Science Colloquium Lectures
Spring Series
April 25, 2013 Kyle Maclea, Linfield College Dept of Biology "This Is Your Brain on Proteins: Insights from Yeast Biology on Degenerative Human Diseases"
Infectious proteins known as prions are found in mammals (e.g., the prion protein PrP in Mad Cow disease) and also in unicellular fungi (yeasts) where several prions have been identified. Although there are substantial differences between these prion proteins, both types of prions form aggregated beta-sheet-rich protein structures called amyloids. I will describe studies on the yeast prion Sup35 and what we have learned from these studies that enabled the discovery, among human patients, of new genetic diseases of abnormal protein aggregation affecting degeneration of nervous and muscular tissues.
May 16, 2013 Erin Gorsich "Disease Invasion Dynamics: Tuberculosis and Brucellosis Co-infection in African Buffalo"
Erin Gorsich of Oregon State University will present "Disease Invasion Dynamics: Tuberculosis and Brucellosis Co-infection in African Buffalo" on May 16, 2013 at 4:00 pm, Murdock 105.
Invasive diseases can alter native pathogen transmission and virulence, causing cascading effects throughout an ecosystem. I examine the effects of an introduced pathogen on the transmission and fitness effects of a native disease using bovine tuberculosis (BTB) and brucellosis in African buffalo at Kruger National Park (KNP). Both BTB and brucellosis cause chronic infections in African buffalo and are associated with immune suppression, suggesting a prominent role of host immunity in determining infection patterns. However, how immune processes affect disease patterns at the population level remains unknown. In this talk, I examine infection and co-infection patterns in a cohort of 200 buffalo to ask three questions: (1) What are the survival and fecundity consequences of infection and co-infection? (2) Does infection with TB increase susceptibility to brucellosis? And (3) what are the consequences of co-infection for disease transmission?
Cosmology Series
Nobel Laureate Lecture:
April 8, 2013 Nobel Laureate Brian Schmidt "The Accelerating Universe"
Linfield College will host Nobel Laureate Brian Schmidt on Monday, April 8, at 7:30 p.m. in the Richard and Lucille Ice Auditorium in Melrose Hall. Schmidt, a co-recipient of the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics, will speak about "The Accelerating Universe."
Schmidt's visit is part of the Oregon Nobel Laureate Symposium at Linfield, one of only five such symposia in the world, which gives students and faculty the opportunity to meet and dialogue with Nobel laureates, and includes a free lecture open to the public.
Schmidt was awarded the Nobel Prize for his shared discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe. In 1998 two teams traced back the expansion of the universe over billions of years. The scientists discovered that it was accelerating, a startling discovery contrary to the then-current theory that the universe's expansion should be slowing down. This new understanding, named Science magazine's "Breakthrough of the Year," suggests that more than 70 percent of the cosmos is contained in a previously unknown form of matter, called Dark Energy. As the leader of the High-Redshift Supernova Search Team, Schmidt will describe this historic development and explain how astronomers have used observations to trace our universe back more than 13 billion years, leading them to ponder the ultimate fate of the cosmos.
Schmidt is a Laureate Fellow at the Mount Stromlo Observatory at Australian National University, where he continues to use exploding stars to study the universe. He is leading the observatory's effort to build the SkyMapper telescope, a facility that will provide a comprehensive digital map of the southern sky from ultraviolet through near infrared wavelengths.
Schmidt received his doctorate from Harvard University in 1993. For more information, call ext. 2408.
Watch the presentations from Dr. Schmidt.
March 14, 2013 Dr. James Schombert "Dark Matter and Cosmology"
Dr. James Schombert, University of Oregon Department of Physics
Over 95% of the Universe is composed of a substance that is *not* made of baryons (i.e., normal matter), and does not emit any radiation to detect it. I will review 1) how we know this dark matter exists, 2) what we know that it *isn't* and 3) why it is important to cosmology, the formation and evolution of the Universe.
Refreshments provided.
Students, faculty, members of the Linfield community, and the public are all welcome
For more information, contact Jennifer Heath, ext. 2267, jheath@linfield.edu.
March 7, 2013 Michael Hitchman "Geometry, Topology and the Shape of Space"
Michael Hitchman, assistant professor of mathematics, will present "Geometry, Topology and the Shape of Space" during the Linfield College Science Colloquium Thursday, March 7, at 4:10 p.m. in 105 Murdock Hall.
The presentation is part of a five-lecture series focusing on different aspects of astronomy and cosmology.
What is the shape of the universe? Hitchman will investigate this question, consider its ties to geometry and topology, and discuss some strategies in cosmic topology for (possibly) answering it.
For more information, contact Jennifer Heath, ext. 2267, jheath@linfield.edu.
Feb 28, 2013 Michael Crosser "Introduction to the Big Bang Theory"
Michael Crosser, associate professor of physics, will present "Introduction to the Big Bang Theory" during the Linfield College Science Colloquium Thursday, Feb. 28, at 4:10 p.m. in 105 Murdock Hall.
The presentation is the second in a five-lecture series focusing on different aspects of astronomy and cosmology.
It has been less than a century since we learned that the universe is constantly expanding. Prior to that, it was assumed to be in a static structure. In this talk, intended for non-scientists and scientists alike, Crosser will explore the fundamental measurements that led astronomers to understand the nature of the universe and to agree on its origins − a model commonly called the Big Bang Theory.
For more information, contact Jennifer Heath, ext. 2267, jheath@linfield.edu.