Science in Action

August 27, 2019

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

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CCI at SLAC

Enrique Cuellar; Admin Services Administrator - SLAC National Laboratory; Stanford University

Learn about how to find and apply for the Community College Internships at the Stanford SLAC National Laboratory.

September 3, 2019

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

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 Stephen Fredericks and Nick Kapp; Faculty - Skyline College

September 10, 2019

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

Robert Tristan Sillona III and Valentia Carreno; Alumni - Skyline College

Want to know what a summer experience at MIT is like? Come hear about Robert Sillona and Valentina Carreno's internship with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Station One, a non-profit based in Boston. They will share out the research that was conducted, the companies they worked with, mentorships that were made as well as what a summer was like for two STEM-focused Skyline College students interning in Massachusetts.

September 17, 2019

4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

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Elaine Johnson; President - American Association of University Women

Learn about how the American Association of University Women (AAUW) Supports Local STEM Projects. This is a great opportunity for women curious about STEM to network with others!

September 24, 2019

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

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Brandon Edgehill; PhD Candidate - University of California, San Diego

Brandon is a third year terminal master's student at University of California, San Diego pursuing his degree in Engineering Physics. He will be here to discuss his master's thesis on plasma mirrors. Plasma mirrors are devices that are used to improve the quality of laser pulses by only allowing the part of the laser pulse you want through. This is accomplished by acting as a high speed shutter that only reflects the laser at a certain point based on ionization and the accompanying electron density. This has been well studied in the femtosecond regime (10^-15 s) but not in the picosecond regime (10^-12 s). The focus of Brandon's work has been on characterizing the laser's focal spot in the 10s of picosecond regime after interacting with the plasma mirror for potential use and to lay the groundwork for use as a disposable focusing optic.

October 1, 2019

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

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So-Yan Leung; Senior Technical Manager - Genentech

So-Yan Leung graduated from UC Berkeley with a BS degree in Chemical Engineering, and started working in the validation field of Biotech. She has worked with Genentech for almost 20 years. Her talk will be about validation in the pharmaceutical industry--what it is and how it is used to ensure the drugs we take are effective and safe.

October 8, 2019

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

Elena Georgieva; PhD Candidate - Stanford University

Elena is a researcher and sound recording lecturer at Stanford CCRMA, where she completed her M.A. degree in 2019. She works on research projects related to music information retrieval, sound recording, and amateur vocal expression. Elena is a singer, vocal percussionist, and vocal producer, and enjoys experimenting with vocal sounds to create fun and engaging pieces of music. She will visit Skyline to talk about a research project she did called HitPredict: Using Spotify Data to Predict Billboard Hits, which used trends in pop music hits from the 80's til today to look at how computers can predict a song's success.

October 15, 2019

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

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Bryan Swartout; Instructional Aide - Skyline College

Bryan Swartout is currently an Instructional Aide II for Skyline College's  STEM Center. His higher education journey started at Lake Tahoe Community College before transferring to Occidental College where he completed his Bachelor’s Degree in 2013 (Mathematics Major/Computer Science Minor). He started working as a Graduate Tutor at Skyline College in 2014, which fueled his passion for education. He is in the final stages of completing his Master’s Degree in Mathematics from SFSU.

Bryan will present some of his former research projects about a logic puzzle/game called the Towers of Hanoi. All attendees will get a chance to play the game and gain some insight into Combinatorics and Graph Theory. Combinatorics, a branch of mathematics involved with counting, helps us understand the number of “moves” it requires to solve the puzzle. Graph Theory, a branch of mathematics involved with graphs/models, assists in visualizing the various strategies in solving the puzzle. Catch a glimpse into mathematical research where seemingly simple/innocuous questions lead to deep/insightful truths!

October 22, 2019

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

 Emilie Hein and Denise Hum; Faculty - Skyline College

 Learn about data and grants for data.

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

Rod Regado, Jakarta Kumasi, Jonathan Kwong, and Jack Samman; Students - Skyline College

The Skyline Astronomy Club brings the amazement and awe of astronomy to Science in Action. With the conclusion to the club’s very first observation at the Sierra Mountains, they’re excited to present their experience in an environment that offered a breathtaking night sky free from the obstruction of light-pollution. From fascinating photos of stars and planets to the pure camaraderie between club members, this presentation offers insight into astrophotography and really just the typical activities of the Skyline Astronomy Club.

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

Melisa Carpio; Global Technology Consultant for Cell Culture Technologies - Sartorius Stedim Biotech

Learn about the various exciting careers and opportunities for engineers in the Bio-Tech Industry. Melisa is a Global Technology Consultant for the Cell Culture Technologies department at Sartorius Stedim Biotech. In this role, she focuses on the growth and development of single-use bioreactors, including the BIOSTAT RM and STR product lines. She works to continually investigate opportunities for new product enhancements, collaborations, and applications. Prior to Sartorius, Melisa spent nine years working in industry doing cell engineering and cell line development at Genitope, MedImmune, and Takeda. She holds a BS and MS in Chemical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

Wycliffe Aluga, Laleh Coté, Nicole-Marie Cotton, and Dan Zevin – UC Berkeley

What are your STEM career options after graduating?  These UC Berkeley affiliates would like you to think beyond the usual tech suspects and recruitment pitches, and instead, follow your passions!

Aluga is a recent chemical engineering graduate now working for Culture Biosciences in South San Francisco.

Coté is a Ph.D. student whose research focuses on leveraging culture- and community-based knowledge to improve research experiences for STEM majors, with a special focus on community college, first-generation, and underrepresented students. She is also the Senior Internship Coordinator at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Cotton is a New Pathways Associate for the UC Women in Technology Initiative, a UC Berkeley 2018 Mentored Research Award Fellow, a Bill & Melinda Gates Millennium Scholar, and a Ph.D. Student in the African Diaspora Studies Program currently running a new student course titled Inclusive Pathways into Tech and Entrepreneurship.

Zevin has been in STEM and STEM education for over 30 years, and has been paid for all sorts of jobs, from birdwatching in Hawaii to getting people excited about the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. As Co-Chair for UC Berkeley’s Coalition for Education and Outreach, he will moderate the panel.

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

November 26, 2019

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

HoTing (Michael) Lam; Student - Skyline College

A physicist and experimenter at heart, Michael will build and demonstrate how a Tesla coil works to learn about how and why Nikola Tesla was able to come up with such futuristic insights from 100+ years ago.

December 3, 2019

4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

Katrina Pantig

STEM and Equity