Cal Academy Conversations On Science Series
Conversations On Science 2015
All programs at the Nourse Theater
All programs at the Nourse Theater
Wednesday March 4, 2015 at 7:30pm Surprising Benefits of Bacteria: The Human Microbiome Katie Pollard in conversation with Shannon Bennett Details and Tickets Did you know that most of you is not even human? What is a human being? One short answer is that it is an individual that started out as a fertilized egg with genes from a male and a female that has developed into a fully functional biological being. But now, there is a growing group of scientists that would say that this is an incomplete definition. They might argue that we are not simply individuals but that we are actually part of our own personal ecosystem. More than 100 trillion… |
Wednesday March 18, 2015 at 7:30pm Minds of Their Own: Animal Intelligence Virginia Morell in conversation with Roy Eisenhardt Details and Tickets Today, it’s almost impossible to imagine a society that didn’t believe that animals could think or use tools in navigating their world. Jane Goodall is widely recognized as one of the scientific pioneers to document complex behaviors such as tool use in the animal world. With the publication of her early work, she began to change how we look at animals and consider… |
Wednesday April 8, 2015 at 7:30pm The Neuroscience of Zen: Happiness, Love, and Wisdom Rick Hanson in conversation with Pamela Weiss Details and Tickets With new breakthroughs in neuroscience, combined with insights from thousands of years of contemplative practice, we are beginning to understand how we can actively shape our own brains for greater happiness, love, and wisdom. Rick Hanson combines modern science with ancient teachings to show you how to have greater emotional balance in turbulent times, as well as healthier relationships, more effective actions, and greater… |
Wednesday April 29, 2015 at 7:30pm The Internet of Things (IoT) Vinton Cerf in conversation with Jacob Ward Details and Tickets Widely known as the “Father of the Internet,” Vinton Cerf is the co-designer of the TCP/IP protocols and basic architecture of the Internet. He worked throughout the 1970s on developing the protocols that would become the basis for internet communication. In the early 1980s, while at MCI, he developed and deployed the first commercial email service to use the internet. His efforts have greatly shaped… |
Wednesday May 20, 2015 at 7:30pm The Science of Sleep Matt Walker in conversation with Indre Viskontas Details and Tickets The science of sleep has traditionally been abstract, but advances in imaging technology now allow scientists to peek inside the sleeping brain. This is exactly what neuroscientists at UC Berkeley are working on in their sleep labs that study everything from how the brain functions during sleep to what the impacts of sleep deprivation have on our health and on our memories. Why do we sleep? What exactly is going on in our brain during… |
Tuesday June 30, 2015 at 7:30pm Drugs, Dopamine, And Lessons From The Brain Nora D. Volkow in conversation with Michael Krasny Details and Tickets By definition, drugs are a medicine or other substance that has a physiological effect when ingested or otherwise introduced into the body. Drugs are chemicals that alter, block, or mimic chemical reactions in the brain. They may be taken for medicinal purposes, as part of our daily routine such as with caffeine or as a recreational activity. This causes an alteration of the body’s normal processes, causing physical changes such as faster heartbeat, deeper… |
