Events of Interest—June 2009

Please send suggestions, additions and corrections to calendar@nwscience.org.

“NSWA to be posted” should appear in the subject line.

Note: Some events may require advance reservation, admission fees and/or a minimum age (for example, for events where alcohol is served).

NSWA Events Archives | NSWA Business Calendar | University of Washington Events

Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4

__________________________________________________________________

Featured Events in June

NSWA's David B. Williams discusses Stories in Stone: Travels Through Urban Geology

Wednesday, June 24, 7:30 p.m.:
NSWA's David B. Williams will discuss Stories in Stone: Travels Through Urban Geology. When most of us pass through the concourse food court at Sea-Tac Airport, we're likely to notice coffee cups, bagel crumbs and frenzied fliers trying to retie their shoes outside the security checkpoint. Williams sees beyond all that: He sees Jurassic-era fossils in the concourse's limestone walls. In fact, he says every stone structure has a geological story that goes back to Earth's creation. It's his job, and his pleasure, to unlock them. His 20-year passion has grown into a new book, "Stories in Stone," which weaves together natural and cultural history to connect people and geology through building stone. Sponsored by Town Hall and University Book Store. Part of the Town Hall Center for Civic Life. Tickets are $5 and are available at http://www.brownpapertickets.com, (800) 838-3006, and at the door beginning at 6:30 p.m. Town Hall members receive priority seating. Venue: Town Hall Seattle.
Information: http://www.townhallseattle.org.

Science Education Awards

Friday, June 12, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.:
Washington State LASER is recognizing five outstanding champions for science education in Washington. The event is a City Club lunch that will be a roundtable discussion on the social responsibility of science and science education. Guest tickets for the lunch are $40 a person, or $400 for a table of 10. NSWA members may attend for $15 or $150 per table, which includes coffee and dessert. Venue: Washington Athletic Club, downtown Seattle.
Information: http://www.wastatelaser.org

NSWA Board Meeting

Contact Michael Bradbury at mikeb@seanet.com to RSVP for the time and venue of the next NSWA Board meeting.

NSWA Freelance Science Writing Networking Night

All NSWA members are invited to a freelance science-writing networking night. Friends and family are welcome. RSVP to Andy Cutler, (425) 557-8299 or AndyCutler@aol.com, or just show up.
Venue: St. Andrew's Pub and Grill, 7406 Aurora Ave N, Seattle.
St. Andrews does open at 4 p.m. for those who get off work early and wish to beat traffic.

Join NSWA

As an NSWA member, you get discounts on some of our events, inside information on job openings and other opportunities, and the satisfaction of knowing you’re supporting the Pacific Northwest’s community of science communicators. Annual dues are just $20.

For information or to join, visit our Join page.

_____________________________________________________________

Wednesday, June 10, 1 p.m.:
Did you know before the Wright brothers built airplanes they built bicycles? Learn this fascinating story during the Museum of Flight's "Amazing Skies Theater" 20-minute live theater program called "A Twist of the Wrist." Meet Charlie Taylor, the Wright brothers' mechanic, as he tells the story of the invention of the airplane and how Wilbur Wright discovered the concept of wing warping. Venue: Museum of Flight.
Information: http://www.museumofflight.org

Wednesday, June 10, 7 p.m.:
With North Korea's nuclear program raising worldwide concern, again, Bob Alvarez, director of the Nuclear Policy Project at the Washington D.C.-based Institute for Policy Studies (IPS), will give a talk entitled "Energy and Weapons in 2009: How Do We Assure A Sustainable, Nuclear-Free Future?" Alvarez will focus on the future of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, and the possibility and importance of achieving peace and climate stability without nuclear power. He served as a senior policy adviser in the Department of Energy from 1993 to 1999, during which time he coordinated the effort to enact nuclear worker-compensation legislation and led teams in North Korea to establish control of nuclear weapons materials. Now at IPS, Alvarez's work focuses on nuclear disarmament and environmental energy policies. Presented by Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility, a group dedicated to creating a peaceful and sustainable world through healthy solutions. Tickets are free at the door. Venue: Town Hall Seattle.
Information: http://www.wpsr.org

Wednesday, June 10 through Friday, June 12:
The Center for Nanotechnology at the UW will hold its annual Nanotechnology Conference jointly with Japan’s National Institute for Material Science. The theme this year is "Frontiers in Nanotechnology." Topics will include photonics, energy and bio-nanotechnology. The schedule includes multiple speakers on each topic. Registration is free but participants are asked to RSVP. Venue: UW Tower.
Information and registration: http://depts.washington.edu/ntuf/outreach/workshop09sch.php

