Nerd Nite XIV 12.10.15
Nerd Nite Miami – Year in Review
Happy Hour & Holiday Bingo 6-7pm
Presentations begin 7:30pm sharp
- Bringing back your favorite speakers to share more of their nerdiness:
- Gary Bremen (ocean animal sex guy) -“Why National Parks?”
- Yellowstone, Grand Canyon and the Statue of Liberty are national parks most folks have heard about, but national parks are much, much more than spectacular scenery. Gary has been to nearly half of America’s 409 national parks, and he shared some of his reasons…funny, touching and insightful…for why national parks matter.
- Alan Goldman (password guy) -“Is It Ok to Use Public WiFi – Encryption Demystified”
- You’ve always heard the old saying, don’t access your bank account over public WiFi. But why is this the case, and is there any truth to it? The short answer is yes. Alan shared lots of tips and info on how to protect yourself.
- John Gulla (board game guy) -“The Narrative Revolution WILL Be Televised: How video games are changing the way we tell stories”
- Human Beings have been telling stories since the dawn of history. Just a handful of years ago, however, something interesting and unique in the history of storytelling began to take shape: video games became a viable medium for storytelling and, perhaps even more remarkably, people began using them as a platform to tell stories differently than we have ever been able to tell them before. John shared the various ways that video games have developed over time to tell us stories, how they have explored their medium to produce fascinating and distinctive results exclusive to their platform, how we as the audience have been affected as a result, and why it all matters to both gamers and non-gamers alike.
Nerd Nite Miami, Saltwater Brewery, and The Wetlab teamed up to bring you a fun, educational night entitled “Saltwater Chemistry.”
– Tours of the saltwater labs at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School
– Presentation on the science of bring beer by Saltwater Brewery’s head brewer
– Lots of tasty beverages like Screamin’ Reels IPA, Wheat Wave, Sea Cow Stout, Raspberry Reef and special releases including Tides Pale Ale and Mayday Chocolate Cream Porter!
– All while overlooking Biscayne Bay and hanging out with the nicest people around!
Nerd Nite XIII 11.12.15
Our speakers for Nerd Nite Miami’s November nite were the 6 amazing finalists for the CappSci Inventors prize at the Frost Science Museum. The scientists/inventors were competing for a $100,000 grant to support a 12-18 month installation at Frost Science, as part of the inventors-in-residence initiative. One for the best invention to restore coral reefs, and one for the best invention to help people reduce their exposure to carcinogens.
Our nerds heard from these talented inventors and helped decide which two should win. Thanks, nerds!
The winners are:
Coral Prize: Rivah Winter & Andrew Baker, University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science – Stress hardening corals
Carcinogen Prize: Prasoon Diwakar, Purdue University – Cost effective carcinogen detector
Nerd Nite XII 10.8.15
Birthday Party!
Nerd Nite Miami turns 1 so we celebrated with birthday cake and party games!
“Invasive Species: What You Don’t Want To Know” by Tom Jackson
Tom Jackson is a UM Rosenstiel School alumnus, a marine scientist, and an invasive species expert. He will share the horrifying stories about the various invasive animals that live in South Florida…. It’s not good…it’s actually really bad.
“The Power of Body Language in Dating” by Virginia Jimenez
Body language trainer and coach Virginia Jimenez will present the body language cues that, when applied, result in a better understanding of your prospective date. She will present how (A)vailability + (C)onfidence = the X factor and the information available from behavior researchers on why these methods work.
“Everything I Need To Know In Life I Learned From Sharks” by David Shiffman
Marine biologist and science writer David Shiffman will share a series of life lessons learned from his studies of shark behavior, ecology and conservation. He has seen or interacted with thousands of sharks of more than 50 species on five continents. (Video of presentation available here)
