RASC Events

RASC, Halifax Centre Jan. 10th, 2025 Public Meeting 

David Baron - "The Martians"

 

Meetings of Halifax Centre are from 1:00 PM to 4:30 PM on the FIRST SATURDAY of the month (except July and August and OCT 2023). There may be exceptions if the date falls on a holiday weekend. All meetings and special sessions are recorded and are accessible on the RASC Halifax Centre YouTube channel. 

Time: Jan. 10th, 1:00 PM Atlantic (12:00 Noon, Eastern)
Place: Room AT101, The Atrium,  Saint Mary's University or by Zoom

We would love to see you at Saint Mary's University. However, if you are a distant member or would prefer not to attend at this time, you can attend via Zoom. If there is a change in location at SMU, we will notify members beforehand.

Register for the Zoom meeting using this link. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. 

 

Public Meeting

  • Welcome & Introductions - David Hoskin
  • Photo Montage - David Hoskin

  • Keynote Speaker - David Baron.    The Martians

    A mere century ago, Martians were thought to be real—not fictional—creatures. “Mars is inhabited by a highly civilized and intelligent race of beings,” proclaimed Alexander Graham Bell after astronomers discovered what looked like irrigation canals on the red planet. When Nikola Tesla, in 1899, detected radio signals believed to have came from Mars, an all-out craze swept society. Best-selling author David Baron spent seven years investigating this strange case of mass delusion. In his fast-paced, highly illustrated talk—filled with period photographs and depictions of the putative Martians themselves—he reveals what the episode says about the human mind: the fallibility of our senses, the power of belief, and the lure of sensationalism. It is a tale both cautionary and uplifting. Although the Martians never were real, the excitement about them was genuine and world-changing, for it sparked a new genre called science fiction and helped launch us into space—toward Mars.

    David Baron, an award-winning journalist and broadcaster, is author of The Martians: The True Story of an Alien Craze that Captured Turn-of-the-Century America that has been named a “Top Read of 2025” by Science News and a “Must-Read Book of 2025” by TIME. A former science correspondent for NPR and Chair in Astrobiology at the Library of Congress, he has written for the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and other outlets.

  • News from the Board - Tony McGrath
  • Night Sky What's Up? -  David Hoskin
  
David Baron
David Hoskin
Tony McGrath
Paul Heath
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