MONDAY, July 17, 8PM @ the Bell House, FREE! Secret Science Club presents Geologist & Geophysicist Maureen Long

Are you standing on solid ground? Beneath the surface, our planet pulses with heat and motion. Processes deep in Earth’s interior shape everything from the magnetic field and plate tectonics to earthquakes and volcanoes. Yet, much of what lies below remains a mystery. At the next Secret Science Club, prepare to go deeper than ever before with Maureen Long as she takes us from the lithosphere to the core-mantle boundary.

Geophysicist Maureen Long uses recordings of earthquakes from all over the world to study the deep structure of the Earth, how Earth’s mantle is like a lava lamp, and how plate tectonics shape the geology of our planet. A professor of geology and geophysics at Yale University and an observational seismologist, she has conducted fieldwork in the Peruvian Andes, the High Lava Plains of Oregon, the Appalachians of West Virginia, and on the Research Vessel Endeavor in the Atlantic Ocean. The author of over 60 scientific papers and winner of the Macelwane Medal from the American Geophysical Union, she also works with Earthscope—a program of the National Science Foundation that has deployed thousands of geophysical instruments to study the deep structure of the North American continent and the causes of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Dr. Long has been a featured scientist on NPR and CBS News, and frequently speaks about seismology, plate tectonics, and natural disasters to the public.

Before & After

--Try our cocktail of the night, the Seismic Wave… We’ll put some temblor in your tumbler

--Shake, rattle, and roll to tunes from Earth’s basement tapes

--Stick around for earthshaking Q&A!

This molten edition of the Secret Science Club meets Monday, July 17, 8PM @ the Bell House, 149 7th St. (between 2nd and 3rd aves) in Gowanus, Brooklyn. Subway: F or G to 4th Ave, R to 9th St. 

Doors open at 7:30PM. Please bring ID: 21+

No cover. Just bring your smart self.

Secret Science Club is on hiatus for the month of June. We'll be back at the Bell House in Brooklyn on Monday, July 17.  See you then! 

THURSDAY, May 25, 8PM @ the Bell House, FREE! Secret Science Club presents Data Scientist & Author Seth Stephens-Davidowitz

Secret Science Club presents Data Scientist & Author Seth Stephens-Davidowitz on Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are, THURSDAY, May 25, 8PM @ the Bell House, FREE!

The traces of our private thoughts are everywhere online. What we won’t share with our friends and loved ones, we just might ask Google about. The patterns of billions of searches (for information, mates, etc.) suggest a fascinating idea: the internet may be the ultimate truth serum.

Using data from Google, social media, dating, and even porn sites, data scientist and author Seth Stephens-Davidowitz asks: How much sex do people really have? What can Google searches tell us about racism in America? What do people actually care about during elections? Are boys and girls treated equally by parents? What should you say on a first date if you want a second? Which of their own body parts intrigues men most?

The results of Stephens-Davidowitz’s deep data dives reveal insights into the human psyche that are by turns surprising, dismaying, funny, and disturbing.

Seth Stephens-Davidowitz is a former Google data scientist, New York Times contributing writer, and lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. Stephens-Davidowitz and his research have been featured on the BBC, CNN, NPR, Freakonomics Radio, and Buzzfeed. Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are is his first book.

Before & After

--Try our survey—wait.. no, our cocktail of the night—the Not-So-Random Sample

--Groove to soul-searching tunes

--Stick around for the scintillating Q&A

--Snag a signed copy of Seth Stephens-Davidowitz’s new book, Everybody Lies

This searchable edition of the Secret Science Club meets THURSDAY, May 25, 8 pm @ the Bell House, 149 7th St. (between 2nd and 3rd avenues) in Gowanus, Brooklyn. Subway: F or G to 4th Ave; R to 9th Street.

Doors open at 7:30 pm. Please bring ID: 21+. No cover. Just bring your smart self!

Secret Science Club North presents Microbiologist Martin Blaser & "Marvels of the Microbiome," Tuesday, May 16, 8PM @ Symphony Space

Secret Science Club is heading to Symphony Space for another special event!

 
Tuesday, May 16, 8PM, Secret Science Club North presents Biologist Martin Blaser on "Marvels of the Microbiome!” @ Symphony Space (Shh... use code SECRET15 to get $15 tickets.)

