Science Circle

Aging, part 3
2023-08-05 07:00 - 08:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | The Lighthouse Café
We will discuss the science and implications and potential approaches to better aging. Hosted by a molecular biologist with experience relevant to the field. Specific videos TBD.
Stephen Gasior (Xootfly). Stephen is an expert in DNA repair and highly knowledgeable about human genomics and has published in those fields. Please join him as he curates a selection of relevant videos and leads discussion on aging topics.

The Formula for Successful Aging | Gary Small | TEDxUCLA
Recent scientific evidence is compelling that lifestyle habits have a significant impact on cognitive health and successful longevity; but the many reports are sometimes confusing and contradictory. This session will explain and highlight relevant new discoveries and translate them into practical strategies for improving memory performance, optimizing brain health, and living better longer.
Parlow-Solomon Professor on Aging and Professor of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA; Director, UCLA Longevity Center; Director, UCLA Division of Geriatric Psychiatry, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.

Peter Attia: What if we’re wrong about diabetes?
As a young ER doctor, Peter Attia felt contempt for a patient with diabetes. She was overweight, he thought, and thus responsible for the fact that she needed a foot amputation. But years later, Attia received an unpleasant medical surprise that led him to wonder: is our understanding of diabetes right? Could the precursors to diabetes cause obesity, and not the other way around? A look at how assumptions may be leading us to wage the wrong medical war.

Classical Concert
2023-08-06 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-08-13 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-08-20 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-08-27 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-09-03 08:00 - 17:00, 2023-09-10 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-09-17 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-09-24 07:00 - 08:00 and 2 more dates | The Lighthouse Café

Aging, part 4
2023-08-12 06:00 - 07:00 | The Lighthouse Café
We will discuss the science and implications and potential approaches to better aging. Hosted by a molecular biologist with experience relevant to the field. Specific videos TBD.
Stephen Gasior (Xootfly). Stephen is an expert in DNA repair and highly knowledgeable about human genomics and has published in those fields. Please join him as he curates a selection of relevant videos and leads discussion on aging topics.

Reframing Health and Ageing Looking at Reproductive Longevity with Jennifer Garrison | WIRED Health
Jennifer Garrison is one of the world’s top experts in the science of reproductive ageing and, as the co-founder of Global Consortium for Reproductive Longevity & Equality, she’s also the pioneer in the new movement to advance science focused on female health.
In this talk she discusses the functional decline in the female reproductive system, the impact on this on women’s health and well being as well as the further research needed to understand the correlation between reproductive span and lifespan.
‘A women’s reproductive span, which is the age at which she goes through menopause, is linked to her overall lifespan. Now this is a correlation we have absolutely no idea what is causing this but it’s a real correlation. It’s been shown in many studies that a women going through menopause later will tend to live longer.’

How menopause affects the brain | Lisa Mosconi
Many of the symptoms of menopause — hot flashes, night sweats, insomnia, memory lapses, depression and anxiety — start in the brain. How exactly does menopause impact cognitive health? Sharing groundbreaking findings from her research, neuroscientist Lisa Mosconi reveals how decreasing hormonal levels affect brain aging — and shares simple lifestyle changes you can make to support lifelong brain health.

Aging, part 5
2023-08-19 07:00 - 08:00 | Auditorium
We will discuss the science and implications and potential approaches to better aging. Hosted by a molecular biologist with experience relevant to the field. Specific videos TBD.
Stephen Gasior (Xootfly). Stephen is an expert in DNA repair and highly knowledgeable about human genomics and has published in those fields. Please join him as he curates a selection of relevant videos and leads discussion on aging topics.

“Healthy Brain Aging” by Kaitlin Casaletto, PhD, at MAC Research Education Event, Jun 11, 2019
At the 2019 UCSF Memory and Aging Center Research Education Event, clinician-scientists share their findings.

