Nerd Nite Philly

Posts Tagged ‘animals’

Hey Nerds! We’re at a bit of a milestone here in Philly– the 50th edition of nerd-based entertainment in the city of brotherly love! How awesome is that? We’re celebrating in two ways: first, on July 1 we’ll be presenting a series of talks in conjunction with the American Philosophical Society and, second, on July 9 we’ll be celebrating 5 YEARS in Philly with a party. We hope to see you at both!

So what’s up for July 1?

Bernard Brown, “Spermataphores, Orgies, and Chin Grinding”

Philly herper Bernard Brown will explore the hot cold-blooded sex lives of our local salamanders, including the spring ‘breeding aggregations’ of spotted salamanders, newt leg locks, and the seductive dance of the diminutive redback salamander.

About Bernard: Bernard Brown has been herping Philadelphia for over 10 years. He has written about natural history topics for Grid Magazine, is the Philadelphia County Coordinator for the Pennsylvania Amphibian and Reptile Survey (PARS), and co-hosts the Urban Wildlife podcast.

Jane Boyd, “Bears in the Backyard, Plants in the Attic: Collecting at the American Philosophical Society”

Before Philadelphia was chock-full of museums and libraries, there was a rectangular redbrick building next to Independence Hall where all the cool stuff went. During the late 1700s and early 1800s, people all over the country sent strange and interesting things to the “ingenious and curious men” at the American Philosophical Society. Find out about Thomas Jefferson’s live grizzly bears, Lewis and Clark’s pressed plant specimens, Charles Willson Peale’s mastodon skeleton, and other remarkable items that filled Philosophical Hall.

About Jane: Dr. Jane E. Boyd gets around town as an independent curator and museum consultant specializing in interdisciplinary exhibitions and projects, on topics ranging from natural history to Civil War medicine to chemistry sets. She has worked for the APS Museum and Library, the Academy of Natural Sciences, the Chemical Heritage Foundation, the Mütter Museum, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Wagner Free Institute of Science. More on her website at www.jane-e-boyd.com.

Steve Alt, “So You Think You Know Plants…”

…But you probably don’t, at least not about their origins. While certain founders were hard at work in the business of creating a country, other colonists were exploring the natural history of the New World. With thousands of new species to investigate and a substantial market in the import and export of exotic plants, there was a lot of green to be made in the greenhouse. This talk will explore the world of agriculture and horticulture in the 18th century.

About Steve: Steve Alt started farming in Plainsboro, NJ when he was just a wee lad. When the malls came to cover the strawberry and potato fields of NJ, Steve moved to botanical gardens and eventually trained in horticulture at the Morris Arboretum. He has a BA in history from the University of Pennsylvania, serves as a museum guide at the American Philosophical Society Museum, and has been in the landscaping and horticulture business in Chestnut Hill for 16 years.

What else can you expect? Lauren Duguid is going to show us all that you can play some pretty sweet music using a saw!

When: Wednesday, July 1

What time: Doors open at 4pm. Show starts at 7:30pm

How much: $5 cover gets you admission plus happy hour specials all night

Where: Frankford Hall, 1210 Frankford Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19125

Be there and be square!

Nerd Nite Philly

Yo Nerds!

Please note we have some changes in June to our regularly scheduled program. First up, due to Philly Beer Week, we have pushed back our June Nerd Nite to Wednesday, June 10. We’re still working out the fine details, but you can expect to hear more about the Academy of Natural Sciences’ *new* Grossology exhibit, enjoy a discussion with local artist Blair Campbell, learn about why mushrooms should be considered superfoods, and and hear some beats from local 8-bit musician Pixel8ter. All the talk info is below. Remember, the show will start at 7:30 sharp at Frankford Hall with a $5 cover!

Michael Kalaras: “Mushroom Nutrition: Shining a light on the magical world of mushrooms”

Edible mushrooms, often relegated to lowly side dish fare, are a complex package of nutrients better suited to superfood status. This talk will focus on how a fungus grown in the dark can become a rich source of the important “sunshine” vitamin, the significance of a unique antioxidant and the role mushrooms may have in human health.

About Michael:

Dr. Michael Kalaras is a Research Assistant for the Center for Plant and Mushroom Foods for Health in the Department of Food Science at Penn State University. He received his B.S. and Ph.D. in Food Science at Penn State where his interest in the nutritive properties of mushrooms began. He has worked to develop a rapid method of vitamin D2 enrichment of mushrooms using UV light and recently taught a course devoted to the science of mushrooms.

 
Blair Campbell: “Pop Culture Pixels”

Blair will talk about his journey and process behind his career in making his digital geeky art.

About Blair:

Blair J. Campbell is a South Jersey native that has always been a geeky and an artist. Recently he’s found a way to mash both together and make a living off of it. He can be found most days messing around online, sipping coffee, and playing with his pug.

