Tag Archives: Pbs

CNY Science Announcement – A Sea Change: The Premier Climate Change Event of CNY, 16 October 2015

Greetings fellow astrophiles,

The following announcement came across the CNYO internets recently for a showing of the award-winning film “A Sea Change.” The trailer is linked below and all of the additional information for the event, including the panel discussion after, is provided below.

Syracuse, NY  –  Friday, Oct 16, 7:00 pm, the award winning climate change film, A Sea Change, (aseachange.net) will be shown at The Palace Theater, 2384 James St., Syracuse.  A Sea Change premiered to a standing-room only audience at the Smithsonian Museum, and a standing ovation. The film screened at festivals in North America, Europe, and Latin America, garnering multiple awards and aired on national and international television.

A google map for directions to the Palace Theater

A Sea Change is the story of retired teacher Sven Huseby, whose love for his five-year-old grandson Elias and the world he will inherit compelled Sven, after reading an article in The New Yorker, “The Darkening Sea”  to travel thousands of miles interviewing scientists on ocean acidification – the little known flip side of global warming.

Oceans have absorbed hundreds of billions of tons of carbon dioxide (more than a quarter of all CO2 produced since the start of the Industrial Revolution) causing a 30% increase in acidification threatening all forms of sea life with a calcium-based exoskeletoncoral reefs, shell fish and tiny animals at the bottom of the food chain – pteropods. The burning of fossil fuels is fundamentally reshaping ocean chemistry.

The photography is stunning; the interviews with scientists sobering; Sven’s relationship with his grandson Elias is delightful and moving and the ending hopeful – focusing on solutions being implemented today.  This is a film you want to see if you care about the world you will leave for the next generation.

Immediately following the film there will be Q & A session. The panel consists of Barbara Ettinger,  documentary film maker; Sven Huseby, the main protagonist in the film and Dr. Bruce Monger, climate scientist from Cornell University.  Moderating the panel will be Chris Bolt, WAER news and public affairs director.

Program

5:15 Doors to Palace Theater, food trucks and vendor tables open.
6:15 Symphoria cellist Lindsay Groves welcomes the Sea Change audience to the Palace.
6:45 Program starts
7:00 Movie starts
8:30 Q&A
9:10 Program ends

Ticket prices: (suggested donations) At the door: $10 adults, $8 seniors/students, $6 per family member (seniors age 60+, families consist of at least 1 parent and children under 18 years old).

Advance sale tickets: $8 adults, $5 per senior/student/family member (seniors age 60+, families consist of at least 1 parent and children under 18 years old).

Advance sale tickets available at www.greeningusa.org/aseachange can be picked up at the door and will be held up to 15 minutes prior to the start of the film program.

Green and energy-related nonprofit organizations working on efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions will be staffing display tables in the lobby prior to and after the film along with companies that provide products that help mitigate climate change, such as solar panels, geothermal systems.

The event is family-friendly and film goers can attend straight from work as food trucks will be parked outside along with electric and hybrid cars on display. A cash bar and soft drinks will be available inside. Free parking available.

A special thanks goes to presenting sponsor GreeningUSA (www.greeningusa.org) and partner Syracuse International Film Festival (http://www.filminsyracuse.com).

Panelists

Barbara Ettinger – Director and Co-producer of A Sea Change. Her  first film, Martha and Ethel, was screened at the Sundance Film Festival and distributed theatrically by Sony Pictures Classics. Her most recent film, Two Square Miles, aired nationally on PBS’s Independent Lens in 2006 and 2007.

Sven Huseby – main protagonist in A Sea Change & Co-Producer is a retired independent school head who worked as a teacher and administrator at The Putney School, Vt. for 30 years and currently serves on the board of several environmental organizations. He will be attending the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris, Dec. 2015 with the Consultative Group on Biological Diversity.

Bruce Monger – Dr. Monger is a Senior Researcher and Lecturer in the Dept. of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Cornell University since 1997.  He previously worked at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. His work has taken him world wide – to  oceanographic conferences in Denmark, Holland & Monaco and providing training for national agencies in Thailand & Argentina. In 2014 his course on Introductory Oceanography at Cornell  was featured in a NYT article as one of the top ten interesting courses in the U.S.

For information on how to support the work of the Climate Change Awareness and Action Committee, the organizing committee for this event contact pwirth2@verizon.net, 315-637-0331.

