February 11, 2014 7:30 PM – 8:30 PM TEMPLE 003 Mistaken Identity: Sikhs in America
Speaker: Rajinder Jutla, Professor, Department of Geography, Geology, and Planning
Although Sikhism ranks as the fifth largest religion worldwide, many Americans are ignorant about Sikhs, they mistake them for Arabs and Muslims. This presentation will provide an overview of Sikhism in terms of its historical evolution, teachings, practices, and some of the problems faced by the community.
March 4, 2014 7:30 PM – 8:30 PM TEMPLE 002
Development of Nanomaterials for Applications in Energy Technology
Speaker: Kartik Ghosh, Professor, Department of Physics, Astronomy and Materials Science
In the 21st century one of the major problems the world faces is the scarcity of available energy resources, mainly in the form of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are non-renewable energy sources and not environmentally friendly. Hence, finding renewable energy is an alternative solution to this global issue. Renewable energies appear in many commonly known forms such as solar, wind, and running water, and among them solar and hydro thermal energy show the greatest potential.
New concepts for solar and photo-catalytic cells with improved efficiency will require novel nanostructured photo-active semiconducting materials. Currently, we are developing high photo-active nanostructures of metal oxide-based materials, like zinc oxide and copper oxide. Our research activities address basic issues on growth and characterization of nanostructures and fabrication of devices using these nanomaterials. In this presentation, I will discuss how nanostructured materials are important in applications to energy technology, in particular to solar energy. I will also share some of our recent results on oxide-based nanostructures that can be used for future solar cell technology.
April 8, 2014 7:30 PM – 8:30 PM TEMPLE 002
Homelessness
Speaker: Paul Rollinson, Professor, Department of Geography, Geology, and Planning
The problem of homelessness in America today continues to inflict misery on those whom suffer from the problem and vex policy makers and service providers alike. I have spent a large part of my career looking at the problem as a concerned citizen, urban geographer and urban planner. In this presentation I shall attempt to share a broad understanding of the problem, what the research tells us about the problem; and where we might search for answers. I shall briefly discuss the history of homelessness in America, the dynamics of the problem, and who are the contemporary homeless. Secondly, I shall discuss the problems of counting and collecting data on this population. Third, I shall consider the geography of the homeless and some examples of the conflicts that arise between desiring to help the homeless and not impacting economic development for example, i.e. the planning issues. Lastly, I shall make some recommendations for future action.