Heavenly Music @ University of Toronto

Urban Flute Ensemble plays tonight at the University of Toronto’s Open Telescopes, free to the general public.

Here’s the info:

Hello Astronomy Enthusiasts!

We’re back for 2010 and bigger than ever! Two items for you today:

1. ASX Symposium
2. February’s Department of Astronomy FREE Public Tour

1. ASX SYMPOSIUM

The U of T Astronomy and Space Exploration (ASX) Society is having their annual symposium TOMORROW. It promises to be a stimulating evening. All information can be found at: http://asx.sa.utoronto.ca/

2. FEBRUARY FREE PUBLIC TOUR

NOTE THE CHANGE IN VENUE! Due to the FANTASTIC INCREASE in tour attendance over the course of 2009, we’ve had to move our public lectures to a bigger and better room, namely Room 1160 of the Bahen Centre for Information Technology. It is located along St. George Street just south of Russell Street, mere steps from the physics building, where the observing session will still be taking place afterwards.

February’s tour is next Thursday! Third-year PhD student Mubdi Rahman will present a fascinating talk entitled:

“Cosmic Music: Astronomy Through the Eyes of the Billboard Hot 100″

Time:         8:10 PM
Date:         Thursday February 4, 2010
Room:       BA 1160
Building:   Bahen Centre for Information Technology (BA)
Address:   40 St. George Street, Toronto, ON

This talk is suitable for all ages.

Lecture Description:

The passion for astronomy is universal and even plays itself out in music. In this talk, I (Mubdi) will be looking at tracks from the Billboard Hot 100 and the astronomy concepts they evoke: from general relativity to the birth of stars. Come join us for a whimsical take on North America’s favourite music and Astronomy!

Speaker Biography:

Mubdi Rahman is a PhD student in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Toronto. His primary research interests include understanding the effects of star formation on the environment of the galaxy as a whole. An avid astronomer from even his earliest of years, Mubdi is active not only in research but also in the promotion and outreach of Astronomy and Science as a whole.

Observing Session:

After the lecture, graduate students Gregory Paciga, Emma Lloyd, Jamil Shariff, and Lawrence Kim will lead us over to the MP (physics) building to view the night sky through our 8″ refractor, 16″ reflector, 10″ Meade, and and balcony telescopes. If the weather is clear, the Orion nebula, the Pleiades star cluster, and the planet Mars (which is in a good position for viewing right now) should be visible. If it is cloudy, a tour of the telescopes themselves will still be conducted, along with a virtual sky tour.’Celestial music’ may be provided by Jamie Thompson, RCM Flute Faculty, and members of his Urban Flute Ensemble, who have been featured in our tours in the past. Jamie and his trio perform at the historic St. Anne’s Church on the second Wednesday of each month: next on February 10th at 7.30 p.m. More info available at urbanfluteproject.com or contact Jamie at 416-99-FLUTE (416-993-5883)

I hope to see you all on Thursday February 4 at 8:10 PM for our public talk, “Cosmic Music”

More Information and Directions:

http://www.astro.utoronto.ca/StGeorge_tours.html

The U of T Free Astronomy Public Tours are held on the first Thursday of every month (except January).

If you would like to be removed from this e-mail list, please reply
to this e-mail with, “Unsubscribe Public Tour” in the subject line.

Jamil Shariff
Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics
University of Toronto
tours@astro.utoronto.ca