Thursday, June 11 8 a.m. to 9 a.m.:
Charles A Czeisler, director of Harvard Medical School's Division of Sleep Medicine, will give a talk titled "Medical and Genetic Differences in the Adverse Impact of Sleep Loss on Performance: Ethical Considerations for the Medical Profession." The talk is part of the UW Department of Medicine's Grand Rounds lecture series. Venue: UW Health Sciences Building, Room T-625.
Information: http://depts.washington.edu/medweb/conferences/index.html

Thursday, June 11, 7:30 p.m.:
Chances are one or more of your credit cards is embedded with a radio frequency ID tag, listing your name, credit-card number and expiration date, and more, "for your security." But with $8 worth of gear from eBay, hacker Paul "Pablos" Holman can scan your card from a distance, retrieve all that data and start shopping. Luckily for us, "Pablos" is more concerned with demonstrating the frontiers of what hackers do and how tenuous our sense of security really is. And even hackers have day jobs—at former Microsoft CTO Nathan Myhrvold’s Bellevue-based Intellectual Ventures Laboratory, "Pablos" is part of a team at work on a wide variety of futuristic projects, including a fission reactor powered by nuclear waste, a machine to stop hurricanes by harnessing the ocean’s own energy to lower its surface temperature, and a laser-based mosquito-eradication system to eliminate malaria. Presented as part of Seattle Science Lectures, with University Bookstore and Pacific Science Center. Tickets are $5 and are available at http://www.brownpapertickets.com, 800) 838-3006 and at the door beginning at 6:30 p.m. Town Hall members receive priority seating. Venue: Town Hall Seattle.
Information: http://www.townhallseattle.org

Thursday, June 11, 5:30 p.m.:
The Seattle Biomedical Research Institute (SBRI) presents the fourth "Global Health 101" discussion in its series. Visit SBRI and interact with experts in round-table discussions about the threat of yeast and molds, diagnostic tools to rapidly reduce global disease, precursors to pandemics, and tools of the trade in the field of infectious disease research. Light refreshments will be served. A tour of SBRI's labs will follow the discussions. Admission is free but space is limited. Venue: SBRI Discovery Conference Room, 307 Westlake Ave. N.
Information and reservations: Contact Elli Koskella at elli.koskella@sbri.org or 206.256.7214 by Tuesday, June 9.

Friday, June 12, 11:30 a.m. To 1:30 p.m.:
Washington State LASER is recognizing five outstanding champions for science education in Washington state. The event is a City Club lunch that will be a roundtable discussion on the social responsibility of science and science education. Guest tickets for the lunch are $40 a person, or $400 for a table of 10. NSWA members may attend for $15 or $150 per table, which includes coffee and desert. Venue: Washington Athletic Club, downtown Seattle.
Information: http://www.wastatelaser.org

Friday, June 12 through Sunday, June 14:
Stop by "Sorticulture," Everett's Garden Art Festival, and celebrate handcrafted art for your garden. Blown glass, water features, trellises, hand-cut metal art, lanterns, whimsical birdhouses and kinetic sculpture—many kinds of decorative garden art will be represented. Northwest garden superstars such as Cisco Morris, Marianne Binetti and Mary Robson will be around to teach the tips and tricks of the gardening trade. Venue: Legion Memorial Park, 145 Alverson Boulevard (at West Marine View Drive), Everett, Wash.
Information: http://www.everettwa.org/default.aspx?ID=1228

Monday, June 15, 5 p.m.:
All NSWA members are invited to a freelance science-writing networking night. Freelancers, want-to-be science writers, those interested in being freelance, other independent writers, or anyone who writes about scientific and technical topics for a living may attend. Friends and family are welcome too. Enjoy collegiality, talk about what we're doing, get ideas and inspiration, and discuss all those issues freelancers have that people don't run into until they're out on their own - what are reasonable terms, how much to charge, what kind of behaviors suggest you're being led on or won't get paid, how to figure out where there is work, etc. It's a great opportunity to eat good food, indulge in good drinks, and share stories, advice and useful information with fellow science writers. RSVP to Andy Cutler, (425) 557-8299 or AndyCutler@aol.com, or just show up. Venue: St. Andrew's Pub and Grill, 7406 Aurora Ave N, Seattle. St. Andrew's does open at 4 p.m. for those who get off work early and wish to beat traffic.
Information: E-mail Cutler at AndyCutler@aol.com

