If you are a fan of TED talks, the Discovery Channel, Wikipedia binges, and drinking, Nerd Nite is the show for you!
Thursday, November 19, Nerd Nite Denver goes back in time to talk polaroids and vampires and then wraps up the night with some epic rock from renowned nerd band The Stubby Shillelaghs!
Join us in November as über geek Brian Stevenson shows us how the Polaroid camera changed the world; author duo Harris Gray talk about the value of in-person vampire research in the internet age; and The Stubby Shillelaghs debut their new nerd-themed album Critical Fail. Plus, we’re excited to bust out some new Nerd Nite swag!
Grab your tickets!
- When: Thursday, November 19 – doors at 6:30pm, show at 7:00pm
- Where: The Oriental Theater
- Tickets: $5 online, $8 at the door – 18+
FULL LINEUP
Reminiscing Immediately: Polaroid And Instant Photography
by Brian Stevenson
We can take a picture any time and share it with the world at a moment’s notice. Less than 75 years ago photography was reserved for the wealthy and only on rare occasions like Births, Weddings and even deaths. Artists such as Ansel Adams, Andy Warhol and William Wegman shaped their art and careers because of Polaroid. Inventions like 3-D Movies, Sunglasses and Tinted Windows in cars came about because of the many discoveries of Edwin Land. Let’s take a look at the cameras, the company and the inventor that changed the way we see the world.
Speaker Creds
Brian Stevenson has absolutely no official title that would qualify him to speak on any topic whatsoever. He is however, a geek in every sense of the word. He loved being in band so much that now he owns Rocky Mountain Music Repair, a band instrument repair shop. He is an avid Magic: The Gathering player, and has a collection of hundreds of board games. He once hosted an online video series about board gaming, and rides a scooter as his main mode of transportation. He has been a collector of Polaroid cameras for over a decade and has an extensive collection of cameras, accessories, and advertising examples from throughout the company’s history.
Vampire Research in Romania…Isn’t That What the Internet is For?
by Harris Gray
In the Internet age, do authors actually need to visit a place in order to set their story there? Like a brother-from-another-mother identical twin study, our writing duo provides rare perspective. Half of Harris Gray traveled to Romania for on-the-ground research for their vampire trilogy; the other half stayed home, pouting, and surfing. Money, peril, imagination, authenticity, eye fatigue, customs issues — all the key variables have been explored to settle the age-old debate: “Can’t I just make that sh*t up?”
Speaker Creds
Harris Gray combines the writing talents of duo Allan Harris and Jason Gray. Together, they have written three novels, two screenplays, a Christmas play and a collection of stories from Jason’s younger days. Book 1 in their Vampire Vic trilogy was named a Top 10 Pick by IndieReader. Allan is a former guest columnist for The Denver Post and Jason owns Crowfoot Valley Coffee and Crowbar, land of rumor and embellishment. Their collaboration began in Jason’s coffee shop. Allan wrote and eavesdropped as Jason entertained his customers. One day, Allan found a little yellow notepad waiting for him, crammed to the margins with Jason’s exploits. Allan typed them, touched them up, and called it good; but Jason had other ideas. As their tales converged and became inseparable, Harris Gray emerged. While the two couldn’t be more different in how they think and write, Harris says, “T here is something wonderful and incredibly cohesive when we create a story together. ” In Gray’s words, “We’re something less than Sybil and more than Siamese twins.”
Musical Performance by The Stubby Shillelaghs
Album Release for Critical Fail
This crowdfunded effort by The Stubby Shillelaghs was recorded at Denver’s Decibel Garden and features 17 tracks all paying homage to various pop culture fandoms, including the roleplaying/ game derived title track Critical Fail and the band’s Simpsons inspired reggae track Everything’s Coming up Milhouse. Listeners will also recognize tribute paid to the short lived television series Firefly, James Bond (Henchman’s Lament) and S tar Wars (I .R.A. Interstellar Rebel Army ), satisfying those looking forward to The Force Awakens movie release this December.
As always, a huge thanks to our primary sponsor Sexpot Comedy and to our photographer partners in crime From the Hip Photo!
Take a moment to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for up-to-the-minute updates and fun facts, and be the first to know event details by signing up for our email list (in the bar to the right).
