Nerd Nite Orlando at Stardust Video and Coffee, (1842 E. Winter Park Rd. Winter Park, FL) s an evening of entertaining yet thought-provoking talks across many disciplines, all while the audience drinks along in a casual bar atmosphere. Speakers present for up to 20 minutes each on a fascinating subject of their choice, often in an uncanny and unconventional way. Following the presentations is a brief question and answer with the audience.
Quench your curiosity! Come meet up, drink, and learn something new!
The September 11th Nerd Nite featured “Nerd Nite Trivia!” with Ricardo Williams. Teams of up to 4 people competed against other smarty pants from across the city. Here are a few of the challenging questions. I’ll put the answers in the comment section of this post.
1. 90s Animated Series. What 90-93 animated TV series featured the voice talent of Whoopee Goldberg?
2. Wars that the United States fought. What was the United States major cold war engagement prior to the Vietnam war?
3. People named Michael. Who is the baddest man on the planet?
4. Animals that have sex. If a Puma mates with a Leopard what animal is produced?
5. Potent potables. What Welsh privateer of the Caribbean was also known as Sir Henry Moore?
The second presentation was, “Steampunk: Creating the Future out of the Past!” by Richard Young. I sketched Richard as he agonized over the Power Point slides. Steampunk is a combination of Victorian Aesthetics with Science Fiction Technology. Speaker He took a look at this Sub-Genre of Science Fiction. Including it’s history, it’s effects on modern culture, and his own experiences exploring this strange and beautiful world. Richard Young has been a member of the Central Florida Steampunk Association for over two years. He spends most of the time at work staring at computer screens, and a lot of time outside of work looking for things to do that do not involve staring at computer screens. An ex-Disney animator is working on a steampunk styled hand drawn animated film. I’m excited to see artists returning to traditional animation. Perhaps we all have been staring at computer screens to long.
“Bird Nerd: Plumage, Sex, and Social Selection!” by Angela Tringali. The plumage of birds isn’t just beautiful, it serves a function. To determine if the plumage of Florida scrub-jay juveniles had a function she changed it, and their social behavior changed too. She spoke about bird color, and a bird found only in Florida. This nerd nite was a bird nerd nite. Her passion for the subject was contagious. She is a conservation biologist and behavioral ecologist. She earned her PhD in 2013. When Angela isn’t chasing birds she is thinking about it. Some people say she has a one-track mind.