Classical Concert
2025-04-27 07:00 - 08:00, 2025-05-04 07:00 - 08:00, 2025-05-11 07:00 - 08:00, 2025-05-18 07:00 - 08:00, 2025-05-25 07:00 - 08:00, 2025-06-01 07:00 - 08:00, 2025-06-08 07:00 - 08:00, 2025-06-15 07:00 - 08:00 (America/Los_Angeles) and 1 more date | The Lighthouse Café

The Moon Base
2025-04-28 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-05-05 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-05-12 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-05-19 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-05-26 10:00 - 11:00 | Moon base

Mathematics Club
2025-05-01 16:00 - 17:00, 2025-05-08 16:00 - 17:00, 2025-05-15 16:00 - 17:00, 2025-05-22 16:00 - 17:00, 2025-05-29 16:00 - 17:00 | Maths Club

Transgalactic Relations
2025-05-03 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Ongoing military reports of unexplained objects flying in our skies have sparked renewed interest in alien visitors. Some scientists predict that we will have contacted advanced civilizations on other worlds within years, if not already. What might they be like, and — more importantly – how might they act? Steven Van Hook, a researcher in transcultural relations, will consider what universal social traits we could share in common with our galactic alien neighbors, with developmental theories of exobiology and exosociology.
BIO:
Dr. Steven R. Van Hook has taught courses in transcultural communications and global affairs for the University of California and other universities in the United States and abroad. He’s been a newspaper columnist, radio talk show host, TV news anchor, and television bureau chief in Moscow covering the fall of the Soviet Union 1990-91. He has a PhD specializing in transcultural education, and is published in scholarly journals including SAGE, and UNESCO’s Prospects.

Department of Anthropology and Geography at Colorado State University
2025-05-10 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Welcome to the Second Life campus of the Department of Anthropology and Geography at Colorado State University. We will tour the facility on May 10 at the usual Science Circle time. The purpose of the campus is to provide a basis for experimenting with, and developing, curricula focused on the types of experiential learning available in a social virtual world. A small test of this type of pedagogy was conducted in Meryl McBride’s (Merrill Johnson’s) fall semester, 2024, class in the Geography of Europe and the Americas (GR 102). We will tour the tropical rainforest display used by these students. Bring your snakebite kits!
Meryl McBride/Merrill Johnson, Ph.D.
Professor of Geography (Ret.)
Colorado State University
Fort Collins, Colorado

2020 in the Science Circle – Revisited 2
2025-05-17 10:00 - 11:00
A panel discussion following up on past topics from 5 years ago.
Phil Youngblood — The Biochemistry of Our Senses
Mike Shaw — Data into insight: Teasing out how molecules behave
Steve van Hook —The World 20 Years Ahead with 2020 Vision
Panelists will provide a brief summary of their past talks and context, provide a few updates, then we will open the floor for Q&A.
Moderated by Stephen Gasior/Xootfly

STEM Learning with Open Educational Resources
2025-05-24 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
STEM Learning with Open Educational Resources
Open Educational Resources (OER) are becoming increasingly important in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education by enhancing access, equity, and innovation. By removing the cost barriers associated with traditional textbooks and materials, OER promote inclusive learning environments and greater educational opportunity for all students. In fast-paced STEM fields, the adaptability of OER allows instructors to keep course content current, relevant, and aligned with specific learning goals. These resources also support active learning through interactive tools, problem sets, and virtual labs. Finally, open educational resources encourage collaboration among educators, enabling the sharing and improvement of instructional materials across institutions and disciplines. With several examples, this presentation explores the role of OER in modern STEM education and highlights how their use can support instructional flexibility and facilitate the continuous improvement of teaching practices in STEM.
by Myron W. Jones, Ph.D.
Department of Chemistry
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

Empowering Home Education: How Urban Parents Use AI and VR to Transform Learning
2025-05-31 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Empowering Home Education: How Urban Parents Use AI and VR to Transform Learning
As rapid technological shifts redefine what learning looks like, the future of education cannot be confined to traditional classrooms. This presentation shares findings from a qualitative study on how urban homeschooling parents in Texas are integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Virtual Reality (VR) into their children’s daily learning. Grounded in Resource Mobilization and Learning Environment theories, Dr. Boleigha explores how parents leverage tools like ChatGPT, Meta Quest, Canva, and Scratch Jr. to create rich, adaptive, and immersive home learning environments. These parent-led innovations not only reveal evolving educational practices but also raise critical questions about equity, access, and the future design of learning systems in a tech-driven world.
Dr. Ebi Boleigha

Moon base
2025-06-02 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-06-09 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-06-16 10:00 - 11:00