A precision approach to end Alzheimer’s Disease | Dale Bredesen | TEDxManhattanBeach
Dr. Dale Bredesen believes this is the last generation to fear Alzheimer’s and shares how a precision approach to treatment can reverse cognitive decline.
Dr. Dale E. Bredesen received an undergraduate degree from Caltech, medical degree from Duke, and served his residency and chief residency in Neurology at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). Prior to joining the UCLA faculty and then being recruited by the Burnham Institute to direct the Program on Aging, he earned a postdoctoral fellowship in the laboratory of Nobel laureate Professor Stanley Prusiner.
He served as the founding President of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging and as Adjunct Professor at UCSF before returning to UCLA to direct the Easton Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Research, and as Professor of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology at the David Geffen School of Medicine.

Aging, part 6
2023-08-26 07:00 - 08:00 | Auditorium
We will discuss the science and implications and potential approaches to better aging. Hosted by a molecular biologist with experience relevant to the field. Specific videos TBD.
Stephen Gasior (Xootfly). Stephen is an expert in DNA repair and highly knowledgeable about human genomics and has published in those fields. Please join him as he curates a selection of relevant videos and leads discussion on aging topics.

Use of Senolytics as Modifiers of Aging Trajectory – James Kirkland, MD, PhD
– Presenter: James Kirkland, MD, PhD
– Lecture: Use of Senolytics as Modifiers of Aging Trajectory
– Presented in Session 1: Biological Aging

David Sinclair at ARDD2022: Great release of unpublished data from David Sinclair’s Lab
The Aging and Drug Discovery Conference (ARDD) 2022 is pleased to present David Sinclair from Harvard Medical School, who shares new unpublished results from his lab at Harvard Medical School.
Held in Copenhagen at the glorious Ceremonial Hall, this meeting gathers the most prominent figures of the aging and longevity research field, from scientists to clinicians, investors, developers, and everything in between.

Maths Club: Paul Erdős
2023-09-02 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Paul Erdős and the INFINITUDE of the PRIMES
– from the annals of MathsClub of Science Circle

Presentation by Tagline – Robert A. Hendrix, M.D.

Great progress in mathematics was achieved during the tumultuous 20.century. There was such a plethora of new, conceptual mathematics that of necessity,

there is always a great deal they never get around to teaching you in your PhD programs regardless of your discipline.

Among other things, it was the century of the eccentric, Budapest-born Paul Erdős (pronounced “Pal Air-dush”, b. 26 March 1913 – d. 20 September 1996). Over his lifetime, Erdős became the most published mathematician in history (around 1,500 mathematical papers as well as six books). We will take a close look at the life lived by this man – this unusual, “homeless” mathematician, described as the “MAN WHO LOVED ONLY NUMBERS”.
And we will consider the breadth of his contributions to modern mathematics.
A series is a countably INFINITE SUM of numerical terms. We will define how such a series can have a definite total, in which case it CONVERGES, or if not, then it DIVERGES. Firstly, we will reflect on convergence vs divergence of a few infinite series; secondly, a quick look at the Harmonic Series; then we will focus on the question of CONVERGENCE of the “HARMONIC SERIES OF THE PRIMES“:

Now ask yourself, “Does this infinite series actually converge? Does it actually equal a real number?”
This question was first settled by Swiss mathematician, Leonhard Euler around 1740, but his proof involved analytic functions such as the natural logarithmic function, as well as some “sleight of hand” using intuitive mathematics that “crossed the line”. Paul Erdős has an extraordinary and clever proof that further settles this question, and his proof does NOT call on any special or analytic functions, but rather depends on pure, indisputable logic based on a deep dive into the properties of numbers. Consequently, the very approachable Erdős proof is a CLASSIC – we will deconstruct this proof step-by-step such that any audience member with a cup of coffee in hand can follow it. Erdős himself stated “a mathematician is a machine that transforms coffee into equations.”
Once you see the brilliance and depth of Erdős proof, you will come away with a sense of awe for the depth and cleverness of pure number theory.
We will also discuss the INFINITUDE OF THE PRIMES and EUCLID NUMBERS as a subset of Natural (counting) Numbers. Finally, we will discuss the Ancient Greek LIMITATIONS in their understanding of NUMBERS. In closing, we will state a couple of UNSOLVED PROBLEMS IN MODERN MATHEMATICS for members of the Science Circle audience to work on.

