nerdnite – NYC

Welcome to Nerd Nite NYC, hosted by Matt Wasowski.

Our next Nerd Nite is Friday March 12, 2010.  We’re bringing back our revered hetero speed dating. 25 smart gals. 25 wise fellas. 50 smart hearts yearning for one another (and a few cocktails). After speed dating, regular Nerd Nite features presentations about Pi, the seedy underbelly of mathematicians, and the legal case for gay marriage.

Fellas, buy tickets for Speed Dating + Nerd Nite on Friday March 12 at 7pm ($25) :  http://www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?EID=&showCode=NER53

Lasses, buy tickets for Speed Dating + Nerd Nite on Friday March 12 at 7pm ($25) :  http://www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?EID=&showCode=NER54

Regular Nerd Nite-only tickets for Friday March 12 at 8:30pm ($10) :  http://www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?EID=&showCode=NER55

Nerd Nite NYC
Galapagos Art Space DUMBO
16 Main Street in DUMBO Brooklyn (F train to York St. or A/C train to High St.)
Friday March 12, 2010
Speed Dating at 7:00pm (get there at 6:30 to check in!)
Regular Nerd Nite at 8:30pm
$25 for Speed Dating (includes admission to regular Nerd Nite)
$10 cover charge for regular Nerd Nite only

Back To The Lecture(s) At-Hand:
*Presentation #1
Pi
by Kate Jones

Pi.  It’s not just a non-terminating irrational number; it’s a way of life.  Learn the significance of the number, how it’s both feared and revered, and why someone would actually make an entire movie about it.

*Presentation #2
Mathematicians: Behind the Music
by Adam ‘Paco’ Hanlon

Go behind the scenes of the mathematician subculture.  Rock stars have their reputation because everybody knows about the depraved, idiosyncratic degeneracy that goes on in the back of the tour bus, backstage and in the hotel room – but few have seen the dark underbelly of mathematicians throughout history.  Learn about the feuds (Pythagoras vs. Hippaseus, Liebnitz vs. Newton, & Descartes vs. Euler), extreme personalities (Erdos, Perelman, & Hawking, etc.),  and of course, the intrinsic interest and passion for solving problems that fuels these crazy geniuses.  Understand the passion that motivates the subculture, so that even people who say, “I’m not a math person,” can begin to appreciate it and realize that they too could easily be a part of this world.

Presentation #3
The Legal Case for Gay Marriage
by Ames Grawert

Ames Grawert, a self-described “big city lawyer” (admission pending…), will make the argument, sure to be controversial in Brooklyn, that an honest reading of the Equal Protection Clause, history, and existing precedent would require state and federal authorities to recognize same-sex marriage rights. Subtopics include whether separate is ever equal (spoiler alert! no.), why countervailing arguments just don’t work, and how the Supreme Court will nonetheless evade the issue for decades. Those with dissenting views are encouraged to speak up, preferably while wearing Revolutionary War costumes and alluding to caffeinated beverages.

You can contact Nerd Nite NYC Boss Matt Wasowski at matt@nerdnite.com or buy his new book here.