DC9 Nightclub
DOORS: 6:00PM
$10
21+
Nerd Nite is back at DC9, the best goddamn Nerd Nite HQ in the universe, and we’ve got a lineup that is going to straightaway blow your mind. We’re talking Humans and Healthcare, Jeopardy-Sized Memories, and Goddamn Whale Penises. Check it out:
“We Found Love in a Hopeless Place: Designing the Humanity Back into the Doctor/Patient Experience,” by Amanda Chavez and Kelly Grigg
Summary: Would you describe most of your patient experiences at the doctor’s office as top notch, exceeding your expectations, or even life affirming? Yeah, neither have we. And there’s a good reason why. Medical practitioners and patients alike face unprecedented external pressures ranging from insurance companies to the very technology both parties use everyday. Even worse, neither practitioners nor patients have enough time during a medical visit to really understand where the other is coming from. During this session, we’ll explore how designers can really dig into to the heart of these problems to create solutions that improve the relationship as well as the overall experience between practitioners and patients.
Presenter Bio: Amanda Chavez and Kelly Grigg are human-centered design (HCD) executives for Cognosante (a healthcare/IT company). Both manage the company’s digital and service solution portfolio that address the toughest challenges in healthcare. Amanda and Kelly are known within their company as the Odd Couple of Design. Within about 1 minute of meeting the ladies, you will know who is the Oscar and who is the Felix of the relationship.
“Secrets of the Memory Champions: How Thousands of Years of Mnemonics Research Can Drive Game Show Success — And, Perhaps, Offer A Path to Enlightenment,” by Matt Jackson
Summary: Human memory is slippery and full of strange shortcuts and unexpected obstacles. For as long as humans have existed, we’ve tried to understand our brains better so we can store and retrieve more information. Join Jeopardy! superchampion Matt Jackson on a whirlwind tour of mnemonics and memory-training through the ages, from the Homeric bards of ancient Greece to the experimental masochism of Hermann Ebbinghaus and beyond. We’ll learn how game show champions and trivia competitors, drawing on these insights to “hack” the game in front of them, pick up the torch as the latest researchers (and the latest test subjects!) in the great quest to demystify human learning. And we’ll see how feats of mnemonic strength become an almost mystical insight — a window into what makes us human, even in the age of light-speed search engines and external hard drives.
Presenter Bio: Matt Jackson took the nation by storm in the fall of 2015 with his 13-game winning streak on the game show Jeopardy — still the fourth-longest in the game’s history — as well as 2nd-place finishes in the Season 32 Tournament of Champions and last month’s Jeopardy All-Star Games. Once described as the Internet’s “most GIF-able human,” Matt was born and raised right here in the District of Columbia, which he returned to after studying philosophy and political theory at Yale University. For several years, he helped produce and organize the annual PACE National Scholastic Championship, the preeminent national title for high school Quizbowl teams. His non-trivia interests include board games, card games, performing traditional folk songs with Washington Revels, and finding the perfect way to combine gelato flavors.
“Moby’s Dick – how whales and dolphins get their freak on” by Whalebone Kerri Smith
Summary: Have you always wanted to know what a whale penis looks like? Or which whales have the biggest testicles? Whether you answered yes or no to those questions, you’re in for a real treat! We’ll look at a lot of whale dick pics, talk about dolphin masturbation, and explore sperm competition as we take a peak under the waves to see how whales and dolphins exchange bodily fluids.
Presenter Bio: Whalebone Kerri is a Research Fellow at the National Museum of Natural History studying beaked whales (which most people have never heard of). She spends half her time playing with power tools and whale bones, and the other half performing delicate laboratory procedures. As a PhD student she has no free time, but if she did she’d like to spend it on or under the water. Growing up she was a precocious child, beginning her own natural history collection (read: assortment of dead animal parts and rocks) in her parent’s basement.
