Science Lecture Series held first of eight presentations
The Science Lecture Series held their first presentation of the year last Friday at Saddleback College in Science and Mathematics (SM) 313.
The topic of discussion was about how high altitude can affect fetal lung development. The featured guest speaker of the lecture was Dr. Sean Wilson, assistant professor of physiology and pharmacology at Loma Linda University.
The Science Lecture Series provides anyone with the opportunity to listen to well-known scientists speak about topics of scientific value.
“I would say it’s a forum designed to bring in scientists and industry leaders to talk about their area of expertise and to share their love of science with our students,” said Sara Sheybani, coordinator of the Science Lecture Series.
The series aims to encourage people to develop an interest in science and open them up to possible career choices in the field.
“I think our main goal for the lecture series is to get students interested in science,” said Karen Kelley, assistant coordinator of the Science Lecture Series. “We’ve had a lot of famous people come talk and actually for a community college it’s a very good lecture series.”
Wilson spoke about his experiences researching the effects of high altitude on prenatal lung development. He explained that the more he understood the issue, the more it drove him to further explore the complexities of the subject.
“A lot of people just find the subject matter very, very interesting,” said Jim Zoval, associate professor of chemistry, when asked why people should attend the Science Lecture Series. “A lot of these students will be working in the field of science and so they’ll get a glimpse into what it’s like to be a scientist and what scientists do.”
Many of those who attend are Saddleback students who are interested in the field of science.
“I just like learning so I guess that’s what I really enjoy about the Science Lecture Series,” said Ashley Jubb, a 20-year-old biomedical engineering major.
Even those who have no plans of working in the field of science are encouraged to attend these lectures.
“We try and encourage anyone to come to these lectures because a lot of these topics actually relate to everyday people,” Kelley said. “The more people who are interested in science, the better.”
The Science Lecture Series will be holding a total of eight lectures over the span of this school year. Four will take place in the fall and four will take place in the spring.
The lectures always take place on Fridays, starting at 10:30 a.m. These events begin with a trivia game in which attendants can win prizes.
Prizes won on Friday included beverage containers and books. Attendants are invited to a reception before the presentation at 10 a.m. and those who show special interest in the lecture may be invited to lunch afterward to discuss the topic of the lecture further.
More information about the Science Lecture Series including dates future lectures will be taking place can be found at http://www.saddleback.edu/mse/lectures2014.html.