Want to be a Nerd Nite speaker? Do you know someone who should be? Let us know!
If you are a fan of TED talks, the Discovery Channel, Wikipedia binges, and drinking, Nerd Nite is the show for you!
Thursday, October 22, Nerd Nite Denver tackles scientific topics great and small: from human exploration of Mars, to human surrogacy, all the way down to the sex lives of bugs.
Join us in October as senior research scientist Bill Farrand takes us to Mars with NASA’s rovers; Ellen Trachman shows us the new-fashioned way to make babies; and David MacNeal explains all the ways bugs are having better sex than the rest of us.
Grab your tickets!
- When: Thursday, October 22 – doors at 6:30pm, show at 7:00pm
- Where: The Oriental Theater
- Tickets: $5 online, $8 at the door – 18+
FULL LINEUP
These Wheels are Made for Roving: Exploring the Surface of Mars with Spirit, Opportunity and Curiosity
by Bill Farrand
When the Spirit and Opportunity rovers landed in 2004 they didn’t find any Tharks or H.G. Wellsian tentacled creatures with leathery skin, but they did find evidence of an early Mars that was more Earth-like than previously recognized. Both rovers vastly exceeded their nominal missions with Spirit exploring until 2010 and Opportunity still in operation and now exploring the rim of the ancient Endeavour crater. Spirit and Opportunity were joined on Mars by the larger Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity in 2012. All three rovers have helped to transform our view of the surface of Mars from a barren, dead volcanic planet to one that was once much like the Earth with flowing ground and surface waters and stunning scenic vistas.
Speaker Creds
Bill Farrand is a senior research scientist at the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colorado. He has a B.A. in Geology from Franklin & Marshall College and a M.S. and Ph.D. in the Geosciences from the University of Arizona. He has worked extensively in terrestrial remote sensing as well as in the remote sensing of Mars and of the Moon. In the terrestrial remote sensing field, Bill has worked extensively with data from airborne hyperspectral remote sensing systems for both commercial and government programs. Bill has been a Participating Scientist on NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover (MER) Mission since 2002. Bill has worked extensively with multispectral Pancam data from both the Spirit and Opportunity rovers looking at the multispectral reflectance of rocks viewed by the rovers at the Columbia Hills of Gusev crater and on the plains and craters of Meridiani Planum. He is also involved in several other projects examining terrestrial analogues of Martian surface materials, working with orbital remote sensing data of Mars, and examining the hyperspectral reflectance of dry and ephemeral lakes. In his free time, Bill is an avid rock climber and also enjoys skiing, hiking, taking his dogs on walks, and pursuing useless TV and movie trivia.
Test Tubes & Turkey Basters: Law and Ethics in Creating Families the New-Fashioned Way
by Ellen E. Trachman
The advent and advancement of assisted reproductive technology has changed the way families can and are being formed. Now grandmothers can give birth to their own grandchildren and courts are awarding embryos to their infant genetic siblings to determine their future use. As gamete donors and gestational surrogates become common place, sci-fi fantasies have become a reality, and family dreams fulfilled. Paired with parallel advancement in LGBTQ rights, the law struggles with applying old concepts of personhood, parental rights, inheritance, and citizenship to new forms of families and the inevitable conflicts that arise.
Speaker Creds
Ellen E. Trachman founded Trachman Law Center, LLC in order to bring dedicated and compassionate legal representation to those wishing to build a family through adoption or assisted reproductive technology. Originally from Los Alamos, New Mexico, Ellen completed undergrad at the University of California, Berkeley and law school at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Ellen practiced law in the investment management group of Sidley Austin LLP, a large international law firm, in San Francisco and corporate law for a well-respected Colorado practice before founding Trachman Law Center, LLC. Ellen is a member of the American Bar Association Assisted Reproductive Technology Committee and Adoption Committee, the Colorado Bar Association Family Law Section, the Colorado Women’s Bar Association, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, and Resolve (a national infertility association).
Even Educated Fleas Do It
by David MacNeal
Bugs make the Marquis de Sade look like an amateur. They have the most metal sex, putting the Kama Sutra to shame. In order to keep our planet’s biomass humming along, with an annual, global pollination contribution of $216 billion, insects reproduce in high volumes. But how have their absurd acts evolved over the past 400 million years? And with global warming leading to numerous, unseen insect extinctions, how will they fare over the next 400? Luckily the insect Dr. Ruths of the world (i.e. conservationists) are trying to figure that out, and sometimes that means coercing bugs to have sex–by hand.
