----
Monday, February 07, 2011
System Design Thinking and Its Application to High-Speed Free-Space Optical Communication System for Japanese Bullet Trains
Speaker: Shinichiro Haruyama, Professor, The Graduate School of System Design and Management Keio University
Time: 11:00a–12:00p
Location: E51-145
Complex system design requires not only technological knowledge and skill but also careful consideration of how the technologies will be used in our society.
In the talk, I will first introduce a lecture at Keio University called "ALPS (Active Learning Project Sequence)" which teaches system design thinking.
I will then talk about its application to high-speed free-space optical communication system for Japanese bullet trains. We developed a new ground-to-train free-space optical communication system. We made a prototype in 2010 that was able to perform stable high-speed communication even when a train is running at high speed and does fast handover between laser transceivers on the ground. This is a joint research between Keio University and Railway Technical Research Institute of Japan Railway Company.
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): Engineering Systems Division
For more information, contact:
Stefanie Koperniak
skoperni@mit.edu
---------------------
Monday, February 07, 2011
The Humanities' Choice Knowledge Economy or Culture of Interpretation?
Speaker: Yves Citton
Time: 2:00p–4:00p
Location: E40-496
Prof. Yves Citton will give a talk on the knowledge economy
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): MISTI, Comparative Media Studies, Foreign Languages and Literatures
For more information, contact:
Erin Baumgartner
253-8813
embaum@mit.edu
----------------------
Monday, February 07, 2011
A Technical Review of Oxy-Coal Combustion: Characterization and Fundamentals
Speaker: Lei Chen, MIT, Dept. Mechanical Engineering
Time: 4:00p–5:00p
Location: 3-343
Center for Energy and Propulsion Research Seminar Series
Oxy-fuel combustion has generated significant interest since it was proposed as a carbon capture technology for newly built and retrofitted coal-fired power plants. Research, development and demonstration of oxy-fuel combustion technologies has been advancing in recent years; however, there are still fundamental issues and technological challenges that must be addressed before this technology can reach its full potential, especially in the areas of combustion in oxygen-carbon dioxide atmospheres and potentially at elevated pressures. This talk presents a technical review of oxy-coal combustion covering the most recent experimental and simulation studies, while numerical models for sub-processes are also used to examine the differences between combustion diluted by nitrogen and carbon dioxide.
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): RGD Lab
For more information, contact: Patrick Kirchen
-------------------
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
Science Policy Lunch
Speaker: Professor Robert Yaffe
Time: 12:00p–1:00p
Location: RSVP to Burhan Saifaddin (bks@mit.edu) for location
We are pleased to announce that Professor Robert Jaffe will be joining us for our next monthly SPI lunch. Please reply to this email (bks@mit.edu) to RSVP for lunch at 12:00-1:00 PM on Tuesday February 8th.
Professor Jaffe has been involved in science policy work on rare earths required for energy technologies.
Professor Jaffe teaches a class on "Physics of Energy" for undergraduates and is currently writing a book on this subject. His research specialty is the physics of elementary particles and quantum field theory, and he is best known for his research on the quark substructure of matter and on the dynamical effects of the quantum vacuum (Casimir Effects) on micron scales.
Web site: web.mit.edu/spi
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): Science Policy Initiative, GSC Funding Board
For more information, contact:
Burhan Saifaddan
bks@mit.edu
---------------
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
Engineering IT-Enabled Electricity Services
Speaker: Marija Ilic, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering and Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie-Mellon University
Time: 4:15p–5:30p
Location: 66-110
MITEI Seminar Series
A year-long series of seminars given by leaders in the energy field sponsored by the MIT Energy Initiative.
The main concern in this talk is a possible IT framework for enabling deployment of new hardware technologies into the existing system at value. We explain how the proposed IT framework could evolve in synchrony with the existing utility control centers and their Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA). We illustrate how such an IT approach could improve performance of different evolving power grid architectures. In particular, we show how carefully architected IT enables electricity service at value and according to choice. This is done without damaging continuity of services defined according to terms between the service providers and users. We illustrate dynamic deployment of wind and solar power, responsive demand, including PHEVs, according to the value they bring to those needing them. Most importantly, the overall operations and planning process becomes much more manageable and simpler when enabled by the right IT.
Web site: http://mit.edu/mitei/news/seminars/it-enabled.html
Open to: the general public
Cost: Free
Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Initiative
For more information, contact:
Jameson Twomey
617-324-2408
jtwomey@mit.edu
---------------------
February 09, 2011
9:00a–10:30a
Sue Tierney will be a guest lecture on the current state and direction of Federal energy and climate policy in 11.369 "Energy Policy for a Sustainable Future" taught by Dr. Raab. Dr. Tierney is currently Managing Principal at Analysis Group. Previously, she served as the Assistant Secretary for Policy at the U.S. Department of Energy under President Bill Clinton; Secretary for Environmental Affairs in Massachusetts under Governor William Weld; and Commissioner at the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities under Governor Michael Dukakis.
Category: lectures/conferences: science/engineering
Speaker: Sue Tierney, Principal at the Analysis Group, former Assistant Secretary for Policy at the DOE.
Location: 4-145
Sponsored by: MIT Energy Club
Admission: Open to the public
For more information: Contact Elena Alschuler elena12@mit.edu
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Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Lack of Learning- My First Year Back in the Pentagon
Speaker: Mike Gilmore, OSD DOTE
Time: 12:00p–1:30p
Location: E40-496
SSP Wednesday Seminar
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): Security Studies Program
For more information, contact:
617-253-7529
valeriet@mit.edu
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Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Making Sense of Community Gardens
Speaker: Laura L. Lawson Professor & Chair, Department of Landscape Architecture Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Time: 12:30p–2:00p
Location: 9-450
Urban Studies and Planning Departmental Speaker Series
Weekly Lecture Series of the Department of Urban Studies and Planning.
Laura J. Lawson is the Chair of the Landscape Architecture Department at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. She is the author of numerous publications, including Greening Cities, Growing Communities: Learning from Seattle?s Urban Community Gardens (with Jeffrey Hou and Julie M. Johnson; University of Washington Press, 2009, winner of the ?Great Places 2010 Book Award?) and City Bountiful: A Century of Community Gardening in America (University of California Press, 2005). She is also Director of the East St. Louis Action Research Project (ESLARP), which was honored in 2009 as a recipient of the inaugural Larine Y. Cowan ?Make A Difference Award.? Her knowledge of community gardens has developed from academic interest as well as personal experience as coordinator of Berkeley Youth Alternatives? Community Garden Patch.
The Spring 2011 DUSP Speaker Series explores how each invited scholar-practitioner (or practitioner-scholar) has "made sense" out of a complex socio-spatial phenomenon. In addition to conveying the substance of their work, the speakers have been asked to reflect on how they do what they do, bringing to life the ways that planners and designers use qualitative methods in their scholarship and/or practice.
