News


Podcast: Broken Crown Games

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May’s edition of “Beer with BMSIS” features a conversation with Tyler Yohe, founder of Broken Crown Games, titled Broken Crown Games – the Indiana Jones of Space Outreach: Engaging & Inspiring New Audiences through Entertainment.

Tyler discusses his journey as his interests shifted from a career in science to one of video game development. Recognizing that the goal of video games is to entertain, Tyler is developing a science-based game set in a futuristic world that allows players to immerse themselves in science fiction but also have access to science fact along the way. The first game in this series, named “Escaping Titan” explores concepts such as terraforming, interplanetary travel, planetary geology, and neuroscience, and mechanics within the game allow curious players to delve deeper into the science behind game concepts. Tyler also discusses how he is working to build a community around the game, including his use of a panel of professional scientists, in order to encourage players to encounter science education through science fiction entertainment.

[listen to the conversation]

Happening @ S.A.G.A.N. – Happy Birthday S.A.G.A.N.!

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SAGAN_ONEYEAR

Happy 1st Birthday S.A.G.A.N.! We’ve hit a landmark with our community, celebrating a successful first year on April 12th 2013! We are celebrating over at S.A.G.A.N. with lots of new activities and events including a themed “Mars Month” coming in May 2013 – check out what’s new by logging into the site at www.saganet.org !

Podcast: Dr. David Grinspoon on the Anthropocene

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April’s “Beer with BMSIS” podcast features a conversation with Dr. David Grinspoon on The Human Role in Earth Evolution: Will the Anthropocene be an Event, An Epoch or a Transition?

Dr. Grinspoon describes how the activities of human civilization have grown to such a scale that they are beginning to have an impact on the planetary system and the geologic record. He considers the implications of this notion of the “Anthropocene” and some possible directions for the future of humanity. Dr. Grinspoon spans a range of topics covering aspects of history, geology, astronomy, and philosophy, and the podcast closes with a vibrant discussion of where to go next.

[listen to the conversation]

Podcast: Chemistry of the Possible

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March’s edition of “Beer with BMSIS” features a conversation with Dr. Jim Cleaves titled The Chemistry of the Possible.

Dr. Cleaves discusses his calculations of the number of biologically possible molecules, and speculates as to the reasons that Earth life uses only a small subset of these molecules. Should we expect life elsewhere to use the same set of amino acids as Earth life, or would extraterrestrial life be based on a notably different set of molecules? These questions will not be easily resolved, but they are fundamental in understanding the origin of life–as well as searching for extraterrestrial life.

[listen to the conversation]

Welcome to Happening @ S.A.G.A.N.!

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Welcome to Happening @ S.A.G.A.N.! We’ll be posting here regularly about some of the exciting events and activities happening on S.A.G.A.N. (Social Action for a Grassroots Astrobiology Network)! If you haven’t logged in, and are interested in astrobiology, space exploration, or science in general you definitely want to check it out – S.A.G.A.N. is an educational initiative of Blue Marble Space that provides a collaborative web-platform for scientists and the public alike!

Next week you can catch the Arizona State University Astrobiology Coffee Hour talk (aired weekly on Wed. mornings at 9AM Pacific), the Stockholm University astrobiology seminar (aired weekly on Fri. mornings at 6:15AM Pacific), and a pubic SETI talk on “A new perspective on the driver for space weather airing Tues. Mar. 19th at noon US Pacific all right on S.A.G.A.N. in the S.A.G.A.N Theater!

S.A.G.A.N. Salon – a discussion group dedicated to thought-provoking topics in science and philosophy – also meets next week on Thurs. Mar. 21st at high noon US Pacific for a conversation on “Expanding the Genetic Alphabet – What are the Implications for Astrobiology and for Society?” hosted by BMSIS’s own Dr. Grasshopper Illangkoon! Find out more here.

Stay tuned for more great events coming up and see you on S.A.G.A.N.!