Talk Archives

Much of what we experience in our lives each day is entirely forgotten. So what leads our brains to store experiences in memory that help us navigate the world? Perhaps the most important signal is mistake-making. Formal schooling unfortunately conveys the message that becoming more skillful means making fewer mistakes, which is demonstrably untrue. Come and learn how mistakes lead to advantageous changes to our memories and are the key to learning.

What can an Aye-Aye teach us about human vision? Chris Kirk explains how his research related to these intense-looking and enigmatic primates helps us understand human vision.

Los humanos hemos estado fascinados con los monos debido a nuestra cercanía evolutiva con ellos. Laura Abondano es una investigadora que utiliza métodos de observación en conjunto con técnicas de laboratorio y tecnología moderna para estudiar el comportamiento y la ecología de los monos lanudos en las selvas amazónicas ecuatorianas. Participe en nuestro evento y aprenda sobre el fascinante comportamiento social de estas criaturas y sus similitudes y diferencias con los humanos. This Hot Science At Home event will be completely in Spanish and features Dr. Laura Abondano and her research on woolly monkeys.

Humans have long been fascinated with their evolutionary cousins in the primate world, monkeys. Anthony Di Fiore combines observational methods and modern technology to study the behavior and ecology of spider monkeys and woolly monkeys in the Amazon rain forest of Ecuador. Join us as he talks about the fascinating social behavior of these creatures and how they may be both strikingly similar to, and vastly different from, humans.

What will we eat in a bigger, hotter and smarter world? Climate models show that global crop production will continue to decline due to drought, heat, and flooding. Meanwhile, the world’s population is expected to grow another 30 percent by midcentury. So how, really, will we feed nine billion people sustainably in the coming decades? Hear how Amanda Little spent three years traveling through a dozen countries and as many U.S. states in search of answers to that question.

With more than 355,000 hazardous waste sites and 550,000 abandoned mines in the U.S., it is not uncommon to find residential areas located next to them.  Discover how Dr. Monica Ramirez-Andreotta engaged affected communities using gardens and citizen science. Community members investigated and evaluated the contaminants in their areas while cultivating gardens to improve the environmental health of their neighborhoods.

Is Mars the next step in human exploration of the solar system? What would it take to live and work on the red planet, and what will future explorers need to know in order to survive Martian extremes? Join Joe Levy as he talks about the unique aspects of living on Mars.

Madagascar, off the coast of Africa, is the land of lemurs. It is home to over 100 lemur species, including the “sifaka”. Sifaka are unusual primates with crazy-eyed stares, amazing leaping abilities, and societies where females are at the top of the hierarchy. Join Rebecca Lewis as she talks about the unique challenges of fieldwork in Madagascar and shares her research about lemurs.

Discover how superheroes like the Avengers use science to keep villains in check and save the world. Enjoy the science and then participate in a live Q&A session with Dr. Burks.

Join us for a Hot Science - Cool Talks event from the comfort of your home with Dr. Rob Plowes! Enjoy the science and then participate in a live Q&A session with Dr. Plowes.