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): Department of Urban Studies and Planning
For more information, contact:
Ezra Glenn
617-253-2024
eglenn@mit.edu
-------------------
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Happiness on Tap: Piped Water Adoption in Urban Morocco
Speaker: Esther Duflo (MIT)
Time: 2:30p–4:00p
Location: E51-376
Happiness on Tap: Piped Water Adoption in Urban Morocco
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): MIT/Harvard Development & Environment Seminar
For more information, contact:
Theresa Benevento
theresa@mit.edu
--------------------
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Liquid Metal Batteries: a new approach to large-scale energy storage for the grid
Speaker: Dr. David Bradwell, MIT
Time: 5:00p–6:00p
Location: 4-231
MIT Energy Club Lecture Series
Large-scale storage of electrical energy has long been sought after as a potential solution to various electrical grid related issues. As regions install high level of wind and solar power generators, the intermitted nature of these renewable is problematic to the achieving broad-scale deployment. Grid-scale energy storage is being considered by utilities and power generators as one solution; however, high capital costs and limited lifespan hinders current deployment efforts. A liquid metal battery has been proposed as a solution for grid-scale energy storage. Utilizing three liquid layers that float on top of one another, this high temperature battery has the capability of operating at high current densities, using low cost materials, and can be simple to assemble due to it?s self-segregating properties.
Bio: David Bradwell earned a B.Sci. in Engineering Physics at Queen?s university before enrolling in the M.Eng. program in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at MIT in 2005. Following this, David enrolled in the PhD. program in the same department, and graduated this past fall. He continues his work on the liquid metal battery project as a visiting scientist. In 2010, David was selected to the Technology Review TR35 as one the top innovators of 35 years of age or younger.
Web site: http://www.mitenergyclub.org/events-and-programs/lecture-series/liquid-metal-batteries-a-new-approach-to-large-scale-energy-storage-for-the-grid
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Club
For more information, contact:
MIT Energy Club
energyclub@mit.edu
-------------------------
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Generator Dinner, The Future of Exploration Student Showcase
Time: 6:00p–8:00p
Location: Stata Center 4th Floor, R&D Common Room
To the next generation of explorers:
In celebration of MIT?s 150th Anniversary, the exploration community at MIT will be hosting a symposium, The Future of Exploration: Earth, Air, Ocean and Space to be held on April 26 and 27.
The Student Showcase will bring together the best student ideas in the exploration of Earth, Air, Ocean and Space. We want you and your team to tell us: In the next 50 years where will we go? What will we do there? How will we get there?
Competitors will have the chance to win up to $4,000 for their innovative proposals in three rounds of competition. Finalists will pitch their ideas to a panel of astronauts and distinguished explorers as part of the Exploration Symposium.
On February 9, we will be hosting free Generator Dinners where interested students can come and learn more about the competition, have their questions answered, find teammates, and discuss exploration ideas. RSVP to pjames@mit.edu is appreciated but not required.
Read about the event, key dates and competition guidelines at http://explore.mit.edu
We look forward to hearing from you,
Student Showcase Committee
Web site: http://explore.mit.edu
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): MIT 150 Exploration Student Showcase
For more information, contact:
Peter James
6177152261
pjames@MIT.EDU
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Thursday, February 10, 2011
Organic Syntheses, Inc. Lectures: John P. Wolfe, University of Michigan; Tim Swager, MIT
Speaker: John P. Wolfe, University of Michigan
Tim Swager, MIT
Time: 4:00p–6:00p
Location: 6-120
Wolfe Lecture Title: New Palladium-Catalyzed Reactions for the Stereoselective Synthesis of Heterocycles
Swager Lecture Title: Top-Down Chemistry: Functionalization and Application of Nano-Carbon Materials
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): Chemistry
For more information, contact:
Chemistry Department
617-253-1879
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Thursday, February 10, 2011
State Gun Policy and Cross-State Externalities: Evidence from Crime Gun Tracing
Speaker: Brian Knight (Brown)
Time: 4:30p–6:00p
Location: at Harvard Knafel Building Room K354 (1737 Cambridge Street)
State Gun Policy and Cross-State Externalities: Evidence from Crime Gun Tracing
Web site: http://www.iq.harvard.edu/events/node/819
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): MIT/Harvard Seminar on Positive Political Economy
For more information, contact:
Theresa Benevento
theresa@mit.edu
--------------------
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Civic Media Session: "Bustling with Information: Cities, Code, and Civics"
Speaker: Nick Grossman, Nigel Jacob, and Max Ogden
Time: 5:00p–7:00p
Location: E14-633
Civic Media Sessions
Hosted by the MIT Center for Future Civic Media, these open sessions highlight cutting-edge media research and tools for community and political engagement.
Cities are vibrant, complicated organisms. A still-working 200 year old water pipe might rest underground next to a brand new fiber optic cable, and citizens blithely ignore both if they are working well. Cities are constantly rewriting themselves, redeveloping neighborhoods and replacing infrastructure, but deliberative structures like school boards and city council meetings continue to run much the way they have for generations. In what ways can information systems rewrite our understanding of civics, governance, and communication, to solve old problems and create new opportunities in our communities?
Nick Grossman is Director of Civic Works at OpenPlans. He oversees development of new products around smart transportation, open municipal IT infrastructure, participatory planning, and local civic engagement.
Nigel Jacob serves as the Co-Chair of the Mayor's Office of New Urban Mechanics, a group within City Hall focused on delivering transformative services to Boston's residents. Nigel also serves as Mayor Menino's advisor on emerging technologies. In both of these roles Nigel works to develop new models of innovation for cities in the 21st century.
Max Ogden is a fellow at Code for America and develops mapping tools and social software aimed at improving civic participation and communication. This year Max is working with Nigel and the Office of New Urban Mechanics to create technologies that better enable education in Boston's Public Schools.
Web site: http://civic.mit.edu/event/civic-media-session-bustling-with-informat
ion-cities-code-and-civics
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): Center for Future Civic Media
For more information, contact:
Andrew Whitacre
(617) 324-0490
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Thursday, February 10, 2011
Watson on Jeopardy : The Turing Test Breaks the 4th Wall
Speaker: Erin McLean et als
Time: 6:00p–7:00p
Location: 56-114
On Feb. 14, a machine will compete shoulder to shoulder against 2 of the most successful competitors in TV game show history in a trivia contest which is widely considered to be a test of general intelligence. Come hear from one of the developers in the IBM DeepQA project that gave us this remarkable system.
Also, Erin McLean, winner of the Jeopardy College Challenge, will give us some tips and tricks on how to beat Watson. Being a walking wikipedia is not enough; there is some strategy involved that may give us an advantage against our silicon-based opponents.
Web site: www.ibmwatson.com
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): Entrepreneurs Club
For more information, contact:
Kurt Keville
klk@mit.edu
------------------------
Thursday, February 10, 2011
IDEAS and MIT Global Challenge: What Innovations in Information Technologies Could Empower Migrant and Temporary Workers?
Time: 7:00p–8:30p
Location: 4-153
Over 86 million people around the world are migrant or temporary workers. A range of services and applications could help them identify employment and education opportunities, stay connected with their communities, and find the resources they need for a mobile lifestyle.
What's already out there and what could those projects look like?
This year, Monster Worldwide is putting money towards a specific IDEAS/Global Challenge award for student-led ideas for how information technologies can empower temporary workers.
On Thursday, February 10, join us and bring friends -- as we lead a discussion about the latest innovations in job search technology, learn what other programs exist at the moment, explore gaps that exist in current technologies and then, break up into groups to brainstorm possible innovations.
