Science and the Public 2009–10
The Robert F. and Jean E. Holtz Center for Science and Technology Studies, in collaboration with the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies and the UW Energy Institute, presents:
THE FUTURE OF ENERGY
Science and the Public Series – Spring 2010
free and open to the public
at the Pyle Center on the UW campus (702 Langdon St – at Lake St)
THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2010
Keynote Lecture at 7:00pm:
"Power to Choose: How the Energy Choices People Make Will Change Their Lives"
Saul Griffith
Wind energy entrepreneur, award-winning inventor, and MacArthur Fellow
Reception at 8:30pm with free hors d'oeuvres and a cash bar
Lecture Abstract:
The average American uses 11400 Watts of power continuously. This is the equivalent of burning 114 x100 Watt light bulbs, all the time. The average person globally uses 2255 Watts of power, or a little less than 23 x100 Watt light bulbs.
What are the consequences of us all using this much power? What is the implied challenge of global warming in terms of how we produce power? What are the things we do as individuals in terms of using power that we might change?
Saul Griffith gives us a realistic, data-driven to do list on how we might change our behaviors as individuals as well as our collective behavior as societies and global citizens, if we are to meet the great challenge of the 21st century - how to live in a world where we increasingly understand the resources to be finite, and the consequences of our actions complex & inter-twined.
What temperature do we set climate change at? What CO2 concentration does this imply we need to aim at? How much power can we get from fossil fuels while still meeting this goal? How much power do we need to install and produce from non-carbon technologies? What does this mean for countries, corporations, and individuals?
Saul Griffith Biography:
Dr. Saul Griffith has multiple degrees in materials science and mechanical engineering and completed his PhD in Programmable Assembly and Self Replicating Machines at MIT. He is the co-founder of numerous companies including: Low Cost Eyeglasses, Squid Labs, Potenco, Instructables.com, HowToons, and Makani Power. Griffith has been awarded numerous awards for invention including the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Collegiate Inventor's award, and the Lemelson-MIT Student prize. A large focus of Griffith's research efforts are in minimum and constrained energy surfaces for novel manufacturing techniques and other applications. He holds multiple patents and patents pending in textiles, optics, nanotechnology, and energy production. He also co-authors children's comic books called "HowToons" about building your own science and engineering gadgets with Nick Dragotta and Joost Bonsen. He is a technical advisor to Make magazine and Popular Mechanics, and a columnist and contributor to Make and Craft magazines. In 2007, Griffith was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship.
For more on Saul Griffith, see his website: http://www.saulgriffith.com/
For a dynamic short video presentation by Griffith, check out his talk at TED from February 2009:
http://www.ted.com/talks/saul_griffith_on_kites_as_the_future_of_renewable_energy.html
THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 2010
Film screening at 7:00pm:
Who Killed the Electric Car?
Followed by audience discussion at 8:30pm with a distinguished panel of experts on film, the environment, and engineering
Panelists:
Bill Brown, documentarian.
Brown is Assistant Professor of Media and Cultural Studies in the Department of Communication Arts.
Gregg Mitman, environmental historian and documentary filmmaker.
Mitman is the Interim Director of the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies and William Coleman Professor of History of Science. He is also a professor in the Department of Medical History & Bioethics, the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, and a faculty affiliate with the Robert F. and Jean E. Holtz Center for Science & Technology Studies.
John S. Nelson , professional engineer.
Nelson is Adjunct Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering and a practicing professional engineer.
Eric Schatzberg, historian of technology.
Schatzberg is Associate Professor of History of Science and a faculty affiliate with the Robert F. and Jean E. Holtz Center for Science & Technology Studies.
Financial support provided by the Alliant Energy Foundation and the Brittingham Trust.