UPDATE: In light of continued concerns for public safety and recommendations to minimize the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the College of Science has decided to cancel the remaining Science Café talks scheduled for April & May 2020.
The Frontlines in our Future
As societies and the challenges they face grow increasingly complicated, the climate emergency sharpens the need to understand those challenges and tackle solutions that are just, equitable and doable. From hurricane damages to missing histories, from urban stormwater flooding to banana extinctions, this series from the Carson Scholars Program explores problems and solutions in there here-and-now...and for the long tomorrow.
Neha Gupta
PhD Student, Department of Hydrology & Atmospheric Sciences
Harnessing Storm Water in Desert Cities
Date/Time: 1/9/2020 | 6:00 PM
Venue & Address: Borderlands Brewing, 119 E. Toole Ave., Tucson, AZ
Talk Description: Desert cities such as Tucson, Arizona are trying to address the challenges of drought and flooding. An emerging strategy to address these problems involves capturing rainwater either as it falls, or as it runs through city streets as stormwaterâapproaches collectively termed âgreen infrastructure.â My research seeks to understand how green infrastructure networks work best in our desert landscape and how it is best implemented.
Will Tintor
PhD Student, School of Geography and Development and the Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research
More than a Thermometer, Bristlecone Pine as a Historian
Date/Time: 2/13/2020 | 6:00 PM
Venue & Address: Borderlands Brewing, 119 E. Toole Ave., Tucson, AZ
Talk Description: We can understand past climates, droughts and floods in the Rio Grande and Colorado Rivers through the research of tree-ring reconstruction from the Southern Rocky Mountain region. This research can help us plan for future climate changes by constructing records of past temperature variability. We will discuss research, focused on the Rocky Mountain bristlecone pine, the oldest tree species found in this region, and its impact on producing temperature and climate records from the past several millennia.
Hea-Ream Lee
MFA Student in Creative Writing, Department of English
(CANCELLED) Suspending Death for an Uncertain Future: Banana Conservation at the Brink of Disaster
Date/Time: 3/19/2020 | 6:00 PM
Venue & Address: Borderlands Brewing, 119 E. Toole Ave., Tucson, AZ
Talk Description: The International Musa Transit Center, a research facility in Leuven, Belgium, houses the largest collection of banana germplasm in the world. There, banana germplasm is frozen and preserved in tanks of liquid nitrogen, where it is kept inert until it is needed again. Into what future will these banana plants be revived? How do we square the irony of freezing bananas in a time of rapid warming, with the fear of losing a staple crop to extinction?
Logan Blair
PhD Student, School of Government and Public Policy
(CANCELLED) Building Resiliency: Do Yesterdayâs Construction Codes Protect Us From Todayâs Superstorms?
Date/Time: 4/9/2020 | 6:00 PM
Venue & Address: Borderlands Brewing, 119 E. Toole Ave., Tucson, AZ
Talk Description: As more people move to the coast each year, extreme weather threaten lives and property at an alarming rate. Authorities are scrambling to ensure more resilient communities through policy tools such as building codes that encourage reinforced roofs and foundations. Using aerial imagery, we will explore the aftermath of Hurricane Michael to determine how effective these tools really are.
Missed a café? you can find recordings of each café on our Youtube channel!