Splash Biography

Dark matter is one of the largest mysteries in cosmology and astrophysics. This class will introduce students to the idea of dark matter the includes a description of the rotation problem and gravity lensing. Then we'll discuss how people might detect and find dark matter, and we'll hypothesize as to what dark matter might actually be. We'll end with a presentation of several of the ongoing experiments and techniques for dark matter detection.

Ever wanted to master Japanese in 50 minutes? Well, that I can't provide you, but in this class I hope to give you a very basic grounding in the language, at least to the extent that I can. We will learn how to read a few basic kanji (the characters that make up much of the writing in Japanese) via a short trip through the metropolis of Tokyo, a few basic sentences, which will allow us to do personal introductions, and how to write your name using one of the Japanese alphabets.

Have you ever been out west, looked up at the sky, and noticed how different it looks than it does here in Chicago? Our comforting orange glow is not a natural product of space, but rather a factor that prevents us from seeing much of it. The few stars you may see in Chicago on a clear night show you less than 1% of what you could really be seeing in a more observing-friendly environment. This presentation will focus highly on the make-up of our immediate stellar neighborhood, the general structure of our galaxy, observing techniques, and some factors that may inhibit your ability to observe. Additional topics, if time allows, will include our galaxy's relation to galaxies near to us, universal structure, and a few of the more pressing questions about the universe we face today.