Date: Wednesday, January 22nd
Time: 8pm
Location: High Noon Saloon

First is Lucas McGranahan with “Dark Side of Your Mom: What Freud Got Right”: Sigmund Freud revolutionized modern thought, but his thinking is often caricatured or dismissed. I will defend Freud’s best ideas, no matter how much cocaine he was doing when he thought of them.

Second we have Ania Bialic with “All I Want for Christmas is Warp Technology”! For decades, Star Trek has captured the imagination of nerds and non-nerds alike, with technology that once seemed like pure science fiction—until now. Instant translators, Bluetooth, tablets, and holograms are already part of our daily lives. But what about the real juicy stuff? Transporters, warp drives, photon torpedoes, and food synthesizers—how close are we to turning Federation dreams into reality? Join us for a deep dive into the physics of Star Trek (with a few Picard memes sprinkled in) to explore how far we’ve come and how much farther we have to boldly go.

Our last speaker of the night is Connor Ciecko, presenting “POLISCI1977: A Brief Overview on the Political Happenings of Star Wars”! We all know about the blasters and lightsabers and Han Solo shooting first, but the foundation of why the stars were in a war is a little less clear. We’ll start with the Phantom Menace and work our way to Return of the Jedi and outline the political context underneath each movie in an attempt to explain the unrest in the galaxy. Is Jar Jar Binks the mastermind behind the largest conflict we’ve ever seen on the silver screen? Probably not, but he is the reason why the second Death Star blows up.

Date: Wednesday, December 4th
Time: 8pm
Location: High Noon Saloon

Our first speaker is Ben Rush with “Unused CT scan data for individual and public health”: CT scans are incredibly valuable for diagnosing medical conditions, but their usefulness does not end with a single diagnosis! Abdominal CT scans contain rich information about the health of our entire bodies, but this information about our muscle, bone, fat, liver, and other organs is rarely used. We will take a tour of how CT scans can be used beyond one diagnosis to inform us about our overall health, shape public health, and potentially redefine aging.

Next to the stage is Erica Christensen, presenting “One Brick at a Time: A Brief History of Lego”. This is one woman’s exploration of the history and cultural impact of her favorite childhood past time.

Last but certainly not least is Michael Yu, sharing his talk “Leave Room for GPT: AI’s Say in Your Dating Life”: Another cuffing season is here, but this time it wants to open up the relationship. Come speed date the newest member of your polycule—artificial intelligence (AI). Learn about its hobbies, interests, and how a $621.19 billion industry is influencing your love life from AI-driven Tinder matches to the people marrying AI (if you want this to be raunchier, you can replace “the people marrying AI” with “AI-powered sex robots”).

Date: Wednesday, September 4th
Time: 8pm
Location: High Noon Saloon

School’s in session, and so is Nerd Nite! We are thrilled to bring you three more amazing presenters this month.

First up is Wil Koeb teaching us about the history of pre-film animation!
Second is Rebecca Stone with “Today’s Brain Rot Generation: How to be a Skibidi Rizzler”: Confused by all of gen alpha’s brain rot lingo? Same! But as a teacher of small brains, I have developed a comprehensive key to understating the confusing randomness of the internet. Join me, melt your brain, because nobody wants to be Ohio (that’s bad).
Last but not least is returning presenter ARJ with “Some Like it Raw: Parallelisms between Drinking Raw Milk and Unprotected Sex”. Your hosts never thought they’d have to google images of “sexy milk”, but here we are!

Date: Wednesday, August 7th
Time: 8pm
Location: High Noon Saloon

Madison Nerd Nite is back from Summer break, and we have got an awesome lineup of speakers!

David Trossman is our first speaker with his talk “The Sounds of the Oceans Between Us”: Jacques Cousteau was wrong: the ocean is not a silent world. And it’s not just because of whales and waves or even human-made sounds. You probably don’t listen to music for the science, just like you don’t listen to comedy to have jokes explained to you. But I’m going to tell you about the science that my own ocean-themed songs are about anyway. At the very least, you may hear music inspired by artists you actually like.

