the basic physical mechanisms that have been understood for a century. I’ll discuss this landscape and talk about my experience as a climate scientist trying to find common ground with various types of deniers, as well as my feeble attempts to combat misinformation. I’ll also touch on research exploring how people can become entrenched in climate science denial.
Ozempic: Miracle Drug or Too Good to be True?
Amber Bartlett, PharmD, BCPS
Have you been hearing about or know anyone taking this novel weight loss drug? Curious about all the hype? Wonder about the short-term and long-term effects? I’m here to help dispute any medical misinformation (which could be an entire topic in itself) and explain the drug’s effects and safety profile in detail.
Mastering Chaos: A Spooky Intro to Predicting the Future
Senne Van Loon
The Earth system is chaotic. In theory, the flap of a butterfly’s wings could set off a tornado on the other side of the world, but could just as easily stop a tornado from forming. This makes it difficult to make predictions, and yet we are able to make decent weather forecasts, at least on the timescale of a couple of days. All of this is possible due to a meticulous combination of physical model predictions and observations, a technique called “data assimilation”. We will elucidate the basics of this technique and investigate if, with it, it is possible to become Masters of Chaos.
Why I Love Math from a Guy Who Hates Numbers
Scott Sieke
I never liked math in school, yet I’ve come to consider it one of the most interesting and creative fields of human achievement. I’ll share some hands-on examples of math that don’t require any specific background to appreciate. You’ll learn how to create your very own photo-graph (in Excel), as well as learn about infinities of different sizes, geometry in shapes and tiling, and finally, I’ll share some of the most beautiful equations in all of mathematics—the shortest ones with the fewest numbers.
Hypersonics: The science behind going really f&%*ing fast and how we got there
Sean Zeeck
A deep dive on the world of hypersonics and its effect on aerospace. From learning about its existence, learning how to make things go that fast, and its current state in the industry. Some insight into how the media portrays things (like Maverick ejecting at Mach 10 somehow) and some current items in the headlines like the heatshield for the Artemis program to some less exciting things like the latest missile race.
Chasing Tornadoes: The Science, The Process, and The Fanatics
Ben Toms
“Ever wanted to risk it all and drive in front of one of the most powerful storms on Earth? Cool, you’re just like me and thousands of other insane people across the world! If not, congratulations, you’re sane.
So, how do people chase tornadoes? Why do they chase tornadoes? I’ll be talking about the scientific basis for forecasting when and where tornadoes will happen, all the way down to how people position themselves the day of an event and how they get as close as they possibly can to one of the most powerful phenomena on Earth.”
Are you ready to dive into a world of intriguing talks, engaging games, and a whole lot of nerdy fun? Join us at Nerd Nite for an unforgettable evening! Whether you’re a seasoned Nerd Nite attendee or a first-timer, this event promises something special for everyone.
What to Expect:
Three Captivating Talks: Each talk lasts between 20-30 minutes, covering topics that will spark your curiosity and ignite your imagination.
Games and Fun Activities: Between the talks, enjoy a variety of games and activities designed to entertain and challenge your inner nerd. Plus, the Cosmic Cowboys will be at the show with telescopes to help you explore the night sky!
Pre-Game for Comic Con: Our first two speakers are also presenting at Comic Con Fort Collins, happening the weekend following Nerd Nite. Get an exclusive deep dive from these amazing speakers before the big event!
A “five year mission” to boldly explore nearby star systems won’t be as fun if we can’t figure out how to travel faster than light! In this talk, Erin will walk through the scientific rules for traveling in our universe and how we can break them! We’ll explore wormholes, hyperdrives, jump gates, and of course warp drives, talking about the science of each of them and the possibilities for the future.
To Seek Out New Life: The Astrobiology of Star Trek Michael Wong NASA Sagan Postdoctoral Fellow, Carnegie Science’s Earth & Planets Laboratory Ever wished you could “explore strange new worlds” and “seek out new life and new civilizations”? No need to wait until the 23rd century—scientists are using fantastic new telescopes, daring space vehicles, and cutting-edge technology to scan for signs of life in the universe today! Together, we’ll boldly go where no Nerd Nite has gone before and examine the real astrobiology behind Star Trek!
The Sounds of Star Wars Jim Shima Technical Fellow, BAE Systems
Jim will talk about the iconic sound design from the classic Star Wars trilogy. We’ll go over how many of the sounds were created by legendary sound designer Ben Burtt—using archival footage and actual discussions with Ben. This talk includes an introduction into the actual methods, original recordings, and even a recreation of some of the popular effects.
Don’t miss this chance to geek out with fellow enthusiasts, learn something new, and have a fantastic time! Mark your calendars and join us for an evening of nerdy delight at Nerd Nite!
Dosimetry in a FLASH: the future of radiotherapy?!
Verdi Vanreusel
PhD candidate, AReRO, University of Antwerp
Flash radiotherapy is a technique that might revolutionise the way cancer is treated. It uses ultra-high dose rates to achieve a strong reduction in the adverse effects associated with radiotherapy. However, these dose rates lead to saturation of the dosimeters used for the quality assurance of conventional radiotherapy treatments. In this talk alternative approaches are presented that can guide the clinical implementation of this promising treatment strategy.
Climate Change: It’s Real, It’s Serious, It’s Us and there’s (significant) Hope. But how do we know this for sure?
Tony Mitchell & Jim Hand
Citizens Climate Education and GoElectricColorado
That the Climate of our planet Earth has always been changing is a truism, although it has been relatively stable globally for the past 8,000 years or so. But the latest rapid rate of Climate Change is being caused by the unintended consequences of the industrial revolution, with the rapid rise in demand for energy provided by fossil fuels. The Greenhouse Gases emitted are warming the planet and causing harm in many ways including sea level rise, increased frequency of severe weather events and a rapid rise in life form extinctions. The scientific evidence is unequivocal, we are the cause. The good news is, since we are the cause we have the ability to fix it. This interactive session will take the audience through the evidence and then explore the extraordinary progress that is being made in enabling an energy transition to a carbon free, sustainable future.
