Previous Smarty Pints Topics
August 17, 2026
Meg Wynne
PhD Candidate, UW Physics
“Probing the origins of the universe: Neutrino mass measurements”
13.7 billion years ago the universe began with a bang. The Big Bang created almost equal parts of matter and antimatter, but this asymmetry, which allows for our existence, is one of the deepest questions of physics. Could finding the mass of the neutrino help us understand why matter dominates anti matter?
Roberta Kwok (@roberta.kwok)
freelance science journalist and author
“Lost in Curiosity: Field Notes From Scientists' Adventures into the Unknown (released July 21!)”
The real story of science isn't a triumphant breakthrough. It's messy, mysterious, and deeply human. In her new book, Kwok pulls back the curtain on what scientific discovery actually looks like.
July 20, 2026
Zach Pratt
Docent and Lecturer, Black Diamond Historical Society
“From Swamps to Shafts: The Geology and History of Black Diamond”
Discover how the tropical world of the past laid the foundation for Black Diamond's industrial rise. This talk will dig deep into the geology and history of South East King County, exploring the unique story of the Puget Group coal seams and the specific challenges they presented to early miners.
Cassandra Fieldson
Malaria Researcher and Science Educator, Seattle Children's Research Institute
“Mosquitoes, Malaria, and the Science Behind the Buzz!”
Mosquitoes are the deadliest animal in the world. My research team looks at liver stage malaria, cerebral malaria, and cell death, plus the mosquito side of the problem through robots that dissect mosquitoes.
June 18, 2026
Ellen Weatherford
Host and Producer, "Just the Zoo of Us" podcast
“Man Vs Pinniped: How the humans of Seattle have tried (and failed) to keep seals and sea lions out of the Ballard Locks”
Dr. Valentina Alaasam
NSF Postdoctoral Fellow, UW Biology
“Bright lights and hot summer nights: how birds are coping with urbanization”
May 18, 2026
Prof. Harold Tobin
Professor and Paros Endowed Chair in Seismology and Geohazards, UW Earth and Space Sciences; Director, Pacific Northwest Seismic Network
“When Mt. St. Helens blew its top - and how we (probably) will know before it happens again”
Dr. Eric Wagner
Writer and researcher, UW Center for Ecosystem Sentinels
“After the Blast: The ecological recovery of Mount St. Helens”
April 20, 2026
Prof. Berry Brosi
Professor, UW Biology & Executive Director of MeadoWatch
“Climate-driven plant-pollinator timing mismatches: does biodiversity provide backup?”
Jim Roe
Analytical Chemist, SoRSE Technology
“Volatile compounds in cannabis, essential oils, and beer”
March 16, 2026
Zach McCurry
ISA Certified Arborist, Emerald Arbor Care
“Arborist Tells All: The Secret Life of a Broadleaf Maple”
James Davenport
Research Assistant Professor, UW Astronomy; Director, DiRAC Institute
“Searching for ET with 'big data' astronomy”
February 9, 2026
Pitch Night with UW Engage! Graduate students in a science communication course give speed talks about their research.
January 19, 2026
Dr. Jeff Otjen
Associate Professor, Department of Radiology, Seattle Children's Hospital & UW
“Minerals in Medicine”
Eric Sahr
Optical Navigation Lead Engineer, KinetX Aerospace
“Navigating a Spacecraft to Asteroid Bennu and Back”
December 15, 2025
Violet Sorrentino
NSF GRFP Awardee, MCB Program Doctoral Candidate, Fred Hutch Cancer Center
“How tiny worms can help us understand the human brain”
John Huddleston, PhD
Staff Scientist, Fred Hutch Cancer Center
“Forecasting the future of flu”
November 17, 2025
Dr. Caroline Strömberg
Professor in UW Biology & Curator of Paleobotany at the Burke Museum
“How grasses took over the world”
Aakash Manapat
Graduate student, UW Atmospheric and Climate Science
“How clouds control our climate”
October 6, 2025
What is JEDI Education? A discussion with Drs. Stacey Hardin and Jodi Newman, faculty in the UW College of Education.
