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!
Meet Our Speakers:
Faster-than-Light Travel in Science Fiction
Erin Macdonald
PhD, Astrophysics & “Star Trek” Science Advisor
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.
Join us for another exciting episode of Nerd Nite Fort Collins at Wolverine Farm Public House! Doors open at 6:30pm. Speakers commence at 7:00pm.
Don’t forget to get your loyalty card stamped or pick one up at reception. Then mingle with the nerd nite crew, guests and speakers who are always talking about something interesting like the easter eggs hidden in the loyalty card.
We have two exciting speakers lined up this month:
From Wings to Wine — The journey from an Air Force Pilot to Blanchard Family Wines James Blanchard, Blanchard Family Wines From helicopters to horticulture, combat to Cabernet; how one pilot’s experience of flying missions over the vineyards in California led him to start his own winery. Explore the differences between the Colorado and California wine industries and how lessons in building military organizations translated to the world of wine.
Mental Health Tech from Teletherapy to AI: Progress, Challenges, and Opportunities John Jurica Ph.D. Licensed Psychologist From the rise of teletherapy, to adaptive wellness apps, tech has come a long way in promoting mental health. Come join a lively presentation about mental health tech improvements, the challenges they bring, and opportunities to improve outcomes, most notably AI.
Join us for the first Nerd Nite Fort Collins event of 2024, at Wolverine Farm Public House! Doors open at 6:30pm. Speakers commence at 7:00pm.
The new year brings lots of exciting stuff. We have lowered our pricing, you can now enjoy an evening full of nerdery for only $8 ($4 for students)! Moreover, we will be kicking off our Nerd Nite Loyalty Program this month – get a punch card when you arrive and for every 3 Nerd Nites you attend, you get a free drink! Finally, check out our brand-new logo with Horsetooth at the center stage.
We have two exciting speakers lined up this month:
The H in Computer Science stands for Human Lucas Plabst, PhD student, Natural User Interaction Lab, CSU Have you ever wondered why it takes 10 steps to cancel that trial subscription you got? Why there always seem to be 10 Download buttons but only one works? User interfaces have far too long ignored the key player: The User! Come learn about the field of human computer interaction and hear about some close calls we had just because of bad software.
Unraveling the Art of AI-Generated Crochet Patterns Charlotte Connolly, PhD student, Department of Atmospheric Science, CSU Over the past year, algorithms like chatGPT, Craiyon, and WOMBO have made AI more accessible and as a result raised concern about the future role of humans in creative work. Join us as we use the art of crochet to explore ChatGPT’s true ability to create, unraveling the secrets, strengths, and weaknesses of its ability to imagine and innovate.
We wish you happy holidays and a nerdy new year! We are taking a break in December, but we will be back in 2024 to bring you much more nerdery, every third Thursday of the month! We have lots of interesting talks lined up, from AI crochet, over hurricanes, to more beer!
In the meantime, please sign up for our newsletter to keep up to date with our latest events!