The human brain has a remarkable ability to find patterns in data. Assessing the validity of those patterns is a more nuanced skill, and I’m here to help! While Nerd Niters are generally a skeptical bunch and not prone to over-attribution bias, understanding how your brain finds patterns is valuable for understanding our survival as a species and – maybe – for making everday life a little more sensical.
Vegan Mythbusting
Jessica Runchey
Vegan cook and author of Sauté Queen
What about protein? B12? Carnivore bros? Join Jessica Runchey as she busts common myths about veganism, defines what it truly is, and shares the real challenges. With six years of cooking experience and three years
as a vegan, Jessica runs the popular blog Saute Queen, featuring 54 delicious vegan recipes. Her passion for plant-based nutrition makes her the perfect guide for this enlightening talk. Don’t miss it!
Upstairs Doors open at 6:30pm. Speakers commence at 7:00pm.
Don’t forget your Loyalty Libations card to get another stamp toward a free drink!
We have two exciting speakers lined up this month:
Of Mice & Machines: convergence & divergence between modern neuroscience & AIJordan Sorokin, Ph.D; Staff Data Scientist- Computational Biology at Recursion
In this talk I will walk through some discoveries in modern neuroscience on how our brain processes & interprets information, and share how these findings have inspired modern machine learning methods. I will highlight both surprising commonalities between these two very different fields, but also where “brain-inspired” methods break down. I hope to share with the audience the true impressiveness of the human brain and the beauty of how very different fields can work symbiotically to solve very challenging problems.
What’s in your head? How glia, neuroimmunity, and the blood brain barrier control brain healthKendra Lechtenberg,Ph.D;Program Manager at The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer
You probably know that a network of cells called neurons shape your thoughts and actions, but only about half of the cells in your brain are neurons, so what are the other 50% up to? These cells — called “glia” — are responsible for everything from brain development, speeding up brain signals, and keeping the brain healthy. Learn about the wonders of glia, how the brain isn’t as “immune-privileged” as you might think, and why all of this matters for diseases like Alzheimer’s.
Join the Nerd Nite Fort Collins team as we explore The Fort Collins Creator Hub! We’re having this free event because we are so impressed with all the fun and useful projects nerds can and do complete at this nexus of creative people. During this event we will hear from the leadership of the Hub, tell you about some upcoming events and hear from some makers about their projects.
We will finish the evening at Equinox where we welcome fellow builders, tinkerers and nerds for a drink and to think about what we may design and build next.
Join Nerd Nite Fort Collins at The Wolverine Farm Public House for a special ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY show! We have two amazing speakers lined up for a unique multi-media episode! Stay tuned for updates via our newsletter!
The Art of the Process Robert Klose, artist/owner Robert Klose Laser Art Explore the complete artistic process of creating art, from the initial concept, through design and fabrication, to final installation and projection mapping. Join us for a discussion on the creative journey, with the opportunity to view and interact with a selection of showcased artworks.
Hector Berlioz was a Visionary Composerand also a Creepy Stalker Matt Browne, Composer Composers and songwriters have been writing music to woo love interests since the early ages of humanity. What a lot of them don’t do is compose massive, ambitious, and groundbreaking symphonies for said love interest after never having met them (nor even speaking the same language). Symphonies which depict a tragic and bizarre story involving love at first sight, jealousy, obsessiveness, spurned love, opium-induced trips, and monster orgies. Well, Hector Berlioz did.
*The Canonical Art Corporation will unveil acollaborative project that mixes visual art with music in a way vinyl lovers appreciate.* Visit https://thecanonicalart.com/audiofile to stay informed!
*** Please note this SPECIAL EPISODE will be held at The Lyric with talks starting at 6:30***
Join the fun with Nerd Nite Fort Collins as we learn about the people, arts, science and history of beer as told by luminaries in the brewing community. Want to drink while you think about beer? You are in luck! Frezi & Peter Bouckaert (Purpose Brewing), are making special Amber Ales & other former recipes, available this night only! Come early to grab a beer and get ready to hear from our panel of amazing beer nerds! BE THERE AND BE SQUARE!
Fat Tire Amber Ale, since 1985 Jeff Lebesch, Founder, New Belgium Brewing company Jeff Lebesch, founder of New Belgium Brewing Company and the creator of Fat Tire Amber Ale, talks about his cycling adventures in the 1980’s, the origins of Fat Tire, and the events that led to the start of New Belgium.
Beer Delights: Looking at beer through history and geography Frezi Bouckaert, Purpose Brewing & Cellars A beer is great as/in/with food. Recently, a lot of books have been coming out about food & beer pairing. But, if you think about it, this is what people have been doing for the longest time. So let’s look at some history of beer, some taste & flavor evaluation of beer, and some ideas for our next meal/beer.
Music of the sphBeers: The intersection of Art, Science, and The Fungal Overlords Jeff Biegert, Brewing and fermentation scientist, CSU I have been brewing beer professionally for over 30 years and have been teaching brewing and fermentation science at Colorado State University for over 10 years. When people ask about my background they are always surprised that I have a Music Degree, and not something expected such as a degree in microbiology, chemistry, engineering, or even food science. When considering these reactions, I may ask myself, “Well, how did I get here?”. Let’s dive into the rabbit hole and explore the intersection of music and beer, the science of fermentation, and come to terms with our place in the universe.