 
Mary Bailey: Animal Grossology: Putting the “Fun” in “Funky”

Stinky, slimy, puky, grimy; animals have some NASTY habits. From coprophagy to cannibalism, the creatures of the world can definitely make you say, “Ew, gross!” But never fear…Mother Nature has her reasons! Find out about the often disgusting, always fascinating, adaptations that give some animals the evolutionary edge, and explore the science behind why it makes us humans feel all icky.

About Mary:

Mary is a consummate conservationist, avid traveler, and slightly above average birdwatcher with slightly below average binoculars. Her finest accomplishment to date is making Sir David Attenborough laugh out loud when she told him she saw 137 species of birds during her Big Year.

 
Music by Pixel8ter between talks!

Also, because we can’t say no to evenings that mix beer and education–especially ones that involve visits from NASA and the International Space Station(!!)–we’ll be hosting Nerd Nite No. 49.5 on Thursday, June 18 also at Frankford Hall. This pay-what-you-wish edition will give Philly Nerds a chance to learn more about NASA’s involvement in the space station, via a NASA scientist and astronaut! We promise we’ll fill you in on the specific talk details when we hear more!

XOXO,

Team Nerd Nite Philly

Greetings Nerds! We have a great line up for the 45th Nerd Nite Philly (and first of 2015!). We know you’re itching to find out what we have planned, so let’s do this:

Passenger Pigeon – The Disintegration of a Species
It doesn’t matter if we all die. – The Cure

Trying to find humor in the story of the extinction of the Passenger Pigeon is akin to finding sunshine in a Cure song. Well, a good Cure song anyway. But that is what Kate Garchinsky, writer and illustrator, aims to do for Nerd Nite. Using the timeline of her own life, she will share her experience of the preventable extinction of the Passenger Pigeon in words, pictures, and depressing song lyrics–one hundred years post-mortem.

Bio: Kate Garchinsky’s first word was “bird.” Now she is a writer and illustrator of natural history for children who also likes to draw dead birds. She began working on her book, “Passenger Pigeons: Their Amazing Life and Tragic Extinction” a few years ago, inspired by her bird rehabilitation volunteer work, and a life-changing Wikipedia search. She also is currently illustrating two more non-fiction picture books for children, due out in 2016 and 2018. Kate has exhibited her Passenger Pigeon artwork at the Audubon Center at Mill Grove, and the Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, Wisconsin. Visit Kate online at:
www.penguinart.com
twitter.com/katesnowbird
facebook.com/KateGarchinsky
instagram.com/katesnowbird
It’s better than it tastes: How a food looks affects liking for the taste of the food.

Although most people think that the flavor of a food is the primary driver of liking or disliking that food, research has shown that it is only one of many factors influencing liking. Since “the first taste is with the eyes” we have, not surprisingly, found that how a food looks has a big effect on how much we like a food. This is good news for those of us who do not cook like Marc Vetri but would like to have family and friends enjoy what we make for them.

Bio: Debra A. Zellner is currently Professor of Psychology at Montclair State University in New Jersey and on sabbatical leave at the Monell Chemical Senses Center doing a research project with the Vetri Foundation. She is the author of numerous research articles and book chapters on the liking and perception of food. Her primary interest is understanding why people like the foods they like.
Science has gone to the dogs

We all know that dogs are pretty smart and some dogs have jobs. Now dogs are going to college to become scientists! At the Penn Vet Working Dog Center, dogs are helping find lost people, identify cancer and answer the age old question, why do dogs eat grass (actually that one is still a mystery).

Bio: Dr. Cindy Otto, a veterinarian and scientist founded and directs the Penn Vet Working Dog Center to dig into the questions that “only a dog nose”. She incorporates her experience as a clinical veterinarian (specializing in both emergency medicine and sports medicine), a disaster responder working with search dogs, a research scientist and a dog trainer into the coolest job ever.

We’ll have 2 intermissions filled with music from returning band Sidewalk Atlas.

This all goes down at the famed Frankford Hall, per usual.

Wednesday, February 4
Doors open at 4pm. Show starts at 7:30pm
$5 cover gets you admission plus happy hour specials all night
Frankford Hall, 1210 Frankford Ave.
Philadelphia, PA 19125

Be there and be square!

Nerd Nite Philly

We’re ready to rock you with another line up of Philadelphia’s finest Nerds on Wednesday, August 13. Here are all the details you could want:

“It’s Not Just Size That Matters: Conflict, Competition and Dominance in the Animal World” by Marina Haynes Many people think that to be the “top dog” you have to be bigger and stronger than your opponent. Size definitely helps but that not the only thing influencing how groups of animals interact. Learn about the many ways animals (and people) deal with conflict and competition and learn to be a better observer of behavior in the process!

Bio: Marina Haynes is the Curator of KidZooU at the Philadelphia Zoo, the Zoo’s newest exhibit and largest in its history. Her academic background is in animal behavior and has conducted research on animal play behavior. At the Zoo, she is responsible for the management of the widest range of animal taxa in any one area including birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates and fish. Her passion is training animals and people using positive reinforcement techniques.

