Carlos Glender has had an active career in aviation material support and logistics spanning over 30 years. He served 20 years as an officer in the U.S. Navy, specializing in the support of tactical, carrier-based naval aviation. Presently he is Manager of Materials Management for ABX Air, a major cargo airline. Carlos earned a Master of Science degree in Logistics Management.
He is an active member of The Mars Society (Ohio Chapter) and believes that the human exploration of Mars would greatly expand scientific knowledge and perspective in a wide range of fields as diverse as geology, exobiology, climatology and comparative planetology.
The Mars Society is an international, non-profit advocacy group founded in 1998 to promote the human exploration and settlement of Mars. We believe that humans could be on Mars within 10 years from the start of a serious project. To that end, we are: increasing public awareness and support, encouraging more participation by the government and private enterprise, and sponsoring several key projects to prepare us to go to Mars.
The following are the science presentations that were offered during Context 20 in 2007.
"Human Evolution and the Evolution of Intelligent Design Creationism" Dr. Jeffery McKee Creationists claim that there are no "transitional forms" in the fossil record, and that life is too complex to have evolved. Yet the fossil, genetic, and morphological evidence supporting notions of human evolution is so overwhelming, that Intelligent Design creationists have retreated to the "argument from incredulity" ... they simply refuse to accept the objective realities. Prof. McKee traces both the scientific advances and the social contexts through time to show how creationism has evolved as a reaction to the ever-growing evidence for the evolutionary sequence that some people find most difficult to accept -- that of their own origins.
"Physics, 2007 to Mid-Century, as Seen Through a Cloudy Crystal Ball" Dr. Gordon Aubrecht What is going to happen in the near future to physics?
"Weird World of Science" Dr. Robert Pyatt We'll discuss some of the strangest scientific studies ever undertaken including "Magnetic resonance imaging of male and female genitals" and "An analysis of the forces required to drag sheep over various surfaces", and we'll conduct our own study into the pattern of Rhinotillexomania amongst convention attendees.
"What Space Really Looks Like" Brad Hoehne From the Hubble Space telescope to the Starship Enterprise, science and science fiction have filled the media with vibrant, colorful, and wondrous views of the universe. But are they accurate? If we could hover next to a great nebula or over the plane of our milky-way, what would we really see with the amazing visual instruments we were born with? The answer might be surprising.
"Ethical Issues in Biotechnology" Walter Hunt, Robert Pyatt, Karen Nagel, Dave Creek, Kevin Eaches Should corporations own genes? Should prospective employers know your genetic flaws? Should you tailor your kids for blue eyes? (How about white skin?) Should androids have human rights? Should we seed the galaxy with Earth plants? Which could destroy civilization first: clone wars or genetically modified food crops? How are these issues handled, mishandled or neglected by SF writers?
"The Future of Medicine" Dr. Karen Nagel Where is medicine going in the 21st century? Are products like inhaled insulin really the wave of the future? Are stem cells all that they are cracked up to be? And how many more cholesterol-lowering agents do we really need?
"The Search for Habitable Worlds" Dr. Scott Gaudi What exactly defines a habitable planet, and how do astronomers go about finding one? More importantly, what can we learn from these planets? Are we really alone in the universe?
"The Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change" Dr. Gordon Aubrecht The results of the assessment will be discussed in some detail to give the attendee some idea about the future climate.
The Science and the Future Symposium was held Friday evening and all day Sunday in 2006. It featured talks and presentations by a variety of scientists. The schedule included:
Prof. Andrea Wolfe, Dept. of Evolution, Ecology and Organismic Biology, OSU "Evolution and Intelligent Design" "Darwin's Impact on American Society."
