One of my earliest memories is of the chaos caused by a kamikaze bee that flew through an open window in my family’s pickup truck during an otherwise pleasant country drive. It saddens me to imagine a future where children are deprived of the bee-related traumatic experiences that I had growing up, but lately the world’s bee populations have been mysteriously dying. Bees contribute heavily … Continue reading Buzzkill: Where have all the bees gone?
Photo by Annemarie Mountz, from http://phys.org/news/2013-02-bees-electrical-fields.html Flowers seduce bees with attractants such as color, shape, and scent. Scientists now think that flowers may have another surprising attractant in their repertoire: electric fields. Researchers in the UK found evidence suggesting that different flowers produce distinct patterns of electric fields. They hypothesized that bees can sense these patterns and learn to associate them with rewards like nectar, … Continue reading Fake electric flowers reveal surprising bee seduction technique
Presented by Elizabeth Petrik, Ryan Kuzmickas, and Kevin Ma Honeybees are creating a buzz in the media lately, particularly due to the large numbers of mysterious bee deaths attributed to Colony Collapse Disorder. This lecture will explore how these amazing creatures play an important role in our economy and inspire the future of robotics, as well as what we know about the threats to bee … Continue reading From Dancing Bees to RoboBees: How Honeybees Behave and Why Need Them
Presented by Heather Olins Since their discovery in 1977, scientists and non-scientists alike have been captivated by hydrothermal vent ecosystems. The geological setting and the biological processes that occur in these locations make them unlike any ecosystem on Earth. In this talk we will start out with some background about what these vents are and how they form. We will discuss the “alien” nature of … Continue reading Alien Worlds of Hydrothermal Vents
Presented by Alexis Harrison, Emily Kay, and Emily Jacobs-Palmer The subject of promiscuity is rampant in the news. It appears in a social context – an affair can take down the campaign of a presidential candidate – and in a scientific one, as when theoreticians speculate on the evolutionary underpinnings of our relationship choices. As humans, we are the “monkey in the middle,” promiscuity-wise: our … Continue reading Big Love: Monogamy and Promiscuity in the Animal Kingdom
— Few things are universal throughout our culture, but a fascination with dinosaurs comes close. Whether it comes from a childhood visit to a natural history museum or that first appearance of Brachiosaurus towering overhead in Spielberg’s 1993 film, Jurassic Park, almost everyone shares a sense of awe at the notion that such great and massive creatures once roamed the earth. We also share in the curiosity about what they were really like. Many artists have created their own interpretations of the physical forms of dinosaurs – but like life itself, those interpretations have evolved over time. Continue reading A Prehistoric Plumage Palette: Discovering the Colors of Dinosaur Feathers