Nerd Nite 101: Pumpkin Spice Nerd Nite!
October 11, 2023
Doors at 7:30pm and presentations at 8pm
Get ready for a tasty melange of spiced nerd goodness! Nerd Nite Lawrence is excited to offer a cozy mixture of wonderful presentations that will tantalize your interest and whet your appetite for exotic knowledge about teddy bears, alternative comedy and carrier pigeons, oh my!.
Grab a drink, socialize, and get your Nerd on! Thrilling raffle prizes! Challenging trivia! Engaging Presentations! Join us at Maceli’s downtown for a delightfully square time!
Doors at 7:30 pm, talks begin at 8pm, $1.00 cover at Maceli’s 1031 New Hampshire
Our presentations:
“The Passenger Pigeon or I Do Not Believe Children Are the Future” by Elizabeth Sawaya
The passenger pigeon once had populations so large, they were known to darken the sky when taking flight. Now extinct, the passenger pigeon is just one example of how human intervention has continued to have a direct effect on the ecosystems across the U.S. This presentation will look at mentions of the bird in historical documents, how increased human populations had an impact on the pigeon population, and how one dark and stormy night (or perhaps a sunny afternoon), one child ended the wild population for good.
“Alternative Comedy: What is it?” by Janette Salisbury
In this drastically abridged history of Alt Comedy, we will explore what it is, who’s responsible, and what has it wrought (alternative comedy, that is). It is a completely subjective look at people I think are funny, and why everyone should think the way I do.
“Take Your Teddy Bear to Work Day…and beyond!” by Brian Moss
Take Your Teddy Bear to Work Day is celebrated on the second Wednesday of every October as an excuse to bring our stuffed animals to work and school. But what happens when teddy bears begin encroaching on grown-up spaces on a regular basis? And what happens when they begin to build community? This presentation follows one teddy bear’s path to internet fame, introducing us to some of the friends he made along the way, and examines how our stuffed companions can tell us more about the world around us than we’d ever expected.
Our presenters:
Elizabeth Sawaya is from Hutchinson, Kansas and currently resides in Topeka where she works as a Forensic DNA Analyst. Her interests include reading, cooking, napping, and showing people pictures of her cats, regardless of level of interest. This is Elizabeth’s first Nerd Nite presentation but this topic has been bothering her since 2002.
Janette Salisbury is a nerd of many trades: reformed music snob, lapsed theater kid, and ultimate fan-girl of most things on the fringe of pop culture. She has no particular qualifications to be presenting at Nerd Nite other than gleefully leaping down many rabbit holes, and knowing at least one of the co-bosses.
Brian Moss is a librarian by day and a lover of all things Lawrence by night. A long-time Nerd Nite attendee and first-time presenter, Brian was originally born among the wild bears of Alaska, but currently spends much of his free time managing a teddy bear’s Instagram account.