September 22, 2025
Dr. Jacob Clark Blickenstaff
STEM Education Consultant
“Pop(corn) Science: Talking Science in the Movies”
August 25, 2025
Briana Abrahms
Assistant professor, UW Department of Biology, Center for Ecosystem Sentinels
“Where the Wild Things Go”
Sally James
medical and science journalist
“How news about science gets made (mangled)”
July 28, 2025
Three talks from graduate student researchers in UW SEFS: Masha Vernik (“Resilience in Diversity: Climate Change and Seed Selection Among Organic Farms in Western WA”), Robin Ruhm (“The Hidden Cost of Gold: Mercury Accumulation, Forest Degradation and Ecosystem-Wide Effects Spread Far Throughout The Amazon”), and Gus Wettstein (“Beyond Prediction: Climate Adaptation as Future-Making”).
July 7, 2025
Carl Bergstrom & Kevin Gross
Prof, UW Biology & Prof, NCSU Statistics
“How Science Works”
June 23, 2025
Kacey Rosenthal
PhD candidate, Department of Pharmacology, UW
“Putting the brakes on aggressive breast cancer”
Akash Dasgupta
postdoctoral research scholar, UW Clean Energy Institute
“Perovskite tandems: The way forward to meet global energy demands”
June 9, 2025
Special edition panel: five UW researchers on how recent federal actions are changing the landscape for science and research.
May 26, 2025
Andrea Lius
PhD candidate, Department of Pharmacology
“It's Time To Die”
A James Bond-themed talk comparing cancer cells to secret agents.
April 28, 2025
Andy Tzanidakis
graduate student, UW Astronomy
“When Stars Go Dark”
Samantha Garza
graduate student, UW Astronomy
“Cosmic Conveyer Belt: The Carbon Cycle of Galactic Atmospheres”
March 24, 2025
Anthony Salazar
American Social and Urban Historian, PNW-SABR
“Building a WPA Ballpark: Baseball and the New Deal, 1934-1943”
February 24, 2025
Cecily Rosenbaum
graduate student, UW Chemistry
“How Chemistry Can Push The Limits Of Solar Energy”
February 10, 2025
Pitch night with UW Engage students!
January 27, 2025
Paul Morgan
graduate student, UW Earth and Space Sciences
“Damn Landslide Dams”
Adi Khuller
research scientist, UW Applied Physics Laboratory
“Evolution of Ice on Mars: Implications for Present-day Liquid Water”
December 16, 2024
Sara Cornish
Microsoft - Minecraft Education
“Building a Better World with Minecraft”
November 25, 2024
Scott Montgomery
lecturer, UW Jackson School of International Studies
“The Energy Transition: Geopolitics and the Role of Geology”
November 4, 2024
Pitch night with UW Engage students!
September 23, 2024
Elliot Lee
postdoctoral researcher, Fred Hutch
“Vaginal Bacteria: The Good, The Bad, And The Smelly”
Jonathan Batchelor
postdoctoral researcher, UW SEFS
“See the Forest Through the Point Clouds: Lidar Applications for Ecology”
August 26, 2024
Michalea King
research scientist, UW Applied Physics Laboratory
“Polar traffic jams: How icebergs move through Greenland fjords and their important role in glacier dynamics”
July 22, 2024
Kyle Armour
associate professor, UW Atmospheric and Climate Science/Oceanography
“The state of Earth's climate, my experience writing the recent IPCC climate report, and why I'm (cautiously) optimistic”
June 24, 2024
Virginia Littell
chemist, Washington Department of Health
“Radiation in the Environment: Monitoring and Emergency Response”
Andrew Shumway
graduate student, UW Earth and Space Sciences
“Return to Sender: NASA's Mission to Mars and Back Again”
May 29, 2024
Pitch night with Fred Hutch students!
April 22, 2024
Roslyn Burns
researcher, Yale Linguistics
“Measuring Social Narratives in Speech Science”
Tyler Sutterley
researcher, UW Applied Physics Laboratory
“North in Every Direction: Science at the South Pole”
March 25, 2024
Keenan Ganz
graduate student, UW SEFS
“Cold-blooded forests? Leaf temperature in a warming world”
Sydney Floryanzia
graduate student, UW Chemical Engineering
“Tools to Explore the Brain Drug Delivery Terrain”
Aaron Thomas
graduate student, UW Materials Science and Engineering
“Delving Into Batteries: How to Look at Things that Violently React with Air”