Kick off season 10 of Nerd Nite with us this Thursday, August 11th at the legendary Stardust Video & Coffee.
PRESENTATION #1:
“The Nuclear Niche: Fungi that Survive and Thrive in the Heart of Chernobyl” by Matt Luby
The resilience of many species of fungi to various adverse conditions has been known to biologists for many years. It is only in the past three decades that we have begun to evaluate the ability of some fungi to not only survive extremely high doses of harmful radiation, but also to tap into it as an energy source. We’ll discuss not only how it happens, but what we might be able to do with our knowledge of this unique adaptation.
PRESENTATION #2:
“Blood & Treasure: Modern Politics and the Golden Age of Piracy” by J.D. Casto
We tend to think of pirates as bloodthirsty thieves, brutal rapists, and vicious murderers, concerned only with indulging their every whim and amassing as much wealth as possible, forever living at the expense of others. And this is absolutely true. However, in some ways, pirates were strangely ahead of the societal curve. In fact, some of their viewpoints would be heartily endorsed by liberal politicians today – health insurance for all, democratic elections (typically without collusion), and even gay marriage. This presentation will focus on the incredible true stories of pirates and their modern policies.