Boston Flora

Tag: Harvard Museum Of Natural History

Thursday, April 12, 6:00 pm – Crossing Over: A Photographer in the Museum of Comparative Zoology

Photographer Rosamond Purcell explores the hidden corners of scientific collections, the boundaries between art and science, and the mysteries of metamorphosis. In this Harvard Museum of Natural History lecture on Thursday, April 12 at 6 pm, Purcell will recount her long-standing relationship with Harvard’s Museum of Comparative Zoology and explain how its collections have served as models and inspiration for her strangely beautiful, often unsettling images. Following the presentation, Jane Winchell, Director of The Dotty Brown Art & Nature Center at the Peabody Essex Museum, will engage Purcell and audience members in a discussion about the value of seeing natural history collections as works of art in order to better appreciate and understand nature. Free and open to the public. The lecture will take place in the Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street in Cambridge. Free event parking at 52 Oxford Street Garage.

March 29, 2018
Tuesday, April 3, 6:00 pm – Life’s Engines: How Microbes Made Earth Habitable

Paul Falkowski, Distinguished Professor, Bennett L. Smith Chair in Business and Natural Resources, Departments of Earth and Planetary Sciences and Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University, will speak on Tuesday, April 3 at 6 pm in the Geological Lecture Hall at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, 24 Oxford Street, on the topic Life’s Engines: How Microbes Made Earth Habitable. The free public lecture is part of the Evolution Matters Lecture Series, supported by a generous gift from Dr.s Herman and Joan Suit.

For almost four billion years, microbes had the primordial oceans all to themselves. Over time, they transformed the chemistry of our planet, making it habitable for plants, animals, and humans. Paul Falkowski will discuss how microbes made life on Earth possible—and how human life would cease without them today. By examining the inner workings of these miniature “engines” and the processes by which they are built and assembled—like building blocks— within every creature that walks, swims, or flies, he will reveal how microbes are the great stewards of life on Earth.

Free parking is available at the 52 Oxford Street Garage. This event will be livestreamed on the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture Facebook page. Check https://hmnh.harvard.edu/event/life%E2%80%99s-engines-how-microbes-made-earth-habitable the day of the program for a direct video link. A recording of this program will be available on our YouTube channel approximately three weeks after the lecture.

March 17, 2018
Tuesday, March 27, 6:00 pm – How Mushrooms Changed the World

David Hibbett, Professor of Biology, Clark University 2017–2018 Fellow, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University, will speak on How Mushrooms Changed the World on Tuesday, March 27 in the Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street, Cambridge, as part of the Harvard Museum of Natural History’s Evolution Matters Lecture Series. Free and open to the public. Free event parking at 52 Oxford Street Garage. Series supported by a generous gift from Drs. Herman and Joan Suit.

Fungi receive little attention in mainstream media, but these organisms have an enormous impact on ecosystems and on the production of food and pharmaceuticals. As decomposers, fungi recycle nutrients and are key contributors to the global carbon cycle. David Hibbett will examine the diversity of fungal decay mechanisms and how they have evolved across geologic time. He will also address the controversial hypothesis that fungal evolution contributed to the decline in coal formation at the end of the Carboniferous Period.

This event will be livestreamed on the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture Facebook page. Check https://hmnh.harvard.edu/event/how-mushrooms-changed-world the day of the program for a direct video link. A recording of this program will be available on our YouTube channel approximately three weeks after the lecture.

March 14, 2018
Tuesday, February 27, 6:00 pm – As the Seas Rise, Can We Restore Our Coastal Habitats?

Steven Handel, Distinguished Professor of Ecology and Evolution, Rutgers University Visiting Professor in Landscape Architecture, Graduate School of Design, Harvard University, will present a free lecture at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, 24 Oxford Street in Cambridge, on February 27 at 6 pm.

As sea levels rise, the potential loss of coastal habitats is a threat across the globe. This is of particular concern in the eastern United States, where coastlines are largely developed and offer few open spaces for habitats to move inland if present natural lands are lost. Considering the current conditions of coastlines, as well as future development scenarios, Steven Handel will discuss strategies to help maintain our coastal character and the ecological services of coastal habitats that are critical to the social, cultural, and environmental well-being of our region. Free and open to the public. Free event parking at 52 Oxford Street Garage.

Presented by Harvard Museum of Natural History in collaboration with the Association to Preserve Cape Cod. This event will be livestreamed on the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture Facebook page. Check https://hmnh.harvard.edu/event/seas-rise-can-we-restore-our-coastal-habitats the day of the program for a direct video link. A recording of this program will be available on our YouTube channel approximately three weeks after the lecture.

February 24, 2018
Monday, March 5, 6:00 pm – Wild Diagnosis: Human Health and the Animal Kingdom

Barbara Natterson-Horowitz, Professor of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, and Co-Director, Evolutionary Medicine Program, UCLA; Visiting Professor, Department of Human and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, will speak on Monday, March 5 at 5 pm in the Geological Lecture Hall of the Harvard Museum of Natural History, 24 Oxford Street, on Wild Diagnosis: Human Health and the Animal Kingdom.

Sudden cardiac death in kangaroos. Breast cancer in jaguars. Compulsive disorder in polar bears. All animals, including humans, are subject to a wide range of physical and psychological illnesses. Using pathological specimens from Harvard’s Museum of Comparative Zoology, Barbara Natterson-Horowitz will discuss disorders in both living and extinct species. She will also examine the importance of comparative and evolutionary perspectives in deepening scientific understanding of disease and increasing our compassion toward affected patients—both human and non-human animals. Free and open to the public. Free event parking at 52 Oxford Street Garage.