**If you're working on an idea or have skills to pitch, this is your opporutnity to pitch it to the crowd. Drop Kate and Lars a note with your 20 words about your idea: globalchallenge (at) mit (dot) edu. **
Let us know if you're planning on coming -- and we'll send you some materials and links ahead of time. globalchallenge (at) mit (dot) edu
And, of course, there will be snacks!
Web site: http://globalchallenge.mit.edu/events/view/125
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): Public Service Center, IDEAS Competition, MIT Global Challenge
For more information, contact:
Kate Mytty
5-5474
kmytty@mit.edu
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Thursday, February 10, 2011
Human Diversity and Social Order Forum: The Fruits of Diversity
Time: 7:00p–9:00p
Location: E14, Media Lab Complex
Human Diversity and Social Order Forum Series
February and March bring a series of forums to examine how the inherent and occasionally difficult diversity of humans shapes their lives, their creativity, and the political and social context of their existence. Titles include: The Fruits of Diversity, Diversity on the World Stage, Minorities in the United States, and Education in the United States.
http://mit150.mit.edu/events/human-diversity-series
The Fruits of Diversity: Celebrating enrichment of language, architecture, visual arts, and music when diverse cultures come to know and appreciate one another.
Speakers
* Chair: Adele Naude Santos, Dean of the MIT School of Architecture and Planning
* Elliot Bostwick Davis, John Moors Cabot Chair of the Art of the Americas Department at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA)
* Donal Fox, Artist, Music and Theater Arts Section; MLK Visiting Scholar, MIT
* Walter Hood, Professor, Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning, University of California
Web site: http://mit150.mit.edu/events/fruits-diversity
Open to: the general public
Cost: Free
Sponsor(s): MIT150 Office
For more information, contact:
human-diversity-forums@mit.edu
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Friday, February 11, 2011
Tour of the EnerNOC Facility
Time: 9:00a–11:00a
Location: Boston, MA
EnerNOC is a world class energy management service company that assists commercial, institutional and industrial organizations use energy more intelligently and cost effectively while generating cash flow that benefits the bottom line. EnerNOC provides a wide array of energy management solutions including demand response services for maintaining grid stability and maximizing revenue for organizations, energy-use monitoring and greenhouse gas tracking tools to facilitate energy savings and carbon footprint management across the enterprise.
In the tour we will learn how the EnerNOC team executes demand response events and manages a "virtual" power plant with up to 3 Gigawatts of electricity at customer locations. We will also learn more about the real-time process of remote triggering of electric consumption reduction, backup generation and performance monitoring of customer energy use. The tour will comprise a presentation by members of the EnerNOC team, followed by a tour of the facility.
To sign up for this tour, use the link below:
https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dGVaQnltVGJCclFNWXB4U21acDlQSVE6MA#gid=0
Web site: www.enernoc.com
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Club
For more information, contact: Daniel Apo
djapo@mit.edu
------------------------
Friday, February 11, 2011
Building Technology Lecture Series: Sustainability Research at the Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics
Speaker: Dr. Klaus Sedlbaue, Director
Time: 12:30p–2:00p
Location: 7-431, AVT
Building Technology Spring Lecture Series
Open to: the general public
Cost: Free
Sponsor(s): Building Technology Program, Department of Architecture
For more information, contact: Kathleen Ross
617 253 1876
kross@mit.edu
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Friday, February 11, 2011
Making Movies, Making Science
Speaker: MIT DV Lab
Time: 6:00p–7:45p
Location: N51, MIT Museum
Challenge your views of the world around you with video screenings from MIT's DV Lab. See what happens when documentary film production takes on a social scientific outlook. Eight short films offer innovative perspectives on science and technology-related issues both at MIT and beyond.
Presented as part of Second Fridays at the MIT Museum
Web site:http://mit.edu/museum/programs/programdescriptions.html#dvlab
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): MIT Museum
For more information, contact:
Josie Patterson
617-253-5927
museum@mit.edu
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Harvard
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CRCS Seminar: Cybersecurity Challenge
Steven Bellovin, Columbia University
CRCS Lunch Seminar
Date: Monday, February 7, 2011
Time: 11:30am - 1:-00pm
Place: Maxwell Dworkin 119
Speaker: Steven Bellovin, Columbia University
Title: Cybersecurity Challenge
Abstract: From more or less any perspective, we have failed in our attempts to build secure systems. We argue that given one uncontroversial assumption -- that bug-free code is impossible, if only because we cannot construct bug-free specifications -- this is unlikely to change. Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is one class definition of insanity, but that's what security people have been doing. Instead, we outline a fundamentally different approach to security, called resilient system design.
Bio: Steven M. Bellovin is a professor of computer science at Columbia University
Bellovin is the co-author of Firewalls and Internet Security: Repelling the Wily Hacker
------------------------
Monday, February 7
12 p.m.
A Conversation with Jeff Zucker, former president and CEO of NBC Universal
Nye ABC, Taubman Building, 5th Floor, Kennedy School of Government
--------------------------------------
Monday, Feb. 7, 12pm-1:30pm
Dan Schrag, Harvard
“Towards a U.S. Energy Policy”
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building, HKS
http://www.hks.harvard.edu/m-rcbg/cepr/events.html
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"Past Tense: Historians and Politics." A Talk About Writing by Jill Lepore
WHEN Mon., Feb. 7, 2011, 7:30 – 8:50 p.m.
WHERE Thompson Room, Barker Center for the Humanities, 12 Quincy Street
GAZETTE CLASSIFICATION Education, Humanities, Lecture, Poetry/Prose, Social Sciences, Special Events
ORGANIZATION/SPONSOR Harvard Writers at Work
SPEAKER(S) Jill Lepore, David Woods Kemper '41 Professor of American History, staff writer at The New Yorker, and author
COST Free
CONTACT INFO hww@fas.harvard.edu
NOTE Part of the Harvard Writers at Work Lecture Series, which is co-sponsored by the Harvard College Writing Program, the Harvard Extension School, the Harvard Review, the Harvard College Program in General Education, and the Harvard College Women's Center. The series seeks to bring together students, faculty, and others in the Harvard community and the public to think about the transformational power of writing in people's lives and in the world.
LINK http://writingprogram.fas.harvard.edu/icb/icb.do?keyword=k24101&pageid=icb.page300428
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Tuesday, February 8
12 p.m.
"Making the Digital Fourth Estate: Redefining the Role of a Free Press for the 21st Century." Emily Bell, director of the Tow Center for Digital Journalism, Columbia University; former director of digital content for Guardian News and Media.
Kalb Seminar Room, Taubman 275, Kennedy School of Government
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Millions, Billions, Zillions: Why (In)numeracy MattersBrian Kernighan, Berkman Fellow & Department of Computer Science, Princeton University
Tuesday, February 8, 12:30 pm
Berkman Center, 23 Everett Street, second floor
RSVP required for those attending in person to Amar Ashar (ashar@cyber.law.harvard.edu)
This event will be webcast
Technology has buried us in an avalanche of numbers and graphs and charts, many of which claim to present the truth about important issues. At the same time, our personal facility with numbers has diminished, leaving us at the mercy of quantitative reasoning and presentation that is often wrong and sometimes not disinterested. Numeracy is basic numeric self-defense: how to assess the numbers presented by other people, and how to produce sensible numbers of one's own. In this talk, I'll explore some of the central ideas, with plenty of examples.