Say hello to your little friends—all 100 trillion of them. Each of us harbors about 1,000 microbial species in our noses, mouths, and guts & on our skin. Together, they weigh an astonishing 2 to 6 pounds. If you’re worried about the aliens within, don’t be. A torrent of new medical and genetic research shows that your microbiome is essential to your survival. These itty-bitty bugs help you metabolize food and build your immune system. They make vitamins and protect you from getting sick.

Join us at the next Secret Science Club North as microbiologist Martin Blaser explores:      

          -- the human microbiome (and the fact that all the microbes in your body can fill a container the size of a soup can!)

          -- the health benefits conferred by your inner ecosystem

          -- the dangers of overusing antibiotics and what we can do to protect ourselves

          -- how obesity, asthma, diabetes, and even mood swings may be linked to changes in our microbiota.

          -- new microbial medicines that may be in our future

Martin Blaser is the Muriel and George Singer Professor of Translational Medicine, Professor of Microbiology, and Director of the Human Microbiome Program at the NYU School of Medicine. At the forefront of new research on the jungle of microorganisms inside us, he researches the relationship of the human microbiome with health and is the author of more than 500 scientific papers. In 2015, he was named one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People, and his work has been featured on the Daily Show, CNN, and NPR, and in the New Yorker, Washington Post, and New York Times. Dr. Blaser is the author of the award-winning book Missing Microbes: How the Overuse of Antibiotics Is Fueling Our Modern Plagues. He serves as chair of the Presidential Advisory Council for Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria.

Before & After

--Try our cocktail of the night, the Scientific Method (created by the mixologists in our pop-up lab)
--Sway to multicellular tunes
--Stick around for the scintillating Q&A
 

Get t$15 tickets for Martin Blaser here with code SECRET15 and enter the code at checkout. You can also use the code at the Symphony Space box office (call 212.864.5400 or visit in person).

This special edition of Secret Science Club North meets Tuesday, May 16, 8PM @ Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway @ 95th St in Manhattan. Subway: 1, 2, or 3 to 96th Street. Doors open at 7:30pm. This is an all-ages event.

March for Science NYC!

Do you feel like science is under siege? Yeah… just a little bit. Well, this weekend you can let everyone know how you feel. Science supporters are taking it to the streets with a march on Washington and satellite marches planned in 517 cities around the world, including our very own…

Secret Science Club supports the “March for Science NYC”

Saturday, April 22, Earth Day, 2017

Rally: 10:30am, Central Park West @ 62^nd St

March: 11:30am, Central Park West @ 71^st to Broadway @ 51st

We urge everyone to come out!

        --Stand up for science and evidence-based policy!

        --Celebrate inquiry, exploration, and curiosity!

        --Speak up for the importance of critical thinking & science education!

Express yourself with signs, slogans, art, photography, costumes, or just your presence. Whatever you do, bring your smart self. Science on!

All the details on the “March for Science NYC” can be found here.

Info on the Washington march and other satellite marches is here.

The “March for Science NYC” starts at 10:30am, Saturday, 4/22, with a rally at Central Park West and 62nd Street in Manhattan. The march begins at 11:30am with the route heading from Central Park West @ 71st Street down to Columbus Circle and then on to Broadway @ 51st Street.

See you there!

Secret Science Club presents Mathematical Physicist Robbert Dijkgraaf, Monday, April 17, 8 PM @ the Bell House, FREE!

Count down the seconds to the next Secret Science Club when we explore “Black Holes & the End of Space and Time” with Physicist Robbert Dijkgraaf!

Einstein’s theory of relativity showed that gravity and the evolution of the cosmos can be understood through the geometry of space and time. But some of the most dramatic predictions of that theory, such as black holes and the Big Bang, challenge that idea. When combined with quantum mechanics, the solution points to a deeper underlying description of reality where space and time are . . . but an illusion.

Did the Big Bang create time? Do space and time switch places inside a black hole?

 

And that’s not all! Robbert Dijkgraaf examines how the strangest, deepest questions about the nature of the Universe sometimes yield the most unexpected and practical solutions to human problems. In a just-reissued reprise of one of the seminal arguments for the importance of basic scientific research, Dr. Dijkgraaf celebrates The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge.

