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Past Events

Thursday, 22 Feb 2018

From Mythbusters to White Rabbit Project: Engineering Entertainment - Grant Imahara
8:00 PM – Great Hall, Memorial Union - Grant Imahara, formerly on MythBusters, now stars on the Netflix series The White Rabbit Project, a show about weird science and unusual tech that has been described as “Mythbusters in Wonderland.” Imahara is a former animatronics engineer and model maker for George Lucas’s Industrial Light & Magic, the special-effects shop, where he worked on such movies as The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines and A.I.: Artificial Intelligence. He also worked on The Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions. Imahara earned his degree in electrical engineering from the University of Southern California. Engineers’ Week 2018 Keynote

Blaxicans and the Future of Identity in the United States - Walter Thompson-Hernandez
7:00 PM – Sun Room, Memorial Union - Walter Thompson-Hernandez is a Los Angeles-based New York Times multimedia journalist. His work focuses on multiracial identity in Latina/o communities in the United States and throughout the Americas. His writing, photos, documentaries, and research have been previously featured by NPR, CNN, BBC, Fusion, Los Angeles Times, Remezcla, Huffington Post, and elsewhere.

Monday, 19 Feb 2018

Coal, Climate and Environmental Backlash - Nick Mullins
8:00 PM – Great Hall, Memorial Union - Nick Mullins is a former fifth generation coal miner from Appalachia seeking to better educate audiences about Appalachia's jobs-versus-environment dichotomy. An energy transition advocate and author of the blog The Thoughtful Coal Miner, Mullins hopes to inspire deeper conversations on the relationship between activists, corporate interests, and rural working-class communities and help audiences understand the political motivations of mining communities. His presentation looks at community reactions to both environmental activism against surface mining practices and the coal industry’s response through public relations campaigns and the “War on Coal” rhetoric. University Symposium on Sustainability Keynote and part of the National Affairs Series The Symposium on Sustainability will host a poster display and reception prior to the lecture, 7-8pm, in the South Ballroom. Help celebrate sustainability efforts and accomplishments on and off-campus!

Sunday, 18 Feb 2018

TO BE RESCHEDULED - The Artist in the World: Poetry and Playwriting -- Heather Derr-Smith & Charissa Menefee
2:00 PM – Campanile Room, Memorial Union - This event is being postponed due to a family emergency.

Thursday, 15 Feb 2018

How Nanoparticles Are Used in Consumer Products: Should We Be Concerned? - Alexander Orlov
7:00 PM – Campanile Room, Memorial Union - Alexander Orlov is an associate professor of materials science and engineering at State University of New York, Stony Brook, and a faculty member with the Consortium for Interdisciplinary Environmental Research. His research focuses on the design of novel nanomaterials as well as understanding the hazards associated with nanoparticles so regulators can make informed decisions about the consumer and environmental safety of products using new technologies. Orlov’s many honors and awards include the U.S. National Science Foundation CAREER Award and the U.K. National Endowment for Science Technology and Arts CRUCIBLE award. Sigma Xi Lecture Series

Monday, 12 Feb 2018

The Art of Language Invention - David J. Peterson
8:00 PM – Great Hall, Memorial Union - David J. Peterson created the Dothraki and Valyrian languages for HBO's Game of Thrones as well as the Dark Elves' Shiväisith language for Marvel's Thor: The Dark World. A linguist by training, Peterson offers an overview of language creation, covering its history from Tolkien's creations and Klingon to today's global community of conlangers. He will share stories of how he built Dothraki and Valyrian and discuss the essential tools necessary for inventing and evolving new languages. Peterson is the author of The Art of Language Invention: From Horse-Lords to Dark Elves, the Words Behind World-Building and Living Language Dothraki. Quentin Johnson Lecture in Linguistics and Part of LAS Week No podcast recording available for this event.

Monday, 5 Feb 2018

Banking on Women: The Next Emerging Market - Jessica Schnabel
5:00 PM – Sun Room, Memorial Union - This event will take place as planned. Jessica Schnabel is Global Head of the Banking on Women business at the International Finance Corporation, part of the World Bank Group. She works with financial institutions all over the world to provide financial services and support to women entrepreneurs in developing countries. Schnabel will discuss how women are changing the face of the global economy, often despite challenging legal, cultural, and economic contexts, and the importance of tapping into the power of women as leaders, employees, and entrepreneurs. WLC World Cultures Lecture Series

Tuesday, 30 Jan 2018

All We Do is Step, Stroll, Hop + Salute?! - Rasheed Ali Cromwell
8:00 PM – Sun Room, Memorial Union - Rasheed Ali Cromwell, a leading authority on fraternity and sorority life, will share information about Black and Multicultural Greek-letter fraternities and sororities and their extensive contribution to society educationally, socially, economically, politically, and culturally. He founded and is president of The Harbor Institute, an educational consulting firm, teaches a Fraternal Values and Leadership Series at Howard University and served as a co-professor at The Ohio State University where he taught a Black Greek leadership class for the past three years. He also facilitates training advisors across the country for the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) at their national conferences, and was appointed a member of the anti-hazing task force at Florida A&M University.

Monday, 29 Jan 2018

Race and Justice in America - Bryan Stevenson
8:00 PM – Great Hall, Memorial Union - Doors open at 7:15. Enter through West Lobby/Sun Room - Bryan Stevenson, founder and Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative, has won national acclaim for his work challenging bias against the poor and people of color in the criminal justice system. Stevenson's memoir Just Mercy is the story of a young lawyer fighting on the front lines against extreme punishments and careless justice. Since graduating from Harvard Law School and the Harvard School of Government, he has assisted in securing relief for dozens of condemned prisoners and developed community-based reform litigation aimed at improving the administration of criminal justice. Stevenson will also be speaking about EJI’s Lynching in America Project and the need to confront the history of racial terror in this country. The 2018 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Series Keynote No podcast recording available for this event.

Tuesday, 23 Jan 2018

How to Find Happiness in a Hectic World - Ven. Yuan Hao
7:00 PM – Sun Room, Memorial Union - Tibetan Buddhist nun Ven. Yuan Hao will visit from the largest Tibetan Buddhism Academy in the world. After completing her PhD and postdoc studies in chemical engineering in the United States, Yuan Hao worked as a senior systems engineer until 2007 before taking refuge and beginning a thorough study of Buddhism. Her presentation draws on research in the biological and social sciences as well as Buddhist teachings.