Science on Tap is a monthly lecture series at the University of Maryland that explores the latest discoveries in science and technology in a relaxed atmosphere with food and drink.
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Questions about Science on Tap? Contact Abby Robinson at abbyr@umd.edu or 301-405-5845.
Fall 2023 Science on Tap Lecture Speakers
The Fall 2023 lectures will be held at Ledo Pizza, 4509 Knox Rd., College Park, MD 20740.
September 2023 - "How is NASA spending our money?" - Ricardo Arevalo Jr., Associate Professor, Department of Geology, University of Maryland
October 23, 2023 - Tim Canty, Associate Professor, Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science, University of Maryland
November 14, 2023 - Niranjana Krishnan, Assistant Professor, Department of Entomology, University of Maryland
Previous Science on Tap Lectures
April 2023 - Looking Up: A Molecular Perspective at Astronomical Complexity - Leah Dodson, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland
March 2023 - Getting Down and Dirty with Bacteria: Using Computers to Understand Microbial Communities - Mihai Pop, Professor, Department of Computer Science and the Institute for Advanced Computer Studies, University of Maryland
February 2023 - Wild(life) Tales of Hate and Love in the Pollination World - Anahí Espíndola, Assistant Professor, Department of Entomology, University of Maryland
November 2022 - The Gulf Stream: Barrier, Blender...or Breadmaker? - Jacob Wenegrat, Assistant Professor, Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science, University of Maryland
October 2022 - Nose Knows Best: How our smell changes through life and disease - Ricardo Araneda, Professor of Biology, University of Maryland
September 2022 - Earth Strikes Back: The DART Mission to Impact an Asteroid - Derek Richardson, Professor of Astronomy, University of Maryland
May 2022 - When Do More Bugs Equal Fewer Pests? Ecology in your Garden - Karin Burghardt, Assistant Professor, Department of Entomology, University of Maryland
April 2022 - Building New Tools to Understand the Embryo and Brain - Peter Nemes, Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland
March 2022 - Wood Vault: Burying Woody Biomass to Fight Climate Change—A Simple Idea That May Actually Work - Ning Zeng, Professor of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science, University of Maryland
December 2021 - Neuroscience and the Search for a Fountain of Youth for the Brain - Elizabeth "Betsy" Quinlan, Professor of Biology, University of Maryland
November 2021 - The Age of Multi-Messenger Astronomy - Jordan Goodman, Distinguished University Professor of Physics, University of Maryland
October 2021 - Looking into Mars with InSight - Vedran "Ved" Lekic, Associate Professor of Geology, University of Maryland
September 2021 - AI & Optimization Strategies for Building Robust Matching Markets: A Case Study in Kidney Exchange - John Dickerson, Assistant Professor of Computer Science and the Institute for Advanced Computer Studies, University of Maryland; Chief Scientist, Arthur AI
December 2020 - Air Pollution: Challenges; Success Stories; and Out of Left Field, COVID-19 - Russell Dickerson, Professor, UMD Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science
November 2020 - Targeting Programmed -1 Ribosomal Frameshifting in COVID-19 - Jonathan D. Dinman, Professor and Chair, UMD Department of Cell Biology & Molecular Genetics
September 2020 - How to Build a Health Tech Startup, and How COVID-19 Accelerated Ours - Adeel Malik '15, CEO of Clearstep
December 2019 - Amazon Fires and Biodiversity: A Tale of Insects and Politicians - Rafael Andrade, Postdoctoral Fellow, UMD Department of Entomology
November 2019 - Blowing Up Mountains for Coal: Environmental Impacts That Never Stop - Margaret A. Palmer, Distinguished University Professor of Entomology and Director of the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center at UMD
September 2019 - Combating Censorship with Artificial Intelligence - Dave Levin, UMD Assistant Professor of Computer Science and UMIACS, and Kevin Bock, UMD Ph.D. student in computer science (B.S. '17, M.S. '18, computer science)
August 2019 - Detecting Gravitational Waves: We Do It With Mirrors - Peter Shawhan, UMD Physics Professor and Joint Space-Science Institute Fellow
July 2019 - Engineering Good Fungi to Kill Bad Mosquitoes Quickly - Brian Lovett, UMD Entomology Graduate Student
June 2019 - Shots of Knowledge: The Science of Whiskey - Eric Simanek, Robert A. Welch Professor of Chemistry and Department Chair at Texas Christian University & Sigma Xi Distinguished Lecturer
May 2019 - How good are global climate change projections...out to 2050? - Michael N. Evans, Associate Professor, UMD Department of Geology and Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center
April 2019 - Say Goodbye to Citrus? A Scientist’s Quest to Save the Worldwide Citrus Industry from a Devastating, Incurable Disease - Anne Simon, UMD Professor of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics
March 2019 - Salty Roads, Saltier Rivers: Causes and Consequences of Freshwater Salinization Syndrome - Sujay Kaushal, Associate Professor in the UMD Department of Geology and Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center
February 2019 - Virtual Reality: Hype or Hope? Real-world applications of virtual and augmented reality that have an impact - Amitabh Varshney, dean of UMD's College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences; Professor of Computer Science and the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies
November 2018 - Water, soil, vegetation and climate: How nature can teach us to live on a budget - Fernando Miralles-Wilhelm, Chair of UMD's Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science and Interim Director of the Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center
October 2018 - 10 Amazing Facts About Vampires and Other Bats - Jerry Wilkinson, UMD Biology Professor
September 2018 - The Silence of the Frogs - Karen Lips, UMD Biology Professor
August 2018 - What Quantum Computing Will Do For You - Christopher Monroe, Distinguished University Professor and Bice-Sechi Zorn Professor of Physics at UMD
July 2018 - Sounding Ice - Nicholas Schmerr, UMD Geology Assistant Professor
June 2018 - The Science Behind Skin Aging - Kan Cao, UMD Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics Associate Professor
May 2018 - I'm Supposed to do What With My Password? - Michelle Mazurek, UMD Assistant Professor of Computer Science with a joint appointment in the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies
April 2018 - What's Eating the Bees - Samuel Ramsey, UMD Entomology Graduate Student
March 2018 - Hungry Black Holes - Suvi Gezari, UMD Astronomy Assistant Professor
February 2018 - The Life & Death of T. Rex - Thomas Holtz, UMD Geology Principal Lecturer
In 2018 and 2019, this event was a partnership between the UMD College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences and The Clarice and MilkBoy ArtHouse, a local crossroads for dynamic entertainment, social gathering and creative dining in downtown College Park, Maryland. This event is also sponsored by the UMD Science Alumni Network.