Monday, June 15, 7:30 p.m.:
James Lovelock will discuss "The Vanishing Face of Gaia: A Final Warning." For Lovelock, global warming is cause for an urgent global warning: If we don't see Earth as a living organism and remedy the harm we have inflicted, our planet could very well act in its own best interests and heat up to shed billions of its inhabitants. The prolific British science writer, who turns 90 in July, isn't yet giving up yet on Earth, or on us – but he does suggest we act quickly. He is best known for formulating the Gaia hypothesis, which suggests that life sustains habitable conditions on Earth, with organisms interacting with and regulating Earth's surface and atmosphere. The problem now, though, is that there are just too many organisms. Sponsored by Town Hall and University Book Store. Tickets are $5 and are available at http://www.brownpapertickets.com, (800) 838-3006, and at the door beginning at 6:30 p.m. Town Hall members receive priority seating. Venue: Town Hall Seattle.
Information: http://www.townhallseattle.org

Tuesday, June 16, 7:30 p.m.:
Bill Wasik, a senior editor at Harper's Magazine, will give a talk on online culture. If you’ve ever found yourself caught up in a sudden, public pillow fight, you can thank Wasik, creator of the worldwide celebration of spontaneity, "Flash Mob." Not only did he think to gather people through technology for outrageous urban stunts, but he also is plugged into our burgeoning online culture. Wasik is author of "And Then There’s This: How Stories Live and Die in Viral Culture." He argues that the Internet isn’t about making the media more like everyday people, but making everyday people more like the media: "obsessed with fads, fame, breaking the story and novelty for its own sake." Presented by the Town Hall Center for Civic Life, with Elliott Bay Book Company. Tickets are $5 at http://www.brownpapertickets.com or (800) 838-3006, and at the door beginning at 6:30 p.m. Town Hall members receive priority seating. Venue: Town Hall Seattle.
Information: http://www.townhallseattle.org

Wednesday, June 17, 7 p.m.:
Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter John Donnelly will discuss multiple drug-resistant tuberculosis. Donnelly Is based in Washington D.C. and specializes in global health and environmental subjects. A Kaiser Family Foundation media fellow, he is currently writing a book on Americans working to help African orphans. He opened and ran the Boston Globe’s first-ever Africa bureau from 2003 to 2006. Venue: Walllingford United Methodist Church, 2115 North 42nd St., Seattle.
Information: E-mail resultsbob@yahoo.com

Thursday, June 18, 8 a.m. to 9 a.m.:
Shane O'Mahony, UW inpatient chief resident, will give a talk titled "Pneumonia: Some Small Steps Beyond Antibiotics." Venue: UW Health Sciences Building, Room T-625.
Information: http://depts.washington.edu/medweb/conferences/index.html

Saturday, June 20, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.:
Visit the Museum of Flight for a day full of heroes and helicopters. Learn how helicopters play an important role in law enforcement, fire service, public safety, communications, national defense and homeland security. The American Heroes Air Show features static displays, special presentations and entertainment. Representatives from many organizations, including local flights schools, Border Patrol, Search & Rescue units and the U.S. Coast Guard will be available to answer questions. Helicopters will begin arriving at 7:30 a.m. Come early to see them fly in. Venue: Museum of Flight.
Information: http://www.museumofflight.org

Monday, June 22, 7 p.m.:
Larry Korn will discuss his translation of Masanobu Fukuoaka's "The One Straw Revolution: An Introduction to Natural Farming." Noted food author Michael Pollan called Fukuoaka's book "one of the founding documents of the alternative food movement, and indispensable to anyone hoping to understand the future of food and agriculture." Written by a Japanese alternative farmer, this book is a manifesto for agriculture, offering an innovative system of cultivating the earth to reflect a faith in the wholeness and balance of the natural world. Venue: University Book Store.
Information: http://www.bookstore.washington.edu

Tuesday, June 23, 7:30 p.m.:
Frog populations are declining at unprecedented rates, with nearly one-third of the world’s more than 6,000 amphibian species threatened with extinction. Amphibians are struggling against pollution, infectious diseases, habitat loss, invasive species, climate change and overharvesting for the pet and food trades. Kerry Kriger, of the conservation organization Save the Frogs, believes we should help. Kriger describes frogs' role as bioindicators and as an integral part of the food web. Frogs help humans by eating ticks, mosquitoes and other disease carriers. Some of the preservation methods Kriger suggests are unquestionably frog-specific—don’t eat frog legs—but others, such as refusing to use pesticides and conserving resources, have even broader ecological implications. Presented as part of Seattle Science Lectures, with Pacific Science Center. Tickets are $5 at http://www.brownpapertickets.com or (800) 838-3006, and at the door beginning at 6:30 p.m. Town Hall members receive priority seating. Venue: Towh Hall Seattle.
Information: http://www.savethefrogs.com or http://www.kerrykriger.com

