Pacific Science Center Science Luminaries Series

SEATTLE SCIENCE FESTIVAL’S LUMINARY SERIES BRINGS SCIENCE AND THE ARTS TOGETHER IN THOUGHT-PROVOKING, BREATHTAKING PERFORMANCES AND PRESENTATIONS

Tickets on sale now!

SEATTLE – APRIL 26, 2012 – This summer, learn from many of the world’s most inspired scientific thinkers about cutting-edge issues of our time.  Topics to be tackled in this innovative series include cyber security, the future of genomics, the next generation of space exploration, computer games, and mitigating the world’s leading cause of disease.

Discover the mysteries of the world around us through the Seattle Science Festival’s Luminaries Series which will bring together performances by world-class artists and multi-media presentations by brilliant and inspiring thinkers.

The Science Luminaries Series is a month-long program consisting of five provocative and entertaining evenings that will celebrate the exploration of science and technology through a new cultural paradigm that interweaves TED-type technical presentations with cultural performances.

“These innovative presentations and artistic performances will demonstrate, at the highest possible level, that science is an integral part of our community’s culture,” said Ellen Lettvin, Ph.D., Seattle Science Center Festival Director and Vice President for Science & Education at Pacific Science Center. “This series is taking an unconventional approach to attract audiences who may not typically be drawn either to technical talks or to artistic performances, but are intrigued by the concept of a program that integrates the two; it aspires to enhance scientific literacy in our community as well as to inspire a new generation of scientists and engineers.”

The Luminaries Series begins Friday, June 1 with Reinventing the Toilet, at the Seattle Repertory Theatre. Renowned social entrepreneur Jack Sim, founder of the World Toilet Organization and the World Toilet College in Singapore and British author Rose George, whose book The Big Necessity: Adventures in the World of Human Waste/The Unmentionable World of Human Waste and Why it Matters, will discuss the important role the toilet has played in saving lives and improving health in industrialized nations, and the challenge of reinventing this technology so it can benefit the more than 2.5 billion people who currently lack access to adequate sanitation.

Luminaries Series: Reinventing the Toilet, is presented in partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, whose recently launched Reinventing the Toilet Challenge is developing new technologies that will reduce water-borne disease and improve the lives of billions of people worldwide.

Subsequent Luminaries Series events will be held each weekend throughout June:

Luminaries Series: Hackers at Town Hall – Saturday, June 9, 2012, 8 p.m.: Identity theft, cyber-attacks, viruses, worms, and botnets…these terms strike fear into the hearts of all computer users, whether individuals, corporations or governments.  Think you are safe from these cyber-perils, well think again!  Meet Yoshi Kohno, Professor of Computer Science; Deborah Gracio, national security expert; and Pablos Holman, IT security expert, and a notorious hacker.  These talented and dynamic speakers will explore several different aspects of this critical topic, complemented by ‘the Inadvertent Hacker:  an Operetta’ performed by musician Amy Denio.

Luminaries Series: Evolution at the Paramount Theatre –
Saturday, June 16, 2012, 8 p.m.:  Presenters at this brilliant event are world renowned palaeontologist Dr. Jack Horner of Jurassic Park fame and award-winning biologist Dr. Leroy Hood whose inventions have revolutionized biomedicine and are credited with ‘unlocking much of the mystery of human biology’.  Interwoven with these presentations will be a performance of the world’s first peer-reviewed rap, New York’s acclaimed ‘Rap Guide to Evolution’, as well as a stunning performance of the work ‘Euclidean Space’ by Seattle’s critically acclaimed Spectrum Dance Theater.

Luminaries Series: Space at the Museum of Flight’s newly opened Space Gallery – Friday June 22, 2012, 8 p.m.: This fascinating event featuring astronauts Dr. Bonnie Dunbar and Dr. George 'Pinky' Nelson as well as Mark Sirangelo of Sierra Nevada Corporation, will explore the topic of space along with inspiring artistic performances.

Luminaries Series: Gaming at Benaroya Recital Hall – Friday, June 29, 2012, 6 p.m.:  This event will feature some of the game industry’s most imaginative and dynamic visionaries, including Kim Swift, developer of Portal and creative director for Quantum Conundrum, Marty O’Donnell, producer and sound designer for many successful games including Halo, Myth and Oni, and Chris Taylor, creator of the Dungeon Siege and Total Annihilation series. Following the lecture, take the red pill and let the Seattle Symphony transport you into The Matrix. Watch this groundbreaking film on the big screen while the Orchestra plays the soundtrack live at 8 p.m.

Tickets to the Science Luminaries Series events for individual student, general admission, preferred seating and VIP reception (includes meet and greet with Luminaries Series speakers) can be purchased for individual events or for the entire series  at seattlesciencefestival.org. Ticket prices range from $10- $125.

In addition to a generous grant from lead sponsor JPMorgan Chase Foundation, program support for the Seattle Science Festival comes from The Boeing Company, Next 50 Seattle Center 2012, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Microsoft Corporation, Ordinary People Foundation, Intellectual Ventures, Google and Washington STEM, media partner, KOMO 4 and exclusive print partner, The Seattle Times.

The 2012 Seattle Science Festival is a collaboration of the region's cultural, educational, research and business communities. Collaborators to date include: University of Washington, Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle Aquarium, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Institute for Systems Biology, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), EMP Museum, Seattle Opera, Northwest Association for Biomedical Research, PATH, Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, Seattle Children’s Research Center, Seattle Public Schools, Seattle University, Washington NASA Space Grant, Washington STEM and many more organizations. Visit the Seattle Science Festival website for more details and to view the current event calendar.

Located under the arches near the Space Needle, Pacific Science Center serves approximately one million guests on site and more than 300,000 students, teachers and families throughout Washington state each year. As the Science Center approaches its 50th anniversary on October 22, 2012, the institution is as committed as ever to serving the community and being an engine for creative and critical thinking for the Pacific Northwest. Science education is at the heart of Pacific Science Center's mission. As part of that effort, the Science Center is proud to be part of the Seattle Science Festival to connect with, and help inspire, the next generation of scientists.