About Brian
Brian Kernighan received his PhD from Princeton in 1969, and was in the Computing Science Research center at Bell Labs until 2000. He is now in the Computer Science Department at Princeton. His research areas include programming languages, tools and interfaces that make computers easier to use, often for non-specialist users. He is also interested in technology education for non-technical audiences.
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2011 Alvin F. Poussaint Visiting Lecture. “Achieving Health in the U.S.: Lessons from the Civil Rights Movement”
WHEN Tue., Feb. 8, 2011, 3 – 4 p.m.
WHERE Rotunda, Joseph B. Martin Conference Center
77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston
GAZETTE CLASSIFICATION Health Sciences, Lecture
ORGANIZATION/SPONSOR HMS Office for Diversity and Community Partnership
SPEAKER(S) Paula A. Johnson, HMS, HSPH ’85, chief, Division of Women's Health, executive director, Connors Center for Women's Health and Gender Biology Brigham and Women's Hospital; associate professor of medicine Harvard Medical School
COST Free
CONTACT INFO Please RSVP to veronica_meade-kelly@hms.harvard.edu; 617.432.4698
NOTE Reception to follow.
LINK http://www.mfdp.med.harvard.edu/upcoming_events.html
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Edward O. Wilson To Receive "Thoreau Prize"
WHEN Tue., Feb. 8, 2011, 7 – 8:15 p.m.
WHERE Geological Lecture Hall
Harvard Museum of Natural History
GAZETTE CLASSIFICATION Award Ceremonies, Environmental Sciences, Humanities, Science, Special Events
ORGANIZATION/SPONSOR PEN New England's Henry David Thoreau Prize
SPEAKER(S) Edward O. Wilson
COST Free & open to the public
CONTACT INFO Karen Wulf: 617.519.0882
NOTE The "Henry David Thoreau Prize" is awarded for Literary Excellence in Nature Writing.
LINK www.pen-ne.org
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Green Conversations: "World on the Edge"
WHEN Wed., Feb. 9, 2011, 4 – 5 p.m.
WHERE Science Center D,
1 Oxford Street, Cambridge
GAZETTE CLASSIFICATION Environmental Sciences, Lecture
ORGANIZATION/SPONSOR Harvard University Center for the Environment
SPEAKER(S) Lester R. Brown, president, Earth Policy Institute
CONTACT INFO Lisa Matthews: matthew@fas.harvard.edu, 617.495.8883
NOTE Lester R. Brown is the founder and president of the Earth Policy Institute and founder of the Worldwatch Institute. He is the recipient of numerous prizes, including a MacArthur Fellowship, the United Nations Environment Prize, Japan's Blue Planet Prize, and 25 honorary degrees. He is the author or co-author of 50 books, most recently, "World on the Edge: How to Prevent Environmental and Economic Collapse."
LINK http://environment.harvard.edu/lesterbrown
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The Anti-Immigrant Right & the Future of Political Polling
WHEN Wed., Feb. 9, 2011, 4:10 – 5:30 p.m.
WHERE Pop Center, 9 Bow Street, Cambridge
GAZETTE CLASSIFICATION Ethics, Lecture, Social Sciences
ORGANIZATION/SPONSOR Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation
SPEAKER(S) Matt A. Barreto
COST Free
CONTACT INFO Bruce Jackan: bruce_jackan@hks.harvard.edu, 617.495.7548
NOTE In 2010 Republicans received a swell of support that returned their majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, however they fell short of taking the Senate. Beyond the 60 seat GOP pickup in the House, the big news story of Election 2010 was the Democrats holding on the Senate, against all odds, and to the bewilderment of most pollsters.
What explains the Democrats success, and the polls failure in multiple U.S. Senate contests? Quite simply: the Latino vote. Research from Latino Decisions shows very clearly that the extreme anti-immigrant stance taken by many Republicans drove down their share among Latino voters to historic lows, and that further, traditional pre-election and exit polls failed to accurately predict or capture this pattern. For example, in Nevada where Harry Reid scored a surprise victory over Sharron Angle, not one single poll offered Spanish language interviews. Data compiled by Barreto shows quite convincingly that Latino voters were driven away from the Republican party by the anti-immigrant theme in 2010, and that methodologically pre-election polls and exit polls had many, many failings. In 2010 and beyond, failing to understand the Latino vote means we fail to understand American elections.
LINK http://www.ash.harvard.edu/Home/News-Events/Events/The-Anti-Immigrant-Right-the-Future-of-Political-Polling
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Raising Our Sights: Fighting for a Progressive Vision in Sharply Contested Terrain
WHEN Thu., Feb. 10, 2011, 4 – 6 p.m.
WHERE Harvard Faculty Club, Theatre Room
GAZETTE CLASSIFICATION Law, Lecture, Social Sciences
ORGANIZATION/SPONSOR Labor & Worklife Program, HLS
SPEAKER(S)
Miles Rapoport, president, Demos
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BC
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Noam Chomsky On The Struggle in The Promised Land
When: Tuesday, February 8, 2011, 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm
Where: Boston College Robsham Theater, 140 Commonwealth Ave., Chestnut Hill
Noam Chomsky will be giving a lecture at Boston College regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The event is sponsored by the MSA (Muslim Student Association) and we will be charging $10 per person. We are raising the money to help the flood victims in Pakistan. Tickets will be on sale on Monday, January 31st at Robsham theater in Boston College. If you cannot come and buy a ticket at Boston College, please call them at (617)552-4002. http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=168344066537964
Note: Visitor parking in the garages on campus is free after 5pm third floor and above, check for details here:
http://www.bc.edu/offices/transportation/visitor.html
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How Climate in South Asia is Becoming a Water Issue
February 11, 2011 - 12:30pm - 2:00pm
CGIS Knafel Building, K262 1737 Cambridge St. Cambridge, MA
Contact Name: Megan Rajbanshi mrajbans@fas.harvard.edu (617) 496-4862
South Asia Initiative Water Seminar, so-sponsored by the Harvard University Center for the Environment
Speaker: Adil Najam, Director of the Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future; Professor of International Relations and Geography & the Environment.Boston University
Chaired by: John Briscoe, Professor of the Practice of Environmental Health, HSPH; Gordon McKay Professor of the Practice of Environmental Engineering, SEAS
Climate Change has usually been viewed as a ‘carbon management’ challenge, but our failure to mitigate global climate change is ushering in the necessity of adaptation to climate change. In South Asia – as elsewhere, but possibly more than in many other places – this means that climate change will increasingly become a water management challenge. Neither the global politics of climate change nor institutions within South Asia seem to be prepared for this. This seminar will broadly discuss the challenges of climate change, development and security with a particular focus on what this means for South Asia as a region and for water as an issue.