Maths Club: Paul Erdős(SC East timeslot)
2023-09-02 21:00 - 22:00 | Auditorium
Paul Erdős and the INFINITUDE of the PRIMES
– from the annals of MathsClub of Science Circle
Presentation by Tagline – Robert A. Hendrix, M.D.

Great progress in mathematics was achieved during the tumultuous 20.century. There was such a plethora of new, conceptual mathematics that of necessity,

there is always a great deal they never get around to teaching you in your PhD programs regardless of your discipline.

Among other things, it was the century of the eccentric, Budapest-born Paul Erdős (pronounced “Pal Air-dush”, b. 26 March 1913 – d. 20 September 1996). Over his lifetime, Erdős became the most published mathematician in history (around 1,500 mathematical papers as well as six books). We will take a close look at the life lived by this man – this unusual, “homeless” mathematician, described as the “MAN WHO LOVED ONLY NUMBERS”.
And we will consider the breadth of his contributions to modern mathematics.
A series is a countably INFINITE SUM of numerical terms. We will define how such a series can have a definite total, in which case it CONVERGES, or if not, then it DIVERGES. Firstly, we will reflect on convergence vs divergence of a few infinite series; secondly, a quick look at the Harmonic Series; then we will focus on the question of CONVERGENCE of the “HARMONIC SERIES OF THE PRIMES“:

Now ask yourself, “Does this infinite series actually converge? Does it actually equal a real number?”
This question was first settled by Swiss mathematician, Leonhard Euler around 1740, but his proof involved analytic functions such as the natural logarithmic function, as well as some “sleight of hand” using intuitive mathematics that “crossed the line”. Paul Erdős has an extraordinary and clever proof that further settles this question, and his proof does NOT call on any special or analytic functions, but rather depends on pure, indisputable logic based on a deep dive into the properties of numbers. Consequently, the very approachable Erdős proof is a CLASSIC – we will deconstruct this proof step-by-step such that any audience member with a cup of coffee in hand can follow it. Erdős himself stated “a mathematician is a machine that transforms coffee into equations.”
Once you see the brilliance and depth of Erdős proof, you will come away with a sense of awe for the depth and cleverness of pure number theory.
We will also discuss the INFINITUDE OF THE PRIMES and EUCLID NUMBERS as a subset of Natural (counting) Numbers. Finally, we will discuss the Ancient Greek LIMITATIONS in their understanding of NUMBERS. In closing, we will state a couple of UNSOLVED PROBLEMS IN MODERN MATHEMATICS for members of the Science Circle audience to work on.

Is this the first time you will attend a presentation with us?
Follow this link first.

BB: Generative AI - Promise or Peril?
2023-09-09 10:00 - 11:00 | The Lighthouse Café
Beragon’s Bistro: GENERATIVE AI – PROMISE OR PERIL?
The next step in the evolution of artificial intelligence technologies called Generative AI has certainly generated a lot of discussion.

In this first Bistro of the 2023-2034 season, let us together explore some of the following topics:
—What can Generative AI software technologies do?
—What technologies does it borrow from or improve upon that make it innovative?
—What does Generative AI require to accomplish its work?
—What types of outputs can Generative AI create?
—How are these outputs currently used and what are some of their potentials?
—How might it benefit certain type of businesses?
—Why might there be so much hype about this technology? Have there been past examples where this happened?
—What are some of the speculations about its potential social impacts?
Join us for what promises to be an exciting conversation!
References:
IBM. (April 2023). What is Generative AI?
NVIDIA. What is Generative AI?

World Suicide Prevention Day
2023-09-09 21:00 - 22:00 | SC East Meeting Spot
World Suicide Prevention Day
In observation of World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10th, we invite you to discuss your experiences/stories where you, or someone you love, has been confronted with the tragedy of suicide.
Is this the first time you will attend a presentation with us?
Follow this link first.

