Science Circle

Moon Base Meeting
2024-11-18 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-11-11 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-11-04 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-10-28 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-10-21 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-10-14 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-10-07 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-09-30 10:00 - 11:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Moon base

Classical Concert
2024-11-17 07:00 - 09:00, 2024-11-10 08:00 - 17:00, 2024-11-03 07:00 - 08:00, 2024-10-27 07:00 - 08:00, 2024-10-20 07:00 - 08:00, 2024-10-13 07:00 - 08:00, 2024-10-06 07:00 - 08:00, 2024-09-29 07:00 - 08:00 | The Lighthouse Café

Renewed Hope Ahead for 2025
2024-11-16 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Renewed Hope Ahead for 2025
Steven R. Van Hook, PhD
November 16 @ 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM PST

It’s time to cheer up a bit. Clouded by global turmoil and uncertainty, we may lose sight of transcendent growth blooming just beyond the gloom. Some of the world’s brightest minds in government, education, business, economics, and science have looked not so far ahead and envision a world of abundance and opportunity. Let’s ponder and refresh our hope for a brighter future beyond the tumult of today.

Bio: Dr. Steven R. Van Hook has taught communication and culture courses for universities in the USA and abroad for 25 years. He’s been a newspaper columnist, radio reporter, TV news anchor, and podcast host. He was a television producer and bureau chief in Russia; and directed public education media programs in Ukraine through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). He has a PhD specializing in transcultural learning, and is published in scholarly journals including UNESCO’s Prospects, and Sage.

Research website: http://wwmr.us

Mathematics Club
2024-11-14 16:00 - 17:00, 2024-11-07 16:00 - 17:00, 2024-10-31 16:00 - 17:00, 2024-10-24 16:00 - 17:00, 2024-10-17 16:00 - 17:00, 2024-10-10 16:00 - 17:00, 2024-10-03 16:00 - 17:00 | Maths Club

Visions of the Future from Science Fiction Panel and Discussion
2024-11-09 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Special discussion on a fun topic for this Saturday at the Science Circle. Come relax and enjoy a conversation about how fiction has envisioned humanity’s future.
From dystopian disaster to idyllic future, science fiction writers have taken themes of modern times along with lessons from the past to speak to a path for our future. Science fiction is a way to explore themes relevant to today. We will have scientists with a passion for SciFi present some of their favorites then have an open discussion for everyone to participate.
Moderator and opening panelist: Stephen Gasior/Xootfly
Panelists: Karthik Prathaban, Natalie Foster, Mike Shaw
Feel free to bring an image with a quick summary of YOUR favorite, and it will be presented on the screen. Science fiction from books, movies, TV, computer/console games ALL welcome.

Nuclear Medicine (reprise)
2024-11-02 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Since the discovery of radioactivity, our understanding has steadily increased about how nuclear materials can be used to improve health. Individuals who worked with radioactive substances in the early decades of the 20th century were often exposed to dangerous amounts of radioactivity. Nuclear safety improved in the mid-20th century, and the application of nuclear phenomena to medicine was developed in earnest. From improved scanning techniques to tissue-specific therapies, the current state-of-the-art includes an impressive set of technologies for the diagnosis and treatment of a number of diseases.
[A slightly updated version of a talk given 6 years ago]
By Dr. Mike Shaw

Drug Discovery Meets A.I.: Approaching the Problem of Antibiotic Resistance
2024-10-26 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
The development of antibiotics to treat infectious disease is arguably the greatest medical breakthrough of the 20th century. The discovery of Salvarsan by Paul Ehrlich in 1909 established the Holy Grail: finding a cure for infectious disease. The hunt for drugs inaugurated an ‘Age of Dirt,’ when ever major pharmaceutical company had a team searching through soil for potential antibiotics. The development of drug resistance to antibiotics is now recognized as an existential threat facing humankind on par with climate change and nuclear war, yet pharmaceutical companies rarely invest in new agents. The advent of AI is making the search for new drugs more efficient and may transform the hunt. This talk traces the history and continuing quest for this elusive Holy Grail.

Dr. Natalie Foster, Professor Emerita, Chemistry Department, Lehigh University

Forum: Surprise Topic
2024-10-19 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Mike Shaw (not Phil) will lead a discussion on a surprise topic.

Nobel Prizes in Science 2024 Roundup
2024-10-12 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
This week the Nobel Prizes were announced for Medicine, Chemistry, and Physics. Today we present a summary of the new Laureats and the works recognized for their distinguishing contributions to science.
Nobel Prize website
Presented by Stephen Gasior/Xootfly

World Space Week
2024-10-05 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
“Space & Climate Change Trivia – Celebrating World Space Week”
by the Science Circle Moon Base Project
The United Nations General Assembly declared that October 4-10 each year shall be known as “World Space Week” to commemorate two key events in space exploration – the launch of Sputnik, the first satellite, on October 4, 1957, and the signing of what became known as The Outer Space Treaty on October 10, 1967.
By tradition, a theme is chosen each year. The theme for 2024 is “Space and Climate Change.” Over 16,000 events hosted by organizations in over 90 countries have been developed to celebrate World Space Week this year, many of which are on this year’s theme.
The Science Circle is joining others around the world in recognizing World Space Week. Our celebration will be in the form of a fun and informal educational event during which participants will be invited to answer questions about space in general and about climate change, particularly as it relates to space exploration and what can be observed from space.
The event will be in the Science Circle amphitheater. At the time of the publication of this abstract, the ‘rules’ for this event are still being discussed, but will be announced at the beginning of the event. They will likely include—
…participants may work individually or in teams
…questions will range from ‘easy’ to ‘hard’ and be assigned points accordingly, the more difficult assigned more points
…questions will be displayed in slides on a screen in front of everyone in the amphitheater, with a variety of answer forms ranging from an open answer, fill-in-the-blank, multiple choice, and other options
…participants have a limited time to answer, likely about one minute from the time the question is displayed and read by one of the moderators
…points will be given to the individual or team who writes the correct answer first in chat
There will be prizes of Linden dollars and possibly space-related objects for the individual(s) or team(s) earning the most points at the end of the event. If there is a tie, the tiebreaker will be whomever is able to safely land the Moon lander near the Moon Base Project site in the middle of Science Circle island. 😊
