Wrapup – National Academies Communications Fair

July 22nd, 2010 | By 49

What an awesome and exhausting time!

AM – Reel Science

Let me explain some drama that morning. I had crafted this OpenOffice Presentation to run from my Macbook Pro 15. Well the Mac  failed to display to their house projector system with two separate mini-display port adapters! My bacon was only saved via the quick thinking of Lauren Aguiree. She suggested I export as a PDF to run on the ‘house’  laptop. This worked with a bare 30 seconds to spare!

EDIT: I went to the Genius Bar in the Apple Store. They duplicated the issue and will be replacing my logic board. Because of my wifi trouble at home, they will also be replacing the Airport card. Sucks that the hardware crapped out but I’m thankful for AppleCare and having a physical store to go to for technical help.

The panel was titled “Reel Science: Communicating Science Through Visual Media”. It had Lauren Aguirre from PBS/Nova, John Hoffman from HBO Documentary Films, Beth Nissen from NBC Learn and myself. I think we were very well received by the audience. Chris Palmer was a great ring master. I loved how he introduced us with our normal credentials, would slap the table and say “AND HERE IS WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW!” . My “Reel Science” speech is available on Rapbassador.com!

A memorable part of the panel was when Nissen gave a quote from a poet “The universe is made of stories, not atoms.”

Post-panel - Lauren Aguirre, Beth Nissen, Chris Palmer, Steven Rush

PM – TEDx

In the afternoon I was part of some TED Tryouts. Technically it was TEDx Tryouts because it wasn’t officially part of TED but ran in the exact TED format. We also had Kelly Stoetzel, the Content Director at TED. All of the speakers were excellent! I had fun performing Particle Business in which I had a cardboard cutout of Albert Einstein rap the hook and was slapping hands with people in the crowd (who were apparently important bosses and stuff!). I had totally forgotten that I actually mention the city in Particle Business “ballot box for better decisions in DC” until I actually said them on stage! That reminds me of when I rapped at Fermilab and while performing Starblazer it came to me that I was rapping about “shooting protons” and “I’m the rhymer super-collider”. I’m so dumb sometimes.

DC was great. I got to hang with my mom. See the International Spy Museum. Stay at a fancy-pants hotel (with a goldfish named Ana). Hang with friends, Winn & Chuq, who live in the area. Lose my cellphone (VERZION! WHERE IS MY INCREDIBLE?) in Winn’s truck. Talk World Cup with some cabbies. Eat some fine tapas. Drink some beer. Meet a BUNCH of cool people. Share some science. The ~36 hours of DC were certainly good times!

funky49 rapping with Albert Einstein

National Academies Communications Fair 2010

June 14th, 2010 | By 49

The honor is mine. I am humbled.

I have been asked to speak at the National Academies Communications Fair 2010 for the National Academy of Sciences. It will be in Washington, DC. I’m on a panel about science communication. Also on the panel are individuals from NBC, HBO and PBS! I need a three letter designation too so I’m representing EPP! My role is “science rapbassador, whose online rap video for Fermilab has helped communicate the science of particle acceleration.” Yeah, this is some cool fallout from Fermilab’s Particle Business music video! Thanks to Ben Kilminster for hipping the National Academy of Sciences to me!

In the morning I’ll be talking about science outreach via hip-hop and Particle Business. In the afternoon, there is going to be some TED Tryouts for which I’ll be doing Particle Business live!

The honor is mine. I am humbled.

What’s ALSO cool is that I rapped with my friends/bandmates EPP over the weekend in Orlando. This Saturday we’ll be performing at Florida Supercon in Miami. This will be my first time at Florida Supercon. Richard Roundtree (SHAFT!) will be there in addition to “Kat” From Battlestar Galactica!

Excitement!

Fermilab Friday

August 15th, 2009 | By 49

Today Christy got to see some Fermilab! We stopped by the Lederman Center and then Wilson Hall. I gave the pictures from my camera to Tona in Communications and chatted with her and ??? for a bit before heading to the 15th floor. A great view! We walked the little exhibits and took in a bit of a Fermilab tour movie. After the movie the tour guide pointed me out as the Fermilab rapper! 15 minutes about to end… :) We took off to see the bison and Christy got to see her first cornfield! We also went by the 15 foot wide bubble chamber. Back to the Wilson Hall (HIGHRISE!) to have some wine and chat with Aaron (bassman!), Kyle from Master Control and Robin from ‘Atom Smashers’ before headed down to see the recently approved results from D0 and CDF. We minds were melted hardcore with the high-energy particle physics business.