Maternity Hospital: A Metaphor for Human Fertilization
2023-09-16 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Maternity Hospital: An Metaphor for human fertilization from gametogenesis through implantation
A presentation by Phil Youngblood, PH.D

I remember a video the teacher showed in biology class back when I was in secondary school in the 1960s in which an army of wiggly sperm swam at high speed in some kind of race, through the bends and divisions of cavernous tunnels, seeming to know the way, until the vast majority of them surprised and attacked a defenseless egg cell. I was surprised to find this same video on YouTube the other month (albeit with freshened graphics and a hint in the narration of what else might be going on).

What goes on during human fertilization has proved difficult to study because of bioethics, namely the possibility of endangering a pregnancy. What scientists have discovered however has led to a paradigm shift away from this male-dominated view of fertilization, at least among the scientifically literate population. Yet, talking about how the human body works from about the lungs down to the knees is still not something you do in ‘polite’ company in many cultures, even among educated people, and not even among intimate partners in more misogynistic cultures. So, like so many subjects about which our first and last factual exposure to them occurred when we were teenagers, old-fashioned and incorrect views about human fertilization persist in the general population, at least until something goes wrong ‘down there.’

‘Maternity Hospital’ is a way that I have devised to discuss the fascinating details of human fertilization without the use of graphic illustrations or descriptions. In fact, the video about the sperm racing to attack the egg is as close to resembling what the physical environment looks like as I will get. The rest of the explanation is through use of metaphors about an environment that most of us have experienced sometime in our lives, in-person or in media, that of what happens in various rooms in a hospital and interactions among people with different roles within those rooms. A hospital run entirely by woman, by the way.
Come join me to discover how much you know, or have not yet learned, about the intricate and fascinating way in which gametes are created, how they meet, and how the egg is made ready to create a new human. NOTE: Gametogenesis will be covered lightly as a separate presentation following this one will go into the details of that initial part of the human fertilization process.

International Equal Pay Day
2023-09-16 21:00 - 22:00 | SC East Meeting Spot
International Equal Pay Day
Join us as we discuss situations of Equal pay on our respective countries! How has your country improved over the years, does it still have room for improvement?

Is this the first time you will attend a presentation with us?
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Fly Me to the Moon!
2023-09-23 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Fly Me to the Moon!

There is a lot of activity going on out there beyond Earth orbit! And now the race is on again to land softly on the Moon and this time to stay for a while.
A quick quiz (answers during the presentation):
(1) How many spacecraft are in orbit around the Moon or active on its surface right now?
(2) How many lunar missions are planned over the next five years worldwide?
(3) How many nations have tried a soft landing on the Moon? What are their intentions?
Come join representatives of The Science Circle’s Moon Base Group for this update on ‘Space Race 2.0′ that will include a brief summary of past lunar missions to create a background for a discussion about the flurry of activity in just the last year, and the real planning that is known to be underway by national, commercial, and other agencies in the next five years or so.
The Moon Base Group will also update what we have learned and done in the first months of the Project, including our dynamically evolving purpose and objectives, our members’ personal (anonymized) objectives for the project, the physical builds you can visit, and where we think we are going from here. You are still invited to join us as we explore this important next phase of human exploration as part of a celebration of The Science Circle’s 15th Anniversary.
If there is time, we will also touch on what is happening beyond the Moon, because the Moon is viewed by many as a ‘steppingstone’ to missions beyond it. Did you know, for example, that there have been 50 missions by eight nations sent to Mars spanning over five decades, and that there may be up to 18 spacecraft currently in orbit (seven active), plus five active missions on the surface?

AI in Medical Diagnosis
2023-09-23 21:00 - 22:00 | Auditorium
AI in Medical Diagnosis
In 2021, I had the privilege of delivering a presentation on computer vision at the Science Circle. During the presentation, I explored the dominant role of convolutional neural networks (CNNs) in image-oriented tasks like classification, segmentation, and analysis. I also delved into practical applications within histopathology, showcasing how AI aids in diagnosing diseases using microscopic tissue images. The emergence of the attention mechanism, the foundation of technologies including ChatGPT, has profoundly impacted computer vision. This rapid introduction of novel techniques has opened new opportunities in the field of medical image diagnosis with AI. In this presentation, I will delve into these exciting developments, including data fusion across different imaging modalities, image captioning and diagnostic explainability.