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Brandeis
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Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Martin Weiner Lecture Series
Department of Physics Colloquium
4:00pm, Abelson 131
Refreshments at 3:30pm outside Abelson 131
Self-Assembly of Photonic Nanostructures: Beyond Crystalline Sphere Packings
Eric Dufresne, Yale University
Visible light is scattered strongly by dielectric materials with structure on length scales around a few hundred nanometers. With careful design of geometry and selection of dielectric constants, these photonic materials can direct the flow of light with stunning results, including the vivid structural colors on the blue feathers of a jay and the green eye-spots on a butterfly’s wings. In this talk, I will describe our recent investigations into alternative strategies for the design and assembly of photonic materials. We find some of our inspiration from biology, where we have examined the mechanisms of color production and self-assembly across hundreds of species of birds and insects. Crystalline and amorphous photonic nanostructures appear to be formed by the arrested phase separation of proteins in birds and the bending of lipid membranes in insects. On another front, we are developing strategies based on recent advances in the synthesis of uniform nanoparticles with unusual geometries. In particular, I will describe the development of field-switchable photonic crystals based on dumbbell shaped polymer nanoparticles. Together, these approaches provide rich alternatives to the canonical path of self-assembly of photonic crystals from spherical particles.
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Tufts
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The Future of Energy Demand and Supply Possibilities: A Review of BP's Energy Outlook 2030
February 09, 2011 2:00p–3:00p
The BP Energy Outlook 2030 projects that primary energy use will grow by about 40% from 2010 to 2030, with 93% of the growth coming from non-OECD countries, especially from emerging economies such as China, India, Russia and Brazil. At the same time, however, BP projects that energy intensity, a measure of energy use per unit of economic output, will improve, especially as the emerging economies make improvements in energy efficiency. BP also predicts large growth in the role of non-fossil fuel energy sources such as nuclear, hydro and wind. Natural gas is also projected to be the fastest growing fossil fuel over the next 20 years and coal and oil to lose market share. More information on the report is available at: www.bp.com/Energyoutlook2030
Paul Appleby, who works in London, England with BP as the Head of Energy Economics, will discuss the Energy Outlook 2030 report and the key areas of focus such as energy intensity, growth of non-OECD countries, fuel substitution, biofuels and global environmental policy. Paul holds an MPhil from Cambridge University in Economics. Also present will be Paul Jefferiss, Head of Policy at BP, who holds a MA in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University and Phd from Harvard University.
Category: lectures/conferences
Speaker: Paul Appleby, Head of Energy Economics, BP
Location: Mugar 200, The Fletcher School Tufts University Medford, MA
Sponsored by: MIT Energy Campus Events, Tufts Center for International Environment & Natural Resource Policy
Admission: Open to the public
For more information: Contact Jacqueline M Deelstra Jacqueline.Deelstra@tufts.edu
----------------------
Tufts Global Development and Environment Institute Lecture
February 9, 2011 - 3:00pm - 4:30pm
"Plenitude: How and why millions of Americans are creating a time-rich, ecologically-light, small-scale, high-satisfaction economy."
Cabot 702 – The Fletcher School 160 Packard Avenue, Tufts Medford, MA
http://ase.tufts.edu/gdae/
Contact Name: Lauren Denizard lauren.denizard@tufts.edu 617-627-3530
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Other
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Monday, February 7 from 6PM-8:30PM*
* Skillshare: Overcoming Procrastination, Perfectionism, Blocks and Fears*
The NonProfit Center, downtown Boston, 89 South Street, Suite 700, Boston, MA 02111-2670
Presented by Hillary Rettig, author of "The Lifelong Activist: How to Change the World Without Losing Your Way."
After the workshop, participants typically feel energetic and empowered and eager to go home and make some of the changes we?ve discussed. Many later report making more progress on their goals than they have in a long time.
*RSVP: *http://www.sojust.org/calendar/15899136/
Fee: $5 in advance, $10 at the door
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IGNITE BOSTON 8 (GLOBAL IGNITE WEEK)
• Date: 2/7/2011
• Location: Microsoft New England R&D Center, One Memorial Drive, Cambridge, MA 02142
• Time: 6pm - 9pm
• Audience: Entrepreneurs, technologists, DIYers, creative professionals and enthusiastic knowledge-seekers
• Twitter: @igniteboston
• Description: Ignite (ignite.oreilly.com) events are high-energy evening of 5-minute talks by people who have an idea—and the guts to get onstage and share it with their hometown crowd. Run by local volunteers who are connected through the global Ignite network, Ignite is a force for raising the collective IQ and building connections in each city. #gigbos
Register: http://igniteboston8.eventbrite.com/
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Cambridge Cooperative Sustainability Lecture Series Presents: “Keeping Our Water Systems Public”
Denise Hart
Monday February 7th at 6:30
Denise Hart is the New England Director, organizing, supervising staff and coordinating initiatives to protect our water and food resources in the public interest. She joined Food & Water Watch in 2008 after spending eight years organizing in southern New Hampshire to stop a bottled water company from setting up shop in her rural community (not one bottle sold yet!) and changing state laws to better protect groundwater as a public trust. This experience changed her into a passionate advocate for advancing policy to establish water as a human and ecological right and keeping water accessible, clean, and managed sustainably in the public interest. Denise is a member of the board of directors of the New England Grassroots Environment Fund and Save Our Groundwater, and serves on the New Hampshire Citizens Trade Policy Commission of the state legislature that investigates and recommends policy changes about the impacts of international trade agreements. She previously worked for many years as a writer and communications specialist producing many articles and two documentaries on topics such as sustainability, green building and the humanities for regional and national audiences.
Location: Cambridge Cooperative Club @ 64 Wendell Street, Cambridge, MA 02138
Contact: Bridget Molloy (303)-506-6790 bridget.molloy1@gmail.com
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Green Your Condo, Save Your Money, & Help Your Planet, too.*
Learn how “green” investments in your condo can make it more sustainable and add value to your home.
Tuesday, February 8th
6:30pm-8:30pm
171 Huron Avenue, Coldwell Banker Office
At this seminar you will learn about energy efficiency and smart living starting with small steps to take within your condo like installing weather stripping, then moving onto larger steps for your entire condo building like getting a free building-wide energy assessment or even installing solar. We will also cover how to cash in on the incentives/rebates, as well as the attractive 0% financing available through local banks and NSTAR. Come learn how to make your condo greener, more energy efficient, and save yourself and neighbors money each month.
Presenters
Sustainable Life Solutions
Next Step Living
S&H Construction
Cambridge Portuguese Credit Union
Attendees will have the opportunity to win raffle prizes of green gear and purchase Smart Strips powerstrips with the utility discount already included.
Co-sponsored by CEA and Coldwell Banker agents Amy Tighe and Robin Miller.
RSVP to outreach@cambridgeenergyalliance.org
----------------------------
Science by the Pint: Science by the Pint is back in full force for its second season at a new venue, the Tavern in the Square in Porter Square. Science by the Pint is SITN’s own science cafe – a fun, informal event where scientists mingle with the general public to talk about their research, why they do it, and how it affects the world. Join us the second Tuesday of each month from 7-9pm.
In our next Science by the Pint, Elizabeth Thomas and her colleagues from Brown University will chat about their work studying climate change in the recent past and present. Join them for some great food and drinks, with a chance to win gift certificate prizes at the end!
