Classical Concert
2023-02-19 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-02-26 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-03-05 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-03-12 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-03-19 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-03-26 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-04-02 07:00 - 08:00, 2023-04-09 07:00 - 08:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | The Lighthouse Café

An Astrophysical and Geological Analysis of the Middlesboro, Kentucky, USA Asteroid Crater
2023-02-25 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
An Astrophysical and Geological Analysis of the Middlesboro, Kentucky, USA Asteroid Crater
The town of Middlesboro, Kentucky, USA is located within an Asteroid Crater that formed sometime in the last 300 Million years ago. I visited the crater to collect samples and take pictures of the rock outcrops within the crater during the Spring of 2022. Based on the diameter of the crater (3.67 miles), Dr. George Djorgovski at Caltech (CuriousGeorge on SL) estimated that the size of an asteroid with density of 3 g/mL may have been 0.5 miles in diameter. A geological study of asteroids that have struck Kentucky suggests that the density may have been about 6 g/mL and that a size of 0.25 may be more accurate. This study has implications for studying not only craters on the surface of the Earth, but also for doing mining on asteroid terrains in a future Mars colony.
By Dr. William Schmachtenberg – Dae Miami

Dr. William Schmachtenberg

Previous lectures on film

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Moonbase Brainstorm Session
2023-02-25 21:00 - 22:00 | Science Circle East Cabin
Moonbase Brainstorm Session
Following our introduction last week of the Moonbase Project the Science Circle is undertaking, we want to hear from you!
we invite you to join us for this 9pm brainstorming session, where you can share your ideas for what you want to see, and subjects you would like us to address/cover!

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Mathematics Club
2023-03-01 17:00 - 18:00 | Maths Club
“Please have a drawing compass, a straightedge (e.g., ruler) with pencil and paper at hand on which to jot notes or create geometric constructions and logic tables“

Project Moon Base
2023-03-04 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
PROJECT MOON BASE
Let’s bring the life on the moon to Second Life! You heard about the origin of Project Moon Base on Feb 18 – now it’s time to hear the plan and join in making it real. Team Lead Tab Scott (Terry Beaubois) and eight other Science Circle members will present initial ideas in the areas of science, education, ethics, and organizational psychology along with needs in scripting, construction, outreach and ‘inreach.’ Tap into your imagination, find your enthusiasm, join one of these teams or suggest another one, and take part in the pursuit of what promises to be a mind-expanding and rewarding activity.

Natural Language Processing
2023-03-04 21:00 - 22:00 | Auditorium
Natural Language Processing
I nearly copied an abstract generated by ChatGPT… I told it to write an abstract for this presentation in the style of Bugs Bunny, then I put it in a word-cloud in my poster 😊.
ERHEM!… Although much of my work over the recent years has involved deep learning in the context of computer vision, I’ve come to realize that some of the most impactful advances in the field (such as the vision transformer architecture) are inspired by developments in Natural Language Processing (NLP). NLP algorithms allow computers to extract meaning from text to perform tasks like sentiment analysis, translation and text generation.
In this presentation I hope to share the insights I’ve gained in studying how computers process text and understand language. I’ll discuss some of the algorithms in artificial intelligence catered to challenges in language processing and generation, and the implications these developments have on our lives.
A presentation by Karthik Prathaban.

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Mathematics Club
2023-03-08 17:00 - 18:00, 2023-03-15 17:00 - 18:00, 2023-03-22 17:00 - 18:00, 2023-03-29 17:00 - 18:00, 2023-04-05 17:00 - 18:00, 2023-04-12 17:00 - 18:00 | Maths Club

BB: JWST and Astronomy
2023-03-11 10:00 - 11:00 | The Lighthouse Café
Please join us at the Science Circle to talk about the latest observations by JWST and about astronomy in general. Exo-planets, distant early galaxies, the “crisis” in cosmology, dark matter and more. Please see the resources provided by the Science Circle to help prepare yourself to participate.
Distant Early Galaxies
Exo-Planets
Crisis in Cosmology
Primer on Dark Matter for a popular audience

Celebrating Women
2023-03-11 21:00 - 22:00 | SC East Meeting Spot
Celebrating Women
We will be observing international women’s day by inviting you to join us and talk about women who inspire you and how they inspire you, whether they be loved ones, strangers, celebrities, or fictional!

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VWBPE: Too Hot! Too Dry! Too Wet!
2023-03-17 15:00 - 16:00 | Fire & Flood
Too hot! Too dry! Too wet! A natural cycle of cleansing and renewal turned extreme: excruciating drought, fire maelstrom, mega-flood. Thousand-year events happen year upon year, global disasters with heartbreaking consequences. If old normal is gone, what can we expect? What can we do?
An immersive experience with Linda M. Kelley, BA

Knowledge Creation
2023-03-18 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
Knowledge Creation

Professor Devi Jankowicz (Christi Maeterlinck) will examine two distinct ways of making sense of experience: the positivist model that works so successfully for the physical and biological sciences, and the constructivist approach to which many social scientists are turning as being more suited to some of the research questions they handle. The attractions of regarding laypeople as scientists making sense of experience; and scientists as people who make sense of their research questions in the same way will be explored.

