The Museum of Science Announces a New Season of Adult Offerings
September 21, 2011
BOSTON -- In addition to its exhibits, films, and planetarium presentations, the Museum of Science, Boston hosts a number of exciting offerings for adults. Ranging from evening social events and special programs to live presentations and stimulating forums, these offerings are designed to engage museum visitors and further spark curiosity in science and technology. For more information, visit http://www.mos.org/events.
This season, explore the ashes of ancient Pompeii to the extreme weather of today, and how our world and how we understand it is constantly shifting. Join us as we bring together art and science, explore the food we eat and why, consider how the drama of the natural world shapes who we are, and contemplate the possibilities of the future.
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LET'S TALK ABOUT FOOD
Find out how food influences our culture and shapes our health and environment.
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Sponsored by Whole Foods Market. Presented in partnership with Let's Talk About Food. Additional support provided by Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and Le Cordon Bleu, College of Culinary Arts.
Dinner in Pompeii | Thursday, October 6; 6:30 p.m.
Maite Gomez-Rejón, historian of art and culinary history; founder of ArtBites
Admission: $60 for 4-course dinner; $85 with wine pairings. (Both include tax and gratuity.) Tickets at mos.org.
Embark on a culinary exploration of ancient Pompeii with chef and art historian Maite Gomez-Rejón. Over a four-course dinner, we'll journey from fifth century BC—when Pompeii was under Greek control—to the first century AD, when the city became a flourishing port town under the Romans, with over 20,000 residents relishing local and exotic delicacies.
Join us at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts at 215 First Street in Cambridge as Maite Gomez-Rejón skillfully seasons the evening with dishes from the ancient world and dashes of the life and culture of Pompeii. Check mos.org/food for menu details and information about upcoming dinners.
Sponsored by at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts. Food ingredients provided by Whole Foods Market. Wine provided by Ball Square Fine Wines. Additional funding by the Barbara and Malcolm L. Sherman Fund for Adult Programs and by the David and Marion Ellis Endowment Fund.
Let's Talk About Food Safety | Wednesday, October 5; 7:00 p.m.
Admission: Free, register at mos.org/events
Food nourishes our bodies, but if improperly produced or handled it can make us sick, and it can be potentially fatal. What are some impacts of large-scale agriculture, and how do these practices affect our ability to protect the safety of our food sources? Discuss what we can do to prevent food-related illnesses and contaminants and how to prepare for unexpected outbreaks of disease.
Sponsored by Safe Food Scientific. Presented in collaboration with the Department of Environmental Health at Boston University School of Public Health.
What I Eat: Around the World in 25 Diets | On Exhibit
Admission: Free with Exhibit Halls entry
A revealing new photographic exhibit profiles what people around the globe eat. Have you ever stopped to think about all the different foods you eat over the course of a day? Or how your choices differ from those of your friends, neighbors, or even someone halfway around the world? Photojournalist Peter Menzel and writer Faith D'Aluisio have, and the result is their thought-provoking book What I Eat: Around the World in 80 Diets.
Produced by the Museum of Science, Boston in collaboration with artist Peter Menzel and writer Faith D'Aluisio. Funding provided by the National Endowment for the Humanities Fund.
Growing Green | Part of the Celebrity Science Series and A Reno Family Foundation Symposium | Wednesday, November 2; 7:00 p.m.
Majora Carter, eco-entrepreneur and president of Majora Carter Group
Admission: $15. Tickets at mos.org
Health Hero. Prophet of Local. Eco-Industrial Strategist. Economic Pioneer. Intrepid Boundary
Breaker. These all apply to one person—Peabody Award-winning radio broadcaster and MacArthur "genius" fellow Majora Carter.
In 2001, Carter redefined environmental equality through one of the nation's first green-collar job training and placement systems, coining the term "green the ghetto." She began this decade as one of Fast Company magazine's "100 Most Creative in Business" with her groundbreaking consulting company that offers analysis and advice on climate adaptation, urban micro-agribusiness, and development strategies for business, government, foundations, universities, and economically underperforming communities.
