The bold print on the poster in the biology wing announced a seminar entitled, "Violence, sex and drugs in the everyday life of insects," with smaller print indicating that coffee and doughnuts would be served. it took me a moment to realize that Thursday, January 18th had already passed.
Alas, I'd already missed this one.
Each week SFU is host to numerous public lectures, book readings, seminars and colloquia as well as Master's and Ph.D. thesis defenses. All of these are open to anyone wishing to attend. I've gone to several, many completely unrelated to my major. I've never taken a university-level biology course, but I would've liked to have heard about nasty, nympho insects with chemical dependencies.
So far as I can tell, as an undergraduate I'm often a distinct minority at these events. I don't mind this, but at times I wonder if the rest of the student population knows what it's missing. Back when I was still in thrall of first year of university culture shock, one of my professors mentioned a guest lecture on the aurora borealis. I went. It was interesting and, surprisingly, I could follow most of what was said. Since then, that's been true of most of the extra-curricular talks I've attended.
I can't say they've all been inspiring. I once found myself lost in a argument thick with jargon about electrons between a seminar presenter and the physics professors in the front row, but all in all, even that wasn't a bad deal. I picked up a Boston cream doughnut on the way in and slipped out early, snagging an apple fritter as I left. Besides, some of the argument the physicists used to illustrate their points were very original and in other contexts could be considered needlessly explicit and best, and downright rude at worst.
Free doughnuts, the best bonus around, are not always provided. I attended one talk where dry oatmeal cookies and cous-cous were all that was offered.
These lectures can serve as a release from the constraints of regular course work. There's no need to take notes, and often they expose you to realities that just can't be found in textbooks. For example, the practical details of "Tissue culture of Cucumis spp, and the introduction of chitinase genes into C. Sativus cv. Endeavor by agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation"... actually, I skipped that one.
How about a better example-a talk I attended that included a description of what it's like to eat lunch on the ocean bottom in a mini-submersible and other logistics of spending six-hour sessions in a confined space with two other scientists and a long list of equipment. It was interesting to learn about the years devoted to planning and arranging funding for such expeditions. These asides were as enjoyable as the main body of the lecture, which focused on the strange marine life surrounding vents in the ocean floor, with the focus on "the itty bitty fluffy things," and the "really big worm things."
How can one resist lectures such as "Hagio, porn and femcrit," that deal with medieval pornography, especially when slides and discussion are promised? Regrettably, I resisted, as said lecture conflicted with a fourth year course I was enrolled in (taught by a much-feared professor). But, nevertheless, I found the thought of examining early on as an academic pursuit titillating.
Humorous and intriguing seminar titles can even be found in the math department. I've taken just enough calculus to realize that a lecture on the "Euclidian traveling salesman" should be funny... though I'm not sure why.
Over the last semester, there have been talks on such diverse topics as the behaviour of blue herons, the tiger masks of Mexico, and the effects of social change in Bangladesh. Some of the best topics were of the public lecture variety, and included "Telling the truth the Chinese way," on media and propaganda, and "If it ducks like a quack..." on unproven medical treatments for cancer and other diseases. With public lectures the only drawback is that the really cool ones are frequently and I've never been in a car pool I could convince to stay with me.
Thesis defenses have very specific topics, always have coffee and are generally more formal. The format of thesis defenses was once aptly introduced by an examiner as, "a 20 minute presentation by the student followed by pummelling by the examiners," then a coffee break, then "further pummelling by the general audience." The thesis defense could be described as academic bloodsport, with the offense sitting comfortable armed with pens and coffee mugs, and the defense shifting about the front of the room with a slide projector remote control in hand (its batteries failing) and, inevitably, a water bottle in his corner.
All types of presentations are listed in the Dateline section of the SFU News. They also flash pat on the overhead monitors in the AQ, and are posted on departmental bulletin boards, which are usually found near the general offices.
I hope undergraduate students will take this opportunity to slurp back free caffeine-laced liquid and enjoy the entertainment... ahem.. intellectual enlightenment.
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