Science Talks Webinars
Join us on Wednesday, April 17 for our next Science Talks webinar
Recent Webinars
Science Talks: Quantum Materials: From exotic particles to new technologies
To learn about the world at the most fundamental level, particle physicists use enormous machines called particle colliders. These devices cause atoms to collide head-on at very high energies — revealing the ultrasmall elementary particles that make up this matter, such as electrons and quarks. Condensed matter physicists have discovered that when the same matter is probed in table-top experiments at much lower energy and temperatures where quantum effects manifest, matter often behaves as though it is made up of new particles very different from electrons and quarks. In this webinar, Joseph Maciejko explains how theoretical physics can help us identify new kinds of materials hosting “exotic particles.” These very foundational discoveries are what is advancing quantum science and will have vast implications for the technology we use every day — with potential applications in communications, computing and data security.
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The first documented use of cannabis occurred about five thousand years ago when it was used as a treatment for malaria, rheumatic pain and as an analgesic. In the modern era cannabis has been labelled as an illicit drug of abuse due to the actions of its primary psychoactive ingredient, Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). However, several countries have legalized cannabis use for recreational purposes which has created a drive to more fully understand its effects on populations as a whole.
Hear from Declan Ali, dean of the Faculty of Science on a short but intriguing history of cannabis use and abuse and its effects in the modern era as more countries look towards legalization of cannabis as a recreational compound and as an important medicinal agent.
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Science Talks: Artificial Intelligence - What can language models tell us about the brain?
Language models like ChatGPT produce very human-like text, but do they understand it like we do? What can language models teach us about how the brain understands language? Alona Fyshe (’05 BSc,’07 MSc) is an associate professor in both the Department of Computing Science and Department of Psychology, and has discovered interesting connections between meaning representations in computer models and those in the human brain. Conversations about the use of highly accessible artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT have recently made their way to our offices, classrooms and kitchen tables. Learn how researchers are using language models to study how the brain processes language and what they have learned as a result.
Previous Webinars
Climate change on Canada's highest peak
Software Development - Building Better Code through Reuse
Rural Sustainability in Alberta with Bob Summers
Keeping hives alive: Behavioural defence of honey bees against disease with Olav Rueppell
Electric potential: Extracting lithium from waste in Alberta with Dan Alessi
Chasing a cure: New tools in the fight against COVID-19 with Fred West
Brain immune cells - the new frontier in neurodegeneration with Matthew Macauley
ARCHIVES
May: Sleep to remember with Clayton Dickson
April: The Evolution of Ethics in AI with Eleni Stroulia and Nidhi Hegde
February: COVID-19 modelling demystified with Marie (Betsy) Varughese and Michael Li
January: Fostering coexistence over conflict with urban coyotes through evidence-based methods with Colleen Cassady St. Clair
December: Taking Control of the Quantum World: Developing new technologies using ultracold atoms with Lindsay LeBlanc
November: Data permutations: How to understand human speech, the spread of COVID-19, and the Alberta electorate with Adam Kashlak
October: Searching for life outside of Earth: NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover Mission with Chris Herd
September: Eavesdropping on communication in wild bats and mice with Matina Kalcounis-Rueppell
August: Community Approaches to Housing Affordability with Joshua Evans
July: The science of Rock, Paper, Scissors with Ben Dyson
June: Perspectives from new Canadian Arctic Ice Cores with Alison Criscitiello
May: Cretaceous Dinosaurs in Northern Alberta with Corwin Sullivan
April: Glycomics- Sugars and Human Health with Lara Mahal