Review

This past Thursday Daniel Osmer, normally introducing the Buzz speakers, was himself the speaker. He addressed a topic of long interest to him. He attempted to find a link between between art and science by considering the concept of symmetry. While artists such as Picasso and Escher spring to mind at the mention of symmetry, most non-scientists are less familiar with how quickly the intuitive beauty of the idea becomes hideously abstract as science becomes more mathematical (i.e., physics).

As the audience filtered in to Coffee Catz, they were treated to large scrolls of black paper that the viewer took at first to be Dead Sea scrolls or perhaps Babylonian recipes for making beer. Closer inspection revealed the script to be something resembling English! See photos below.

symmetry: BRIDGE BETWEEN ART & SCIENCE

Three broken Symmetries resulted in the Four Fundamental Forces. Mathematical symmetry plays a fundamental role in both relativity and quantum theory. Sir Isaac Newton is the only scientist to discover essential symmetry concepts in both mathematics and physics. The original universe was a billion times more massive but the near-symmetrical production of matter and anti-matter almost destroyed the whole shebang. The physicist always seeks beauty in the equations. Look carefully. See it?

Algebra translated as Restoration: Mathematicians stumbled upon the concept of Symmetry during the search for a solution to an impossible formula – the 5th power of the unknown – the Quintic equation. Mathematics as a second language. Normally Greek?

Below: The story begins between two rivers (Mesopotamia) where scribes in Babylon solve for the unknown in a word equation. The icosahedron (one of the 5 regular polygons, not the constipated ones)
fascinated the Pythagoreans and was used by the great mathematician, Felix Klein, who used it to create a geometry that Einstein used to support his theory of general relativity.

Science Buzz Cafe # 24 with Daniel Osmer, December 6th, 2007

Science Buzz Cafe # 24 with Daniel Osmer, December 6th, 2007

Science Buzz Cafe # 24 with Daniel Osmer, December 6th, 2007

Preview

The last presentation of the Fall Science Series of Science Buzz Cafe is this Thursday night December 6. SBC host Daniel Osmer will be highlighting the stories of the heroes and heroines of Science and Art - past and present, near and far. Using the theme of symmetry he will take us on a quick tour of the history of an impossible equation that will take us from scribes in Babylon to research physicists at CERN. Bring popcorn. Science Buzz Cafe will begin its third series of 12 Science Buzz Cafe's for the winter that runs through March 13, 2008. On Thursday, December 13 Ed Bauman, Ph.D. of Bauman College, will talk about Emerging Research in Nutrition and Aging. Karen Frindell, Ph.D. will have the last presentation for the year on December 20, 2008 when she presents on the topic of Nanotechnology. We gather once again on January 10, 2008 for Robert Porter, Ph. D. and the Music of the Spheres: The Physics of Music.

Review:

Last Thursday the 29th of November found a large crowd to listen to and participate in a discussion about the theme, "Is Science a Religion?" It turns out that this seemingly obscure theme found a lot of resonance in the crowd. Reverend Doctor Billy Bob Porter and Father Doctor Gustavius DeZeriga ranted and raved but many in the crowd were disappointed that no snake handling was provided, contrary to the billing. The position of the speakers seems to have been that there is nothing wrong with religion except when it comes to proving it, unlike science where proving it is one of its appeals. On the other hand faith is a big plus in religion but taking something on faith in science will likely bring you a scowl and a nasty, "Show Your Work!" This sort of admonition might be expected to displease the Deity and be followed by, "I DID! SEE GENESIS!"

Science Buzz Cafe # 23 with Robert Porter, Ph.D., November 29th, 2007

Preview:

Speaking of turkeys, November 29 brings us back with a talk titled, "Is Science a Religion?" by the Reverend Doctor Billy Bob Porter. Reverend Billy Bob will attempt to part the sea of confusion that is drowning this age-old question and attempt to convert lots of souls to his own religion which is based upon the second coming of Ronald Reagan. Come for the sermon, stay for the snake handling. And yes, we will have a conversation about Science and its impact upon Humanity. Now and for the Future.

Review:

Thursday night just passed brought us Dennis Colthurst, forensic investigator for the Sebastopol Police Department. The turnout was surprisingly large, given the number of known felons in the audience that night. Perhaps they wanted to get a few tips on how to avoid the long arm of the law. Moreover, Dennis did not disappoint. He talked about not only the ins and outs of fingerprinting and other aspects of forensic science but also the ups and downs of the psychological aspects of law
enforcement. For example, he gave his view that justice was served when OJ Simpson was set free because the jury pronounced him innocent - in our system the jury's say decides what justice is. But he was quick to ask the audience a rhetorical question, "But how many people believed he was innocent?" Our resident wag quickly piped up, "Twelve!"

Colthurst not only gave an overview of the science and technology of the many tools available to law enforcement but how young most of it is (except fingerprinting, which is over a century old.) He talked about how much of this innovation originated in California. He asked why that is. I guessed because we need it keep an eye on all the politicians, but he says no, its all the science industry here. In
addition, the government agency most responsible for these technical advances is NASA. When asked how many of the audience had never seen an episode of "CSI" on television about half raised their hands. So how can Sebastopudlians be so hip and still be so well informed?

Science Buzz Cafe # 22 with Dennis E. Colthurst, November 15th, 2007

Science Buzz Cafe # 22 with Dennis E. Colthurst, November 15th, 2007

Preview:

Sebastopol CSI! This coming Thursday, November 15, the Science Buzz Cafe will bring you an arresting speaker in the form of Dennis Colthurst, Forensic investigator for the Sebastopol Police Department. While his specialty is fingerprint science over at the old cop shop, he assures us we need not wipe our cups clean after our evening at Coffee Cats. The CSI series on television is a bighit but the fantasy that is the staple of the show, for example, machines that one feeds with a hair
follicle and 10 minutes later out pops the guys DNA complete with color photo and the perp's fingerprints, is not available to Sebastopol. Yet. However, you still need to worry about the microphone and transmitter in your smoke detector.