Speaker Creds
David MacNeal is a Denver-based journalist whose work has appeared in Wired, Medium, Outside, etc. He’s also writing a non-fiction book about our (love-hate) relationship with insects due out summer 2017. Examining the inner workings of insect sex is just one of the perks of the job.
Take a moment to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for up-to-the-minute updates and fun facts, and be the first to know event details by signing up for our email list (in the bar to the right).
Want to be a Nerd Nite speaker? Do you know someone who should be? Let us know!
Thursday, July 30, Nerd Nite Denver wraps up its Summer season by celebrating some of the best parts of being human: science, toys, and boobs.
This month, Amanda explains how your life is actually one big chemical explosion; David talks toys; and Martha explains our relationship to mammalian fun bags — we assume that’s their scientific name.
Plus! A percentage of every ticket purchase this month goes to Collectors Care, a non-profit that brings toys to children in need.
Grab your tickets ASAP!
- When: Thursday, July 30 – doors at 6:30pm, show at 7:00pm
- Where: The Oriental Theater
- Tickets: $5 online, $8 at the door – 18+
Blow Up Your Life! (Figuratively Speaking)
by Amanda Yuill
Have you ever wondered how your life journey is like a chemical reaction? Specifically, a detonation? Amanda Yuill is here to solve the mystery at last. By comparing what we experience during our major life transitions to the chemical and physical processes that take place during explosions, we can better prepare ourselves to minimize the potential for collateral damage.
Speaker creds: Amanda Yuill is an Australian explosives chemist turned career & lifestyle coach. She founded Light Yourself Up after realizing that working in corporate America was not her dream job. Learning that there was a scientific basis to happiness allowed her to geek out while helping people find purpose and passion in their working lives – the stuff that lights them up! Amanda serves on the board of the Colorado chapter of the International Coach Federation. Other things that light her up include playing the trombone, travelling, skiing, scuba diving and taking photos of race cars.
Toy Story: Our connection with toys and other representations of legends, learning, and history
by David Bledsoe
Worldwide toy sales top $84 billion annually, but most people don’t associate the playthings of their youth and the collectibles of their adulthood as purely consumer-driven purchases. These simple pieces of plastic and metal help us connect with meaningful stories and lessons in our life – developing our intellect and moral foundations, and providing greater life fulfillment.
Speaker creds: David Bledsoe is the Founder and Executive Director of Collectors Care, a children’s charity providing toys year-round for sick & needy kids. As a long-time fan of comics, movies and television, David intimately understands how the imaginative stories of his youth can shape the morals and character of any child, and help them overcome some of life’s worst circumstances. Collectors Care has allowed David to combined his personal passion with his professional expertise in the nonprofit and public relations sectors. David is a certified nonprofit manager through Indiana University’s top-ranked School of Public and Environmental Affairs, with over 15 years of nonprofit management and communications experience.
Boobs!
by Martha Illige
“I know what’s flashing through your mind when you hear that word. Culture, nature, and nurture play roles in our beliefs about and responses to boobs. Let’s get in a Darwinian mindset and examine their function in Class Mammalia Genus Homo Species Sapiens.”
Speaker creds: Martha Illige came to Denver early in her career as a family doctor and teacher, and has not left except to travel the world. She found Nerd Nite late and loves the fun. And drinks. Intellectual curiosity is a Prime Mover so let’s celebrate it!
Take a moment to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for up-to-the-minute updates and fun facts, and be the first to know event details by signing up for our email list (in the bar to the right).
Want to be a Nerd Nite speaker? Do you know someone who should be? Let us know!
Thanks to everyone who came out to the show! Check out photos from the event on Facebook.
April 23, improv comes with life lessons; ancient cities spill their environmental secrets; and we find out if you could survive the apocalypse.