Next up is Chris Ott with “What is High-Speed Rail– and When Can You Ride It?”: In 2010, Wisconsin cancelled plans for a new train to Madison—but it wasn’t high-speed rail. What exactly is high-speed rail anyway? And what are the prospects for getting better American trains running, including for us in Madison?

Our last speaker of the night is Adam Spencer, explaining why we should worry about AI later and not now, but cybersecurity now and not later. AI is disruptive technology that with great potential impact – later. There are no real pathways to real disruption in the near term. Cybersecurity is having a devastating impact now, particularly economically – but in the mid-term there is reason to have hope for positive change.

Date: Wednesday, March 20th
Time: 8pm
Location: High Noon Saloon

Get ready for the final Nerd Nite ’til AUGUST! Come get your fill of nerdiness with three spectacular topics!
First, we have Max Olmsted with “The History of the Nintendo PlayStation Prototype: The Rarest Video Game Console in the World”: Imagine a world where Mario and Crash Bandicoot teamed up! That almost became a reality with the Nintendo PlayStation, a legendary console shrouded in mystery. This presentation dives into its exciting backstory – a tale of a vanished prototype, and a dramatic rediscovery. Get ready to journey into a hidden chapter of gaming history!

Next up is Bartje Wakker taking us into outer space with “Oops! All Neutrons!: The End of Lives of High Mass Stars”: Big stars burn bright and die young, but how do they die? And what happens next? And where do they come from in the first place? Understanding these and their demise can tell us where the elements come from, why there exists as an atomic nucleus the size of manhattan, and even how the strongest material in the universe is… tasty?

Our final presenter til we meet again in AUGUST is Dr. Sarah Koske, getting us ready for Derby Day! She will be presenting “Bat Ship Bray: Why Racehorses Have Crazy Names”: Have you ever wondered why racehorses have such bizarre names? Racehorse names can range from badass (Hades) to funny (Bodacious Tatas), to sentimental (Always Dreaming), so how do these athletes come to be named? Sarah will explain the various horse naming traditions and the complex system of rules that govern the naming of racehorses. We’ll also touch on the psychology behind names and how they might affect your own performance at the track.

Date: Wednesday, March 20th
Time: 8pm
Location: High Noon Saloon

Spring has sprung, and it is time for another exciting Nerd Nite!

Kicking things off is Linda Lay with A Brief History of K-Pop! Learn about the sound of the Hallyu Wave! Whether you’re an established fan, or just want to relate to your niblings as they trade photocards at Thanksgiving, come listen to a seasoned veteran go over almost 30 years of K-pop history combined with some personal anecdotes.

Next up is Kaitlyn Abshire presenting Love Hurts: the Intimate Mating Rituals of Snails and Slugs. Snails and slugs have some of the most unique mating rituals, ranging from using love darts to dangling from mucus ropes to penis fencing and much more! Let’s explore the fascinating sex lives of snails and slugs.

Last but not least, we welcome Eric Niemeyer (of Nic Cage presentation fame) back to the Nerd Nite stage! Eric will be discussing Climate Change Anxiety. This will be a mix of science and storytelling from various scientists, activists, and other folks involved in climate change solutions. Join us to find the humor in a topic near and dear to many of our hearts!

Be there, and be square!

Date: Wednesday, February 7th
Time: 8pm
Location: High Noon Saloon

Winter woes got you down? Nerd Nite is here for you! We have three fabulous presenters lined up to entertain and educate you this February!
First is McKenzie Beyer to explain why so many people feel disappointed on their birthdays! Birthdays are complicated, and relationships with them change over time. McKenzie will also give some advice about avoiding those birthday blues.
Second is Dan Gantman talking about another stressor: traffic! We all get eaten up by the daily grind, but why is our daily commute so painful? During construction, commuters are often required to merge into a single lane of traffic, a bottleneck causing serious back-up, frustration, and late Zoom calls. It seems obvious when one should merge and yet commuters are polarized: Do you get in line right away or merge at the last second? In this presentation, we will settle the debate once and for all between anti-mergers and pro-mergers. You will learn how to simulate traffic and be empowered with equations to prove who is right about zipper merging, who is wasting everyone’s time, and who is just an asshole.
Our final speaker is returning Nerd Niter Larry Werner, who will be sharing the history of insurance! Insurance impacts all of our lives, whether we have it or not– its origins are more interesting than you may think!