Wednesday, June 24, 7:30 p.m.:
NSWA's David B. Williams will discuss Stories in Stone: Travels Through Urban Geology. When most of us pass through the concourse food court at Sea-Tac Airport, we're likely to notice coffee cups, bagel crumbs and frenzied fliers trying to retie their shoes outside the security checkpoint. Williams sees beyond all that: He sees Jurassic-era fossils in the concourse's limestone walls. In fact, he says every stone structure has a geological story that goes back to Earth's creation. It's his job, and his pleasure, to unlock them. His 20-year passion has grown into a new book, Stories in Stone, which weaves together natural and cultural history to connect people and geology through building stone. Sponsored by Town Hall and University Book Store. Part of the Town Hall Center for Civic Life. Tickets are $5 and are available at http://www.brownpapertickets.com, (800) 838-3006, and at the door beginning at 6:30 p.m. Town Hall members receive priority seating. Venue: Town Hall Seattle.
Information: http://www.townhallseattle.org.
Listen to a recording of Williams discussing the stones of downtown
Seattle in June 6 interview on the "KUOW Presents" radio show at http://www.kuow.org/program.php?id=17709

Sunday, June 28 through Wednesday, July 1:
The UW will host an international conference titled "2009 Robotics: Science and Systems" on all aspects of robotics research. Local researchers presenting at the conference will include the UW’s Yoky Matsuoka, Dieter Fox, Eric Klavins, Blake Hannaford and Rajesh Rao. UW oceanographer John Delaney will speak on “Next Generation Ocean Sciences: The Leading Edge of an Environmental Renaissance.” Venue: UW locations.
Information: http://www.roboticsconference.org/index.html. Media contact is Hannah Hickey, hickeyh@u.washington.edu

Monday, June 29, 7 p.m.:
Greg Foltz, a neurosurgeon at the Swedish Medical Center's Neuroscience Institute, will give a talk titled "Brain Cancer in the Pacific Northwest: An Insider's Perspective 'Gene by Gene' by One of the Region's Leading Neurosurgeons." The talk is part of Science on Tap. Venue: Ravenna Third Place Books.
Information: http://www.scienceontap.org

Monday, June 29, 7:30 p.m.:
Wall Street Journal reporters Roger Thurow and Scott Kilman will give a talk titled "A Crisis of Famine." In spite of the reeling economy, the 21st century is still a comparative age of plenty. But decades after the Green Revolution, there is still not enough food. Staggeringly, 25,000 people a day—and nearly 6 million children a year—die of hunger, malnutrition and related diseases. Many think of famine as a natural disaster, or as the legacy of war and corrupt leaders, but Thurow and Kilman, who write about Africa, development and agriculture, blame bad policies across the political spectrum. The veteran reporters’ new book, "Enough: Why the World’s Poorest Starve in an Age of Plenty," serves as an indictment of the economic, political and social forces that perpetuate hunger and famine—and the inspiring stories of the people fighting to change them. Presented by the Town Hall Center for Civic Life, with University Book Store. Tickets are $5 at http://www.brownpapertickets.com or (800) 838-3006, and at the door beginning at 6:30 p.m. Town Hall members receive priority seating. Venue: Town Hall Seattle.
Information: http://www.townhallseattle.org

Wednesday, July 8, 7:30 p.m.:
Dean Kuipers, an editor for the Los Angeles Times, will give a talk titled "Radical Environmentalism." Environmentalism is all the rage these days, gaining followers, momentum and exposure. But outside the mainstream’s gentle “green” movement lies a different kind of rage: radical environmentalists who take eco-defense into their own hands. Rod Coronado, an animal-rights activist and arsonist who was recently released from prison and has claimed to denounce direct action, spearheaded a movement that has led to more than 1,200 acts of sabotage, a billion dollars in damages, and a legal showdown that will define America’s relationship with environmentalism, raising tough questions, such as: What is the definition of nonviolence? Should environmentalists be tried for terrorism? Kuipers, author of "Burning Rainbow Farm" and "Operation Bite Back: Rod Coronado’s War to Save American Wilderness," looks into the radical Animal Liberation and Earth Liberation fronts through Coronado’s story. Presented as part of Seattle Science Lectures, with University Book Store and Pacific Science Center. Tickets are $5 and are available at http://www.brownpapertickets.com, (800) 838-3006 and at the door beginning at 6:30 p.m. Town Hall members receive priority seating.

Additions? Corrections? Write calendar@nwscience.org.