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Why are there Stars?

with Steven Stahler, Ph.D.
Wed. February 24, 2010

On a clear night, the sky is filled with countless stars. Our Sun is one of them. How do these objects form? In recent decades, astronomers have begun answering this very old question. This progress has occurred despite the fact that the youngest stars are invisible to the eye and even to most telescopes. Along the way, we have learned how planets like the Earth are created as part of the stellar birth process. (February 24, 2010) Get the flyer here.
 

Dr. Steven Stahler is an astrophysicist at U. C. Berkeley. Raised in Maryland, he attended graduate school at UC-Berkeley in physics. He was a professor at MIT before returning to the Bay Area in 1992. His research centers on the problem of star formation, and he recently coauthored the first comprehensive textbook in the field (“The Formation of Stars,” Stahler & Palla, Wiley-VCH, 2004). Trained as a theoretical physicist, Steve especially delights in the esthetic aspect of his research, which he tries to convey in his numerous public talks.

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“We Are Stardust: Genesis of the Elements” with Mary Barsony, Ph.D.

Marin Science Seminar Presentation: “We Are Stardust: Genesis of the Elements” Dr. Barsony’s talk focuses on how stars shine and how they have generated the elements. (February 3, 2010) Get the flyer here.
One of the fundamental goals of astronomy and astrophysics is to understand how the Universe and its constituent galaxies, stars, and planets formed, how they evolved, and what their destiny will be. Dr. Barsony’s research is focused on the formation of stars out of the raw material provided by tenuous interstellar gas found in frigid clouds in our Galaxy. Since the present birthplaces of stars are hidden by interstellar dust mixed in with the gas, exploring the detailed mechanisms involved in star (and planetary system) formation requires observations at wavelengths whose passage is relatively unimpeded by the intervening dust: radio, millimeter, submillimeter, infrared, and X-ray wavelengths. 
Through submillimeter observations in the early ‘90’s, Dr. Barsony helped identify the first true protostar—an object surrounded by infalling gas that is in the process of accumulating the mass it will have as a full-fledged star. Such objects are rare, and the focus of intense current (and future) study, with space-based observatories such as the Spitzer Space Telescope, the Herschel Observatory, and the planned JWST (Hubble’s replacement that wil operate at infrared wavelengths). 
Dr. Barsony is Adjoint Professor of Physics & Astronomy at San Francisco State University and a Research Scientist at the Space Science Institute. She earned her Ph.D. from CalTech and her S.B. from MIT.
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Meet the Researcher: Sophie Boddington of UCSF

“Monitoring Stem Cell Based Therapies with MR and Optical Imaging”  
with Sophie Boddington of UCSF Dept. of Radiology

January 27, 2010

Ms. Boddington will go over new methods to monitor stem cell therapies with Magnetic Resonance (MR) and Optical Imaging. She will give a brief description of new understandings in stem cell biology with an emphasis on advancements in the field of stem cell tracking. (January 27, 2010) Get the flyer here.
 

Sophie Boddington graduated from the University of Colorado in 2005 with a double major in Psychology and Pre-Med and a certificate in Neuroscience.  She is an author on several scientific papers and currently works as a Lab Manager and Junior Specialist at the UCSF Dept. of Radiology. 
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“Infectious Disease and the H1N1 Virus”

with Charles Chiu, M.D. Ph.D
Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Research in the Chiu laboratory explores (1) the replication, biology, and pathogenesis of human cardioviruses and (2) detection of known and novel viral agents in acute diseases suspected to have an infectious etiology.
The Chiu lab is actively validating the Virochip and “deep” sequencing for use in clinical diagnostics and in outbreak investigation. Current projects include (1) a prospective longitudinal study of respiratory infections in immunocompromised patients at UCSF, (2) a metagenomics analysis of H1N1 influenza A strains, and (3) design of a respiratory / stool subtyping microarray for use in diagnosis of acute respiratory infections and gastroenteritis.
Dr. Chiu is currently Director of the UCSF Viral Diagnostics and Discovery Center and Assistant Director of the UCSF Microbiology Laboratory.
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How to Bring Solar Energy to Seven Billion People

“How to Bring Solar Energy to Seven Billion People” with Cyrus Wadia, Ph.D.
November 4, 2009


Dr. Wadia is a pioneer in bringing a multidisciplinary approach to solving the complicated issue of renewable energy. Join him in a lively discussion on the promise -and the pitfalls – of solar energy. Download the flyer here.
 

In the city of San Rafael, the only way solar energy can be cost-effective is if the local government provides generous subsidies. That’s true just about everywhere in the world. But what if there were a photovoltaic technology that was so cheap and so easy to install that even the poorest and most remote villages of the world could gain access to electricity? In this presentation, learn about discoveries of new materials that can make solar energy a reality for billions.
By exploiting the powers of nanotechnology and taking advantage of non-toxic, Earth-abundant materials, Cyrus Wadia has fabricated new solar cell devices that have the potential to be several orders of magnitude less expensive than conventional solar cells. And by mastering the chemistry of these materials – and the economics of solar energy – he envisions bringing electricity to the 1.2 billion people now living without it.
Dr. Wadia holds an MS in Chemical Engineering from MIT and a PhD in Energy Resources from UC-Berkeley. He is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory in Berkeley. Dr. Wadia spent six years in the high tech industry, has specialized in launching new technologies to market and has completed several successful new product introductions. Presently, Cyrus continues his work helping companies take technology to market as part of an independent consulting practice he began in 2001.

