September 1, 2015

Geek Bar Beta
1941 West North Avenue, Chicago, IL, USA

It is well-known that there is strong relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and health outcomes. What is behind this association and why does it matter? In this talk, Dr. Tallman will speak about the links between SES and health outcomes and how psychological stress may be a key factor in understanding the SES gradient in health.

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August 18, 2015

Geek Bar Beta
1941 West North Avenue, Chicago, IL, USA

The human body is inhabited with trillions of microorganisms, many of which live in the gastrointestinal tract. These microorganisms in the gut are referred to as the gut microbiota and recent research findings indicate that they play a major role in the development of obesity and cardiovascular disease. Read more…

Is it possible for our industrial activities to ever exist in harmony with nature? What can nature teach us about how to sustain our economies? Industrial ecology has been proposed as the “science of sustainability.” Read more…

In the robotics community, there is considerable interest in mobile robots that can climb and perch on a wide variety of building surfaces. Both climbing and perching robots can be useful for sensor placement and long-term surveillance. The key is the design of controllable attachment mechanisms that can easily turn the adhesion on and off to allow the robot to move on the surface. Read more…

July 7, 2015

Geek Bar Beta
1941 West North Avenue, Chicago, IL, USA

The use and abuse of substances that change the way we feel is a human tendency documented throughout history. This tendency was often explained from viewpoints of spirituality, will-power and morality. Modern science is reshaping this dialogue, bringing the neurobiology of emotion, judgement and reward to this conversation. Read more…

June 2, 2015

Geek Bar Beta
1941 West North Avenue, Chicago, IL, USA

The immune system never ceases to change – it must stay one step ahead of the next disease outbreak or else. When a disease evolves even slightly, our immune system needs to adapt to match this change. As such, we have variation in our immune genes that is vastly out of proportion to the variation in our other genes. Read more…