D.C. Science Writers Association

Tour of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
2024-09-20 09:00 - 16:00 (America/New_York) | NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, 8800 Greenbelt Rd, Greenbelt, MD, 20771, United States
*** SORRY, REGISTRATION CLOSED 8/22/2024 ***
*** LIMIT OF 20 ATTENDEES REACHED ***
Where was that beautiful gold mirror on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope assembled? Where is mission control for the remarkable achievements of the Hubble Space Telescope? Tour NASA’s legendary Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and go behind the scenes with the scientists and engineers who make the magic happen.
Exact tour stops will depend on mission operation activities.
Kudos to DCSWA Vice President Liz Landau (who serves as Multimedia Lead for Astrophysics at NASA Headquarters) for organizing this fantastic tour!
Attendance is free, but is limited to the first 20 who register (DCSWA members only).
Registration ends at midnight EDT on Thursday, August 22, per NASA requirements.
Successful registrants must send the following information in an email to president@dcswa.org by that date and time in order to attend:

Full legal name (first, middle and last names)
Citizenship status (U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents)
Name of employer
Phone number
Email address

Directions and tour details will be sent to registrants prior to the event

DCSWA Happy Hour
2024-08-15 18:00 - 20:00
Thursday, August 15, 2024
6:00 – 8:00 PM Eastern Time
Lulu’s Winegarden
1940 11th St NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
A 3-minute walk from the U Street/African-American Civil War Memorial/Cardozo Metro Station
No registration necessary; just come and have fun!

What Every Reporter in DC Should Know About AI
2024-08-09 09:00 - 12:00 | Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center, 555 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC, 20001
What: A briefing and information session for journalists offered by Johns Hopkins University
When: 9 a.m. to noon, Friday, Aug. 9, a half-day session with breakfast. No streaming option.
Where: The Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center, 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW Washington, D.C. 20001
REGISTRATION REQUIRED: Please register by Aug. 2 and feel free to share this invitation with share will colleagues who might like to attend: https://washingtondc.jhu.edu/events/what-every-reporter-in-d-c-should-know-about-ai/
Possibilities for artificial intelligence are thrilling, terrifying, and unavoidable. At this free session, Johns Hopkins researchers will get to the heart of the elements of AI that matter most to a DC media audience. In other words, we’ll focus on the intersection of science and policy, and explore topics including:

What’s on the horizon for AI in health care
Implications for the power grids and emissions, and what can be done about it
Inherent risks of AI: What could go wrong and why is it so hard to regulate
New inequities AI will cause
What the federal government can learn from the most forward-thinking states and cities
How the federal government can best support AI

Speakers will include:

Beth Blauer, who led JHU’s Coronavirus Research Center and advises governments in technology innovation
Computer vision pioneer Rama Challapa, who is interim co-director of JHU’s Data Science and AI Institute
Cybersecurity expert Anton Dahbura, who is executive director of the Johns Hopkins University Information Security Institute
Mark Dredze, interim deputy director of JHU’s Data Science and AI Institute known for his work mining big language data to pioneer new applications in public health
Yury Dvorkin, who studies challenges posed by emerging smart grid technologies
Suchi Saria,, who uses AI to individualize patient care and save lives

REGISTRATION REQUIRED: Please register by Aug. 2 and feel free to share this invitation with share will colleagues who might like to attend: https://washingtondc.jhu.edu/events/what-every-reporter-in-d-c-should-know-about-ai/
CONTACT: Jill Rosen
Cell: 443-547-8805/jrosen@jhu.edu
jhunews@jhu.edu

Theodore Roosevelt Island Midsummer Microbiota
2024-07-18 18:00 - 20:00 | Theodore Roosevelt Island, Washington, DC
NOTE: DCSWA is posting the announcement of this science-themed event as a courtesy. DCSWA is not responsible for the content of the event.
On Thursday, July 18, 2024 from 6:00 pm – 8:00 p.m. EDT, Nature Forward (https://natureforward.org/) invites you to join naturalist Rita Peralta for an adventure at Theodore Roosevelt Island, where she will introduce you to Foldscopes and explore the microbes in the soil and water that populate the world as we know it. Expect a mixture of paved and natural surface trails; depending on rainfall, some muddy and puddly terrain may be possible.
Nature Forward Members: $33; nonmembers $46
For more information and to register, go to https://natureforward.org/events-calendar/

Tour of National Air and Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center
2024-07-13 14:00 - 15:30 | Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, 14390 Air and Space Museum Pkwy, Chantilly, Virginia, 20151
Take to the skies and explore outer space with your fellow DCSWA members during a guided tour of the National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (14390 Air and Space Museum Pkwy, Chantilly, VA 20151) on Saturday, July 13th, starting at 2:00 p.m. EDT.
The center displays thousands of aviation and space artifacts, including the Space Shuttle Discovery, the Gemini 4 spacecraft (from which astronaut Ed White took the first U.S. spacewalk), the Gossamer Albatross (the first man-powered aircraft to fly across the English Channel), an SR-71 Blackbird (the fastest airbreathing manned aircraft), and a Concorde supersonic airliner.
We’ll also be able to watch any ongoing restoration and preservation work going on in the Mary Baker Engen Restoration Hangar from the glassed-in mezzanine viewing area.
The tour is limited to the first 30 DCSWA members and guests (limit of 1 per member) who register by 11:59 p.m. EDT on July 11. There is no fee for the tour; however, parking is $15 per car.

To register, go to https://dcswa.wildapricot.org/event-5746263

For more information on the Udvar-Hazy Center, go to https://airandspace.si.edu/visit/udvar-hazy-center.

Film Viewing: "Listen to the Universe"
2024-06-21 16:00 - 17:30 | Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Independence Ave SW and 7th St SW, Washington, DC, 20560
To honor the 25th anniversary of the Chandra X-ray Observatory’s mission, NASA senior communications specialist and DCSWA Board member Liz Landau will present her new film, “Listen to the Universe” at a special showing on Friday, June 21, from 4:00 – 5:30 p.m. EDT at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Independence Ave. SW and 7th St SW, Washington, D.C. (a 4-minute walk from L’Enfant Plaza metro station).
The 27-minute film takes viewers behind the scenes with the team that creates “sonifications,” translations of Chandra’s data into sound, and shows how meaningful they are to people who are blind or have low vision. Liz and Chandra astronomer Dr. Kimberly Arcand will answer questions after the showing.
There is no fee for the viewing, but registration is strongly recommended for a ticket to ensure your seat.
More information at https://hirshhorn.si.edu/event/film-listen-to-the-universe/