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Making Faces: Developmental Mechanisms of Craniofacial Evolution

“Making Faces: Developmental Mechanisms of Craniofacial Evolution“
with Rich Schneider, Ph.D. 
October 28, 2009


Dr. Schneider will overview experiments in his laboratory that have revealed molecular and cellular processes involved in facial patterning. He will describe how his studies to understand the basis for skull shape in breeds of dogs led him to create a cell transplant system whereby duck embryos develop with quail beaks. He will bring an assortment of skulls.


Dr. Schneider is on the faculty of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at UCSF, and in 2004 he was made Director of the Department’s Molecular & Cell Biology Laboratory on the Parnassus Heights campus.

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“Stimulating the Brain with Electricity and Stem Cells”

“Stimulating the Brain with Electricity and Stem Cells”
with Daniel Lim MD PhD
October 21, 2009

Dr. Lim will discuss Neurosurgery for Parkinson’s Disease and other Tremor Disorders, treatments for such disorders ranging from Deep Brain Stimulation (delivery of electrical currents), and the future of stem cell based therapies of such disorders.

Dr. Lim is Assistant Professor in Residence of Neurological Surgery and Director of Restorative Neurosurgery at the UCSF School of Medicine. The focus of his research is on neural stem cells and neurogenesis. He is particularly interested in the molecular biology of the population of neural stem cells found in the subventricular zone (SVZ). For neural stem cells to make neurons, daughter cells need to express certain sets of genes while repressing others. The maintenance of such lineage-specific transcriptional programs is in part regulated by chromatin structure – the “packaged” state of DNA with histone proteins. Recently, Dr. Lim’s work has revealed that the chromatin remodeling factor called Mixed Lineage Leukemia-1 (MLL1) is essential for postnatal neural stem cells to make new neurons. Currently, his work focuses on the molecular mechanisms by which MLL1 specifies a transcriptional program instructive for neurogenesis. In the future he hopes to define the genetic programs and molecular mechanisms that guide the formation of neurons and glia from SVZ neural stem cells, and translate these discoveries into cell-based and genetic therapies for human neurological diseases.
In addition to his basic science interests, Lim has a clinical interest in stereotactic neurosurgery and has worked to study deep brain stimulation for movement disorders including Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor, and atypical tremors resulting from multiple sclerosis or stroke.
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Bad Blood: Interrogating Signaling Networks in Blood Disease

Wed. October 14, 2009
Bad Blood: Interrogating Signaling Networks in Blood Disease
with Michelle Hermiston, M.D. Ph.D.

Dr. Hermiston will talk about her training and experience as a physician and research speacialist in the field of pediatric hematology and oncology. 
 

Dr. Michelle L. Hermiston is a specialist in pediatric cancer and blood diseases at UCSF Children’s Hospital with a special interest in defining the underlying mechanisms in the development of lymphoid malignancies, including leukemia and lymphoma. She earned her medical degree and doctorate in developmental biology at Washington University School of Medicine and the Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences. Hermiston completed a fellowship in pediatric hematology and oncology and a residency at UCSF before joining the faculty in 2002. She also participated in a Medical Scientist Training Program at Washington University and at the UCSF Molecular Medicine Research Fellowship Program. She holds memberships with numerous organizations, including the American Society of Hematology and American Academy of Pediatrics. Hermiston is an adjunct instructor of pediatric hematology and oncology at the University of California, San Francisco.
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Smashing Protons!

“Smashing Protons!: Exploring Nature’s Fundamental Particles and Forces with the Large Hadron Collider” with Beate Heinemann, Assistant Professor of Physics, UC-Berkeley

(September 30, 2009)

Dr. Heinemann’s experiment recently became famous when it was featured in the blockbuster movie “Angels & Demons” with Tom Hanks. She will discuss particle physics and her work with the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland.

“The field of “particle physics” tries to understand the physics of the most fundamental building blocks of matter. How many such building blocks are there? How do they relate to each other? Why are they there? Currently we do not have a good theory why we have any mass at all, even though of course we know that all matter has a mass. There are, however, many theories about why this might be and the goal of my experiment is to prove or disprove them, or to maybe find completely unexpected phenomena that will then need to be explained. One exciting possibility is that we find extra dimensions of space that could even result in the production of mini-blackholes. My experiment is called ATLAS and is situated at the “Large Hadron Collider” (abbreviated as LHC) that is located in Switzerland. There are more than 2000 physicists on my experiment, and many engineers and technicians: all of them collaborate with each other to answer some of the most basic and fundamental questions of Science today. In my talk I will describe how this experiment works and what we hope to discover there.”

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Detecting Illicit Nuclear Material with Edward Morse, PhD

Join us for the kick-off to the Marin Science Seminar Fall 2009 season!

Detecting Illicit Nuclear Material with Professor Edward Morse
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009, 7:30 – 8:30 pm
Terra Linda High School, San Rafael, Room 207

Detecting nuclear material at ports of entry into the United States and at other locations is a daunting problem but is an essential element of a counterterrorism strategy for the country. A major difficulty in detection is the minimization of false-positive signals from a wide variety of cargo containing NORM, or naturally occurring radioactive material. One technique which looks promising is the use of nuclear resonance fluorescence (NRF) for detecting special nuclear material such as U-235. We have embarked on a five year program at UC Berkeley, called DoNuTS (Domestic Nuclear Threat Security), which looks at various aspects of the threat detection problem. This program will be discussed, with emphasis on the physics and technology of NRF as well as other aspects including materials science, computer machine vision, sensor networks, and basic nuclear physics research.

Prof. Edward Morse is a professor of Nuclear Engineering at UC-Berkeley and has a thirty-year involvement in teaching and research at Berkeley in the areas of applied physics, nuclear technology, electronics, and mathematics.

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