A Freaky Fridays special event, co-hosted by the Lorne Trottier Public Science Symposium.
Date: Friday, September 28, 2007
Time: 4:00 PM
Location: Strathcona Anatomy & Dentistry Building [map], Room M-1, 3640 University Street
Freaky Fridays and the Lorne Trottier Public Science Symposium are proud to present Dr. Dale Andersen, Principal Investigator with the SETI Institute's Center for the Study of Life in the Universe and a McGill graduate (PhD '04). This Freaky Friday starts with the original 1951 version of the film "The Thing from another World" which will be followed by a lecture.
Dr. Andersen will cover research that he and other members of the SETI Institute have conducted in the most inhospitable environs on Earth, including the Antarctica and the Canadian High Arctic. This research is related to the search for Earth's earliest biosphere and the search for life on Mars. Free admission.
For additional information contact either of the following:
ingrid.birker [at] mcgill.ca (Ingrid Birker)
Science Outreach Coordinator
Tel.: 514-398-4094
trottiersymposium.science [at] mcgill.ca (Trottier Symposium Coordinator)
Tel.: 514-398-2852
About the Speaker
Name: Dale T. Andersen, Ph.D.
Expertise: Limnology/Astrobiology
Affiliation: Center for the Study of Life in the Universe, SETI Institute
Website: http://daleandersen.seti.org
Education: B.S. Biology, Virginia Tech;
Ph.D., Physical Geography, McGill University
Job Description: TO EXPLORE THE UNKNOWN
Dr Andersen has been a Principal Investigator at the SETI Institute's Center for the Study of Life in the Universe since 1992. During this time, his research has focused on microbial ecosystems in extreme environments including areas of the Arctic, Antarctic, Atacama Desert, Death Valley and Siberia.
Dr Andersen's research interests are with the origin, evolution and distribution of life in the universe and he has been involved with NASA's Exobiology and Astrobiology programs since the mid 1980's. He is interested in locating, characterizing and understanding environments where physical and chemical conditions approach or exceed the tolerances for life.
Dr Andersen has participated in field research in polar regions for more than 25 years having participated and led ten expeditions to the Antarctic and over twenty expeditions to the Arctic. Dale helped pioneer scientific research diving in the perennially ice-covered lakes of the McMurdo Dry Valleys and the Bunger Hills and has made more than 600 dives beneath polar ice, north and south.
Dr Andersen's research has been featured in numerous newspaper and popular journals such as National Geographic and Sky and Telescope as well as on the Discovery Channel Canada, National Geographic TV and in three PBS programs. Dale is a Fellow Member of the Explorers Club (FN87) and an Eagle Scout.
Links:
www.seti.org
www.astrobiology.net
www.explorers.org
www.nasa.gov