Science on Tap

Thursday, November 6th, 2014
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Chama River Brewing Company

4939 Pan American Freeway

505 342.1800

www.chamariverbrewery.com

 Featuring:

Dr Peter Vorobieff

From ripples and spills to supernovae

Peter Vorobieff has an M.S. degree in applied mathematics from Moscow University (Russia, not Idaho) and a Ph.D. degree in mechanical engineering from Lehigh University (Pennsylvania). Before joining the ranks of the academia at The University of New Mexico, he has worked in a variety of places - from Russian Association of Space Explorers to Los Alamos National Laboratory (not to mention odd jobs as a news photographer, newspaper columnist, construction worker, etc.).

His primary research interests lie in the area of fundamental hydrodynamic instability studies, renewable energy, and advanced experimental techniques. He also serves as Associate Editor of ASME Journal of Fluids Engineering.

Coming up in December 4th, 2014;

Dr Rob Miller & Victoria Hansen -
Bringing up baby: the immunology of pregnancy

Science on Tap

Thursday, October 2nd, 2014
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Chama River Brewing Company

4939 Pan American Freeway

505 342.1800

www.chamariverbrewery.com

 Featuring:

Dr Ganesh Balakrishnan

THERMO PHOTOVOLTAIC CELLS: GENERATING ENERGY IN PLACES WHERE THE SUN DOESN’T SHINE

Thermo photovoltaic (TPV) cells have significant potential in efficiently converting thermal energy to electrical energy. These applications include conversion from internal combustion engines, small nuclear sources and even portable fuel-based sources.

TPVs are gaining prominence as a novel technology for energy generation in places where solar cells are not an option and also for harvesting energy from heat sources. The talk will provide a historical and scientific background on the technology and will also look into some of the challenges and promises that lie ahead in its commercial adoption.

 Coming up in November 6th, 2014;

Dr Peter Vorobieff-
From ripples and spills to supernovae

Science on Tap

Thursday, May 1, 2014
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

New Location!

Chama River Brewing Company

4939 Pan American Freeway

505 342.1800

www.chamariverbrewery.com

Project Plowshare

The Peaceful Use of Nuclear Explosives in Cold War America

Scott Kaufman

Professor of History

Francis Marion University

Dr. Kaufman, a Francis Marion University Board of Trustees Research Scholar, joined the Francis Marion University staff in 2001. He is the author or co-author of over a half-dozen books on diplomatic, presidential, and military history, the most recent of which is Project Plowshare: The Peaceful Use of Nuclear Explosives in Cold War America (Cornell University Press, 2013); He is currently editing The Companion to Gerald R. Ford and Jimmy Carter, to be published by Wiley-Blackwell, and working on both a biography of Gerald R. Ford and a manuscript on the environment and international diplomacy.

At this seminar, Dr Kaufman will talk about his book.  Inspired by President Dwight D. Eisenhower's "Atoms for Peace" speech, scientists at the Atomic Energy Commission and the University of California's Radiation Laboratory began in 1957 a program they called Plowshare. Joined by like-minded government officials, scientists, and business leaders, champions of "peaceful nuclear explosions" maintained that they could create new elements and isotopes for general use, build storage facilities for water or fuel, mine ores, increase oil and natural gas production, generate heat for power production, and construct roads, harbors, and canals. By harnessing the power of the atom for nonmilitary purposes, Plowshare backers expected to protect American security, defend U.S. legitimacy and prestige, and ensure access to energy resources.

Scott Kaufman’s extensive research in nearly two dozen archives in three nations shows how science, politics, and environmentalism converged to shape the lasting conflict over the use of nuclear technology. Indeed, despite technological and strategic promise, Plowshare’s early champions soon found themselves facing a vocal and powerful coalition of federal and state officials, scientists, industrialists, environmentalists, and average citizens. Skeptical politicians, domestic and international pressure to stop nuclear testing, and a lack of government funding severely restricted the program. By the mid-1970s, Plowshare was, in the words of one government official, “dead as a doornail.” However, the thought of using the atom for peaceful purposes remains alive.

Science on Tap

Thursday, April 3, 2014
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

New Location!

Chama River Brewing Company

4939 Pan American Freeway

505 342.1800

www.chamariverbrewery.com

 

 

 

Science & Serendipity:
Chaco, Chocolate & Cylinder Jars

Patricia L. Crown

Distinguished Professor of Anthropology

UNM

Archaeologists like to believe that answering questions involves scientific procedures, but our discovery of chocolate in Chaco Canyon ceramics came about through a series of serendipitous events. Beginning with a question about how the people of Chaco used cylinder jars, this talk details how happenstance contributed to our understanding of luxury foods and long distance exchange in the New Mexico past.

 

 

 

The Final

Science on Tap

for

2013

 

 

Nanotechnology: The Teenage Years

Interest in nanoscience -- and derivative nanotechnologies -- has grown explosively because of the perceived potential to beneficially impact almost every aspect of our lives.  The remarkable scientific discoveries obtained by working at the nanometer length scale will disappoint humankind if they cannot be exploited by integration into technologies providing unprecedented functionality and performance.  In 2000, the U.S. government launched the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) to coordinate and accelerate nanotechnology-related activities across twenty Federal agencies and departments.  As this initiative enters its second decade, how far have we come towards achieving the vision of a future in which applications of nanotechnology will lead to a revolution in technology and industry that benefits society?  Perhaps more importantly, where should we be going?

