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Global, National and Regional Effects of Climate Change on Plants and Animals
Dr. David Karowe, Professor of Biological Sciences, Western Michigan University
Friday, September 16, 2011; 7:30 pm
Co-sponsored by The Native Plant Society of Northeastern Ohio
Global climate change is likely to be the most serious environmental challenge in human history, with profound implications for ecosystems worldwide. Plants and animals have already responded to climate change by altering the timing of events like flowering and migration, and by expanding their geographic ranges poleward and to higher altitudes. This talk will focus on the consensus projections of climate change during the rest of the 21st century, and the predicted consequences for plants and animals around the world, in the United States, and in Ohio. The talk will conclude with a brief discussion of some of the most promising solutions, including solar and wind power, and altered personal behaviors.
This program is offered in conjunction with the Climate Change exhibition.
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Seeing Climate, Seeing Change
Dr. Heidi Cullen, Director of Communications, Climate Central and Visiting Lecturer, Princeton University
Friday, September 23, 2011; 7:30 pm
Co-sponsored by Ride for Miles
If seeing is believing, then how do you show people this phenomenon called climate change? And how do you prove that recent extreme events may be partially a result of global warming? This talk will explore the difficulties of communicating the science of climate change and look at the current state of public perception. Beginning with a brief history lesson, this talk will provide an overview of past, present and future climate change. This talk will also reflect on the need to improve our ability to visualize climate change as well as provide examples of the energy infrastructure changes we need to solve the problem of global warming.
Please join Dr. Cullen for a book-signing session after the presentation. All books are available for purchase in the Museum Store.
This program is offered in conjunction with the Climate Change exhibition.
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The New Madrid Earthquakes Two Hundred Years Later: What Have We Learned about Earthquakes at the Center of Tectonic Plates?
Dr. M. Beatrice Magnani, Seismologist,
The University of Memphis
Friday, October 14, 2011; 7:30 pm
Co-sponsored by the International Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS)
Most of the seismicity on our planet occurs at plate boundaries. By contrast, the interiors of continents, far away from plate boundaries, are mostly stable. The New Madrid Seismic Zone (NMSZ), located in the heart of the North American continent (over 2,000 kilometers away from the nearest plate boundary) is a notorious exception. The NMSZ has generated large magnitude earthquakes (M>7.0). Dr. Magnani will present the existing data, the models proposed to reconcile them and the implications for seismic hazard in the central United States. She will highlight a new study along the Mississippi River suggesting that the NMSZ is not the only fault system that has been active in this region.
This program is offered in conjunction with Earth Science Week.
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Polar Bear Population Projections: Reliability in the Face of Uncertainty
Dr. Steven C. Amstrup, Chief Scientist and
Vice President, Conservation Science,
Polar Bear International
Friday, December 9, 2011; 7:30 pm
Sponsored by the Cleveland Chapter of the American Association of Zookeepers and Cleveland Metroparks Zoo/Cleveland Zoological Society
In 2007, Dr. Amstrup's research team at the U.S. Geological Survey projected that by mid-century we would lose two-thirds of the world’s polar bears. More recently, he and his colleagues showed that preventing polar bear extinction is largely a matter of controlling greenhouse gas rise. The good news is that prompt mitigation will prevent much sea ice loss and preserve sustainable polar bear populations over a majority of their current range.
Naturalist Certificate presentations will precede this program.
This program is offered in conjunction with the Climate Change exhibition.
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Climate Change: The Evidence and Our Options
Dr. Lonnie Thompson, Distinguished University Professor, School of Earth Sciences and Senior Research Scientist, Byrd Polar Research Center, The Ohio State University
CANCELED
Glaciers serve as early indicators of climate change. The ongoing widespread melting of glaciers and ice caps provides strong evidence that rapid change in Earth's climate is underway. Told through the adventure, beauty and science from some of our world's most remote mountain tops, Dr. Thompson will provide a global perspective on climate change. Over the last 35 years, Thompson and his research team have recorded data from both polar regions and 16 countries. Current atmospheric warming is unusual when viewed from both the analyses of glaciers that are thousands of years old and 160 years of direct temperature measurements. Despite the evidence, societies have taken little action to address this global problem. We have three options: mitigation, adaptation and suffering.
