You are invited to join us for a series of 10-minute science talks presented by the Caltech community and coordinated by the Caltech Postdoc Association (CPA) and the Explore Caltech organizing committee. Every Wednesday from 5pm to 6pm in May, members of the Caltech community will share short talks on science and engineering topics that interest them via Zoom. These talks, which will be targeted to a general audience, are free, and members of both the Caltech community and the general public are invited.
JOIN US ON ZOOM: https://caltech.zoom.us/j/97030969175
Presenters for May 13
3D Printing and Stuff
Eduardo da Veiga Beltrame, graduate student in bioengineering
Over the past 15 years, 3D printing has done from being the stuff of science fiction to an easily accessible tool. Now, anybody (including you) can use a 3D printer practically anywhere - at home, work, libraries, or universities. 3D printing has made it easier, faster, and cheaper to make things that used to require expensive and special tools and materials. I'll talk about the two most common types of 3D printing technology: SLA (resin-based printing) and FDM (filament extrusion printing). I'll show examples of what you can do with either one at a reasonable price point.
Eduardo's 3D Printing RecommendationsCosmology from the Bottom of the Earth: Telescopes at the South Pole
Howard Hui, postdoctoral scholar in physics
The South Pole represents a unique environment for studying the evolution of the Universe. Its extreme cold, dark skies and isolation from humans optimize it for certain types of instruments and studies. I will share my experiences working at the South Pole on the BICEP experiment, a series of telescopes designed to investigate the nature of the Big Bang.How the History of New Guinea is the History of Our Climate
Peter Martin, alumnus
The world is undergoing extreme and unprecedented global warming. But climate change has always been part of the Earth's history. Before humans, what controlled the Earth's climate? In this talk, I will explain how rocks, especially certain magnesium-rich rocks in tropical climates, control how warm the climate is by regulating the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere. Based on this idea, the current era of ice sheets at the poles began because New Guinea formed in the tropics with lots of magnesium-rich rocks.For more information, please contact John Bostick at [email protected], or Pablo Garrido Barros at [email protected].
