Outreach: The Rise of Artificial Intelligence in Astronomy

BMSIS Young Scientist Sumeet Kulkami gave a talk at the British Council’s “Cafe Scientifique.” Read his reflections below. I started with a brief history of the development of Artificial intelligence, and highlighted the difference in how a regular computer algorithm works as opposed to a machine learning algorithm, using the popular Towers of Hanoi toy. I also talked about how the development of computing power and AI was best reflected in how they conquered two games: chess and GO respectively. […]

November 20, 2017

Virtual Outreach with New Horizon Elementary School

BMSIS Young Scientist Shaelyn Silverman led an outreach event at New Horizon Elementary School in Irvine, California. On September 29th, 2017 I had the privilege of leading a virtual outreach event for a 3rd grade class of New Horizon Elementary School, located in Irvine, CA. Through FaceTime I gave the students a tour of the Exobiology branch at NASA Ames and showed them the exciting microbial mats in the Microbial Ecology & Biogeochemistry Research Laboratory where I work. We discussed […]

October 20, 2017

Outreach: Wikipedia ‘Hackathon’

Omer Markovitch, BMSIS scientist, recently organized a Wikipedia hackathon event and shares his reflections below: “Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia” is a major source of knowledge. As it is often used by both specialists and non-specialists as an initial source of information, we recently held an informal Wikipedia meeting talking about its place in the scientific community and how we can contribute. Members of the Otto’s research group from the Stratingh Institute for Chemistry at the University of Groningen, The Nethelands, […]

October 11, 2017

Outreach: Building Spaceships in Red Hook

BMSIS Young Scientist Liz Miller led an outreach event at the Red Hook Public Library in Red Hook, New York. Beginning with a scale model of the solar system, the children built spaceships with the idea of trying to reach different planets. The activity culminated with a competition to see how far they could “fly” their spaceships. This combination of arts, engineering, and science helped teach about the solar system and space travel. Liz’s engagement was part of her communications […]

September 22, 2017

TED Talk by Armando Azua-Bustos

How can Earth teach us about extraterrestrial life? In his TED Talk, The most Martian place on Earth, Dr. Armando Azua-Bustos takes us on a tour of the Atacama Desert, his childhood home now turned into his astrobiological laboratory. Searching for signs of life on Mars, or other planets, requires careful understanding of how organisms can survive in dry and extreme environments, and Dr. Azua-Bustos’ research helps to reveal the conditions that we might find life both there and elsewhere. […]

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