Her firm specializes in advanced urban agriculture job creation and food distribution systems that transcend the limits of good-nutrition educational efforts by building economic imperatives for all people to do better.
Join us as Carter shares inspirational lessons of how we can bring out the best in our communities and ourselves—and move forward, together.
Funding provided by the Reno Family Foundation Fund. Co-Sponsored by Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation.
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LOWELL SERIES ON PHYSICS
Expanding the bounds of our universe and our imaginations.
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Knocking on Heaven's Door | Wednesday, September 21; 7:00 p.m.
Lisa Randall, PhD, Frank B. Baird, Jr., Professor of Science at Harvard University
Admission: Free, register online at mos.org/events
How do we decide which scientific questions to study? What roles do risk, creativity, uncertainty, beauty, and truth play in scientific thinking? Explore these questions with renowned physicist Lisa Randall an expert in both particle physics (the study of the smallest objects we know) and cosmology (the study of the largest). Her new book, Knocking on Heaven's Door, presents the latest ideas in physics and a rousing defense of the role of science in our lives. Book signing to follow.
Admission is free thanks to the generosity of the Lowell Institute.
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LESSONS FROM POMPEII
What can an ancient city's last days teach us about our lives?
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Volcanoes on the Verge Lecture | Wednesday, January 25; 7:00 p.m.
Ken Sims, Associate Professor, Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Wyoming
Admission: Free, register online at mos.org/events starting January 11.
Did you know that one of the world's largest volcanoes lies under Yellowstone National Park? Or that one of the most active volcanoes on the planet boasts a lake of lava 700 feet across and a city of one million residents at its base?
In an effort to prevent a modern-day Pompeii, isotope geochemist and volcanologist Ken Sims travels the globe and rappels into the fiery hearts of volcanoes, measuring gases and collecting "zero-age" chunks of fresh lava. Marvel at his life in the field and learn about the biggest threats and when they might erupt.
Admission is free thanks to the generosity of the Lowell Institute.
Extreme Weather | Wednesday, February 1; 7:00 p.m.
Bonnie Schneider, meteorologist, CNN Headline News
Admission: Free, register online at mos.org/events starting January 18.
In this post-Katrina era, we are more aware than ever of our vulnerability to natural disasters. Yet a 2007 survey conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health found that more than 30 percent of residents living within 20 miles of the coastline vowed they would not leave if ordered to evacuate for a major hurricane. The exact number of people killed in Pompeii when
Mount Vesuvius erupted is unknown, but 1,044 casts of bodies in ash deposits have been recovered. Centuries later, why do so many people stay in place and put themselves at risk despite dire warnings?
In her new book, Extreme Weather, CNN meteorologist Bonnie Schneider explains the science behind when natural disasters are likely to strike. Hear the latest on how to prepare for the unexpected and how these responses can make a difference between life and death. Book signing to follow.
Admission is free thanks to the generosity of the Lowell Institute.
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WHEN SCIENCE MEETS ART
Shattering the boundaries between art, science, and technology.
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Artistic Visions, Scientific Truths | Wednesday, November 16; 7:00 p.m.
Alexis Rockman, artist | James J. McCarthy, PhD, Alexander Agassiz Professor of Biological
Oceanography, Harvard University
Introduction by Susan Dackerman, Carl A. Weyerhaeuser Curator of Prints, Division of European and American Art, Harvard Art Museums
Admission: Free, register online at mos.org/events starting November 2.
Acclaimed artist Alexis Rockman and evolutionary biologist James J. McCarthy discuss how contemporary artists and scientists collaborate in order to advance and disseminate scientific discoveries. This program complements Harvard Art Museums' current exhibition Prints and the Pursuit of Knowledge in Early Modern Europe, which explores the role of celebrated artists in the scientific inquiries of the 16th century.