A presentation by Karthik Prathaban.

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Mathematics Club
2023-09-28 16:00 - 17:00 | Maths Club
For this 4PM Thursday 28.September 2023 meeting of Maths Club of Science Circle, we will take a deep dive into “The Painter’s Dilemma”, based on Gabriel’s Horn (La Trompette de Gabriel) which has FINITE VOLUME but INFINITE SURFACE AREA, as studied by Evangelista Torricelli in 1641. The relationship of this unbounded structure to the harmonic series and the concept of volume of rotation underlying Gabriel’s Horn will be discussed. Finally, we will consider the existence of 3-dimensional structures that are finite and bounded in volume, yet of infinite surface area. One of these can be constructed using fractal geometry, and the other I developed while on holiday.

XYZWs of Sex Determination
2023-09-30 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
In mammals, birds and some reptiles, sex is determined by sex-specific chromosomes. In mammals, the sex-determining chromosomes are called X and Y, and only males have both. In birds and reptiles, these chromosomes are called Z and W, and only females have both. How are these related to one another and to the rest of the genome? Do the X chromosomes of all mammals have similar genes? Do all birds have similar Z chromosomes? Are the Z chromosomes of birds and reptiles genetically similar? How do all of these chromosome participate in sex determination? Come and find out some of what we do and don’t know about these interesting questions.
By Dr. Mary Anne Clark

World Tourism Day
2023-09-30 21:00 - 22:00 | SC East Meeting Spot
World Tourism Day
WORLD TOURISM DAAAY! Come and discuss with us, what countries have you been to, what did you do there, did you experience culture shock, what are your recommendations to fellow globe trotters?

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Mathematics Club
2023-10-05 16:00 - 17:00, 2023-10-12 16:00 - 17:00 | Maths Club

Artificial Intelligence and the Metaverse
2023-10-07 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
“Artificial Intelligence and the Metaverse”
by Phil Youngblood, PhD
AI is very much in the news these days. We have been talking about in the Science Circle. Same thing with the Metaverse. I was at the VWEC Expert Series last Friday and the topic was the Metaverse.

Why so much interest in these computer technologies? What really is artificial intelligence and the metaverse?
I think it is time to look at these perfectly logical ‘next steps’ in computer technology from a historical and scientific perspective.
Here are some of the topics that I think will be helpful to review or explore:
—Why did we invent and use computers? What can they do and what are they incapable of doing?
—What is the ‘hype cycle’ (coined by Gartner Inc.) and how does it pertain to this subject?
—Why do think of some of ways that computers operate as being intelligent?
—How have telecommunication technologies developed over the last two centuries?
—Is the metaverse here already? What would it take to make the concept of the metaverse real?
—What is the difference between Web3 and Web 3.0 with regards to the metaverse?
—What is the relationship between artificial intelligence and the metaverse?

Come join us and learn about these fascinating emerging technologies while sharing what you know and think and have heard about them!

World Teachers Day
2023-10-07 21:00 - 22:00 | SC East Meeting Spot
World Teachers Day
In honor of World teachers day, we invite you to discuss with us your favorite teachers, who changed your life, inspired, or showed you that education can be fun?

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Beragons Bistro: Science Crackpots
2023-10-14 10:00 - 11:00 | The Lighthouse Café
Many science communicators must cope with push back from people who don’t know what they are talking about but who think they are experts. Additionally, this phenomenon is often seen with YouTube commenters and the like who claim they know why physics is all wrong and how they fixed the standard model. It is occasionally also seen with prominent scientists who go off the rails into crackpottery. What is a crackpot? We will look at some examples and try to identify what makes a person a crackpot, why they are a problem for science communications, and strategies for coping.
A discussion led by Matt Burr
