Our next virtual North America Nerd Nite will be Wednesday July 8, 2020 at 8pm EDT / 5pm PDT featuring presentations from Toronto, Memphis, Calgary, and LA. With a twist. We are encouraging (but not requiring) donations to attend our virtual Nite. To donate, simply make a payment for any amount you so choose via PayPal to (don’t worry…that’s the Nerd Nite account; Matt won’t take that wad of cash and buy a RV to go camping all summer..or will he???). Then, the 12 folks who made the largest donations can stick around for a bonus 30 minutes after the presentations to not only join Chris and Matt for a private ask-us-anything session, but to also look inside Matt’s refrigerator to make him eat and/or make cocktails from whatever’s in there. Mmm…gross fun!
Watch the presentations live at http://www.facebook.com/nerdnite
Back to the Lectures At-Hand:
8pm-8:30pm EDT / 5pm-5:30pm PDT: Nerd Nite Toronto: Adventures in Human Powered Flight by David Donaldson
Description: Human flight is now commonplace. We think nothing of hopping on a jumbo and jetting halfway around the world. When humans stopped trying to mimic flapping birds and adopted fixed wing flight we made great progress. When we invented an engine with a power to weight ratio suitable, we bolted that to our airframes and the modern airplane was born. The race was on, go higher, faster, push the limits. After hundreds of years of development, we got this! Or do we? What about human powered flight? Oh, wait, that was done in the early 60?s. So, what is left? Join us for insights into two aviation firsts, the Human Powered Ornithopter and Human Powered Helicopter.
Bio: David is a professional facilitator and amateur nerd. When not earning a living training folks how to better lead change in the corporate world, he can be found teaching fledgling pilots to get their wings. With a passion for building he is currently working on his second amateur build motor-glider project. David has been a pilot for 35 years, a facilitator for 27 years, and a flight instructor for 18 years. Proudly a nerd all his life.
8:30pm-9pm EDT / 5:30pm-6pm PDT: Nerd Nite Memphis: Twitch Sample Challenge by Nick Black
Description: For the past 40 Days (and counting), I’ve been acquiring samples from musicians who are all over the country, even some outside of the country. For 30 days, I vowed to take one of those samples and create a song inspired by it, and I would do it all completely LIVE on Twitch.tv, a website usually dedicated to streaming video game lets plays. The samples could be anything from vocals to keyboards, to guitar, and the rest. The goal at the end of each stream is to have a nearly completed song.
Bio: Nick Black is a fun, optimistic, and authentic young artist from Memphis, TN. Influenced by the feel-good music of Justin Timberlake and Bruno Mars, and the musicality of legacy acts such as Al Green and Sting, Nick has created his music to sound modern and unique, yet familiar and nostalgic. He strives to bring his optimistic life-vision to his music, imbuing his beliefs in human nature and the Universe, that are true, honest, perceptive and passionate. Craving stardom since a child, multi-instrumentalist / vocalist Nick Black is determined now more than ever to reach and exceed his goals. Since his first album in 2012, The Soul Diaries, his authenticity and passion has been the foundation of his identity, both as a person and as an artist. Venturing into new territory with his recently released “IRL”, Nick is excited to pursue his curiosity in electronic music, adding dance beats to his extremely versatile sound. Nick is now touring nationally, following recent sold out shows at Springboard West Music Festival in San Diego, The Mint in Los Angeles, B-Side in Hollywood and at Anaheim’s 2020 NAMM Show.
9pm-9:30pm EDT / 6pm-6;30pm PDT: Nerd Nite Calgary: COVID-19: Anatomy of a Pandemic by Franco Rizzuti
Description: A guided peak under the covers of the COVID-19 response. From early 2020 until present day, a look as to what is the status of the pandemic in Alberta. Franco will discuss what goes into pandemic planning, and the Alberta response, from testing, contact tracing, treatment, and preparations for future waves.
Bio: Franco A. Rizzuti BSc MD (he/him/his). Co-Chief Public Health & Preventive Medicine Resident Physician (PGY-4) | Cumming School of Medicine, UCalgary | Alberta Health Services, Calgary Zone. President, Professional Association of Resident Physicians of Alberta (PARA)
President, Canadian Association of Physicians with Disabilities (CAPD)
Board Director, Accreditation Liaison & Resiliency Trainer, Resident Doctors of Canada (RDoC). Board Director, Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS). @fa_rizzuti. www.linkedin.com/in/franco-rizzuti
9:30pm-10pm EDT / 6:30pm-7pm PDT: Nerd Nite Los Angeles: Science of the Acme Product Catalogue by Daniel J. Glenn, Dr. Michael Dennin, & Ben Siepser
Description: Wile E. Coyote is either remarkably rich or buried under crippling debt. Either way, he has amassed an impressive collection of gadgets, gizmos, and gear-based technologies in his relentless pursuit of the roadrunner. Listen as Daniel J. Glenn, Dr. Michael Dennin, and Ben Siepser from the podcast FGGGbT show you what is possible in the world of cartoon physics, including, giant magnets, rocket shoes, and spring-loaded boxing gloves.
Bio: Daniel J. Glenn is an independent digital producer and podcast host. He has created several shows that exist at the intersection of pop culture and science including the podcast Fascinating Gadgets, Gizmos, and Gear-Based Technologies (FGGGbT). He also hosts an interview style podcast, where he has interviewed myriad experts in various fields including world renowned scientists, elite athletes, best selling authors, and Guinness World Record holders.
Bio: Professor Dennin has been Professor of Physics and Astronomy at UCI since 1997, and is now the Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning and Dean, Division of Undergraduate Education. His research focuses on the dynamics of foams and modeling of ice mélange in fjords. He is passionate about public outreach in the area of science – appearing on numerous television programs. Recently, he published a science outreach book on the intersection between science and faith: Divine Science: Finding Reason at the Heart of Faith, from Franciscan Media.
Bio: Ben Siepser is an electrical and computer engineer specializing in the design of microchips and sensors. Thousands of microchips that he has developed have flown into space on nearly 100 different missions. He has parts that have been installed on the International Space Station and others that will be in space forever. After ten years of working in aerospace Ben turned his sights inward to the human mind. He is now working on devices that are capable of studying the brain in incredible detail and that will soon unlock amazing new insights into ourselves.
10pm-10:30pm EDT / 7pm-7:30pm PDT: Ask Chris and Matt Anything
What do you want to know about Nerd Nite? Or ourselves? And why do you want to make Matt barf on Zoom? You’re so mean! Dr. Chris Balakrishnan is Nerd Zero, the founder and godfather of Nerd Nite. Matt Wasowski is definitely not a doctor and leads all the Nerd Nite nerds around the globe. We are encouraging (but definitely not requiring) donations to attend this particular virtual Nite. To donate, simply make a payment for any amount you so choose via PayPal to (don’t worry…that’s the Nerd Nite account; Matt won’t take that wad of cash and buy a RV to go camping all summer..or will he???). Then, the 12 folks who made the largest donations will stick around for a bonus 30 minutes after the presentations to not only join Chris and Matt for a private ask-us-anything session, but to also look inside Matt’s refrigerator to make him eat and/or make cocktails from whatever’s in there. Mmm…gross fun!