March TACNY Junior Cafe Scientifique "Antarctica Before the Ice: How Global Climate Change Affects Marine Ecology"

Saturday, March 10, 9:30-11:00am (NOTE: not the usual third Saturday of the month)

Milton J Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology, Syracuse NY

Linda C. Ivany, an associate professor of earth sciences at Syracuse University, will present

Antarctica Before the Ice: How Global Climate Change Affects Marine Ecology, a talk about the threat of global warming to Antarctica, as part of TACNY’s 2011-2012 Junior Cafe Scientifique lecture series.

People interested in learning more about the impact of global warming are invited to attend the freeJunior Cafe presentation on Saturday, March 10, 2012, from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science and Technology (MOST) in Syracuse’s Armory Square. Walk-ins are welcome, but we ask that people RSVP by emailing jrcafe@tacny.org by March 8, 2012.

 Linda C. Ivany, PhD, is an associate professor of earth sciences at Syracuse University. She received her bachelor’s degree from Syracuse University, her master’s degree from the University of Florida, and her doctorate from Harvard University. She was a Michigan Society Fellow at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor for three years before moving to Syracuse in 2000. Ivany is a paleontologist and paleoclimatologist, using fossils to understand ancient environments, ecology, and climate change. She lives in Earlville on a farm with a multitude of animals.

Antarctica was not always covered in ice. Fifty million years ago, it was lush and forested, and the waters offshore were warm and teaming with life. As climate cooled, predators were eliminated from the marine ecosystem, resulting in the unique and fragile fauna that lives near the ice today. But global warming is threatening that ecosystem. If the water warms enough to allow predators to reinvade, the entire ecosystem will be changed forever. Learn more by attending Dr. Ivany’s talk.

TACNY Junior Cafe Scientifique, a program for middle-school students, features discussions between scientists and students about topics in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics in an informal atmosphere and seeks to encourage students to consider careers in these areas. Students must be accompanied by an adult and can explore the MOST at no cost after the event. For more information about TACNY, visit www.tacny.org.