Join us and take a deep dive into the subject matter and themes of SPACE. Central Conversations offers patrons introductions to world class scholars, scientists, humanists, community leaders, activists and other people who are shaping the world that we live in.
What the heck is out there? Looking to the worlds beyond ours06feb10:00 pm10:00 pm(GMT-05:00)
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Sure, Earth is awesome. But when we think about space travel, it’s always with the goal of finding another livable planet. What are we looking for, exactly? And what makes
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Sure, Earth is awesome. But when we think about space travel, it’s always with the goal of finding another livable planet. What are we looking for, exactly? And what makes those planets beyond ours worth looking at? Join us for a discussion with Dr. Sarah Millholland and Dr. Emily Pass about all-things exoplanets!
Speakers for this event
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Dr. Sarah Millholland
Dr. Sarah Millholland
Professor Sarah Millholland studies a broad range of problems in exoplanetary science. Her research explores the demographics and diversity of extrasolar planetary systems and aims to constrain the physics of planet formation and evolution. She uses a synergistic approach involving analytic theory, numerical simulations, and statistical methods. Prof. Millholland is originally from Madison, Wisconsin. She obtained bachelor’s degrees in physics and applied mathematics from the University of Saint Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota in 2015. She then spent her first year of graduate school at the University of California Santa Cruz before transferring to Yale University. She received an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship and obtained her PhD in Astronomy from Yale in May 2020. She then moved to Princeton University, where she was a NASA Sagan Postdoctoral Fellow from 2020-2022. In July 2022, she joined the MIT Physics faculty as an Assistant Professor in the Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research.
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Emily Pass Ph.D.
Emily Pass Ph.D.
I am an observational astronomer who studies exoplanets and small stars as a Torres Postdoctoral Fellow for Exoplanet Research at MIT. During my time as a PhD student at Harvard University, I was a Peirce Fellow and NSERC Postgraduate Scholar, and my thesis was awarded the 2024 Fireman Prize. I obtained my BSc from the physics and astronomy co-op program at the University of Waterloo and was honoured with Canada’s National Co-op Student of the Year Award for some of my undergraduate research work. I’ve developed skills in high-performance computing, survey design, astronomical data analysis, and machine learning, presented posters and talks at a variety of conferences, published eight first-author papers, and contributed to the science maturation study for a space telescope.
I am an avid reader and writer, receiving a minor in English Literature alongside my BSc. I enjoy science communication and outreach, and have been involved with such organizations as Let’s Talk Science (in particular, their CurioCity program that publishes science articles for a school-aged audience), the Halifax Discovery Centre, Astro McGill, the Waterloo Space Society, and Harvard’s Science in the News blog (check out my articles here). My other hobbies include cooking, climbing, and the Legend of Zelda.
Artists and Audiences for "SPACE"13feb10:30 pm10:30 pm(GMT-05:00)
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Join us for a conversation with the cast and creative team for SPACE about bringing it to our stage.
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Join us for a conversation with the cast and creative team for SPACE about bringing it to our stage.
How to Build a Galaxy14feb10:00 pm10:00 pm(GMT-05:00)
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Ever wondered how the first stars formed? Or how our galaxy came to be? Are you planning on building a star of your own? If you said “yes”
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Ever wondered how the first stars formed? Or how our galaxy came to be? Are you planning on building a star of your own? If you said “yes” to any of these questions, this talkback is for you! Join us for a conversation with Dr. Anna Frebel, in which we’ll cover all the ins and outs of galaxy archaeology to learn just how complicated stardust really is.
Speakers for this event
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Anna Frebel Ph.D.
Anna Frebel Ph.D.
Prof. Anna Frebel is an observational astronomer and astrophysicist. She received her PhD from the Australian National University’s Mt. Stromlo Observatory in 2007, and did postdoctoral work as a WJ McDonald Fellow in Austin, TX (2006-2008) and as Clay Fellow at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA), in Cambridge, MA (2009-2012).
Prof. Frebel has received numerous honors and awards including the 2010 Annie Jump Cannon Award (American Astronomical Society), a 2013 CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation, and in 2016 she was named one of ScienceNews Magazine’s “Ten Scientists to Watch”. She was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure in 2018 and to full Professor in 2022.
Prof. Frebel has authored more than 120 papers in various refereed journals, including Nature. She also enjoys communicating science to the public through regular public lectures, magazine articles, interviews as well as her popular science book “Searching for the oldest stars: Ancient Relics from the Early Universe” (Princeton University Press).
How to Protect a Planet21feb10:00 pm10:00 pm(GMT-05:00)
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WARNING: ASTEROID INCOMING! What will we do to protect Earth from foreign invaders? How do we prevent this planet from otherworldly contaminants? And how are we preparing our own space
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WARNING: ASTEROID INCOMING! What will we do to protect Earth from foreign invaders? How do we prevent this planet from otherworldly contaminants? And how are we preparing our own space travel to protect whatever planetary bodies we may be exploring? Join us for a discussion with Dr. Alissa Haddaji where we will discuss our plan of protection.
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Dr. Alissa Haddaji
Dr. Alissa Haddaji
Alissa J. Haddaji is an Adjunct Professor in Space Law, Policy and Ethics and is the volunteer founder and director of The Space Consortium, and of Massachusetts Space Week (formerly known as Space Week at Harvard – now extended to the state of Massachusetts). She is the International Academy of Astronautics coordinator of the United Nations-mandated SMPAG Legal Working Group on Planetary Defense and a faculty researcher in Space Law, Policy and Ethics, specializing in International Space Threat Management (Planetary Protection & Defense). She created and taught Harvard Law School’s, Harvard Summer School’s, Boston College Law School’s and Paris Saclay University “New Space”‘s Space Law, Policy and Ethics curriculum (2019-2022). She currently serves as the Vice-Chair of the International Astronautical Federation’s Near Earth Object & Planetary Defense committee. She served as the International Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) Planetary Protection Project Officer (2015-2019), was a senior researcher in space economics at Harvard Business School (2020), a research fellow at Harvard Kennedy School and a visiting scholar at the GWU Space Policy Institute. She holds a PhD in Science and Technology Policy, and 5 Master’s Degrees in Planetary Science (spe. oceanography), History/International Relations, Political Science, Law and Socio-Anthropology, from Brown University, La Sorbonne University and Bordeaux 1 University respectively.
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