A time to eat, drink & talk about science!

Celebrating 4 Years of Science on Tap!

Join us 

Science on Tap Series

Thursday, March 10, 2016*

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Yanni's
will be offering Happy Hour Appetizers during SoT!
 
3109 Central Avenue NE

(505) 268-9250

http://www.yannisandlemoni.com/

Plasma Sculpture

Application of scientific understanding to artistic expression often gets overlooked when we consider the impact of science in society, but Carl Willis hopes to offer a compelling example of a successful science-art marriage through his work with “plasma sculpture.” The realm of gaseous electrical phenomena offers a rich palette of beguiling and beautiful visual effects that can be applied to kinetic sculpture and decorative lighting. Mr. Willis works as a nuclear engineer in his day job, but as a hobby, he experiments with high-frequency, dielectric-barrier discharges in exotic atmospheres sealed into electrodeless glass vessels. Understanding is enhanced through the use of a visible-light spectrometer. He will exhibit some of his efforts, and discuss the
often-complex chemistry that is responsible for the observed effects in these
plasmas. Want to see an "inert" noble gas pair up with reactive oxygen before your eyes? This Science on Tap discussion should be electrifying.

Carl Willis is employed as an engineer at Qynergy Corporation in Albuquerque. His interests include particle accelerator applications, radiation detection and measurement, and electrochemistry. He obtained an MS in Nuclear Engineering from Ohio State (2005) and studied physics and chemistry as an undergraduate at Guilford College (2003). In addition to “plasma sculpture,” his avocational pursuits include “nuclear tourism,” collecting radioactive items, and playing his small pipe organ.

*Change of date from Thursday, March 3 to  Thursday, March 10 due to a prior commitment by Yanni's

A time to eat, drink & talk about science!

Celebrating 4 Years of Science on Tap!

Join us 

Science on Tap Series

Thursday, February 4, 2016

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Yanni's
will be offering Happy Hour Appetizers during SoT!
 
3109 Central Avenue NE

(505) 268-9250

http://www.yannisandlemoni.com/

Challenges to balancing water use and biodiversity in New Mexico's rivers

Most people don't think too much about fish in New Mexico, but we have incredible diversity of species despite scarcity of water. Native peoples and Victorian scientists alike explored fish diversity through art, trading, and scientific museum work. Since that time, large scale water use, drought, and wildfires have decreased fish diversity in our rivers and streams, and many folks including US, State, and conservation organizations want to stem the tide of diversity loss. I will tell three 'fish stories' about water use, conservation, and the challenges we face with water over the coming decades in New Mexico. Fish depend on healthy rivers and healthy rivers need fish!

 

Thomas Turner
Associate Dean for Research
College of Arts and Sciences
University of New Mexico

A time to eat, drink & talk about science!

Celebrating 4 Years of Science on Tap!

Join us 

Science on Tap Series

Thursday, December 3, 2015

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Yanni's
will be offering Happy Hour Appetizers during SoT!
 
3109 Central Avenue NE

(505) 268-9250

http://www.yannisandlemoni.com/

What could possibly go wrong? Infrastructure failures, lessons from the past, and possible ways to design sustainable and resilient systems of the future.

Andrea Mammoli, PhD
Professor, Mechanical Engineering
 University of New Mexico

In 2003, overgrown branches touched transmission lines in Ohio, and triggered a blackout that left 55 million people in the US and Canada without power for days. What could have been a small and manageable event cascaded to such a large scale because of a series of interconnected  failures in physical, controls, communications and human systems. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina left 1836 people dead, due to a combination of lack of electricity, running water, sewage and transportation. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy caused widespread damage to the East Coast of the United States, leaving 7.5 million people without power, and almost caused the food supply chain to break down.

As infrastructures become more and more interconnected, we may be inadvertently setting ourselves up for disruption on an unprecedented scale. What if the power grid were to go down for weeks? What would life be like in Phoenix in the summer, or in New England in the winter?

What lessons have we learned from past failures, and what can be done to reduce the risk of catastrophic large scale events, caused by increasingly extreme weather, or by malicious man-made attacks? Can we design infrastructure that is more resilient, and at the same time more sustainable?

How can science and engineering help?

Don't forget to use your postcard from last month to BOGO an admission at both Explora and the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History!

A time to eat, drink & talk about science!

Celebrating 4 Years of Science on Tap!

Join us 

Science on Tap Series

Thursday, November 5, 2015

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Yanni's
will be offering Happy Hour Appetizers during SoT!
 
3109 Central Avenue NE

(505) 268-9250

http://www.yannisandlemoni.com/

CRISPR: The Better Chopper Upper.  From Ancient Antiviral Accessory to Genetics Gamechanger

Stephen Jett, PhD
Director, HSC Electron Microscopy Facility

Research Assistant Professor: Cell Biology and Physiology
University of New Mexico

Everywhere on earth that cellular organisms reside, from ocean bottoms to Yellowstone hot springs to high in the Troposphere, there are viruses that infect them. Viral attacks kill host cells, causing billions of dollars in health costs, agricultural losses, etc. Bacteria protect themselves using several antiviral mechanisms, including CRISPR/Cas. CRISPR/Cas is a virus checker billions of years older than all software versions, and provides a primitive form of acquired immunity. The heart of the system is a protein/RNA machine that recognizes and digests foreign nucleic acids.  CRISPR remembers old foes and incorporates information about new threats, forming a sort of molecular socket set.  The system’s flexibility makes it an attractive tool for DNA modification in many different organisms, igniting a new wave in genetic engineering.

Don't forget to use your postcard from last month to BOGO an admission at both Explora and the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History!

A time to eat, drink & talk about science!

Celebrating 4 Years of Science on Tap!

Join us 

Science on Tap Series

Thursday, October 1, 2015

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Yanni's
will be offering Happy Hour Appetizers during SoT!
 
3109 Central Avenue NE

(505) 268-9250

http://www.yannisandlemoni.com/

Biomimicry on the Molecular Scale

Nesia Zurek, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow

 Center for Biomedical Engineering
University of New Mexico

Biomimicry on the molecular scale is the study and reproduction of the natural environment, surfaces, and chemical reactions that happen on the surface or inside of the cell. Biomimetic systems are successfully used to improve healthcare. A big part of the mission of improving healthcare is the discovery of new drugs and vaccines that can treat illness. Most current drugs target proteins that are part of the outer most surface of the cell called the plasma membrane. Reproducing the natural environment of the plasma membrane to screen for drugs in a high-throughput system is an example of how we use biomimicry in the lab. Using high-throughput biomimetic systems in the process of developing novel drugs for targeted diseases such as Botulism and cancer, reduces time and money, and quickly delivers the drug to the market.