This event will be livestreamed on the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture Facebook page. Check https://hmnh.harvard.edu/event/wild-diagnosis-human-health-and-animal-kingdom the day of the program for a direct video link. A recording of this program will be available on our YouTube channel approximately three weeks after the lecture.

February 19, 2018
Thursday, February 22, 6:00 pm – The Changing Landscape of Plate Tectonics

W. Jason Morgan, Professor Emeritus, Princeton University; Visiting Scholar, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University, will speak on Thursday, February 22 at 6 pm at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, 24 Oxford Street, on The Changing Landscape of Plate Tectonics. Image below is of Professor Morgan receiving the National Medal of Science from then President George W. Bush.

Plate tectonic theory, a milestone in twentieth-century science, has been instrumental in advancing our understanding of Earth’s geological history, the formation of its surface features, and its earthquake movement. Geophysicist W. Jason Morgan—who introduced plate tectonics at a 1967 meeting of the American Geophysical Union—will discuss how the theory came about, highlighting both the role of ocean exploration in the 1950s and 1960s and early observations of seafloor spreading and ocean magnetic anomalies. He will also touch on the advances made in understanding Earth’s movements since the development of space geodesy instruments and technologies.

Free and open to the public. Free event parking at 52 Oxford Street Garage. Presented by Harvard Museum of Natural History in collaboration with the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University. This event will be livestreamed on the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture Facebook page. Check https://hmnh.harvard.edu/event/changing-landscape-plate-tectonics the day of the program for a direct video link. A recording of this program will be available on our YouTube channel approximately three weeks after the lecture.

February 15, 2018
Saturday, February 3, 9:30 am – 12:30 am – Avian Coloration: An Art and Science Workshop

The world of birds is full of diverse feather colors that combine to form amazing plumage patterns– from neon yellow to somber black. How and why do birds achieve these decorative feats? Beginning with a microscopic look at feathers and expanding out to a broad perspective of patterns across bird families, Harvard University graduate student Dakota McCoy will use feather and bird specimens from the University’s collections to explore how and why this diversity of forms arose. Artist Erica Beade will show participants how to capture the nuance of avian color and form in their drawings. This Harvard Museum of Natural History class will take place Saturday, February 3 from 9:30 – 12:30 at the Museum, 26 Oxford Street in Cambridge. Fees: $45 HMNH members/$55 nonmembers. Advance registration required: https://reservations.hmsc.harvard.edu/Info.aspx?EventID=11

January 19, 2018
Through Thursday, August 30 – Rotten Apples: Botanical Models of Diversity and Disease

Carried to our shores by the earliest European colonists and first planted in Boston in 1625, the apple, Malus pumilla, is a New England dietary icon. One of the oldest fruit trees to be domesticated, this single species now encompasses thousands of distinct varieties worldwide. Not only do these apple varieties differ in look and taste, they also vary greatly in how they respond to pests and disease.

Combining historic wax models with a series of exquisitely crafted glass models made by Rudolf Blaschka, this Harvard Museum of Natural History small, special exhibit, located in the Glass Flowers gallery, reveals the astonishing diversity of apples and the surprising beauty of the fungal and bacterial infections that afflict these and other fruits. The exhibit will be mounted through August 30, 2018. The museum is located at 26 Oxford Street in Cambridge, and the gallery is open from 9 – 5. Free with admission Visit https://hmnh.harvard.edu/glass-glowers

January 10, 2018
Friday, December 1, 6:00 pm – The Search for the True Chianti

Bill Nesto, Master of Wine; Co-Founder, Wine Studies Program, Metropolitan College, Boston University; Senior Lecturer, Metropolitan College and School of Hospitality Administration, Boston University, and Frances Di Savino, Attorney and Author, will speak on Friday, December 1 at 6 pm in the Geological Lecture Hall at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, 24 Oxford Street in Cambridge, on The Search for the True Chianti.

For most of the twentieth century, the name Chianti brought to mind a generic Italian red table wine in a straw-covered flask, rather than evoking the storied wine region in the heart of Tuscany. Bill and Frances, co-authors of Chianti Classico: The Search for Tuscany’s Noblest Wine, will share the story of their quest to discover the true Chianti. They will describe the evolution of Chianti as a wine region with historic, cultural, and geographic complexity, then guide guests through a tasting of wines from one of Chianti Classico’s iconic estates. Advance tickets required: $15 HMNH members/$20 nonmembers. Register at https://reservations.hmsc.harvard.edu/Info.aspx?EventID=13. Books will be available for purchase and signing. Free parking is available at the 52 Oxford Street Garage.

November 18, 2017
Sunday, November 12, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm – Microbes Mini-Festival

Join Harvard Museum of Natural History educators, Harvard researchers, and the Art+Bio Collaborative on Sunday, November 12 from 1 – 4 to investigate the world of microbes through observation, stories, and art explorations. Try hands-on activities, observe real microbes hiding in unexpected places, and learn about their role in our lives. Explore the new HMNH exhibit, World in a Drop: Photographic Explorations of Microbial Life, and leave with new perspectives.

World in a Drop explores the minuscule ecosystem within a single drop of water, home to an astonishing diversity of organisms busily living out their lives and interconnected by myriad complex relationships. The photographic exhibit is an aesthetic journey into this microbial world, as revealed through cutting-edge imaging technologies. With expertly executed photography, videography, and poetic narration, Scott Chimileski and Roberto Kolter capture the intrinsic beauty of a mysterious world that is seldom recognized. Special Event. Regular museum admission rates apply. Free parking is available at the 52 Oxford Street Garage.

November 4, 2017