Prof. Gordon Aubrecht, Professor of Physics, OSU "Nuclear Energy is the Short Term Solution to the Energy Crisis"
Prof. Stephen Lee, Dept. of Biomedical Engineering, OSU "Biomedical Neurobiology and Human Technology"
Prof. Thomas Hetherington, Dept. of Evolution, Ecology and Organismic Biology, OSU "Reconstructing Living Dinosaurs"
Prof. Elizabeth Gross, Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry, OSU "Computer modeling of molecular interactions" "Close Encounters of the Photosynthetic Kind"
In 2005, the Science and the Future Symposium presentations included:
"The History and Fate of the Universe: The new CPEP poster" Gordon Aubrecht, Professor, Dept. of Physics, The Ohio State University
"Debate on Global Warming" Gordon Aubrecht and J.R. Dunn, Science Writer and Science Fiction Author
"Genetically Modified Crops - How Do They Work?" Donald Dean, Professor, Dept. of Biochemistry, The Ohio State University
"Einstein's Replacement: Who Might It Be?" John Hank, Teacher
"Mars on Earth: An Overview of Our Mars Habitat Simulations and the MIT Mars Gravity Projects." Lyle Kelly, President, Ohio Branch of the Mars Society
"Condensed matter and bioconjugate nanotechnology: new technology for the new century" Stephen Lee, Assoc. Professor, Biomedical Engineering
"Propulsion Physics: Beyond the Cutting Edge (Tales From the Lunatic Fringe)" Marc G. Millis, Propulsion Physicist
"Adventures on the Fringe of Space" Dave Taylor, Technical Writer; ARISS Training Manager Stories and photos of amateur radio and the International Space Station, including a trip to Moscow to test equipment, with a side trip to the home of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky.
"Beyond the Cutting Edge: Tales From the Lunatic Fringe" Marc G. Millis, Propulsion Physicist Legitimate organizations researching formerly-fictional technologies (warp drives, gravity manipulation, etc.) have become magnets for the those whose proposals are not quite in touch with the real world.
The following science presentations were given as part of the 2004 Science and the Future Symposium:
"The History and Fate of the Universe: The new CPEP poster" Gordon Aubrecht, Professor, Dept. of Physics, The Ohio State University
"Debate on Global Warming" Gordon Aubrecht and J.R. Dunn, Science Writer and Science Fiction Author
"Genetically Modified Crops - How Do They Work?" Donald Dean, Professor, Dept. of Biochemistry, The Ohio State University
"Einstein's Replacement: Who Might It Be?" John Hank, Teacher
"Mars on Earth: An Overview of Our Mars Habitat Simulations and the MIT Mars Gravity Projects." Lyle Kelly, President, Ohio Branch of the Mars Society
"Condensed matter and bioconjugate nanotechnology: new technology for the new century" Stephen Lee, Assoc. Professor, Biomedical Engineering
"Propulsion Physics: Beyond the Cutting Edge (Tales From the Lunatic Fringe)" Marc G. Millis, Propulsion Physicist
"Adventures on the Fringe of Space" Dave Taylor, Technical Writer; ARISS Training Manager Stories and photos of amateur radio and the International Space Station, including a trip to Moscow to test equipment, with a side trip to the home of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky.
"Beyond the Cutting Edge: Tales From the Lunatic Fringe" Marc G. Millis, Propulsion Physicist Legitimate organizations researching formerly-fictional technologies (warp drives, gravity manipulation, etc.) have become magnets for the those whose proposals are not quite in touch with the real world.
In 2003, Context 16 took place on October 3-5, 2003 at The Ramada Plaza Hotel and Conference Center in Columbus, Ohio. The Science and the Future Symposium was held Friday evening, Oct. 3 from 7 p.m to midnight in two separate tracks.
Here are the presentations that were offered:
Dr. Gerald Newsom, Dept. of Astronomy, OSU: "The Runaway Universe"
Dr. Jeff McKee, Dept. of Anthropology, OSU: "Emerging from Africa - Our Evolutionary Distinction from the Other Apes"
Lyle H. Kelly, President, Ohio Mars Society: "Exploration of Mars"
John L. Hank, Dept. of Physics, OSU: "A Repeat Of 100 Years Ago! What We Don't Know Now."
Dr. Gunter Faure, Dept. of Geology, OSU: "Tour of the Solar System"
Dr. Joan Herbers, Dean, College of Biological Sciences, OSU: "The Evolution of Social Insects"
Dr. Catherine Asaro Scientist & Author: "Relativistic Space Travel & Beyond"
Dr. Gordon Aubrecht, Dept. of Physics, OSU: "Global Warming"
Ian Randall Strock, Editor, Artemis Magazine: "Your Ticket to the Moon: The Artemis Project"
Dr. Will Ray, Dept. of Pediatrics and Biophysics Program, OSU: "Bioinformatics: The Rosetta Stone of the Human Genome Project"