When: Tuesday, February 8th, from 7-9PM
Where: Tavern on the Square, Porter Square
Visit the science cafes webpage
----------------------------
Wed., Feb. 9, 2011
7 – 8:30 p.m.
World on the Edge: Preventing Environmental and Economic Collapse
Lester Brown
Internationally renowned environmentalist Lester Brownhas been assessing the health of the earth’s ecosystems for more than two decades. Over that time he has seen increasing signs of breakdown until we are now facing issues of near overwhelming complexity and unprecedented urgency. Can we change direction before we go over the edge? In his new book World On The Edge, Brown attempts to illuminate a path toward preventing environmental and economic collapse.
First Parish in Cambridge, Mass Ave & Church Street
Cambridge Forum: 617.495.2727
http://www.cambridgeforum.org
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TOM HAYDEN: AFGHANISTAN, OBAMA, THE PEACE MOVEMENT, AND THE LONG WAR
============================================================
When: Monday, February 7, 2011, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Where: First Parish Church ? 3 Church St. - Barn Room (upstairs) Harvard Square T (take Church St exit) Cambridge
Antiwar activist and author Tom Hayden. will speak on the Long War, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, and Yemen and the effect on domestic programs and civil liberties at home.
After over fifty years of activism, politics and writing, Tom Hayden is still a leading voice for ending the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan, for erasing sweatshops, saving the environment, and reforming politics through a more participatory democracy.
He currently writes for The Nation and organizes, travels and speaks constantly against the current wars as founder and Director of the Peace and Justice Resource Center in Culver City. He also recently drafted and lobbied successfully for Los Angeles and San Francisco ordinances to end all taxpayer subsidies for sweatshops. "Tom Hayden changed America", writes Nicolas Lemann of The Atlantic. He created "the blueprint for the Great Society programs", writes former presidential adviser Richard Goodwin. He was "the single greatest figure of the 1960s student movement" according to a New York Times book review. During his time in Sacramento, he was described as "the conscience of the Senate" by the Sacramento Bee's political analyst. The Nation magazine recently named him one of the 50 greatest progressives of the 20th century.
Hayden's talk will introduce the Afghanistan/Pakistan War Forum Series.
$5 donation requested; no one turned away.
Sponsored by the UJP Afghanistan/Pakistan Task Force.
ujpcoalition@gmail.com
617-383-4UJP
www.justicewithpeace.org
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Boston Flash Mob 1st Rehearsal!
Tuesday, February 08, 2011 at 8:00 PM
Cambridge, MA
Event Details
It's finally time for Boston Flash Mob's first rehearsal! The Rehearsal is going to be at The Dance Complex in Boston. The address is José Mateo Ballet Theatre 400 Harvard St. Cambridge, MA 02138 The first rehearsal is limited to the first 35 people that sign up. *If you are not committed please do not sign up because we have limited rehearsal space and time. Let me make this clear this will be the best and biggest Flash Mob ever! Sign up quick!
Register: http://bostonflashmob5.eventbrite.com/
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The Boston Collaborative for Food & Fitness Invites you to attend
Collaboration and Community Building: Understanding the basic elements
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Boston Collaborative for Food and Fitness
bcffinfo@bphc.org
617.534.2672
Limited Capacity: First Come, First Serve
Call or email today to reserve your space
FEBRUARY 9, 2011
WEDNESDAY 6:30-8:30PM
TOBIN COMMUNITY CENTER 1483 Tremont St., Boston
In this session participants will: Gain understanding of how to build a strong neighborhood coalition Identify and analyze key neighborhood constituencies and institutions (e.g., residents, youth, merchants, churches)
Learn and share strategies for building effective collaborations with neighborhood organizations and institutions
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*THE POWER OF EARN-A-BIKE Stories from Nevis Island and Boston*
Wednesday, February 9th, 7:00pm
at: Bikes Not Bombs Hub, 284 Amory Street, Jamaica Plain, MA
Join us for a unique presentation that will highlight Bikes Not Bombs? Earn-A-Bike youth projects in the Island of Nevis and here in Boston!
This past summer, International Programs Director David Branigan visited the Earn-A-Bike project in Nevis. David will show a short film shot during his visit and discuss the strengths and challenges
of the program, the increased involvement of government agencies, and the tremendous potential for the expansion in the next 2-3 years.
Youth Programs Coordinator Elijah Evans, who visited the Earn-A-Bike Nevis project in 2009, will take a look into the historical, political and cultural context of Nevis, and what the implications are today. Elijah is also a graduate of the Earn-A-Bike program in Boston, which he now oversees. Elijah will discuss the power of Earn-A-Bike to impact young people, the connections between the Earn-A-Bike programs in Nevis and Boston, and a vision for the future.
Finally, we'll hear from a panel of Youth Instructors who have graduated from BNB's youth programs in Boston and now teach their younger peers. These young people will share their personal
experiences with Earn-A-Bike and the program?s impact on their lives.
This event is free and open to the public. It is a potluck so please consider bringing something to share.
For more information, contact Allie Hunter at allie@bikesnotbombs.org or 617-522-0222.
Event info: http://bikesnotbombs.org/nevis-eab
-------------------------------
Hear about Google's cool new tool: Ngram
Wednesday, February 9, 2011 at 7:00 PM
Google - 5 Cambridge Center Cambridge, MA
58 Hacks and Hackers going
Google’s Ngram Viewer The Google Books Ngram Viewer lets people track how phrases in books have waxed and waned throughout the centuries. Building on top of the 15 million books that libraries and publishers have given to Google for scanning, it provides a simple and quick visual interface for illustrating trends in usage.
http://meetupbos.hackshackers.com/
--------------------------
2/10/2011
Discussion/Signing with Sheldon Krimsky
Genetic Justice: DNA Data Banks, Criminal Investigations, and Civil Liberties.
Our ongoing fascination with TV forensics dramas has brought DNA into daily conversation. Krimsky and Simoncelli reach beyond pop culture to discuss how obtaining and using DNA has become common in criminal investigations. They discuss the civil-rights concerns raised by dragnets, in which DNA is obtained from hundreds (or thousands) of people in an effort to match to a crime, including the often surreptitious acquiring of DNA from family members of suspected persons.
Time: 07:00 PM-08:00 PM
Location: Level 3, Harvard Coop Bookstore, Harvard Square
----------------------------
THE 2ND ANNUAL LEADERSHIP FOR CHANGE SUSTAINABILITY SYMPOSIUM
Sustainability: Through the Lens of Water
An exploration of global and local issues that connect business, society, and the environment
Friday, February 11, 2011
8:30 A.M. – 5:00 P.M.
Registration begins at 8:00 A.M.
The Murray Room in Yawkey Athletic Center
RSVP to lc@bc.edu
Agenda at http://www.bc.edu/content/dam/files/schools/csom_sites/lfc/pdf/Draft%20Agenda%20Sustainability%20Symposium.pdf
Cost: $50
----------------------------
NO WAR, NO WARMING!
Friday, February 11, 2011, 7-9 PM
Photonics Bldg, Room 206, Boston University
8 St. Mary's Street, Boston
just off Comm. Ave., close to the BU Central T Stop (Green Line B)
Suggested donation, $5.00
Featured Speakers:
Barry Sanders, author of The Green Zone: The Environmental Costs of Militarism, examines the environmental impact of US military practices and declares military activity, from fuel emissions to radioactive waste to defoliation campaigns, as the single-greatest contributor to the worldwide environmental crisis.
