February 8, 2012, Wednesday - A Sip of Science at Aster Cafe

Time: 5:30pm

Location: Aster Cafe, 125 SE Main Street

A Sip of Science: Rivers, Plate Tectonics, and People: Life on the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta

Bangladesh, one of the world's most densely populated and impoverished nations, occupies an extremely dynamic and hazardous portion of Earth's surface.  The ongoing collision of tectonic plates between India and Asia produces very large earthquakes within and around Bangladesh. Meanwhile, one of the world's largest river systems, the Ganges-Brahmaputra, constantly changes the landscape through yearly monsoonal floods and channel shifting.
 
Researchers at the St. Anthony Falls Laboratory at the University of Minnesota are involved in a project to understand how the tectonic forces interact with these rivers to create the landscape on which 150 million people try to live their lives.  Join Dr. Andrew Petter, one of the SAFL scientists, in exploring life on a tectonically-active delta.

About Andrew:
 
Dr. Andrew Petter is a post-doctoral associate at the St. Anthony Falls Laboratory and the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Minnesota. He completed his bachelor degree in Geology at Rice University, and his masters and PhD in Geology at the University of Texas at Austin. His work looks to understand how active rivers and deltas create sedimentary deposits and conversely, how ancient sedimentary rocks can inform us about Earth's past.

A SIP OF SCIENCE bridges the gap between science and culture in a setting that bridges the gap between brain and belly.  Food, beer and learning are on the menu in a happy hour forum that offers the opportunity to talk with researchers about their current work, its implications and its fascinations.