It's been a very busy month finishing up the manuscript and I haven't had a chance to tell readers about some terrific activities going on: * Students from RPI are sailing up the Hudson this week in a boat they outfitted to run on hydrogen fuel cells. It’s a throwback to Robert Fulton’s trip 200 years ago to show off his new steam boat and prove the viability of steam as a power source for transportation. They’re blogging the experience on the boat at www.newclermont.org, there's a facebook group, and photos too. Very cool! * Here in Durham, I'm getting ready to be on a panel at the U2 Conference October 2-4. That's right, a whole academic conference celebrating the music, work, and influence of U2! The program looks like fun and I'm on Sunday with David Kroll to talk about the way musicians can have an impact on social issues and politics. * Back in the big city, there's a new SciCafe at the American Museum of Natural History on Exoplanets and the Search for Life in the Universe. It happens Wednesday, October 7, at 7 pm in the Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth. Admission is free. Check this out:
Science enthusiasts are invited to enjoy the Museum after hours with music, drinks, and thought-provoking conversation at the kick-off of the new monthly series SciCafe. Surrounded by magnificent rock and mineral specimens in the Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth, guests will have a chance to mingle as AMNH astrophysicist Ben Oppenheimer discusses exoplanets, or planets outside our solar system, as well as his search for a hypothetical Earth-twin and signs of habitability in nearby planetary systems. Oppenheimer will also explain his role as principal investigator on the Lyot Project, which aims to reveal how planets and solar systems are formed.