Pets
2023-03-18 21:00 - 22:00 | SC East Meeting Spot
Pets
Animal companions are a transient aspect of our lives. Pets come in all shapes and sizes, in the world we live in, there’s so many possibilities! We invite you to join us in a discussion of the weird and wonderful animals you have had, and what your country allows!

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What can we Learn from Going Back to the Moon?
2023-03-25 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
“What can we Learn from Going Back to the Moon?”
By: Phil Youngblood

—This is part of an ongoing celebration of The Science Circle’s 15th Anniversary.

There were more missions to the Moon last year than there were in the last decade and a half. Plus, there are at least 12 countries with funded Moon missions under development and more that are proposed. Of these, 4 countries are planning crewed missions and 2 have plans to build a Moon base within a decade. In addition, there are non-governmental entities involved in more than just providing parts.

Why the renewed interest in the Moon?
What missions are planned and why?
—Join us to learn and talk about the exciting new projects that have a potential to directly impact your lives and the lives of the next generations.

CALLING ALL EDUCATORS!
What can we learn from going back to the Moon?
Why are space agencies so interested in education?
What types of pedagogies, andragogies, and learning styles can the SC Moon Base Project support?
—Join us to discuss how we can use this project as a source for many diverse presentations and to create engaging activities for SC members and beyond.

Earth Hour
2023-03-25 21:00 - 22:00 | SC East Meeting Spot
Earth Hour
A yearly SC East event, where we discuss Earth Hour, it’s concept, spread awareness, and talk about ways that we can make a difference beyond the hour.

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COVID-19 Pandemic Post-Mortem
2023-04-01 10:00 - 11:00 | Auditorium
“COVID-19 Pandemic Post-Mortem”
By: Phil Youngblood

It has been three years now since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic.
The pandemic is not over, but it more infrequently makes headlines. It is time to revisit this global phenomenon so we can learn from it and are better able to prepare for the next one.

In this presentation, I will examine what has happened over the last three years in terms of:
Diseases and How They Spread
—What is a pathogen?
—How do we get infected?
—How does a disease run its course from the standpoint of the individual and society?

Past Pandemics
—What makes a disease endemic, epidemic, or pandemic?
—What pandemics have humans suffered through?
—How does this pandemic compare to others in the past?
—How does a pandemic end?

COVID-19 Pandemic Timeline
—How has this pandemic played out over the last three years?
—What did the pandemic look like in different countries, regions, and worldwide?
—How will this pandemic end?

SARS-Co-V-2 Variants
—What were the different strains of the COVID-19 coronavirus?
—How did theses mutations affect the way the pandemic has played out?

Pandemic Behavior
—What kinds of strategies have nations and individuals tried to combat the disease and its spread?
—How have the social components of this pandemic affected its course and outcome?
—What is the purpose of vaccination and how have vaccinations affected the course of the pandemic?

Come join us for this presentation, both to learn and to share your experiences and thoughts about it.

Moon Base Panel
2023-04-01 21:00 - 22:00 | Auditorium
Moon Base Panel
Let’s bring the life on the moon to Second Life! You heard about the origin of Project Moon Base on Feb 18 – now it’s time to hear the plan and join in making it real. Team Lead Tab Scott (Terry Beaubois) and eight other Science Circle members will present initial ideas in the areas of science, education, ethics, and organizational psychology along with needs in scripting, construction, outreach and ‘inreach.’ Tap into your imagination, find your enthusiasm, join one of these teams or suggest another one, and take part in the pursuit of what promises to be a mind-expanding and rewarding activity.

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BB: The Metaverse
2023-04-08 10:00 - 11:00 | The Lighthouse Café
Interest in the metaverse is high, especially after the VWBPE conference that recently concluded in Second Life. It is of particular interest to SL residents who believe we live in a prototype of the metaverse. There are various embodiments that can express the metaverse, such as virtual world platforms, virtual reality, augmented reality and so forth. Powerful Tech and business interests are involved in creating the metaverse, including Mark Zuckerberg, crypto ideologues, universities, and financial institutions.
Join us at the Science Circle to explore the promise, the perils, the technology, the obstacles, and the implications of the metaverse.

Health
2023-04-08 21:00 - 22:00 | SC East Meeting Spot
Health
A follow up to our previous subject “Combating negative thinking” physical health is just as important as mental health! You are invited to come and share your hints and tips on maintaining good health. But also to share your opinions on current societal trends regarding physical health.

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