Dr. Maggie Zhou, biologist, member of Massachusetts Coalition for Healthy Communities and Climate SOS, will discuss the climate justice perspective, international climate conferences in Cancun, Copenhagen/Cochabamba, and the race to militarism vs. peace.
Co-Sponsors:
Boston UNAC (United National Antiwar Committee), United for Justice with
Peace, Alliance for Democracy-Boston/Cambridge & North Bridge Chapters,
Peace & Justice Task Force of Watertown Citizens for Environmental Safety,
Massachusetts Coalition for Healthy Communities, Massachusetts Global
Action, Boston University Antiwar Coalition
For further information, contact Boston UNAC at BostonUNAC@gmail.com
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Upcoming
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Greenpeace Boston Chapter - Arctic Sunrise Tour
Date: February 14th @ 6:00 PM
Description: Boston, MA - Coal Free Future Tour
Description: We are very excited to announce that Greenpeace's ship, the Arctic Sunrise, is sailing into Boston in February. This is the last stop of the Coal Free Future Tour.
Greenpeace is continuing its fight against the coal industry with a ship tour to highlight places like Massachusetts, where people across the commonwealth are standing up to the coal industry. We are joining this fight by raising awareness about the true cost of coal and the impacts of burning coal on our planet and the devastating effect on people’s health.
If you are interested in any of the following events please register on this page so we can keep you clued in to important updates and information!
March and Rally at the State House - Friday 2/18
Join us as we march to the State House to deliver the message to Gov. Patrick that we appreciate his work on clean energy. We challenge the governor to be an even stronger leader by shutting down the Salem Harbor coal plant by 2012.
Open Boat tours - Come down to Rowes Wharf at the Boston Harbor and take a tour of the Arctic Sunrise! - the schedule is as follows:
Wed 2/16 - Open Boat 12 - 6
Sat 2/19 - Open Boat 10 - 4
Sun 2/20 - Open Boat 10 - 4
Mon 2/21 - Open Boat 10 - 4
Let us know if you are interested in attending one of our events, and we'll contact you with details.
We are also still looking for volunteers throughout the ship’s stay to help with tours and other activities. If you can volunteer some of your time please contact David Lands at dlands@greenpeace.org
Please include your full name, phone number, and email address so that we can let you know the details of this exciting opportunity!
Location: Rowes Wharf, Boston Harbor
http://members.greenpeace.org/event/view/4022/
---------------------------------------------
*GreenPort Forum: How to Start a Green Business.* Creating green jobs and developing a green economy are essential to preventing a climate catastrophe. How can we actually build the new economy? This Forum will offer nuts and bolts information about how to create successful new green businesses. With panelists Susan Labandibar/, /President of the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Boston; Chris Basler, Cambridge Community Development Department; Stephen Leonard, Senior Vice President, Cambridge Savings Bank; and a representative from ACCION USA to speak about "sprout loans" for new home based businesses. *
Tuesday, February 15, 2011 at 7:00pm.
Cambridgeport Baptist Church, 459 Putnam Av, Cambridge (corner of Magazine St. and Putnam Ave)
*For more information contact Steve Wineman at swineman@gis.net *
-----------------------------------
How Cuba Survived Peak Oil – A showing of the film The Power of Community – How Cuba Survived Peak Oil,
Tuesday, February 15, 6:30 pm, Cambridge Senior Center, 806 Mass. Ave.
Sponsored by Cambridge Climate Emergency Action Group.
------------------------------------
Boston Social Enterprise Community: TechnoServe Mixer and Information Night!
Thursday, February 17, 2011 from 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM (ET)
Venture Cafe, CIC, One Broadway, Cambridge MA
Event Details
Interested in international development, social enterprise, or social entrepreneurship?
JOIN US at the Venture Cafe event featuring TechnoServe on February 17! TechnoServe alumni, TNS prospectives, and friends of TNS will be there to hang out, relax and chat about social enterprise, international development, and social entrepreneurship over FREE beer, wine and snacks at the Venture Cafe in Cambridge!
Venture Cafe is graciously hosting a mixer and information night to help connect socially-focused entrepreneurs, including Boston-area graduate schools. TechnoServe is an incredibly impactful summer internship opportunity, particularly for MBA and other graduate students. MIT's SEID club has also helped us to plan and organize this event, so we hope to see many Sloanies there in particular!
The idea is for former people associated with TechnoServe to connect with each other and with future people to be associated with TechnoServe. We've all lived, worked or volunteered in Africa, Central America, South America, or Asia with TNS and we'd love to share our experiences. We look forward to seeing you all there!
The Venture Cafe is a unique and truly awesome space for Boston's entrepreneurial and innovation communities. Read more about them below, but they are doing amazing things for their targeted communities in Boston. HUGE thank you to them -- they are providing space for our event as well as providing drinks and snacks!
About SEID (http://seid.mit.edu/):
Sloan Entrepreneurs for International Development (SEID) is a student-led organization at the MIT Sloan School of Management that seeks to drive sustainable global development through entrepreneurship. Our members create new ventures and engage with existing organizations in emerging markets addressing critical global issues. We harness the power of business to develop innovative market-based solutions to the current challenges in the world.
About The Venture Cafe (http://www.venturecafe.net/about/):
The Venture Café was created to provide a resource for the Boston entrepreneurial and innovation communities. Our mission is to enable fresh and useful conversations.
Cambridge is a fountain of innovative spirit, spirit that needs a framework to reach its full potential. The Venture Café serves as a nexus for helping innovators and entrepreneurs find one another and collaborate to bring their dreams to reality.
Even in this digital world, it’s important to have a physical space. Shared physical spaces provide common meeting ground and a forum for semi-serendipitous encounters that often foster brainstorming and drive creativity. Meeting in person establishes the trust that’s so crucial to working together, particularly on risky, underfunded projects. The Venture Café can provide the framework upon which numerous experimental “applications” can be nurtured and launched.
Please email Caroline Lundberg at caroline.lundberg@gmail.com if you have any questions. Otherwise, we look forward to seeing you at the event!
Register: http://www.eventbrite.com/event/1272745817
----------------------
February 18, 2011
FERC Policies and New England;
Smart Power and the Future of Electric Utilities; and Massachusetts' and Boston's New Clean Energy and Climate Plans for 2020
Raab Associates presents:
The 121st New England Electricity Restructuring Roundtable
Date: Friday, February 18, 2011
Time: 9:00 am to 12:30 pm
Foley Hoag LLP
155 Seaport Boulevard, 13th Floor
Boston, MA 02210
We start off the new year and our 17th Roundtable season with a trifecta of exciting topics. FERC Commissioner Cheryl LaFleur will kick-off our 121st Roundtable with a discussion of FERC's new policy directions on a variety of issues that will impact New England, ranging from capacity markets and transmission to both renewable and demand-side resources. As the former acting CEO at National Grid, Commissioner LaFleur knows New England well and is well-positioned to provide relevant and insightful comments for its regulators, market participants, and other stakeholders.
