Town Hall Seattle Science Series

From the very creation of the planet to the present day, water has always been central to life on Earth.  And while the amount of water on our planet has not changed, it has, in fact, changed the world. It has shaped our very existence. Renowned scientist Peter Gleick sheds light on water's long history in his book,  The Three Ages of Water . Gleick recounts how water has developed civilizations a...

Taking us to the cutting edge of the new frontier of medicine, a visionary biotechnologist and a pathbreaking researcher show how we can optimize our health in ways that were previously unimaginable. We are on the cusp of a major transformation in healthcare—yet few people know it. At top hospitals and a few innovative health-tech startups, scientists are working closely with patients to dramatica...

How did the psychedelic drug MDMA emerge from the shadows to the forefront of a medical revolution? What potential does it hold to help us? What do you think of when you hear the abbreviation MDMA? Often seen as a party drug and vilified as a Schedule I substance that would supposedly eat holes in users' brains, MDMA (also known as Molly or Ecstasy) has remained controversial. However, the substan...

We are all in relationships with people who have died. Whether they are our friends and family members, partners or teachers, we have all had to accept their absence from our lives.   How do we remember, memorialize, and communicate with them? We will share the many ways we continue to feel the presence of people significant to us. Join Rebecca Crichton, Executive Director of Northwest Center for...

A conversation about nuclear energy, climate change, and inspiring young women to go into STEM fields. On December 15, 2022, Grace Stanke, a senior at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, studying nuclear engineering, took home the Miss America crown along with the scholarship of the Miss America Organization. She additionally won in a talent category for her classical violin performance. As Mis...

UW Engage Science   sees a future where every graduate student has access to science communication training, and therefore good science communication becomes the norm. The outcome is an increased public trust and positive attitude toward science, ultimately strengthening the connection between the public and scientists. Join us for a look at the forefront of research in our region and meet the stu...

On a starry night, nothing inspires such deep wonder as staring into the vastness of space, imagining what curiosities might lie beyond our reach. This year we have seen several space-related news stories that managed to break through the usual slew of politics and economics. In February, we were met with headlines that reported a piece of the sun had broken off its surface and formed a swirling v...

UW Engage Science  sees a future where every graduate student has access to science communication training, and therefore good science communication becomes the norm. The outcome is an increased public trust and positive attitude toward science, ultimately strengthening the connection between the public and scientists. Join us for a look at the forefront of research in our region and meet the stud...

UW Engage Science   sees a future where every graduate student has access to science communication training, and therefore good science communication becomes the norm. The outcome is an increased public trust and positive attitude toward science, ultimately strengthening the connection between the public and scientists. Join us for a look at the forefront of research in our region and meet the stu...

Did you know the Puget Sound region is known as a place where people with Dementia are respected, welcomed, and fully belong? Sandy Sabersky, Co-Founder of Elderwise® and co-author of  The Elderwise Way, A Different Approach to Life with Dementia,  will share how Spirit-Centered Care® provides connection and meaning for people with dementia as well as a way for care partners to grow. Marigrace Bec...

UW Engage Science   sees a future where every graduate student has access to science communication training, and therefore good science communication becomes the norm. The outcome is an increased public trust and positive attitude toward science, ultimately strengthening the connection between the public and scientists. Join us for a look at the forefront of research in our region and meet the stu...

Standing in an old-growth forest, you can instinctively sense the ways it is different from forests shaped by humans. These ancient, undisturbed ecosystems are increasingly rare and largely misunderstood, but American environmentalist Joan Maloof knows these forests intimately and has been studying and writing about them for decades. In the newly revised and expanded edition of her book, Nature's...

There's nothing we spend more time with, but understand less, than ourselves. You've been with yourself every waking moment of your life. But who — or, rather, what — are you? In  Selfless , Social psychologist and Stanford professor Brian Lowery argues for the radical idea that the "self" as we know it — that "voice in your head" — is a social construct, created in our relationships and social in...

For the past century, scientists and naturalists have been steadily unraveling the secrets of bird migration. How and why birds navigate the skies, traveling from continent to continent — flying thousands of miles across the earth each fall and spring — has continually fascinated the human imagination, but only recently have we been able to fully understand these amazing journeys. Although we know...

What comes to mind when you think of the Pacific Northwest? You might think of land forms like the Cascade Mountains, Olympic Peninsula, and the Willamette Valley, or of the Coast Salish and other Indigenous peoples who lived here since time immemorial. Or perhaps you'd think of urban centers like Vancouver, Seattle, or Portland, and the city-dwellers who call them home. And don't forget the iconi...

Children are encountering technology at younger and younger ages, which leads many parents to ask: how do children engage with technology at each stage of development and how can they best be supported? From toddlers who are exploring their immediate environment, to twentysomethings who are exploring their place in society, technology inevitably and profoundly affects human development. What happe...

Is Seattle having a "Mushroom Moment?'" As research into the therapeutic use of psychedelics increases, we are learning about how the many findings benefit seniors. This lively and informative panel includes Dr. Nathan Sackett, an addiction psychiatrist, and focuses on the intersection between substance use and psychiatric disorders; Jane Adams, Ph. D., journalist, coach, and psychologist whose wr...

The news about wildlife is dire — more than 900 species have been wiped off the planet since industrialization. Against this bleak backdrop, however, there are also glimmers of hope and crucial lessons to be learned from animals that have defied global trends toward extinction. Bear in Italy, bison in North America, whales in the Atlantic. These populations are back from the brink, some of them in...

Are the autonomous digital forces jolting our lives – as uncontrollable as the weather and plate tectonics – transforming life, society, culture, and politics? David Auerbach's exploration of the phenomenon he has identified as the meganet begins with a simple, startling revelation: There is no hand on the tiller of some of the largest global digital forces that influence our daily lives: from cor...

For twelve years the Golden State Killer terrorized California, stalking victims and killing without remorse. Then he simply disappeared, for the next forty-four years, until an amateur DNA sleuth opened her laptop. In I Know Who You Are, Barbara Rae-Venter reveals how she went from researching her family history as a retiree to hunting for a notorious serial killer — and how she became the nation...

While many would think art and science are two vastly different disciplines, one common driver often motivates them both – curiosity. Ginny Ruffner – who currently has a retrospective exhibition open at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art on the topic of "What if?" – has worked at the intersection of art and science for decades. Her curiosity around biological concepts has propelled her to invent...

How much does the general public really trust tech? Despite increased scrutiny and critique of digital platforms, renowned tech policy scholar Orly Lobel defends digital technology, including AI, as a powerful tool we can harness to achieve equality and a better future. Lobel recognizes the criticism of big data and automation, and she does not refute the many challenges that technology presents —...

The brain has fascinated scientists and philosophers alike for thousands of years. What's really going on up there? Just ask neuroscientist, Eric H. Chudler. As the executive director of the Center for Neurotechnology at the University of Washington in Seattle, Chudler is poised to help you get to know your brain. His latest book on the subject, Neuropedia: A Brief Compendium of Brain Phenomena ,...

Have you ever wished that animals or plants could talk to us? As it turns out, they can. The natural world is teeming with conversation, though many of it is beyond human hearing range. Scientists are using groundbreaking digital technologies to uncover these sounds, revealing vibrant communication in the Tree of Life. In The Sounds of Life: How Digital Technology Is Bringing Us Closer to the Worl...

A silent epidemic of chronic illnesses afflicts tens of millions of Americans: These are diseases that are poorly understood, frequently marginalized, and can go undiagnosed and unrecognized altogether. In her latest book – The Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness – renowned writer Meghan O'Rourke delivers a revelatory investigation into this elusive category of "invisible" illness that...