What’s on the Menu at the Oxford Science Café?

By M. Caroline Helms and Sandra Spiroff

Welcome to the Oxford Science Café! It’s an initiative that offers an immersive, interactive, and family-friendly experience to showcase cutting-edge research by various science experts, mainly from the UM community. The Science Café, which started in 2011, strives to engage with the local Oxford community by offering a variety of general science topics. At the monthly events, the Café brings in professors, experts, and researchers as presenters and invites anyone interested in the monthly subject to a relaxed, welcoming, and fun environment. The Café creates the opportunity to educate and inspire people, bringing them together for intriguing discussions that bridge the gap between the scientific world and everyday life.

Quinn Campagna, a fifth-year physics student from Louisiana, is a current co-organizer of the Café. He stresses the importance of making science accessible to everyone.

“My current path in physics came about because of people throughout my life who made science and learning interesting to me,” Campagna said.  Campagna feels he is now paying it forward as others once did for him, inspiring people of any age with a passion for science and learning.

The wide range of topics offered fits many interests, with topics spanning the spectrum of science disciplines, from biology, physics, mathematics, psychology, anthropology, and beyond. Some of the talks in the past have included Cows, Trash, and Gas: Saving the World One Reaction at a Time, by Dr. Kensha Clark, Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, who explained the impact greenhouse gas emissions have on the Earth’s climate; Men are from Earth, Women are from Earth, and Other Updates from Gender Psychology, by Dr. Carrie Smith, Associate Professor of Psychology, who described how gender research is performed and how society can move beyond overly simplistic ideas about women and men; and Campagna’s favorite from this semester, Ice Age Archaeology and the First Americans, by Dr. Jesse Tune, Director of the Center for Archaeological Research and Associate Professor of Sociology and Anthropology, who described the arrival of the first humans in the Americas.

Like her fellow co-organizer Campagna, Purnima Narayan, a fifth-year physics student from Pune, India (and winner of the 2024 Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) competition), has found her involvement in this program inspiring and educational. Speakers offer creative ways to interact with the general public, including many who may not have a science background. Narayan recalls her favorite event, From Plankton to Planets: Science Poems and Possibilities, by Dr. Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Author and Professor of English and Creative Writing.

“We learned to use science in poems. Not only was it refreshing, but [it] also got our creative juices flowing as we wrote our own impromptu poems,” Narayan said.

Narayan expressed much gratitude towards the Café, emphasizing that it keeps “curiosity alive” and has even assisted her with designing her lectures and research talks.  In fact, the Café shares the spirit of the 3MT® competition in the sense that the presentation should be pitched in a way that is accessible to a general audience and should not rely on audience members possessing a specialist background or experience.

Dr. Jake Bennett, Associate Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, is a Faculty Advisor from Oxford, Mississippi, who works with graduate students and also feels a calling for public outreach. As a science enthusiast, Bennett utilizes the Café as a means to share his love for science. “The Oxford Science Café is a great venue to speak with science enthusiasts of all backgrounds,” Bennet said.

Exploring science that is understood and science that is still being discovered, the Café features a Q&A discussion at the end of every presentation, sparking profound conversations. Bennett explained that one expert even spoke about the science of brewing coffee, which was perfect for their usual venue, Heartbreak Coffee on the Square. In her presentation, From Seed to Cup, Ms. Gretchen Williams, the Owner and Founder of Heartbreak Coffee, described the journey the coffee bean seed embarks upon to reach the over 2.25 billion cups of coffee consumed daily.

The Café provides a space for anyone ages one to ninety-nine to learn about science. If you are interested in the Oxford Science Café, there are a few ways to get involved. The first is to attend the Café, as all are welcome. Events are held on the third Tuesday of each month at 6 pm at Heartbreak Coffee on the Square. Organizers post details of the presentation and topics in advance on their website. Next, if you have any suggestions for speakers, or would like to help organize and/or volunteer, then reach out to the Oxford Science Café by email.

The Café is supported by the Office of the Provost, the Department of Physics and Astronomy, the University of Mississippi Women in Physics, and Heartbreak Coffee, which hosts the events.

Join the Oxford Science Café next semester for an enriching odyssey into the world of science. A new menu is on the way!

 

Winter Newsletter 2024-2025

1. Welcome
2. Race Against Time: Celebrating the 2024 3MT Winners
3. Rocking the Clock! Meet Some of the 3MT Finalists
4. Introducing a New Fellowship: The R. Kelley Thueson Graduate Fellowship
5. What’s on the Menu at the Oxford Science Café?
6. Professional Development: A Return on Investment

Spring 2024 Newsletter

Link to Spring Newsletter 2024