Presentation of the Conservation Awards will precede this program.
This program is offered in conjunction with the Climate Change exhibition.
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Developing Minds on a Global Expedition Discovering New Landscapes of an Altered Planet
Dr. Dennis J. Taylor, Professor of Biology, Hiram College
Friday, January 13, 2012; 7:30 pm
Remember journaling with your fellow classmates about experiencing the extremes of scuba diving in the Maldives, dog sledding in Svalbard, Norway, camping in the Sahara, whale watching in Maui and Juneau, and hiking in the Himalaya in February? Dr. Taylor will share student reflections and images from their 90 day natural history world voyages documenting evidence of global warming and its impact on all major biomes of the world. Learn how the study of natural history can inform and develop the next generation of world leaders by providing students with first-hand evidence from educational programs designed to fit the organic learning of nature's brain.
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Damsels in Distress: The Hardships of Mating Behavior in Damselflies
Dr. Tom D. Schultz, Behavioral Ecologist, Denison University
Friday, February 10, 2012; 7:30 pm
Reproduction is a highly competitive process in damselflies. Dr. Schultz will examine stresses on both sexes under two different scenarios. In one, females are excessively harassed by males desperate to breed. In the other, males fight for the favor of choosy females. In both cases, the role that color plays in communication will be highlighted.
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Hallucinations and Inspirations: The Fantastic Imagery of William Stout
William Stout, Artist and Filmmaker
New date: Friday, March 9, 2012; 7:30 pm
Step into worlds of fantasy and imagination with artist and filmmaker William Stout. See how he created the drawings that became the basis for such movie icons as the Predator, Skeletor from Masters of the Universe, the Tarman from The Return of the Living Dead, the Faun from Pan’s Labyrinth and the big bug known as Edgar from Men In Black. Learn of the problems he has encountered in bringing the fantastic to life and how he solved them.
Please join Mr. Stout for a book-signing session after the presentation. All books are available for purchase in the Museum Store.
This program is offered in conjunction with the Mythic Creatures exhibition.
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The William and Nancy Klamm Memorial Lecture
The Private Lives of Birds
Dr. Bridget Stutchbury, Professor of Biology, York University, Toronto
Friday, April 20, 2012; 7:30 pm
Dr. Stutchbury roams forests and jungles to study the sexual antics and social lives of birds. Based on her book, The Private Lives of Birds, Stutchbury will explain the science behind the surprisingly sophisticated and often amusing behavior of birds. For instance, why some birds readily divorce their partners, why females sneak copulations with neighboring males and why mothers sometimes desert their babies. She will also reveal her latest results from her geolocator tracking of the migration of Purple Martins and Wood Thrushes to Central and South America. Studies of bird behavior are fascinating in their own right, but also help us to understand how and if birds can adapt to our modern world.
Please join Dr. Stutchbury for a book-signing session after the presentation. All books are available for purchase in the Museum Store.
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Gold Exploration in Central America: A Short History of Discoveries and Field Methods Over the Past Two Decades
John Spurney, Geologist and Gold Explorer
Friday, May 18, 2012; 7:30 pm
During the past 20 years, Central America has yielded a number of exciting “hard rock” gold-silver discoveries in the half million ounce to 4 million ounce range. The majority of these discoveries have come from exploration in belts of Tertiary volcanic rocks where low sulfidation epithermal gold-silver deposits are dominant. About half of the precious metal delineated has come from exploration within known mining districts, and the others as entirely new discoveries in areas not previously recognized to contain ore. This talk examines the volcanic-hosted gold-silver deposits of Central America, and briefly summarizes some of the techniques used by mining/exploration companies as they evaluate metallogenic belts in search of the yellow metal.
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| Amplification devices for the hearing impaired are available at no charge in the lobby. |