DC9 Nightclub
DOORS: 6:00PM
$10
21+
You get TWO NERD NITES in MARCH!! The first is March 9 at DC9 and the second is at the motherfuckin National Museum of Natural History on March 30! Lineup for the National Museum of Natural History event will be announced soon, but check out the amazing lineup at DC9 on March 9:
Public Health Law: Preventing the Zombie Apocalypse Since 1905,” by Elizabeth Houston
Summary: When people think of the legal field, they usually picture something from “Law and Order” or “Suits.” But there is a lot more to the law outside of criminal cases and courtroom drama. Exhibit A — public health law. You probably haven’t heard of it before, and that’s okay. Most lawyers aren’t even aware of what this is. But this area of law literally affects every single one of us. Join me for a fun conversation about what public health law is and why you should care about it.
Presenter Bio: Elizabeth is a Privacy Analyst at the Administration for Children and Families in the Department of Health and Human Services. She is a native of Memphis, Tennessee and moved to the DC area in 2017 after being selected as a Presidential Management Fellow. She has a B.A. in Psychology from Christian Brothers University, and Juris Doctor and Master of Public Health degrees from The University of Memphis. Elizabeth is passionate about public health, health equity, and bioethics. She currently lives in Bethesda, Maryland with her husband, Billy, and her cats, Quincy and Meredith.
“On Nipple Toothed Pachyderms: American degeneracy and the fossil record of elephants,” by Advait Jukar
Summary: What do fossils have to do with the spirit of America? Were the French right about a degenerate fauna in the west? What the heck are nipple teeth? I will be answering these questions and will take you on a journey through the fascinating fossil history of elephants and their kin.
Presenter Bio: Advait is a Deep Time Fellow at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History and studied the structure of ancient ecosystems, megafaunal extinctions, and the evolution of elephants and horses. Before Advait studied fossils, he studied mildly toxic frogs on a mountain in Korea.
“Why Trains Need Creeps,” by Ben Titus, Principal Engineer
Summary: Find out what it take to move a train!
Presenter Bio: Ben Titus is a Mechanical Engineer by day, social justice warrior by night, and is trying to be mountaineer during the weekend.
DC9 Nightclub
DOORS: 6:00PM
$10
21+
It’s DC9’s 15 YEAR ANNIVERSARY PARTY all weeeek loooooong! And we’re kicking it off with a celebration of DC nerdery like you wouldn’t believe. Check out this LINEUP:
“Spaced Out: The Consequences of Cosmic Radiation on the Brain,” by Alexandra Taraboletti
Summary: The intrigue of deep space travel comes with inherent risks, including exposure to the ionizing radiation fields in space. This talk will explore some of the known effects radiation has on the brain and delve into the countermeasures being taken to stop both the physical and potential psychologic problems facing future astronauts.
Presenter Bio: Alexandra is a Postdoctoral Fellow at Georgetown
University in the Tumor Biology T32 program. She currently researches radiation biomarkers using mass spectrometry-based metabolomics. Alexandra grew up near Cape Canaveral, FL and reveled in every bring your child to work day at NASA (AKA she is a space nerd).
“Lessons I Learned From Richard Butt,” by Blake Lindsey
Summary: Is the District of Columbia “North” or “South”? I will be answering that question by examining the misadventures of soldiers who manned the Civil War Defenses of Washington and the civilians who lived in DC. The question matters more than you might think….and yes we will talk about a guy named Richard Butt who lived on Georgia Avenue.
Presenter Bio: Blake lives in Adams Morgan, and considers DC “home.” He has many passions, among them bocce ball and Super Smash Brothers.
“Hamilton, but French,” by Dr. Taylor Winkleman
Summary: With a cast of characters including Marie Antoinette, Catherine the Great, Gregory Potemkin, and John Paul Jones, Andre du Plessis is the coolest guy you’ve never heard of. He’s also possibly the first epidemiologist in the western world. Come see the drunk history version of Andre’s life—and maybe help act it out!
Presenter Bio: Dr. Taylor Winkleman is a veterinarian and global health security expert who moonlights as a writer and is developing a science-based podcast with her scientist friends. When she’s not doing any of those, you can find her baking macarons or doing flying trapeze and circus aerials.