This summer, libraries across the country are celebrating space exploration in their summer reading programs. The slogan “A Universe of Stories” was chosen to inspire children of all ages to dream big, believe in themselves, and create their own story.
This summer learning program also coincides with NASA’s 60 years of achievement and its celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing. On Saturday, July 20, from 2 to 3 p.m. in the McEntee Meeting Room, the Newport library will show a series of “TED Talks” based around the theme “Space.”
We will present video lectures by Fabio Pacucci: Can a black hole be destroyed?, Carrie Nugent: Adventures of an asteroid hunter, Sheperd Doeleman: Inside the black hole image that made history, Lynn Rothschild: The living tech we need to support human life on other planets, and Sajan Saini: What is the universe expanding into?
TED Fellow Carrie Nugent is an asteroid hunter -- part of a group of scientists working to discover and catalog our oldest and most numerous cosmic neighbors. Why keep an eye out for asteroids? In this short, fact-filled talk, Nugent explains how their awesome impacts have shaped our planet, and how finding them at the right time could mean nothing less than saving life on Earth.
At the center of a galaxy more than 55 million light-years away, there's a supermassive black hole with the mass of several billion suns. And now, for the first time ever, we can see it. Astrophysicist Sheperd Doeleman, head of the Event Horizon Telescope collaboration, speaks with TED's Chris Anderson about the iconic, first-ever image of a black hole -- and the epic, worldwide effort involved in capturing it.
In a talk about the future of space exploration, Lynn Rothschild reviews the immense challenges to living elsewhere in the universe and proposes some bold, creative solutions to making a home off planet Earth -- like "growing" houses out of fungi or using bacteria to help generate electricity. Sajan Saini explains the existing theories around the Big Bang and what, if anything, lies beyond our universe.
Black holes are among the most destructive objects in the universe. Anything that gets too close to a black hole, be it an asteroid, planet, or star, risks being torn apart by its extreme gravitational field. By some accounts, the universe may eventually consist entirely of black holes. But is there any way to destroy a black hole? Fabio Pacucci digs into the possibility.
TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is a nonprofit organization whose slogan is "Ideas Worth Spreading." This event is free of charge and open to the public. Walk-ins are welcome. For more information about summer reading or other library programs and services, call the library at 541-265-2153 or go online at www.newportlibrary.org<http://www.newportlibrary.org>.