DC9 Nightclub
DOORS: 6:00PM
$10
21+

HAPPY NERD YEAR!

We’re ringing in 2019 with three amazing talks. Freakin’ lasers! Not being abilist jerks! The connection between sketchy wizards and back pain! Auld acquaintance may be forgot, but you won’t forget these amazing speakers. So much to learn! Come start the new year off right by partying it up with your favorite nerds.

Also, come out to hear some exciting new updates about Nerd Nite DC 2019!

“Sick Freaks: Disability, Freak Shows, and Reality TV”

Summary: The old carnival freak shows are basically gone now, but that hasn’t changed people’s desire to stare at those who are different. From Mystery Diagnosis to Born This Way, come find out what’s going on with reality television, and how all that’s old is new again.

Presenter Bio: Katya is a queer, disabled theater historian (for extra freakiness) who writes about identity, performance theory, and political theater. When not reading, writing, or talking about these topics, Katya is usually either murdering aliens in XCOM or crafting, and sometimes even does both at once.

“Cosmic Death Lasers”

Summary: We’ll explore objects so extreme that if you could stand on their surfaces gravity would squash you flat as a pancake. Then we’ll learn how to manipulate these objects to create a death ray capable of destroying all life on Earth as we know it.

Presenter Bio: Ginny is a fourth year astronomy graduate student working at the University of Maryland and NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. She studies the brightest explosions in the universe and in her free time she likes to pet dogs and drink wine (preferably at the same time).

“Exposing the Fake News of Low Back Pain”

Summary: Does good posture prevent back pain? Do six pack abs help your back? Where does pain even come from? Can Professor Dumbledore teach us something about pain? (okay that one is obviously yes!) Forget everything you’ve ever been told about back pain and get ready to nerd out on the science of pain while busting some myths along the way.

Presenter Bio: JD is a nerd with the goal of making physical therapy and health care more scientific (if you haven’t heard health care is complicated). He a board-certified specialist in orthopedic physical therapy, is currently serving on the American Physical Therapy Association of Maryland’s board of directors, and works at Washington Wellness Physical Therapy & Sports Care. In his free time he enjoys hiking and backpacking with his dog Scout.