DAN could not come out tonight! He was either going to hang with us and shoot more and watch the Drug Sniffing Dogs rock or go watch his friend rock out with the Blizzard of Oz. Dan was so wacked out from his swine flu and allergies being on the prairie that he was going to stay home and take care of himself. Sometimes you gotta do that. Get well Dan Lamoureux! Ben G from the Former Fat Boys could also not make it (he went fishing, the pic looks relaxing!) but my new Illinois friends are dropping like flies!

We leave during the Q&A part of the CDF results (D0+CDF are pretty much listening better to the signal-to-background, no Higgs yet yo!) to get ready for the show. Arrive and start pizza and beering and beering it up. We chat with Eric who, along with Ben, are supposed to be on a tv show about rollercoasters. Eric brought along an accelerometer that hung like a Flavor Flav clock around his neck while Ben jailbroke his iPhone so it could run his custom accerlerometer app.

Drug Sniffing Dogs!

Such awesome! Anyway, we drink, the Drug Sniffing Dogs rock, funky49 rocked a set and more Drug Sniffing Dogs bringing it. We made our own after party with me and Ben and Christy and Britany. After that Christy and I had our own party. A great time. Thank you so much Ben Kilminster and Fermilab for having me speak, rap and shoot a music video. I’m so thankful!

Science Outreach via Rap Presentation

August 14th, 2009 | By 49

Last Tuesday I gave a presentation in the Wilson Hall at Fermilab National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, Illinois. It was about Science Outreach via Rap. If you don’t mind RealPlayer, please give it a watch. You can also read the speech at my Rapbassador.com website [speech]

Fermilab Thursday

August 14th, 2009 | By 49

A very multicultural breakfast: Today started with breakfast with Dan and Ben. Ben had the Hobo Platter that we were laughing about yesterday. Do hobos know they have their own platter here? Dan had the Italian Skillet again which cheesed me off. I was gonna get it today but he was complaining about it yesterday. I bet it was full of deliciousness! I got a breakfast burrito. Ben was a French Hobo with his Hobo platter /w French Toast, I was Mexican and Dan was Italian.

Dan shooting buffalo like its 1867!

Dan and I go see the bison. People were honking at us from the road which was hilarious while we were filming. A lady with some kids asked to take my picture with them. I asked if I could have my picture taken with them too! It was an honor. After the bison (with the Wilson Hall in the background!) we bounced out to D0. We shot in their datacenter, control room and their experiment build hall. Dan was really happy with the last one. He also got to shoot Marc from the control room using a geiger counter on something. I was busy tweeting what we were doing.

Dan after shooting Marc from the D0 Control Room

After that, we go to the CDF offices and shoot with Dr. Ben Kilmister. Dan shot him explaining how Higgs events and shot me being confused. We stepped outside where he shot us bullshirting and doing the ‘Atom Smasher’ handshake that we came up with. It starts with daps and then a first bump “collision” that results in particles being sprayed outward. Keep it nerdy.

Dan and Dr. Ben Kilminster

Dans Tips for Successful Video Shoots:
* Rapper needs to know their lyrics
* Rapper needs to be presentable
* Rapper needs tote all of their clothing every day of the shoot (oops!)
* Dan hates shadows
* Other stuff why are you asking me to remember?

Steve & Christy on the train – huzzah public transportation!

Afterward I race to the airport to pick up my girlfriend, we park the car and train into the city. We peep a giant Picasso metal sculpture, the Cloud Gate, fountains, find our hotel, have a drink 95 floors up in the John Handcock Tower (seriously, why pay $15 to go to the 94th floor, when you can pay $15 for an adult beverage on the 95th floor?) and then to Ed Devevic’s for dinner (thanks Gary!). Train back to the car to drive back to Naperville.

Another Great Day. Thanks Illinois!