Talk/Lecture Series
We are working on a schedule of talks for the 2013 season and will
post here when available.
2012 THURSDAY TALKS at Sandy Bay Yacht Club ~ 7 P.M.
Complimentary Wine and Refreshments ~ Guests Welcome
July 12 - Greg Wilkinson, COACHING the 2011 PAN AM GAMES ~
SIX MEDALS in NINE CLASSES
The U.S. Sailing Committee named SBYC’s Greg Wilkinson as
one of two coaches for the United States’ 2011 Pan Am Games. The 2011
Pan Am Games were based out of Guadalajara, Mexico with the sailing out
of Puerto Vallarta. The 2011 U.S. Team included past Olympic medalists,
current Olympic hopefuls, and North American and World Champions. Greg
will detail his and the U.S. Team’s experiences at the Games from the
U.S. Selection process and Trials all the way through to medal races and
medal ceremonies.
Greg coached the Boston College Women’s Sailing Team to
victory at the 2012 National College Championships this month in Austin
Texas where the BC Coed Team won 4th and the Team (Men’s) won 7th. In
addition to being named national coach for the 2011 Pan Am Games, Greg
was named coach of the year in 2010 by U.S. Sailing’s Olympic Sailing
Committee. Greg is married to Rockport Selectman Sarah Wilkinson and
they have two young sailors.
Hosts: Story Reed and Margot Hintlian
July 26 - Paul St. Germain, LIGHTHOUSES and LIFE SAVING ~
THE STRAITSMOUTH STORY
Paul St. Germain, SBYC member, President of the Thacher
Island Association and Board member of the Sandy Bay Historical Society
is well-known for his research on the history of both Thacher and
Straitsmouth Islands. He will present a fascinating history of both
Straitsmouth Island Lighthouse as well as the interesting back story of
the Sraitsmouth Life Saving Station on Gap Cove. His story will begin
with Captain John Smith’s discovery of the three Turks Heads Islands in
1614 on Cape Ann up to what is going on at Straitsmouth Island today.
Vintage photos along with charts and maps will make this history come
alive.
Hosts: Bob and Lolly Gray & Jim and Liz Kubik
August 2 - Robert Van Buskirk, HUMAN EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS
In MEDICINE ~ THE PROMISE AND THE CONTROVERSY
SBYC member and professor at Binghamton University, Rob
received The Russell and Burch Award from The Humane Society of the U.S.
for developing a tissue engineered human skin used worldwide for product
safety testing. In addition to teaching he is involved in the biotech
industry developing new medical devices and improved methods for
processing stem cells used for stem cell therapy. Rob will talk on how
cells derived from human embryos are now being used in clinical trials
to treat a variety of diseases. While this practice is legal in the U.S.
there remain many issues. Rob will discuss the benefits, controversies
and how this and other major advancements in related areas will be
affecting how medicine is practiced in the near term.
Host: John Greely
August 9 - Robert L. Savoy, MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING (MRI)
OF THE HUMAN BRAIN: ADVANCES IN DETECTING STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION ~
including SEX, DRUGS, ROCK-AND-ROLL; PHEROMONES IN HUMANS; AND SPLIT
PERSONALITY
Robert Savoy is Director of Education for Functional MRI
at the Athinoula A. Martinos Center of the Massachusetts General
Hospital and will talk on MRI, which has been an important diagnostic
and research tool since the 1980s. Dr. Savoy has academic appointments
at Harvard Medical School, Boston University, and the University of
Zagreb in Croatia in addition to Massachusetts General Hospital.
One of the main reasons for MRI’s utility is its
flexibility in use. By developing different imaging techniques, MRI can
be used to detect a variety of anatomical structures and physiological
functions.
Dr. Savoy will mention advances in the technology and
focus on applications in the detection of neural activity as it relates
to perception, cognition and emotion. Advances in the early 1990s saw
MRI’s ability to indirectly detect changes in neural activity. This has
lead to an explosion of research resulting in newspaper and magazine
articles of the form “This part of your brain lights up when you engage
in that activity”. Other advances permit the detection of structures
(e.g. white matter fiber tracts) that are smaller than the nominal
resolution of MRI.
Hosts: Betsy and Ross Wittemann & Cat and Doug Larson
August 16 - Christopher Leahy, MONGOLIA: THE LAST
WILDERNESS NATION
Christopher Leahy currently holds the Gerard A. Bertrand
Chair of Natural History and Field Ornithology at Mass Audubon, and was
the Mass Audubon’s Director of Conservation for eighteen years,
overseeing the organization’s research, conservation, ecological
management and publications programs. He is the author of many published
works including Birdwatcher’s Companion to North American Birdlife, and
has designed and led natural history and education travel programs in
more than seventy countries.
A Gloucester resident, he is an expert on the world’s
remaining wilderness areas and biodiversity hotspots such as Gabon,
Madagascar and Mongolia. Chris, who first visited Mongolia in 1982 is
directing a conservation project that has been undertaken by Mass
Audubon and Nomadic Expeditions who have joined forces to create a new
conservation model aimed at protecting Mongolia’s vast and fragile
ecosystems as it proceeds with necessary economic development. Among
other projects, Chris is training guides in basic natural history, bird
watching expertise, and giving them grounding in the critical
environmental issues emerging in this mineral rich country. His talk
will feature images of Mongolia’s remarkable landscapes, wildlife and
rich cultural traditions. After this talk you might want to join a tour
and see the Mongolian steppe, the Gobi Desert and Lake Hovsgol!
Hosts: Ned Jeffries and Sam Smart
