Date: Saturday, Dec. 16th Time: Doors at 6, show at 6:30 Where: DC9 Nightclub
‘Tis the season for a show that’s quirkier than a Christmas sweater with built-in jingle bells! Picture this: a wild ride through mangroves, the unsung heroes of the plant world, winning the ultimate badge of botanical honor. We’ll dive into the bizarre and mind-boggling realm of weird Garfield art, where even the lasagna gets a nerdy makeover. And what’s a holiday celebration without a good roast? Move over chestnuts; we’re roasting Tom Clancy’s novels for being more set in their ways than a grandparent at a family reunion.
“Ode to Joy: How Garfield (From Memory) Saved Me”by Kate Parnell Talk Description: Kate will speak about how her decision to make one small drawing of Garfield from memory every day changed her life and gave her a completely new artistic direction. By taking an incremental approach, sidestepping judgments and celebrating things that are deeply loved, she has found a path through depression and loss, and built a practice of creativity and community. Bio: Kate Parnell is a 43 year old artist who attended the Cooper Union and got a masters of fine arts, and who now lives with her parents and paints Garfield every day. You can find her work on her Instagram, @garfieldfrommemory.
“Mangroves and why they should be your best friend too”by Perri Moeller Talk Description: Perri will provide an illuminating and educational talk about what a mangrove is, spoiler alert its not a mango, the benefits of the ecosystem and why mangroves should become your best friend too. Bio: Perri Moeller is a returned peace corps volunteer who spent over 2 years living in the Philippines working on mangrove habitat management. Currently, Perri specializes in sustainability in the chemical space, but would love to corner you and talk your ear off about marine science facts.
“Executive Dysfunction: A Queer Eye on Tom Clancy”by Sarah Clancy Talk Description: We all know the stories of Jack Ryan but what if he was the real Clear and Present Danger to America?… Bio: Evolved beyond her prior form, Sarah stands tall as an amateur comedian and a thorn in the side of conservatives everywhere though her allegiance can be bought with pizza…
Gobble up some knowledge and a side of laughter at Nerd Nite DC’s pre-Thanksgiving feast of facts! We’re serving up lectures on the Vagus Nerve, Frogs, and crafting a space board game that’s the stuffing of dreams!
“The Fantastic and Freaky World of Frogs!”by Angela Trenkle Talk Description: Join us in a deep dive into the weird, wacky, and wonderful world of frogs! Bio: Angela is a scientific technical writer and herpetology enthusiast who was born and raised in Maryland. She is a certified Master Herpetologist and is an active volunteer with several environmental organizations that work to preserve the natural world. When she is not working or volunteering, she enjoys reading, writing, traveling, running, weightlifting, and spending as much time outdoors as possible.
“I Made a Space Board Game Instead of Doing my Post-Doc” by Mickey McDonald Talk Description: We humans have visited a lot of worlds in our Solar System, and not just the 8 (plus Pluto!) you usually learn about in school. To date, the robots we’ve sent out to explore the Solar System have returned high-res, close-up pictures of more than 70 unique worlds including comets, asteroids, moonlets, and dwarf planets. I think this is pretty cool! So I made a board game about it, found a factory to make it for me, wrote a book on astronomy (despite not reallllly being an astronomer), and now I want to tell you how that whole deal went. Bio: Mickey McDonald got his PhD in physics at Columbia back in 2016 learning how to make molecules wiggle in just the right way when hit with just the right kind of light, but his secret passion has always been learning about the universe. He currently lives in Colorado working for a company trying hard to build quantum computers, and spends his evenings making music and hanging out with his lovely wife and his three almost-as-lovely cats.
“The Polyvagal Theory: The Vagus Nerve And How Everything Around Us Transforms Our Body—Including, But Not Just, Trauma”by Seth Porges Talk Description: What is the vagus nerve? Could simply feeling safe allow us to live healthy and happy lives? Why do pets make us happy? What does any of this have to do with trauma? Will somebody turn down that loud noise? Why is everything so overwhelming? Why does everything suck? What can I do about it? Bio: Seth Porges is a journalist, author, and filmmaker. He wrote, produced, and directed the hit movie Class Action Park on (HBO) Max, as well as an upcoming stranger-than-fiction doc coming soon to Netflix. Previously, he was an editor at Popular Mechanics and Maxim magazines, and a columnist for Bloomberg Businessweek. He currently holds the world record for most unique Nerd Nite talks given, and is pretty good at pinball. His book Our Polyvagal World: How Safety and Trauma Change Us is available now.
Welcome to the monthly Nerd Nite, where nerds can share their passions and unusual research with a room full of people eager to spend a weekend night in a bar learning.
Nerd Nite DC is DC’s original science + nerd + drinking event. See us nerd out!
“What Happened in DC Before Gentrification?” by Tanya Golash-Boza
Talk Description: Let’s explore how DC went from being the murder and incarceration capital to becoming one of the most gentrified cities in the country.
Bio: Tanya Golash-Boza was born and raised in Washington, DC. She is a proud graduate of DC Public Schools, the University of Maryland (BA in Philosophy), and the University of North Carolina (PhD in Sociology). She currently works as the Executive Director of the University of California Washington Program.
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“Beakers and Boners” by Joe Meany
Talk Description: Chemistry these days is actually pretty cool, producing beer, vaccines, and batteries, but in the past it was a practice heavily seated in superstition. The history of alchemy was hyper-focused on perpetuating life and virility (cough cough male life and virility cough cough) and other discoveries are “well this is cool too I guess.
Bio: Joe is a science consultant and author currently living in Arlington, VA. He has a background in chemistry and materials science, and you can find him around the internet as The Crimson Alkemist.
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“From The Enterprise to Anonymous: A Smutty Public Speaking AU History of Fan Fiction” by Lisa Crawford
Talk Description: Lisa will take you on a journey through a brief history of modern fan fiction starting with its “creation” in the 70s all the way to a recent hacker attack of a popular fan fiction site to punish us for our fictional degeneracy. She’ll discuss why something so dorky is so compelling, explain how fan fic writers transform their stories into best selling original works, demonstrate the science—nay! the art of choosing a good fic, and bring it home with a highly intellectual audience-participation game called “smut or angst” where the audience decides on the genre of a fic based solely on its title.
Bio: Lisa is a badass shark biologist who works for the government. In her spare time, she enjoys rotting her brain with television and reading excessive amounts of fan fiction. Lisa is a mother of 22 guppies—only because she can’t keep a shark in her apartment.