Neil deGrasse Tyson co-Keynotes The “NEXT: The Event for Technology, Manufacturing & Innovation” Conference On Tuesday, November 19th

Astrophysics is truly one of the rarities in the physical sciences, as it has managed to branch between hard academia and the general public like no other in our modern technological age (Nova and PBS Specials, The Discovery Channel, and Big Bang Theory alike). The proof is in the cosmic pudding – unlike most any other branch of science, I can tell you that “one of the world’s most famous astrophysicists is coming to give a lecture in Syracuse” and you’re likely asking yourself “Neil DeGrass Tyson? Brian Cox? Stephen Hawking?” Try putting a name list together in any other field!

It is with that analysis in mind that I’m forwarding here an announcement from the TACNY email listserve about the “NEXT: The Event for Technology, Manufacturing & Innovation” conference happening this coming Tuesday, November 19th at the Holiday Inn Syracuse-Liverpool. The event, sponsored by the Central New York Technology Development Organization (TDO) and the CASE Center on the Syracuse University campus, features two keynote speakers. The first, “Making it in America – Shifting Economics Create New Opportunities,” is by Harry Moser of The Reshoring Initiative. The second, perhaps more relevant to readers of the blog, is none other than Hayden Planetarium directory and all-around exponent of science Neil deGrasse Tyson.

The Event for Technology, Manufacturing & Innovation

Come. Be Inspired. Leave Smarter.

next-central-new-york-logoIn its second year, NEXT is a technology, manufacturing and innovation conference where fast-track companies meet and learn from top-notch business leaders and industry experts. The dynamic full-day program boasts two world class keynotes in Neil deGrasse Tyson and Harry Moser; and delivers educational workshops in concurrent tracks (Innovation & Commercialization, Manufacturing Excellence, Technology Trends and Entrepreneurship)

“Making it in America – Shifting Economics Create New Opportunities” – The morning keynote, Harry Moser, President/Founder of the Reshoring Initiative, will discuss the broad resurgence of American manufacturing. Delivering insights into the trend, what types of products are leading the charge, and what the new American manufacturing industry might look like.

“Reaching for the Stars” – The luncheon keynote speaker, Neil deGrasse Tyson, is an internationally renowned astrophysicist, science policy advisor, media personality and Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium. He will explore the state of science literacy in America today and the critical importance of continued government and industry investment in fundamental scientific research for the long-term economic health of the country.

You can register for the event at next-syr.eventbrite.com/. While the registration fee is not insignificant, this is an all-day conference highlighting a multitude of technology and manufacturing industries and projects happening in CNY (I refer you to the event program HERE). That said, I already know of one or two people who registered just for NdGT’s keynote (abstract below):

So many of the technologies and products we take for granted, from freeze drying to scratch-resistant lenses to solar cells, are a direct result of research done during the “space race” in the ’50s thru ’70s. No one knows where the next breakthrough discovery will come from! Join astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson as he explores the state of science literacy in America today and the critical importance of continued government and industry investment in fundamental scientific research for the long-term economic health of the country. What is the short- and long-term future of the aerospace industry, and how will that future impact the broader economy, and our day to day lives? Only by reaching for the stars, continuing to explore every aspect of the world and the universe, can we build a solid foundation for the next generation’s industry and economy.

NeilTysonOriginsA-FullSizeSpeaker Bio: Neil deGrasse Tyson, the Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium, is an internationally renowned astrophysicist, science policy advisor, and media personality. A thought-leader in science and technology, Dr. Tyson has served on Presidential commissions on the future of the US Aerospace Industry and continues to serve on NASA’s Advisory Council. He has received eighteen honorary doctorates and the NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal, the highest award given by NASA to a non-government citizen. He has written countless professional papers as well as ten books, including New York Times bestseller Death By Black Hole and Other Cosmic Quandaries, The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America’s Favorite Planet, and The Sky is Not the Limit: Adventures of an Urban Astrophysicist. Among his many television and media appearances, he hosted PBS-NOVA’s mini-series Origins, the NSF-funded pilot radio program StarTalk, and is currently working on a 21st century reboot of Carl Sagan’s landmark television series COSMOS, to air in 2014. Tyson was voted Sexiest Astrophysicist Alive by People Magazine in 2000.