- When: Thursday, April 23 – doors at 6:30pm, show at 7:00pm
- Where: The Oriental Theater
- Tickets: $5 online, $8 at the door – 18+
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Full Lineup:
Please F*$k Up! How Improv Turns Mistakes Into Gifts
by Claire Slattery
Most of us feel that mistakes are failures to be avoided at all costs. But what if mistakes were actually powerful tools for accessing a deeper level of creativity and connection? What if our fear of being ‘wrong’, of seeming unprepared, was the barrier to our own creative potential? In her talk, Claire discusses how improv creates a uniquely supportive environment which allows mistakes to be spontaneous moments of vulnerability, connection, surprise, and discovery. Part scientific exploration, part humorous romp, Claire hopes you leave making more mistakes, feeling less afraid, and with one foot in the door of an improv class.
Speaker creds: Claire is passionate about sharing the joys and benefits of improvisation as an actor on stage and screen, and with companies, as a corporate improv consultant. Claire first discovered improv as a freshperson at Stanford University, where she received her B.A. in Drama and Communication. Since graduation, Claire has acted, improvised, and taught with San Francisco’s top theatre companies and improv troupes. She has also consulted with some of the country’s most innovative companies. Find her on Twitter at SlatteryClaire or online at claireslattery.com.
Hug a Tree So Civilization Doesn’t Collapse: An investigation of environmental abuse in the ancient world and how Mother Nature fought back
by Dylan Green
- “Climate change is our most urgent, number one priority right now.” -Bill Nye
- “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.” -Robert Swan
- “I’m going to kill you, your family, herds of livestock and maybe stab myself for good measure so that our crops don’t fail and the gods don’t murder us.” -Any number of Greeks, Mayans, or other people with hazardous environmental beliefs (probably)
As the Spanish were carving up the New World to serve their economic needs, the conquistadors heard a legend of a lost city in the jungles of the Yucatan. While it wasn’t a famed city of gold, it stood out as a myth until its discovery in 1848. People marveled at this one city–Tikal–that was abandoned long before Europeans devastated the American continents. Across the globe on the western coast of Asia Minor (modern Turkey) there lay another city, a victim of a similar ruinous end. Ephesus was a cultural epicenter of classical Greece and Rome for centuries, but after hundreds of years of comfortable habitation, the city was abandoned and left to turn into a tourist attraction. In his presentation, Dylan Green will attempt to explain how the people of both Tikal and Ephesus orchestrated their demise through environmental degradation, abuse, and offsetting the careful homeostasis of the natural world. Perhaps most importantly, Green will show how such actions can still be devastating to modern populations around the world.
Speaker creds: Dylan Green is a graduate student at the University of Colorado and a recent graduate from Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Missouri. Yes, it exists. Look it up. While currently studying anthropology, Green is a self-proclaimed student of history for life, constantly reimagining the lives of people long passed and thinking about the golden (pre-Pawn Stars) age of the History Channel. For some perspective, this is a guy who gets genuinely upset when you mention the destruction of the Library of Alexandria. In his spare time, Green enjoys reading, hiking, discussing/admiring all things Tolkien related, frequenting the Colorado bar scene with his graduate cohort, and attempting to exchange resumes for scraps of food on the 16th Street Mall. (Resumes available upon request. Will write papers for food/beer.)
Could You Survive the Zombie Apocalypse?
by Matthew Barrieau
We as a people must know how to defend ourselves in case of a zombie apocalypse! Zombies have become a major part of pop culture in the last few decades. From the beginning with George Romero’s and Lucio Fulci’s genre-setting zombies to Zack Snyder’s fast zombies, there are so many different kinds of undead that you need to know how to defend yourself against. Using information from several well-known guides and tips, we will discuss the various ways to ensure our survival from the undead.
Speaker creds: “My name is Matthew Barrieau and I am a Remote Programmer on contract for the Department of Homeland Security. I was born and raised in Greenville, SC and moved to Denver in September 2005. Shortly thereafter I joined the US Army as an Intelligence Analyst and have served at the US Army Space and Missile Defense in Colorado Springs, CO and the MNF-Iraq Joint Personnel Recovery Center in Baghdad. During my time with the military, I was a land navigation trainer and instructed service members on proper survival and evasion techniques in case of capture.”
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Take a moment to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for up-to-the-minute updates and fun facts, and be the first to know event details by signing up for our email list (in the bar to the right).
Want to be a Nerd Nite speaker? Or know someone who should be? Let us know!