Museum of Science, Boston

Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey (Lecture): Science on Screen at the Coolidge Corner Theatre delves into the world of electronic music with a screening of Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey, the 1994 documentary about the unusual electronic instrument and the strange life of Leon Theremin, its inventor and namesake. In 1918, using newly discovered ... (details).
With: Tod Machover, composer, inventor, and MIT professor of music and media; Dalit Hadass Warshaw, orchestral thereminist.
This presentation is part of the ongoing Science on Screen Series.

This Is Your Brain on Love: Why Him? Why Her? (Lecture): Love is no longer blind, thanks to pioneering scientific research. Following her unique study of 40,000 men and women, Helen Fisher, one of the world's leading experts on romantic love, has identified four broad personality types, each governed by different chemical systems in the brain. Fisher explains ... (details).
With: Helen Fisher, PhD, chief scientific adviser to Chemistry.com; research professor, Department of Anthropology, Rutgers University; author, Why Him? Why Her? Finding Real Love by Understanding Your Personality Type.
This presentation is part of the ongoing series This Is Your Brain On....

Facial Recognition: The Creation of Expertise (Lecture): Using computer technology, Dr. Balas works with infants and children to learn how we use visual information to make complex decisions about the world we see. Listen as he shares his research on how humans develop an expertise in processing faces of different racial groups, ages, genders, and even species ... (details).
With: Benjamin Balas, PhD, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School.
This presentation is part of the ongoing series Forces That Change Us.

The Lost City of Z (Lecture): In The Lost City of Z, author and adventurer David Grann steps into the hazardous Amazon jungle to retrace the footsteps of the great Colonel Percy Fawcett, who ventured there in 1925 in search of the fabled ancient kingdom of El Dorado, which he dubbed "Z." Hoping to answer decades-long questions about ... (details).
With: David Grann, journalist for The New Yorker, author of The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon.
This presentation is part of the ongoing series When Science Meets Art.

A Matter of Taste (Lecture): Ever wonder why you like salty or sweet foods but tend to avoid those that taste bitter? You're not being picky, you may be wired that way. Throughout human evolution, the ability to make these distinctions helped us to zero in on nutrients and stay away from toxins. Dr. Drayna discusses his recent research ... (details).
With: Dennis Drayna, PhD, chief, Systems Biology of Communication Disorders, Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, National Institutes of Health.
This presentation is part of the ongoing series Forces That Change Us.

Weaving Science into Sculpture (Lecture): What do basket weaving, climate change, and sculpture have in common? Artist Nathalie Miebach literally weaves scientific data related to meteorology, climate change, and astronomy into brightly colored, three-dimensional sculptures. She describes how — and why — she creates these singular ... (details).
With: Nathalie Miebach, artist.
This presentation is part of the ongoing series When Science Meets Art.

Solving the Stradivarius Secret (Lecture): Since the early 1700s, "Golden Age" Italian violins have been revered for their superior tone. Scores of scientists, artisans, and musicians have sought answers to the mystery of their sound, but none has been able to duplicate the magic created by these coveted instruments. Characterizing varnish, wood, ... (details).
With: William F. "Jack" Fry, physicist and professor emeritus, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Rose Mary Harbison, violinist and artistic director of the Token Creek Chamber Music Festival.
This presentation is part of the ongoing series When Science Meets Art.

Aging: Can You Turn Back the Clock? (Lecture): Imagine a preprogrammed clock ticking away from the day we are born, aging us along the way. Is there a way to slow this process down? Do diet and exercise help? Dr. Tissenbaum reveals these answers — and more — based on her research into the aging process. Find out what controls how and why ... (details).
With: Heidi Tissenbaum, PhD, associate professor, molecular medicine, gene function and expression programs, University of Massachusetts Medical School .
This presentation is part of the ongoing series Forces That Change Us.

Radio Lab Listening Party (Lecture): Radio Lab creator Jad Abumrad shares behind-the-scenes stories and excerpts from the program called "the most innovative show on radio" by public radio's Ira Glass. Tonight's focus: our endless fascination with outer space. Listen to surprising sounds and look up at the simulated sky as you are transported ... (details).
With: Jad Abumrad, Radio Lab host and producer.
This presentation is part of the ongoing series When Science Meets Art.

The Ultimate Hitchhikers (Lecture): Did you know that not all bacteria are bad and that our health depends on having the right balance of these microorganisms within our bodies? Having too much Helicobacter pylori, for instance, can lead to stomach cancer, while having too little can cause chronic heartburn. Dr. Schauer discusses how our ... (details).
With: David B. Schauer, PhD, professor of biological engineering and comparative medicine, Department of Biological Engineering, MIT.
This presentation is part of the ongoing series Forces That Change Us.

One Giant Leap: Space Exploration and the New Pioneers (Lecture): Could the key to future space exploration lie in revisiting where we have already been? NASA and private companies are using travel to the Moon as a way to expand the space frontier. Both the public and the private sectors will be essential for creating the necessary new technologies to accomplish this task ... (details).
With: Doug Cooke, associate administrator for exploration systems, NASA; Ken Davidian, "Encourage, Facilitate, and Promote" program lead, FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation; Joanne Gabrynowicz, JD, director, National Center for Remote Sensing, Air and Space Law, The University of Mississippi; William Pomerantz, senior director for space projects, X Prize Foundation; Moderated by Spencer Reiss, contributing editor, Wired Magazine.
This presentation is part of the ongoing series Lowell Lectures on Astronomy.

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