Renowned scientists and engineers host talks on a plethora of research topics each summer at COSMOS. These talks focus on current research in the speaker’s field and are designed to introduce students to a wide variety of subjects, expanding their learning outside of their cluster topics. Discovery Lectures are held Monday and Wednesday mornings, and are open to the entire campus community.

Couldn't make it to COSMOS this past summer? Don't worry, you can watch a few of our excellent Discovery Lectures right here! Click on the links below to get a taste of what our 2008 COSMOS Discovery Lectures had to offer.

Dr. George Brown - Great Challenges for 21st Century Scientists

Dr. George Brown is currently a Professor of Physics in the UC Santa Cruz Physics Department, and from 1996-2000, served as chair of the department. From 2000 -2007, Dr. Brown served as the campus's Vice Provost for Academic Affairs. Before joining UCSC, Dr. Brown worked for Bell Laboratories and Stanford University. Dr Brown received his Bachelor's degree with honors in Physics from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, and his Ph.D. in Physics from Cornell University in upstate New York. In 1985, he was elected as a Fellow of the American Physical Society. His research interests span a wide variety of topics, from elementary particle physics, particle accelerators, solid-state physics, and biophysics.
Click here to watch his lecture - "Great Challenges for 21st Century Scientists

Dr. Adina Payton - Ground Water Discharge and Coastal Health

Adina obtained her B.Sc. double major in Biology and Geology from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Realizing how important science education is to the well-being of our planet she pursued a M.S. degree in science education at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, and another masters degree in oceanography, from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. In 1989 she moved to San Diego to take part in the Ph.D. program at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography where, after 6 years, she graduated with a degree and a daughter. In the summer of 1999 she moved to Stanford, where she worked for 8 years as a professor in the department of Geological and Environmental Sciences. Currently she is an Associate Research Scientist at the Institute of Marine Sciences here at the University of California Santa Cruz.
Click here to watch her lecture - "Ground Water Discharge and Coastal Health"

Miguel F. Aznar - Technology and Specialization

Mr. Aznar serves on the Educational/Consulting Advisory Board of the Acceleration Studies Foundation. He is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley with a degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society and Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society.
Click here to watch his lecture - "Technology and Specialization"

Merry Ayres - What it Takes to be a Video Game Designer

Merry Ayres, a Human Resources Manager at EA, spoke to the students about the types of careers that are available in the video game industry, what degrees and skills you need to have for a career in video game design, and how to be a competitive applicant for a career in the video game industry. She even gave away a few EA games as prizes! She was a huge hit!
Click here to watch her lecture - "What it Takes to be a Video Game Designer"

Dr. Allison Galloway - The Glamorous World of the Forensic Anthropologist....the other side of "Bones"

Allison Galloway is a forensics anthropologist and a professor of anthropology at UCSC. She is also the vice provost of academic affairs. In 1994, she was a winner of the Excellence in Teaching Award for UCSC, and was a Sigma Xi Distinguished Lecturer from 2003-2005. Dr. Galloway received her B.A. from UC Berkeley and later attended the University of Arizona to get her Masters’ and PhD. Her areas of research includes Skeletal changes and bone metabolism, reproductive and skeletal interactions, forensic skeletal analysis and expert witness testimony.
Click here to watch her lecture - "The Glamorous World of the Forensic Anthropologist....the other side of "Bones"