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Join us online each month for the library’s “Science and Society – Making Sense of the World Around Us” lecture series. All lectures start at 5:00 PM Eastern Time. You MUST REGISTER to receive instructions for joining the program.
Much of science reporting in the United States in 2025 may have been focused on budget cuts, layoffs, and canceled programs, but there were still many striking scientific achievements in laboratories here and around the world. At the end of each year, Science magazine’s editors and writers choose ten scientific developments they consider especially important, including one they single out as the Breakthrough of the Year. Join us online for a discussion with Science’s News Editor, Tim Appenzeller, who will describe the magazine’s picks for 2025 and explain what made those developments particularly noteworthy.
As Science’s News Editor, Tim Appenzeller is in a perfect position to survey the scientific landscape. He directs a global team of writers and editors covering research and the international community of scientists. His previous positions include Chief Magazine Editor at Nature, Executive Editor at National Geographic, and editorial posts at U.S. News and World Report and Scientific American.
A new Observatory on a mountaintop in Chile began a survey in 2025 that could transform astronomy. The Vera C Rubin Observatory, named for the astronomer who found conclusive evidence for the existence of mysterious dark matter in the universe, uses the largest digital camera ever built to, among other things, reveal anything that changes in the southern sky over time, from asteroids and comets in our solar system to variable stars, supernova explosions, and interstellar objects. The resulting ultra-high-definition time-lapse map of billions of celestial objects could also provide insights into the nature of dark matter and dark energy–the enigmatic force that appears to be driving galaxies apart at an accelerating pace—and perhaps yet-to-be discovered cosmic phenomena. Dr. Sandrine Thomas will discuss the Rubin Observatory’s early results, its history and objectives, and the innovative system built to handle the tidal wave of data it produces every day.
Dr. Thomas is Deputy Director for Construction and Associate Director for the Rubin Observatory Summit Operation.
The talk will also examine the primary hazards associated with hurricanes, emphasizing that wind is often not the greatest threat to life and property. Storm surge and inland flooding will be discussed through real-world examples, highlighting why risk can extend far from the coastline and well after landfall. Finally, the presentation will demystify hurricane forecasting—how storms are tracked and predicted, what forecast models can and cannot do, and how uncertainty is communicated. Finally, we will also touch on some newer hurricane tracking models that incorporate AI techniques and contrast this type of weather model with the more traditional ones.
Dan Reilly retired from the National Weather Service in 2024 after a 32-year career with the agency. During his tenure, he worked at forecast offices in Virginia, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Montana, and Texas, issuing forecasts and warnings for a wide range of hazardous weather events. His experience includes several major tropical cyclones, including Hurricanes Floyd, Isabel, Ike, Harvey, and Beryl. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Physics from the University of Virginia in 1988 and a Master’s degree in Meteorology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1992. Reilly currently provides weather briefings and consulting services to public and private-sector clients through his company, Reilly Weather, LLC, and publishes a weather blog.
How did the world as we know it—from the earth beneath our feet to the air we breathe and the life that surrounds us—come to be? Geologists have proposed one set of answers while biologists have proposed another. In his new book, Earth & Life, Andrew Knoll says both perspectives are required to understand how we and our planet became possible: Geological and atmospheric dynamics have sustained life, and life itself has shaped the physical environment. A better understanding of these interactions over Earth’s four billion year history can help us navigate the challenges of the Anthropocene and aid our search for life elsewhere in the universe, he argues.
Andrew H. Knoll is the Fisher Research Professor of Natural History and Earth and Planetary Sciences, Emeritus, at Harvard University. He is the best-selling author of A Brief History of Earth, a recipient of the International Prize for Biology and the Crafoord Prize, and a member of the National Academy of Sciences.
We invite you to support the author by purchasing a copy of their book from Browseabout Books. Call-in orders are accepted at (302) 226-2665 or you can stop by the store to purchase a copy. For store hours, please visit their website.
Sleep plays a critical role in maintaining health and cognitive function, yet humans sleep less than any other primate. In his new book, The Sleepless Ape, David Samson explains how this apparent paradox evolved, and why sleep is a critical but often overlooked aspect of human evolution. When our ancestors left the safety of the forest for more dangerous ground, they formed more secure social sleeping arrangements, which resulted in shorter, deeper, and more flexible sleep patterns. Those changes, he argues, not only provided survival advantages but also freed more time for crucial activities such as toolmaking and social interaction. Associated changes in the human brain also led to more restorative sleep, which in turn enabled advanced memory consolidation and fostered creativity—keys to our success as a species. A deeper understanding of our evolutionary sleep heritage, Samson writes, can help us address sleep disorders and improve our overall health and well-being.
David R. Samson is associate professor of evolutionary anthropology at the University of Toronto and the author of Our Tribal Future: How to Channel Our Foundational Human Instincts into a Force for Good. His pioneering research has been featured in National Geographic, Time, and The New York Times and on NPR and the BBC.
We invite you to support the author by purchasing a copy of their book from Browseabout Books. Call-in orders are accepted at (302) 226-2665 or you can stop by the store to purchase a copy. For store hours, please visit their website.