 

 

December 5, 2013

5:30 pm

Cosmos Tapas

4200 Central Ave SE

 

Neal D. Shinn is the Co-Director for the Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies (CINT) and the Senior Manager of the Integrated Nanotechnologies Group at Sandia National Laboratories.  CINT is National User Facility jointly operated by Los Alamos and Sandia National Laboratories for the U. S. Department of Energy, Office of Science.  Dr. Shinn received the B.S. degree in Chemistry and Mathematics from Penn State and a Ph.D. degree in Chemical Physics from MIT.  Thereafter, he was a National Research Council Post-Doctoral Fellow at the National Institute of Standards and Technology.   In 1985, he joined Sandia National Laboratories, later becoming Manager of the Surface and Interface Science Department.  In 2002, he joined CINT to launch the user program and manage the CINT construction project, which was honored with a DOE Award of Achievement.  Neal’s research interests involve the physics and chemistry at solid surfaces.  He has published over 85 scientific papers, was President of the AVS Science & Technology professional society, and currently serves on the Governing Board of the American Institute of Physics.

Next

Science on Tap

February 6, 2014!

 

Mark your Calendars

Science on Tap

November 7, 2013

5:30 pm

Cosmo Tapas

4200 Central Ave SE

 

Touring the early solar system with Dawn

The NASA Dawn mission will explore the two largest objects in the main asteroid belt, the dwarf planet Ceres and the giant asteroid Vesta. Ceres and Vesta are planetary embryos, relics of the ancient solar system that provide clues about how the four innermost, rocky planets formed. Since their discovery in the 19th century, our view of asteroids has undergone dramatic change – from the missing “fifth planet” to a multitude of small bodies that are the source of most meteorites. Until recently, telescopic observations and meteorite studies were the basis of our knowledge of the asteroid belt. In 2011 and 2012, the Dawn spacecraft took a close-up look at Vesta, transforming this New-Mexico-sized asteroid from a fuzzy patch of light into a complex, geological world. Dawn’s exploration of Vesta has provided new insights into magmatic processes and impacts that shaped this igneous asteroid. In 2015, the Dawn spacecraft will arrive at Ceres, becoming the first to successively orbit and map two solar system objects. Dawn will be at Ceres when New Horizons arrives at Pluto, providing a simultaneous first look at two, icy dwarf planets. Adding to the excitement is the possibility that Ceres may harbor a subsurface, briny liquid-water ocean.  Dawn’s instruments could detect surface expressions of a sub-crustal ocean, which if present may have implications for the origins of life.  I’ll describe the Dawn mission, including its pre-history, genesis and development, successful exploration of Vesta and prospects for Ceres.

 

 

Image credits: NASA, JPL-Caltech, UCLA, MPS, DLR, IDA, PSI

Tom Prettyman, Ph.D. is a Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute “PSI,” a not-for-profit NASA research institute centered in Tucson. He is one of several PSI scientists working in New Mexico and is proud to call Albuquerque home. Tom’s doctorate is in Nuclear Engineering and his area of expertise is planetary remote sensing. He has experience working on NASA planetary missions, including Lunar Prospector and 2001 Mars Odyssey. He is a co-investigator of the Dawn mission to the main asteroid belt, for which he serves as the lead for the Gamma Ray and Neutron Detector “GRaND,” the only US payload instrument. In addition, Tom is as an Adjunct Professor at the University of New Mexico's Institute of Meteoritics and a Fellow of the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts program, which aims to turn science fiction into reality.

Come one Come all!

 

 

Science on Tap

Thursday, October 3, 2013

5:30 pm

Cosmo Tapas

4200 Central Ave SE

 

Parasites, bugs, and creepy-crawlies in our backyard:

Raising Chagas Disease awareness in local communities

 

What we don’t know about our environment can have a direct impact on our daily lives, health, and well-being.  Chagas’ Disease is a long-term chronic disease that causes heart disease and digestive problems yet resides latent for decades with no apparent symptoms.  While Chagas is often thought of as “the disease on the other side of the border,” and associated with substandard housing, it also has the potential to emerge in New Mexico as human interactions with the environment increase.  Trypanosoma cruzi, the parasite that causes Chagas, is found in the Kissing Bug (Triatoma) vector, which are known to cohabitates with Neotoma (rats).  All three, parasites, bugs, and rodents have been found to live in New Mexico’s recreational backyards such as

the Gila Wilderness.  Scientists  located T. cruzi in Triatome bugs 50 years ago near Tyrone, but until 2011, no one continued the search for the parasite.  This talk will provide an overview of the 1959 discovery of T. cruzi and the 2011 efforts to locate it in specific geographic areas.  This fun and informative talk will convey the interesting interactions of the parasite/bug/rodent and how it affects our day-to-day living. 

 

 

Marjorie McConnell holds a Master's degree in Social Science from Utah State University, and earned a PhD in Medical Sociology from the University of New Mexico. Her dissertation involved measuring behavior changes in response to hantavirus outreach programs in northwestern New Mexico, Panama, and Chile. Her experience with interdisciplinary teams expanded in 2010 with the creation of the Geo-Epidemiology Research Network (GERN), including team members from the Los Alamos National Laboratory, the New Mexico Consortium, New Mexico universities, University of Texas at El Paso, and the University of Kansas. GERN takes an interdisciplinary research perspective in the Geo-spatial nuances of infectious diseases. Her current research interests are within the social-epidemiology and ecology of hantavirus, Chagas, and emerging infectious diseases.  In addition to her appointment as a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology, she has duties and responsibilities as Director of Core Services at the Long Term Ecological Research Network Office housed at the University of New Mexico.  Marjorie is also a Certified Research Administrator, with more than 21 years of direct experience in grant, cooperative agreement, and contract management.