Field Trip 1: The Moon Base Project
2025-06-07 10:00 - 11:00 | Moon base
The Moon Base Project: Learning More with Version 4
by Phil Youngblood, William Wall.
Come explore what living and working on a permanent base on the Moon might feel like. Join us on this unusual and imaginative field trip to learn about the challenges of living and working on the Moon and perhaps to better appreciate our home on Earth.
Naming Contest – Best entry receives L$5000!
We need a name! What would you name a futuristic virtual Moon Base imagined to be a place where residents would live and work sustainably on the Moon while upholding what The Science Circle stands for ( https://www.sciencecircle.org/mission-statement/ )?
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The Science Circle Moon Base Project was envisioned in the fall of 2022 as an exciting way to think about and visualize the physical and social sciences by learning about how to live and work on the Moon. After recruiting a team representing a diversity of expertise and perspectives, we met every Monday to share and discuss what we had learned that week. Over the course of the next year, we applied what we had learned to building three virtual versions of the base.
By 2024, we realized that what we had been learning may be of real interest to scientists, educators, and science enthusiasts in Second Life and beyond. We participated in two conferences (VWMOOC24 in August 2024 and the 18th VWBPE in May 2025), where we were well received and attracted the interest of a number of others. Now we are ready to apply what we learned from those conferences to a fourth version of the base and reach out to entities such as NASA, the ESA, educational institutions and museums.
In 2025, Robert Hendrix, MD (SL: Tagline) designed a Medical Bay for the SC Moon Base, which would be prepared to handle both regular medical care as well as the unique issues associated with living in low gravity and a pressurized environment on a hostile world. A draft build of the Medical Bay has been completed and the rest of the base envisioned and construction begun. Let’s explore these areas together and learn what decisions we have made about health and wellness here. Feedback and suggestions welcomed!

Field trip 2: Titanoboa
2025-06-14 10:00 - 11:00 | Titanoboa exhibition
An exciting journey back in time to explore the incredible world of Titanoboa cerrejonensis, the largest snake to ever slither across the Earth! Today, we’re diving into the hot, swampy rainforests of what is now Colombia, South America, approximately 58–60 million years ago, just after the extinction of the dinosaurs. Our virtual field trip, hosted by The Science Circle, features a meticulously crafted exhibit that brings this prehistoric giant to life, based on the latest scientific research.

We are thrilled to have Dr. Linda Kelley, known as Delia Lake in Second Life, as our guide. Dr. Kelley has expertly recreated the steamy, tropical ecology that Titanoboa called home, immersing us in the environment where this massive predator thrived. Titanoboa, a relative of modern boas, grew up to 13 meters (nearly 43 feet) long and weighed over 1.25 tons. Its existence reveals fascinating insights about ancient climates, requiring a mean annual temperature around 4°C warmer than today’s tropics to sustain its colossal size. This discovery challenges assumptions about tropical climate stability and underscores the profound impact of environmental conditions on the kinds of animals that dominate ecosystems.

Prepare to encounter a scientifically accurate 3D animation of Titanoboa, created by Dr. Gregory Bollella, as it navigates its swampy habitat, capturing prey like crocodiles in a world teeming with exotic plants and animals. This exhibit not only showcases the awe-inspiring scale of this monster snake but also invites us to reflect on how past climates shaped life on Earth—and what they might tell us about our planet’s future. Let’s step into this ancient rainforest and discover the secrets of Titanoboa with Dr. Linda Kelley.

Field trip 3: New Locations
2025-06-21 10:00 - 11:00
An extraordinary virtual field trip hosted by The Science Circle, where we’ll journey through a series of captivating locations and exhibits that blend science, culture, and innovation!

Today, we’ll visit the newly established New Mathematics Club, the picturesque Lijiang River with its diverse exhibits, and explore topics ranging from evolutionary biology to cutting-edge engineering and global health challenges. This immersive experience in Second Life promises to spark curiosity and deepen our understanding of the world through interactive and thought-provoking displays.

Our adventure begins with Robert A. Hendrix, MD, at the New Mathematics Club, a dynamic hub for exploring the beauty and power of numbers, as highlighted on The Science Circle’s website. Tagline’s giving a 30 minute presentation about AI in the Maths Dojo: The PERCEPTRON, the SIMPLEST NEURAL NETWORK and HOW TO TRAIN IT using a database and reiterative correction of error. IT’S ALL A MATTER of LINEAR ALGEBRA and computational mathematics & algorithms! So do come & hear!

The Maths & Psychology exhibit, created by Deepthinker—author of The Science Circle’s monthly Hypothesis Blog—features interactive displays such as Let’s Make a Deal, The Black Swan, The Science of Farming, Neutrinos and Why the Earth is No Longer Flat, and How I Learned Math, with insights from five Science Circle scientists. These exhibits reveal how mathematics shapes our understanding of human behavior and the world around us.

Next, the Population Genetics Simulator (PGS), crafted by Stephen Gasior, brings to life the classic study of natural selection in the Peppered Moth (Biston betularia), studied by Bernard Kettlewell, demonstrating how environmental changes drive evolutionary shifts in color and survival within the unique Second Life platform.

The Turbofan exhibit, created by Karthik Prathaban, dives Perspective: Modern commercial aircraft engines are engineering marvels, and turbofans are no exception. These powerful and fuel-efficient systems can propel a plane like the A350, with a 280,000 kg maximum take-off weight, for over 20 hours non-stop. Their brilliance lies in a clever sequence of energy conversions, with the bypass ratio enhancing efficiency by adding a fan that minimally alters fuel flow in the core while significantly boosting thrust.

Finally, the Effects of COVID Around the World exhibit, created by Phil Youngblood, offers a poignant exploration of the pandemic’s global impact, connecting science, society, and resilience.

Guided by these expert creators and brought to life in Second Life, this field trip combines rigorous science with engaging storytelling. Join us as we navigate these diverse exhibits, each offering a unique perspective on our world’s past, present, and future.

Let’s dive into this journey of discovery at the New Mathematics Club and the Lijiang River!