Robbert Dijkgraaf is professor of physics and director of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. His research focuses on string theory and the interface between mathematics and particle physics. The former president of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, he is a recipient of the Spinoza Prize, the highest scientific award in the Netherlands. A popular TV presenter, he starred in the science show Hoe?Zo! and gives frequent public talks.

Before & After

--Get looped (temporally) with our mind-bending cocktail of the night, the Time Collins

--Groove like its 1999 … or 2599 … or 1699! And get lost in space-time with out-of-this-world tunes

--Snag a signed copy of The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge with an introductory essay of epic dimensions by Robbert Dijkgraaf

--Stick around for the celestial Q&A

This timeless edition of the Secret Science Club meets Monday, April 17, 2017, 8pm @ the Bell House, 149 7th St. (between 2nd and 3rd avenues) in Gowanus, Brooklyn. Subway: F or G to 4th Ave; R to 9th St. 

Doors open at 7:30 pm. Please bring ID: 21+
No cover. Just bring your smart self!

Secret Science Club presents Evolutionary Biologist & Tropical Explorer Corrie Moreau Thursday, March 2, 8PM @ the Bell House, FREE!

Think human society is filled with unusual behavior? Try the empire of the ants. With over 13,000 species, these highly social beasties engage in everything from weaving and warfare to farming and vampirism.

At the next Secret Science Club, evolutionary biologist and myrmecologist Corrie Moreau burrows into the intriguing lives of ants: their evolution, their intense symbiotic relationships with other species, their teeny tiny microbiomes, and their strange social structures and abilities. Dr. Moreau asks: Why do ants have a female-dominated society? Why are the tropics an evolutionary hotbed for ants? How are members of an ant colony like specialized cells in the human body? What are Dracula ants?

Corrie Moreau is an associate curator and professor at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. She studies the evolution and diversity of ant species, ant co-evolution with flowering plants and symbiosis, as well as the microbial species that live on and inside ants. Dr. Moreau has conducted field research in Peru, Ecuador, Borneo, Australia, and Madagascar. She combines her work in the field with molecular methods and next-generation sequencing to probe the ant genome. Her research has been featured in the New York Times, National Geographic News, Smithsonian, and Mental Floss, and on NPR and Brain Scoop.

Before & After

--Try our exploratory cocktail of the night, the Island of Dr. Moreau

--Groove to antennae-tapping tunes

--Stick around for the hive-minded Q&A

This biodiverse edition of the Secret Science Club meets Thursday, March 2, 8 pm @ the Bell House, 149 7th St. (between 2nd and 3rd avenues) in Gowanus, Brooklyn. Subway: F or G to 4th Ave; R to 9th Street.

Doors open at 7:30 pm. Please bring ID: 21+. No cover. Just bring your smart self!

Secret Science Club presents Philosopher, Cognitive Scientist & Author Daniel Dennett, Tuesday, February 7, 8PM @ the Bell House, FREE!

How did we come to have minds and consciousness? For centuries, this question has puzzled and intrigued psychologists, physicists, poets, and philosophers, who have wondered how the human mind developed its ability to create, explain, and imagine.

At the next Secret Science Club, philosopher & cognitive scientist Daniel Dennett explores the evolution of mind. Drawing on his just-released book, From Bacteria to Bach and Back, Dr. Dennett asks: What is consciousness? How did the brain evolve? How are memes “thinking tools”? Did words and language create the modern mind? Is your soul made of tiny robots?

Daniel C. Dennett is professor of philosophy and co-director of the Center for Cognitive Studies at Tufts University. He is the author of over a dozen books including Darwin’s Dangerous Idea and Consciousness Explained, as well as over 400 scholarly articles on aspects of the mind, published in journals ranging from Artificial Intelligence and Behavioral and Brain Sciences to Poetics Today.

Before & After

--Prime your thinking with an Intuition Pump, our cocktail of the night

--Sway to neuro-grooves, and stick around for the Q&A

--Hot off the presses! Snag a signed copy of Daniel Dennett’s wondrous new book, From Bacteria to Bach and Back: The Evolution of Minds.

This brainy edition of the Secret Science Club meets Tuesday, February 7, 2017, 8pm @ the Bell House, 149 7th St. (between 2nd and 3rd avenues) in Gowanus, Brooklyn. Subway: F or G to 4th Ave; R to 9th St. 

Doors open at 7:30 pm. Please bring ID: 21+. No cover. We're expecting a big crowd, so get there early!