Past Events

Buoyed by the potential for women to win key statewide offices, leaders of a diverse group of women’s organizations will gather in person for a Town Hall event to continue the conversation about political culture and public policy — and to answer this important question: What do we need our state government to do to create a more equitable Commonwealth? GBH host Callie Crossley will lead what is sure to be a riveting conversation. Featuring: * Celia Johnston Blue, President and CEO, MA Women of Color Coalition * Sasha Goodfriend, Executive Director of MassNOW * Diana Hwang, Founder and Executive Director of the Asian American Women’s Political Initiative * Melissa Ferretti, Chair, Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe * Dr. Laurie Nsiah-Jefferson, Director of the UMass-Boston Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy * Eneida M. Roman, Esq., Chair, Amplify Latinx This event is the second of a two-part conversation started on June 27 with moderator and GBH News reporter, Saraya Wintersmith. The video of Momentum Part 1 is available to watch on https://forum-network.org/ This in-person event starts at 6PM. Door open at 5:30PM. Parking: 15 Guest Street - bring your ticket with you to get it validated at the front desk Masks and registration are required for this in-person event. Sponsored by 

Despite the hype, carbon capture and storage (CCS) is not a solution to the CO2 problem that has caused global warming. Taxpayers continue to pay for the federal investment of billions of dollars that are subsidizing fossil-fuel industry’s CCS projects. And those projects have consistently failed to reduce CO2. Dr. Harvey discusses how these ineffective CCS projects continue to be promoted and he explains the necessity of shifting to renewable energy, which can be done now and with much less expense.

The human heart is a miraculous organ, a marvel of construction unsurpassed by any man-made creation with its resilience and precision. It beats 100,000 times a day so that if you live 100 years, that would be more than 3 billion beats in a lifetime. In “The Exquisite Machine: the new science of the heart”, Professor Sian Harding explores the latest scientific developments and mysteries of the heart. Harding, a world leader in cardiac research at Imperial College in London, reveals the latest cardiac discoveries as well as the relationship between the emotions and heart function. In addition to being a powerful pump, the heart is super-sensitive – not just in responding to emotions but in creating them. And yes, you can die of “broken heart syndrome” – although there are profound differences between men and women. There is also a much deeper connection between the heart and the brain than we previously realized. Since the heart is at the nexus of feeling we use the word in everyday conversation – heartfelt, heartache, the heart of the matter, a good heart. E E Cummings, the poet, famously wrote “I carry your heart with me” but writers have obsessed with this organ for centuries. Dr Fady Joudah practices Internal Medicine at St Luke’s Baylor Medical Center in Houston, TX. When not administering to his patients, Joudah is an award-winning poet who first starting writing when working for Doctors Without Frontiers in Africa and published “Earth in the Attic”. He has now published five collections of poems and will read from his work and discuss how poetry informs his mission as a physician. ### Resources **The heart’s mini-brain: Intrinsic cardiac ganglionated plexus ** “Neurocardiology: Structure-Based Function,” J. L. Ardell and J. A. Armour, Comprehensive Physiology 6 (2016): 1635–1653. **Stem cell-derived cardiomyocyte patches for the heart** “Large Cardiac Muscle Patches Engineered from Human Induced-Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiac Cells Improve Recovery from Myocardial Infarction in Swine,” L. Gao, Z. R. Gregorich, W. Zhu, S. Mattapally, Y. Oduk, X. Lou, R. Kannappan, A. V. Borovjagin, G. P. Walcott, and A. E. Pollard et al., Circulation 137 (2018): 1712–1730. **Men vs. women in responses to emotional stress** “A Missed Penalty Kick Triggered Coronary Death in the Husband and Broken Heart Syndrome in the Wife,” Y. H. Shams, K. Feldt, and M. Stålberg American Journal of Cardiology 116 (2015): 1639–1642. **Even happy stress can cause Takotsubo syndrome** “Happy Heart Syndrome: Role of Positive Emotional Stress in Takotsubo Syndrome,” J. R. Ghadri, A. Sarcon, J. Diekmann, D. R. Bataiosu, V. L. Cammann, S. Jurisic, L. C. Napp, M. Jaguszewski, F. Scherff, and P. Brugger et al., European Heart Journal 37 (2016): 2823–2829. **Pollution and heart disease – the Oxford Street Study** Respiratory and cardiovascular responses to walking down a traffic-polluted road compared with walking in a traffic-free area in participants aged 60 years and older with chronic lung or heart disease and age-matched healthy controls: a randomised, crossover study. Sinharay R, Gong J, Barratt B, Ohman-Strickland P, Ernst S, Kelly FJ, Zhang JJ, Collins P, Cullinan P, Chung KF. Lancet. 2018 Jan 27;391(10118):339-349.

Dr. Susan B. Roberts is a leader in the science of metabolism. She has concentrated a great deal of her research on the rise of obesity, especially in Western nations. In this program, she discusses how metabolism works under normal conditions, the relationship between metabolism and obesity, and the impact of certain diets on the metabolic system.

