Convocation: Phil Plait (Audio)

Phil Plait is an astronomer, lecturer and author. After earning his doctorate in astronomy from the University of Virginia, Plait was a NASA contractor at the Goddard Space Flight Center, working ten years on the Hubble Space Telescope. He then began a career in public outreach and education with the “Bad Astronomy” website and blog, debunking bad science and popular misconceptions. He is a skeptic and fights the abuse of science, but his true love is praising the wonders of real science. Plait takes a scientifically-based but fun look at asteroid impacts, comet debris, and fears of world extinction as he talks about how these events have shaped our history, how they may do so again, and why Hollywood always seems to get them wrong. And lest you think it’s all doom and gloom, he goes into details on how we might prevent the next great impact from ruining our whole day. The title of his presentation was “Death From The Skies!”