Presented by: Shirlee Wohl and Katherine Wu Think of a virus, and you’ll likely think of an infection – Ebola, HIV, mononucleosis. But in actuality, the viruses that infect humans make up an infinitesimally small percentage of the total number on Earth, now estimated to be in the range of 10^31. Neither truly “alive” nor “dead,” viral particles are miniscule but complex pieces of machinery … Continue reading Growing Together: How Viruses Have Shaped Human Evolution

Presented by Martin Fan and Matt Schwartz Tyrannosaurus Rex may have gone extinct, but could there be other dinosaurs lurking in your backyard? In fact, birds are modern dinosaurs. In this talk we will discuss the theories on why non-avian dinosaurs went extinct, why avian dinosaurs survived, and the evidence that birds are actually modern dinosaurs. Lecture Continue reading Living in a Jurassic World: Could dinosaurs be lurking in your backyard?

Presented by Andy Greenspon, Christine Zgrabik, and Rob Devlin We have attempted to understand and control how light interacts with different materials since the days of ancient Greece, but it was only in the past century that scientists and engineers have been able to study this interaction at the nanoscopic scale (10-9 meters). We take our inspiration in this endeavor from nature, so Andy will … Continue reading Tricks of the Light: How nanoscale materials shape the world we see