In this fascinating history of our national anthem, you’ll learn how and why one everyday “broadside ballad” that captured the events and emotions of early American life rose to become America’s one and only anthem. Most Americans learn the tale in elementary school: how Francis Scott Key was inspired to pen his famous lyric as he saw the Stars and Stripes flying proudly over Baltimore’s Fort McHenry following the daylong bombardment of British navy ships during the War of 1812. The anthem’s use in sports, at times of war, and for political protest, have imbued it with further meaning, says historian Mark Clague. The anthem reflects—and is reflected by—the nation’s quest to become a more perfect union. From victory song to hymn of sacrifice and vehicle for protest, the story of Key’s song is the story of America itself. Don’t miss this enlightening presentation and discussion about our beloved anthem, and about America from 1814 to the present. ### Resources [Mark Clague's Anthem History Website](https://starspangledmusic.org/) [Link to more about Kristina Gaddy's __Well of Souls__](https://www.kristinagaddy.com/wellofsouls)

_TYRANTS ON TWITTER_, a new book by national security expert David Sloss, details how by investing heavily in global media and information technology systems, Russia and China are undermining democracy. Sloss provides a careful analysis of how Chinese and Russian agents weaponize Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social media platforms for the sole purpose of subverting the liberal international order, both in America and Europe. In this forum, we’ll examine questions about the 2016 US election and also explore Russia’s use of foreign infiltration to meddle with Western democratic elections. What can be done to mitigate the damage? David L. Sloss is an educator, author, and national security expert. His latest book, Tyrants on Twitter: Protecting Democracies from Information Warfare focuses on Russian and Chinese information warfare. Sloss is currently Professor of Law at Santa Clara University. Before entering academia, in 2008, he spent nine years in the federal government, working on U.S.-Soviet arms control negotiations and nuclear proliferation issues. Sloss will be joined in the discussion by John Feffer, director of Foreign Policy in Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies. ### Resources [Article : As autocrats ascend, gloomy data on democracies' decline](https://www.dw.com/en/as-autocrats-ascend-gloomy-data-on-democracies-decline/a-62674756) [Tyrants on Twitter ](https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=33642) [A short op-ed piece related to the book](https://thediplomat.com/2022/05/the-us-should-ban-chinas-state-media-from-social-platforms/) [John Feffer on Russia's invasion of Ukraine](https://fpif.org/putins-cold-cold-strategy/) [John Feffer on Ukraine, Russia and Food Politics](https://fpif.org/the-weaponization-of-food/)

Although America’s healthcare system is the most expensive among the top world economies, it ranks at the bottom for quality. We have excellent medical research, medical facilities, and medical professionals. But the healthcare “system” is, for many people, inaccessible because of expense and other factors. Dr. Garrido explains what good healthcare systems look like, the problems with American healthcare, and the potential solution to our healthcare system.

Markus Klute’s research team played a major role in the 2012 identification of the Higgs boson and its unique properties. In this discussion, he explains how understanding the origins of our universe depends on the discovery and analysis of sub-atomic particles. The LHC collides particles at the highest possible speed in an attempt to resemble the force of the Big Bang that produced the earliest particles. This investigation is advanced by the much-anticipated 3rd Run of the LHC, which will collide particles at the highest speed yet. Run 3 will attempt to reveal unknown particles, possibly even dark matter particles, and will help to explain the nature of mass and numerous other mysteries about the origin of matter.

**Wednesday, August 17 - 6pm EST.** Tony Rinaudo is an Australian agronomist, who is widely known as the “forest maker.” Having lived and worked in African countries for many decades, he has discovered and put in practice a solution to the extreme deforestation and desertification of the Sahel region. Using an elegantly simple set of management practices, farmers can grow new trees quickly by utilizing the root systems beneath existing tree stumps. He will describe the path to this solution to land degradation and the history, development and impact of the global movement called Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration. The work he began in Niger in 1983 has now been linked to the regrowth of 200 million trees on five million hectares of degraded farmland in Niger alone. More than an effective, low cost, rapid and scalable method of land and environmental restoration, FMNR is restoring livelihoods and food security across tens of thousands of communities and in the process, restoring hope. Environmental journalist Judith D. Schwartz will be moderator for the event and will join Tony in conversation. ### Resources Videos on YT about the FMNR [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltyAaebpyTg&t=142s) [Volker’s FMNR learning video 2021](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7aOkCs1PuE) [FMNR - Everything is connected](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-terQL6RO0) [FMNR - Tony Rinaudo: "The Niger I came to"](https://youtu.be/afjVaehQRxg) [E. Timor FMNR](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDjCKkdIBRM) [Senegal FMNR, WV France, video made by Laureline Savoye](https://www.lemonde.fr/videos/article/2020/03/02/plan-b-reboiser-sans-planter-d-arbres-c-est-possible_6031523_1669088.html) [Reports, blogs, Projects, Resources (including an FMNR Manual) can be found here](https://fmnrhub.com.au/) [Information on where to obtain “The Forest Underground”](https://iscast.org/TFU/)

Daniel Nocera, famous for the invention of the first viable “artificial leaf,” explains how this silicon-based catalytic device separates hydrogen and oxygen from water to create clean energy and fuel. The system can be distributed for localized use --each household could have its own power supply. Goodbye grid. The bionic leaf uses sunlight, ordinary water and readily available materials for the device. Dr. Nocera describes the numerous updates of the bionic leaf, the particular challenge of hydrogen, and the present status of this promising innovation –including a process for creating a nitrogen fertilizer that delivers directly to crops -no waste.