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NOVA Science Café

NOVA Science Café is a free monthly meetup for science discussions, NOVA film screenings, and community events in the WGBH studio at the Boston Public Library, and other locations across the city. Sponsored by NOVA, the science documentary series on PBS, NOVA Science Café is part of an international network of science cafés with over 350 active cafés in local communities across the U.S. and abroad. Find a Science Café near you!

http://www.sciencecafes.org/

Green Electricity as a Fix to our Water Pollution Problem

Tue, Mar 20, 2018

Water pollution and subsequent water shortages are popular motifs in many dystopian science fiction stories and have now become a reality in many places around the world. As these issues become more prevalent, the sustainability of the ways we purify our water also present a daunting challenge. Using electricity from clean power sources is a promising approach to purify polluted water; however, in addition to a power source, this technology also requires use of electrodes—conductors that allow electrons to assist in removing toxins. Although many materials have been found to be efficient as electrodes, scientists are still seeking affordable and environmentally-friendly alternatives. In this talk, Dr. Ljiljana Rajic will discuss the ways in which water pollution is currently impacting our world and innovative approaches to using cost-effective materials to clean heavily polluted waters. Photo by Watersanitationandsupply - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=44947608

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How National Healthcare Changes the Way We Study Disease

Tue, Feb 20, 2018

Denmark has national healthcare. As a consequence of this, they have health records on their entire population dating back decades. This makes Denmark an ideal setting for conducting epidemiologic research. Psychiatric epidemiology deals with the distribution and determinants of psychiatric disorders and related events in populations. Jaimie L. Gradus, DSc, MPH, provides a brief overview of the field of psychiatric epidemiology, a discussion of the strengths of using Danish data, as well as relevance of the results to the US population.

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VR Storytelling with Frontline and Nova

Tue, Jul 18, 2017

How can new technology be used in documentaries and journalism? A great example is the immersive film "Greenland Melting" a product of NOVA and Frontline, who teamed up to tell a story of climate change through viewer experience. Join NOVA's Julia Cort and Frontline's Carla Boras as they explain the benefits and challenges of using 360 video and VR for journalistic storytelling. (Image: Pexels)

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How Childhood Stress Can Cause Depression and How We Can Prevent It

Tue, Dec 19, 2017

Exposure to childhood stress is one of the biggest risk factors for depression that onsets in adolescence or adulthood. But how do we identify which individuals might be more susceptible to developing depression following exposure to stress? And are there sensitive periods, or stages during a lifespan when stress is particularly harmful in increasing the risk for depression? Dr. Erin Dunn shares examples of how her research lab is studying the role of genetic variation in shaping risk for depression, the potential ways in which stress changes our biology to make us more at risk of developing depression, and the time periods in development when stress may be more likely to “get under our skin” to increase the risk of depression.

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This is Your Brain on Horror

Tue, Oct 17, 2017

Dr. Steve Schlozman will use movie clips, passages from literature, scientific and psychological research, and stories about creators in the horror genre to explore why we respond to horror in the way we do. He'll also discuss what it's like to be a horror writer while maintaining a professional identity as a proper physician. Presented by NOVA's CafeSci Boston at the WGBH-Boston Public Library Studio.

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The Science of Talking Science

Tue, Sep 19, 2017

In the era of fake news and alternative facts, science communication is in a more precarious position than ever before. What is causing the communication gap between scientists and the general public? [_Science in the News_](http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/ "") Co-Director Katie Wu discusses how to effectively and accurately convey scientific progress to all audiences and avoid obscurity within the black hole of Internet click bait. Learn the different ways in which scientists can better engage their audiences, the ups and downs of communicating across professions, and how everyone can each sleuth their way to scientific discovery. Photo: U.S. Army — Jason Soares, a chemical engineer at the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center (NSRDEC).

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An Eclipse for Everyone

Tue, Aug 15, 2017

On August 21, 2017, millions of Americans will witness the first total solar eclipse to cross the continental United States in 99 years. As in all total solar eclipses, the Moon will block the Sun, revealing the Sun’s outer atmosphere in an incredible spectacle. Listen to a conversation with Sky and Telescope’s Janine Myszka as we learn what we’ll be able to see in the Boston area, why the total eclipse is happening now, and how to safely view the eclipse. Photo Credit: dalianjsw/[Pixabay](https://pixabay.com/en/users/dalianjsw-1827540/ "Eclipse")

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Anna Rothschild & Gregory Kestin: Science Storytelling 101

Tue, Apr 18, 2017

Are you an aspiring science communicator? A storyteller? Or are you just a huge fan of science videos? Meet the hosts of two of NOVA’s YouTube series: _[Gross Science](https://www.youtube.com/user/grossscienceshow "Gross Science channel")_ host Anna Rothschild and _[What the Physics](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCj1gfrsi8H8zTrmR0ft1Kjw "What the Physics channel")_ talent Dr. Gregory Kestin discuss the ingredients for making weird and strange stories about science into engaging, educational—and scientifically accurate—videos.

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How Parents Talk About (& Don’t Talk About) Class Privilege

Tue, Dec 20, 2016

In this talk, Dr. Feigenberg will discuss findings from a study on how parents talk with their children about income inequality, differences in family income, and class privilege. She'll pay particular attention to the places where parents feel challenged in these conversations.

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Mending the Tower of Babel through the Science of Bilingualism

Tue, Nov 15, 2016

Speaking multiple languages is a developmental experience for some, but requires effortful learning for others. This presentation entails recent scientific findings on bilingualism and the potential value of these findings for education.

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