Date: Wednesday, January 3rd
Time: 8pm
Location: High Noon Saloon

Start your year off right with Nerd Nite!
Our first speaker is Erica Hagen, to teach us about the wonders of soil: “We take for granted the stuff under our feet, but soil has memory and feels stress just like us. Let’s get the scoop on this fascinating engineering material!”
Second is Matt Kendrick with “A Royal Scandal: The King of Gondor Marries his Cousin?” This will be an overview of some of the notable events of the ancestors of Aragorn and Arwen. Lord of the Rings nerds, we see you!
Our third speaker is Paul Matthews to get us in the springtime mindset! “Learn about the magic of growing veggies in strawbales! This dirt-less method combines the advantages of no weeding, reduced watering, and bonus compost for next year’s garden!”
We will see you all at the High Noon on Wednesday! 

Date: Wednesday, December 6th
Time: 8pm
Location: High Noon Saloon

Get your final Nerd Nite fix before the year ends!

First speaker is Ben O’Connell, with “The Map to Your Heart: How Wisconsin was Gerrymandered”. In the 2022 elections, Wisconsin’s Democratic Governor Tony Evers won with 51% of the vote, while at the same time Republicans held a 2/3 majority in the State Senate and nearly a 2/3 majority in the State Assembly. The reason? Wisconsin is one of the most gerrymandered states in the United States. In this presentation you’ll hear how Wisconsin was gerrymandered, how it relates to the movie Flubber, and some extraordinarily silly theories on what happened in closed door meetings on redistricting.

Next, we have Shea Topel, to teach us about animals! Drinking! Shea will be citing evidence and cases of how animals seek out and consume alcoholic substances for various reasons. Some examples include monkeys forming social circles of different kinds of drinkers, Russian bears huffing jet fuel and the amazing alcohol tolerance of the tiny pen-tailed tree shrew.

Lastly, we have NERD NITE AFTER DARK. This one will be a wild ride! ARJ will be discussing comparative phallology, or….animal genitals.
Join us for the least stressful holiday season event you’ll attend! Kick back, relax, and be nerdy with us!

Date: Wednesday, November 8th
Time: 8pm
Location: High Noon Saloon

First is Celeste Huff with All the Single Ladies: Let’s Celebrate Solitary Bees! “Solitary bees… these little ladies are everywhere. With over 20,000 species of bees worldwide, most of them (over 90%) actually fly solo. Celeste Huff, a graduate student in the UW Madison Department of Entomology, will be talking about the fascinating lives of solitary bees and ways you can help them thrive!”

Second is Bartje Wakker presenting Tantalizing Trees: Convergent Evolution, Naming, and Taxonomy in Trees! “What we call certain trees can be misleading – especially within the name ‘Cedar’. In reality, many trees that you might think are closely related, or even call the same name – are quite distant, and more closely related to other familiar plants including common vegetables or ornamental flowers. In this talk I – Bartje Wakker – will be trying to put how well known plants are (or aren’t) related to each other by covering some examples of this phenomenon, as well as what ‘convergent evolution’ is and why it leads to all of this – as well as a couple… personal gripes… on the naming of certain types of conifer trees.”

Last but not least, we welcome Ashleigh Gradel to the stage for A Qualitative Analysis of the Taco Bell Menu. “Do you like Taco Bell but struggle to figure out which form factor of beef, cheese, tortilla, and lettuce is the best for a given scenario? This presentation is for you: my name is Ashleigh Gradel, and I have three goals: (1) to provide a comprehensive, analytical, and fair review of the Taco Bell menu, (2) to abolish the Mexican Pizza, and (3) to get you ready for your next Taco Bell encounter. I’ve used my own expertise (and several expensable meals on work trips) to develop the Live:Más ratio to evaluate, definitively, the best (and worst!) of Taco Bell.”