Rockman is renowned for his apocalyptic paintings depicting nature and its intersections with humanity. McCarthy bridges science and policy in his work on global climate change.
A co-presentation of the Museum of Science and the Harvard Art Museums. Admission is free thanks to the generosity of the Lowell Institute. Program made possible by funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Water Is Rising | Sunday, November 20; 3:30 p.m.
Aaron Bernstein, MD, MPH, Director, Human Health and Global Environmental Change Program of the Center for Health and the Global Environment at Harvard Medical School | Michaele Maiava, Tokelau government councilman | Andrew Semeli, Tuvalu Parliamentarian Assistant | Water Is Rising performers from Kiribati
In a conversation facilitated by Judy Mitoma, MA, director of UCLA's Center for Intercultural Performance
Admission: Free, register online at mos.org/events starting November 6.
The tiny Pacific atolls of Kiribati, Tokelau, and Tuvalu are facing the consequences of global warming first hand. Living at elevations of three to five meters above sea level, their inhabitants risk seeing their cultures become the first on Earth to be submerged by rising seas. Discover through song, dance, and discussion the legacy of their traditions, their precarious position, and their desire that the world not overlook them. This program complements the Water Is Rising concert, curated by Judy Mitoma, which brings together 36 carefully selected artists from the smallest countries on their first performance tour in the United States.
A co-presentation of the Museum of Science and World Music/CRASHarts. Amission is free thanks to the generosity of the Lowell Institute. Funded in part by the Expeditions program of the New England Foundation for the Arts.
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AND MORE...
With events popping up throughout the season, the Museum has something for everyone.
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Behind the Headline | Daily; 2:30 p.m.
Admission: Free with Exhibit Halls entry.
Take an in-depth look at the latest science in the news. In these daily presentations, which change every three weeks, staff from our Gordon Current Science & Technology Center describe what's going on in the world—from the tsunami and tornadoes to the power of bats.
If you cannot make it to the presentation, or for more information, check out our interviews with the researchers themselves in our weekly podcasts: mos.org/podcasts.
Custom Babies? | Tuesday, November 15; 7:00 p.m.
Admission: Free, register online at mos.org/events.
New reproductive technologies allow parents to choose the sex of their baby or to test for genetic disorders as part of in vitro fertilization. Should parents have the ability to learn the genetic sequence of their future child? What kinds of decisions might be based upon that information? Discuss with others where the possibilities for genetic engineering might take us.
About the Museum of Science, Boston
One of the world's largest science centers and Boston's most attended cultural institution, the Museum introduces 1.5 million visitors a year to science, technology, engineering, and math via hundreds of interactive exhibits and programs. Founded in 1830, the Museum was first to embrace all the sciences under one roof. Highlights include the Thomson Theater of Electricity, Charles Hayden Planetarium, Mugar Omni Theater, Gordon Current Science & Technology Center, 3-D Digital Cinema and Butterfly Garden. Reaching 25,000 teens a year worldwide via the Intel Computer Clubhouse Network, the Museum also leads a $41 million National Science Foundation-funded Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network. The Museum's "Science Is an Activity" exhibit plan has been awarded many NSF grants, influencing science centers worldwide. Its National Center for Technological Literacy®'s engineering curricula have reached 30,000 teachers and almost 3 million students nationwide. The Museum has been recognized by Boston and Cambridge for its sustainability efforts; named an Employer of Choice by Work Without Limits, a Massachusetts disability employment initiative; is Yankee Magazine's "Best of New England Readers' Choice" for Cultural Attraction in Science; and El Planeta's Best Tourist Attraction for the Massachusetts Latino population. Visit http://www.mos.org. Follow the Museum on Twitter at @museumofscience and become a Museum Facebook fan at: www.facebook.com/museumofscience
Press Contacts
Contact: Andrew Gosselin: 617/589-0251 or agosselin@mos.org Lauren Crowne: 617/589-0250 or lcrowne@mos.org
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