We had an excellent time at our second Nerd Nite on May 18! We crammed 75 people into a room for 45. But not to worry, we have doubled our space for next month! A big thanks to our presenters for the wonderful edutainment they provided!
“Why We Buy: The Art of Consumer Manipulation” by Katy Vesel
From grocery stores to casinos, how businesses use psychology to get you to spend your hard earned money on sh*t you don’t need.
Katy is a hospital pharmacist at Sanford Health Systems in Fargo. She received a B.S. in pharmacy sciences as well as a Doctor of Pharmacy from North Dakota State University before going on to complete a one year post-graduate residency in pharmaceutical sciences at Meritcare Hospital. Although long free from the halls of higher ed, she does still enjoy learning, especially about off-beat topics that will do nothing to further her professional career. More than one evening has been spent in a “six degrees of Wikipedia” black hole, where a search of Queen Elizabeth I somehow leads to reading about the migratory pattern of great white sharks.
“Socioeconomics of Star Wars” by Eric Goodin
The rise of humans, the revenge of the Hutts, and why the Death Star was inevitable.
Suffering from an identity crisis, Eric is a mechanical engineer working as an analytical chemist by day…and masquerading as a vigilante crime fighter by night. Upon graduation from NDSU he moved to the Seattle area to work for Boeing on either Top Secret or really embarrassing projects. Either way, you’ll never know about them. Later, Eric returned to Fargo to start a magical hobby farm in the center of an enchanted forest, but forgot that there weren’t actually any trees in North Dakota so the search continues. Eric is an unabashed Star Wars über-nerd and part-time astrophysicist. Other hobbies include playing guitar with only one string and chasing dragons with plastic swords.
“Plant WMD Chemical warfare: What Makes a Hot Pepper Hot, and How to Cook It” by Joseph Provost
Sadly, when a plant is assaulted by animals or infected by microbes, it can’t run away or go to the doctor for antibiotics. Instead, they have an amazing chemical warfare defense to fight off danger and invaders. Pepper plants make capsaicin to foil would-be enemies! This hot compound binds to our pain receptors and we seem to like it! We will talk about what makes a pepper plant hot, why the cute colorful little fruit hurts so much and how we can cook with it (and deal with the heat if you can’t take it!). Samples will be provided!!!
Like Prometheus rising from the dust of those vanquished before him, Dr. Provost has come from humble origins, where as a small child (perhaps, NOT so small, or for that matter never humble) Dr. Provost was raised by wolves, and armed with only a pippetor and on-line biochemical protocols, he learned to appreciate the biochemical nature of the world. Early in his college career at Bemidji State University where he was a Chemistry and Biology major, Provost conducted a daring, dangerous, unpublished and yes, even foolish experiment. A young Provost found that removal of all bodily fluids could indeed be accomplished if replaced by Diet Mountain Dew. While resulting in a total lack of need for sleep, the side effect was a constant need to replenish these new found humoral fluids on an hourly basis. In the storied tradition of the Gladiator, General Maximus Meridius, Provost has been heard uttering I’ve seen much of the rest of the world. It is brutal and cruel and dark, Biochemistry is the light. Armed with email and a penchance for well timed and intentional miss-spelling, Provost ventured into country music territory at Vanderbilt University in Nashville TN to answer the crucial biochemical question as to why women find Garth Brooks so darned attractive? Failing at all possible attempts, Provost transferred his proteins and projects to the great northern planes of Minnesota where he felt he could fool more people more of the time and battle the forces of evil in the name of biochemistry. There for the past eleven years, Dr. Provost has found himself time and time again surrounded by students trying to find him, asking questions on pH problems and searching for clarification of his writing. In the manner of those warriors who fought in the ancient Coliseum, Provost has learned to avoid all students with slight of hand, scheduling conflicts, and 7:00 am meetings. In an attempt to hide from all those he hath wronged, he moved to the distant site of southern california where, now armed with a tan and long surfer dude hair attempts to do all science at the beach. A life-long accumulation of experiences has given rise to Provost’s motto, “death smiles at us all. All a biochemist can do is smile back and repeat the experiment”.