Feeling the summer blahs? If it’s not the heat, it’s the wildfire particulate, but I think we ALL need a good pick-me-up, and August’s Nerd Nite is JUST the thing! Make your way over to LIVE (102 S First St.) on Thursday, August 13 at 7pm (doors at 6:30) for a rollicking good time!
We’ll start out with Roman Around the Universe with Jennifer German! Hubble, Webb, Roman! Dark matter, Supernovae, the Galactic Plane! Big data, Research nexus, Survey Telescope!
Instead of more triplets, come get answers about the Nancy Grace Roman space telescope – including how to get your name aboard it before launch!
Jennifer is a NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador to Michigan, mother of two, software engineering, medical school educated, hopeless space geek.
Next, we’ll hear from Emily Scott with Same Pill. Different Person. Your Mileage Will Absolutely Vary. Why can the same medication work beautifully for one person, fail completely for another, and send a third person on an unexpected tour of its side effects? Come explore how genes, diet, aging, grapefruit, and other drugs can create pharmacological traffic jams, shortcuts, and surprise detours. The pill may be standardized—but its journey through your body definitely isn’t.
Emily is a faculty member in the University of Michigan College of Pharmacy who designs new medications and investigates, at the level of individual atoms and enzymes, how drug molecules encounter a slightly different set of rules of the road in every human body.
Finally, it’s the talk we’ve been waiting to hear since June when the rain spoiled our TOP fun! It’s Sarah Bassiouni with Block(or)bust: How the heck is my childhood’s neighborhood video rental store connected to WWII? Lights! Camera! …Blockbuster? Anyone of a certain age may remember the familiar sight of that blue and yellow sign heralding an exciting night of popcorn and movies at home. But where does the name even come from? In this talk, let’s take a quick dive into the journey of the word “Blockbuster” from the 1940s to the 1980s, and beyond.
Sarah is a PhD candidate studying infectious disease epidemiology at the University of Michigan. Outside of school, she enjoys trivia, stationery, gardening, attending crossword tournaments with her spouse, and spending time with their beloved cats.