“Drugs are good? A history of “enhancement” drug use in policy, sport, and life” by Ross Aikins What do Nazis, Francis Crick, Lance Armstrong, The Beatles, and one in eight college students have in common? They all use drugs to better (and sometimes worse). From substances of enlightenment to substances of abuse, the complex, enduring relationship between people and drugs continues to evolve. Somewhere along the way in America, we decided that some drugs were good, some were bad, and sometimes we changed our minds. This talk shouldn’t make you want to reconsider doing drugs, but it might make you reconsider “drugs.”

Bio: Ross Aikins got into drug and health research as a “recovering Californian” from UCLA, and is currently on the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, where he specializes in college student health, military veteran populations, and other issues in higher education. Prior to coming to Philadelphia less than a year ago (!), he studied so-called “enhancement drug use” in literature, science, war, sport, and society as an NIH postdoctoral fellow in New York City—focusing specifically on the nonmedical use of Ritalin, Adderall and other stimulant medications among college students. When not boldly exploring the menu of “Wawa” or practicing his pronunciation of Philly suburbs, Ross enjoys comedy and general NBA nerdery. A chapter he co-wrote on PED use in college athletics will appear in the book Scandals in College Sports, to be released in March.

“Unexpected results from a lifetime of microplannning:random chance, unconscious schematics,finding an adversary, going viral without getting sick & the Great Librarian War of 2014” by Kyle Cassidy In early 2014 Kyle Cassidy published what seemed to be an innocuous photo essay about librarians in Slate magazine. Within hours it went viral and ultimately became the most viewed series of photos Slate had ever published. Unexpectedly controversial, it spawned a documentary, narrated by Neil Gaiman, attracted the attention of publishers and began an intense discussion about image, body image, and the future of libraries that is still resonating.

Bio: Kyle Cassidy is the award winning photographer behind the documentary photo books “Armed America: Portraits of Gun Owners in their Homes” and “War Paint: Tattoo Culture and the Armed Forces”. He most recently photographed “Geek Knits”, a book about knitting and nerds written by Joan of Dark and published by St. Martins Press, it comes out in December. Currently he’s hard at work photographing science fiction writers desks and roller derby players. www.kylecassidy.com @kylecassidy

Plus, music by Tom Kelly. Think nerdy videogame-inspired tunes.

As always, we’ll be at Frankford Hall, 1210 Frankford Avenue.

Show starts at 7:30 sharp.

Cover is $5

Be there and be square!

Nerd Nite Brunch: Body vs. Booze
A Nerd Nite that is held during the day? GAMECHANGER!

Yes friends, we are teaming up with the Philadelphia Science Festival for a special Nerd Nite Brunch event focusing on booze and its wonderful/detrimental effects upon the body! Along with a great brunch menu from Frankford Hall and some fun giveaways and activities, there will also be the following talks:

Aman Goyal, Julie Lyzinski Nettleton and Noelle Melartin, “The Not So Happy Drunk”
There are a lot of misconceptions about the effects of alcohol on the brain and body. Think of this talk as an “Alcohol 101” on how to maximize the fun of drinking while minimizing the negative consequences.

Aman Goyal, Julie Lyzinski Nettleton and Noelle Melartin all work for the Office of Alcohol and Other Drug Program Initiatives. They bring their combined years of education, experience and expertise to this Nerd Nite for what promises to be a fascinating speech.

Ava Forte Vitali, “Lore, Legend, Lush: Drinking in Ancient Egypt”

Trained archaeologist and art historian Ava Forte Vitali  is a Featured Lecturer at the Morbid Anatomy Library and Museum in Brooklyn, New York. Her series, “Death and the Occult in the Ancient World” aims to bridge the gap between the educated, academic community and the eager, interested public. She has excavated in both Egypt and Turkey, and completed her Master’s Degree at the Institute of Fine Arts, NYU, where she focused on domestic cult in Ancient Egypt. She currently works at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in collections management for Greek and Roman Art.

Dr. Michael Oshinsky, PhD, “Drunk Rats and Your Hangover”
Dr. Oshinsky will be discussing how alcohol is broken down by the body and how this leads to the nasty symptoms of a hangover. Using animal models of migraine, he discovered the cause of the dreaded hangover headache and a scientific basis for its treatment.

Michael Oshinsky, PhD, combines a passion for science with a desire to help migraine sufferers. Dr. Oshinsky is currently an associate professor in the Department of Neurology at the Thomas Jefferson University, where he works closely with doctors at the Jefferson Headache Center to study the most complicated areas of headache medicine. Dr. Oshinsky’s research focuses on understanding migraine and chronic headache. Using animal models of migraine, he has developed methods for studying the mechanism of action of migraine treatments and hangover headache. In his spare time, Dr. Oshinsky enjoys spending time with his children, whom he tries to “inspire to make a difference.

Plus: Music by Los Festingos!

The particulars:
Sunday, April 27th
Frankford Hall
1210 Frankford Ave.
Show starts at noon.
$5 cover gets you admission and happy hour specials.

See you on Sunday!