Staff Notes Daily Announcements

Are you interested in K-12 education and public outreach? If so, please join your colleagues in a discussion about this topic on Tuesday, January 28th, from 2:30-3:45 pm in FL4-1201 (Unidata conference room). During this meeting, we will share updates on education and outreach efforts happening across the organization, discuss ideas for collaborations across groups, and discuss new ideas for education and outreach efforts we want to consider doing in the future.

To RSVP, please send an email to Shaun Bush at sbush@ucar.edu and you'll be added to the calendar invite. A Google Hangout link will be included for those who are unable to attend this meeting in person.

In addition, if you haven't already signed up for the email list for this group (k12@ucar.edu), please email Emily Snode-Brenneman at emilysb@ucar.edu and let her know that you would like to be added to the list to get notifications about education and outreach opportunities.

MMM Seminar - Thursday, January 23, 2020 - 3:30pm

Speaker: Forrest J. Masters

Affiliation: University of Florida

The presentation will offer a forward-looking perspective that the civil (wind) engineering and atmospheric science fields are poised to reverse this trend by leveraging recent advancements in automation, data fusion and machine learning, heterogenous computing, multi-modal sensing, and other technologies reinventing modalities for scientific research and technology transfer. To build that case, we will begin by exploring the evolution of field reconnaissance efforts in landfalling Atlantic tropical cyclones to characterize the intensity and structure of damaging winds and how it is has influenced complementary research in atmospheric boundary layer wind tunnels (BLWTs). Key highlights will include activities and findings originating from the Florida Coastal Monitoring Program (which has led field experiments in 34 storms, including Harvey, Michael, and Dorian) and the Digital Hurricane Consortium, which represents the broader community of landfall experimentalists that deploy anemometry, mobile doppler radars, and storm surge/wave sensors.

The presentation will then explore cyber physical wind engineering experiments conducted in the NSF Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) BLWT using its computer-controlled terrain generator (the “Terraformer”) and other exciting new technologies that are reinventing the conventional design-build-test paradigm. Examples will include mechatronic building modeling to optimize the design of wind sensitive structures and the development of a new 300+ fan system to simulate non-stationary and non-neutral flows for the study of bluff-body aerodynamics in unsteady winds, flows over geomorphically complex terrain, and internal boundary layer formations. All systems are available for use by NCAR. Information will be given about how to access these resources as well as the lab/field data.

The presentation will conclude with remarks about how these research activities interrelate with the rapid transformation now taking place at engineering campuses worldwide, which is being driven by the so-called 4th Industrial Revolution (i.e., the integration of artificial intelligence, robotics, and the internet of things into industry and mainstream life), reduced barriers to adopt technology, and the emergence of student bodies that are increasingly more prepared for living and working in a “digital” world than previous generations. The perceived ripple effect on atmospheric science will then be discussed from an engineering perspective, with the goal of identifying opportunities in a future where data streams are sufficiently rich and forecasting tools are sufficiently skilled that the role of the “human in the loop” is far diminished by today’s standards.

Refreshments: 3:15 PM

December 2, 2019 – January 25, 2020

Acrylic on Canvas by Monica Tymcio – Gallery I

Monica Tymcio’s paintings are a testimonial to her love of nature. She has spent the last 30 years living off-grid near the Indian Peaks Wilderness of Western Boulder County. It is here in this inspirational locale with her rescued horses, dogs and cats that she has made her home. She spends her time exploring the wilderness areas of Colorado on horseback, as well as backpacking in the remote canyons of Utah and New Mexico. Monica draws upon the deep sense of emotion she feels about a place or experience and then expresses that through her paintings to share with the viewer.

Fiber Art by Six Artists – Gallery II

Our love of fiber and its transformation through stitch, dye, paint, and print brought us together. Our varied voices, borne of differing life experiences, have inspired our conversations to connect literal and metaphorical threads and feed our self-expression. We support, nourish, and celebrate each other’s work! Artists are Susan Brooks, Judy Duffield, Jo Fitsell, Jeanne Gray, Irene Takahashi and Anne Severn.

Art Reception: Saturday December 14th from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm in the Mesa Lab cafe. Light refreshments will be served. Come meet the artists and be inspired by their beautiful artwork!

Preview all artists work on the NCAR Community Art Calendar: scied.ucar.edu/exhibits/community-art-program

Thank you!