Next up is Dr. Peter Fox-Penner, author of a new and provocative book entitled Smart Power: Climate Change, the Smart Grid, and the Future of the Electric Utilities. Currently a principal at the Brattle Group, Peter worked in top-level positions in energy policy at U.S. DOE and the White House, and is also quite familiar with New England, having spent many years at Charles River Associates in Boston. In keeping with our "restructuring" focus, Peter's new book envisions the need for a very different utility industry and regulatory structure if we are to succeed in transforming the electricity system to meet climate and other public policy objectives.
Our final panel will feature Massachusetts' and Boston's "hot-off-the-press" and nationally-ground-breaking Clean Energy and Climate Plans. These plans will become the primary vehicles for ensuring a wide range of energy and climate goals, including lowering energy costs, increasing energy independence, growing clean energy jobs, and reducing emissions. The plans consolidate existing policies and programs, as well as present important proposed new developments spanning electricity supply, efficient buildings, and transportation.
Governor Patrick's Massachusetts Clean Energy & Climate Plan for 2020, just released in December, will be presented jointly byUndersecretary for Energy, Phil Giudice, and Assistant Secretary for Policy, Dr. David Cash, both at the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. Jim Hunt, Chief of Environmental and Energy Services at the City of Boston, will then present the City's forthcoming climate plan. The soon-to-be-released report is based on a year-long stakeholder and community engagement process, culminating in a comprehensive plan and set of recommendations to Mayor Menino, entitled Sparking Boston's Climate Revolution.
---------------------------------------------
Performance Workshop Opportunity for the Boston/Cambridge Community!
VOLUNTEERS WANTED FEBRUARY 18-21
TO PARTICIPATE IN BREAD AND PUPPET THEATER'S
NEW LUBBERLAND NATIONAL DANCE COMPANY PRODUCTION -- "MANNING"
CHOREOGRAPHED BY BREAD AND PUPPET FOUNDER PETER SCHUMANN
AT MIT (The Cube in the Wiesner Building, 20
Ames Street, Cambridge)
(no experience necessary...)
The
The Company's latest work-in-progress is called "Manning", and concerns
The approximately eight dances are tentatively titled:
1) 23 Hours-A-Day-Intensive-Solitary-Confinement Dance in a 6' x 12' Cell
2) Banned-From-Exercise + Denied Pillow + Sheet Dance
3) Guards-Check-Private-Manning-Every-5-Minutes Dance
4) The Brig's Spokesman's "poppycock" Dance Saying His Treatment is "firm,
fair and respectful"
5) The American Academy of Psychiatry's
"Isolation-Can-Be-As-Clinically-Distressing-As-Physical-Torture Dance
6) Civilized Society's Anti-Torture Dance
7) Manning's, "We're-screwed-as-a-society-if-nothing-happens" Dance
8) Manning's
"Public-reaction-to-the-video-of-the-helicopter-massacre-in-Baghdad-gave-me-
great-hope" Dance
____________________________________________________________
These dances are choreographed by Peter Schumann and taught by Maura Gahan and do not require prior dance experience. We are looking for 10-20 persons to take part in two days of rehearsals before a public performance on Monday, February 21. Participants should bring comfortable clothes to move in for rehearsals, along with a notebook, musical instruments, water, snacks and/or meals. For the performance, participants will wear all white clothes.
Schedule:
Friday, Feb. 18th: Load-In & Meet Participants (TBA)
Saturday, Feb. 19th: Rehearse 10am-1pm; Break 1-2pm; Rehearse 2-5pm
Sunday, Feb. 20th: Rehearse 10am-1pm; Break 1-2pm; Rehearse 2-5pm
Monday, Feb. 21st: Warm-up 5pm; Performance 7pm
All rehearsals and performance will take place in E15-001 (the Cube in the
Wiesner Building, 20 Ames Street)
This special workshop is presented in cooperation with 4.360 Performance Workshop: Art, Technology, and Live Space, taught by John Bell. Funded by a Director's Grant from the Council for the Arts at MIT, and a grant from the MIT Program in Art, Culture and Technology.
For more information contact John Bell johnbell@mit.edu 617-599-3250
------------------------------------
The *National Conference for Media Reform* is the biggest and best conference devoted to media, technology and democracy. Thousands of activists, media makers, educators, journalists, policymakers and people from across the country are coming to Boston for the fifth NCMR on April 8-10, 2011. **
Together we will explore the future of journalism and public media, consider how technology is changing the world, look at the policies and politics shaping our media, and discuss strategies to build the movement for better media.
Get ready for three days of strategizing, networking, sharing skills, swapping information and inspiring one another in workshops, panels, caucuses, keynote speeches, meetings and parties. You won?t want to miss this one-of-a-kind event dedicated to better media, technology and democracy.
http://conference.freepress.net/
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Request for Help
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The Somerville Winter Farmers Market is beginning its first year! It will be Saturdays 10-2 at the Armory on 191 Highland Ave in Somerville, MA. January 8th through March 26th. Please spread the word to your friends, family and coworkers.
ALSO----We are looking for musicians, as well as people interested in leading skillshares and workshops on a variety of topics having to do with food or
sustainability in general. It would be great to collaborate!
Please email me at adrianne.schaefer@gmail.com with suggestions, leads, or contacts.
Thanks!
Adrianne Schaefer
Market Manager
Somerville Winter Farmers Market
------------
Resource
-----------
Boston Food System
"The Boston Food System [listserv] provides a forum to post announcements of events, employment opportunities, internships, programs, lectures, and other activities as well as related articles or other publications of a non-commercial nature covering the area's food system - food, nutrition, farming, education, etc. - that take place or focus on or around Greater Boston (broadly delineated)."
The Boston area is one of the most active nationwide in terms of food system activities - projects, services, and events connected to food, farming, nutrition - and often connected to education, public health, environment, arts, social services and other arenas. Hundreds of organizations and enterprises cover our area, but what is going on week-to-week is not always well publicized.
Hence, the new Boston Food System listserv, as the place to let everyone know about these activities. Specifically:
Use of the BFS list will begin soon, once we get a decent base of subscribers. Clarification of what is appropriate to announce and other posting guidelines will be provided as well.
It's easy to subscribe right now at https://elist.tufts.edu/wws/subscribe/bfs
----------------------
Artisan Asylum http://artisansasylum.com/
Sprout & Co: Community Driven Investigations http://thesprouts.org/studios
Greater Boston Solidarity Economy Mapping Project http://www.transformationcentral.org/solidarity/mapping/mapping.html
a project by Wellesley College students that invites participation
-----------------------------------------------------
Links to events at 60 colleges and universities at Hubevents http://hubevents.blogspot.com
Thanks to
Fred Hapgood's Selected Lectures on Science and Engineering in the
Boston Area http://fhapgood.fastmail.fm/site02.html
Boston Area Computer User Groups http://www.bugc.org/
http://www.mitenergyclub.org/calendar/mit_events_template
http://www.environment.harvard.edu/events/calendar/
--------------------------------------------------
Energy (and Other) Events is a weekly mailing list published most
Sundays covering events around the Cambridge, MA and greater Boston
area that catch the editor's eye.
If you wish to subscribe or unsubscribe to Energy (and Other) Events
email gmoke@world.std.com
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