What can cave microbes tell us about possible life on Mars? Join us on Zoom for a fascinating talk by Dr. Diana Northup, as she takes us exploring lava caves.
Diana Northup has been studying things that live in caves since 1984. She has a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of New Mexico. She and her colleagues on the SLIME (Subsurface Life In Mineral Environments) Team are investigating how microbes help form the colorful ferromanganese deposits that coat the walls of Lechuguilla and Spider Cave in Carlsbad Caverns National Park.
Diana has been honored by having her work featured on NOVA and by being asked to serve as a Guest Editor for Geomicrobiology Journal for a special issue on Geomicrobiology of Caves. She is also the recipient of a Charles A. and Anne Morrow Lindbergh Foundation grant to study the impact of humans on microbial populations in caves.
What we’re about
If you are excited by science – whether or not you are a science professional – and you live in the Western North Carolina area, then the Asheville Science Tavern is a great meetup for you. We are part of a movement of science socials such as Science Cafes (http://www.sciencecafes.org/) and Cafe Scientifique (http://www.cafescientifique.org/). Our mission is to humanize science and scientists – sharing the work of science in a way that is warm, engaging, often funny, inspiring, even beautiful.