Some random facts and pictures about hippopotamuses

This fully illustrated talk will highlight the speakers interest (some may say obsession) in hippopotamuses (aka hippopotami or hippos for short). It will also give some basic facts about hippos and conclude with a famous song about them by English duo, Flanders and Swann.

Peter Cottrell is visiting MPA from the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand. His interest in hippos started when he visited South Africa as part of the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) project, starting in the late 1990s.

 The talk will take place on August 12 at 5:30 pm in the MPA lecture hall.


Video

Robert Yates: Rugby

Britain is famous for many things; tea, cricket, the bowler hat...and
rugby! Although the exact origins of 'rugby football' are unclear, we do
know that it has gone from being a minor past-time played in the boys
schools of 19th century England, to one of the most loved sports
worldwide. Rugby has even played a part in healing the wounds of
Apartheid. In this talk, we explore the basics of rugby, some of it's most
famous players, and how it can provide a sense of companionship and
respect that no other sport can...with the aid of lots of videos!

The talk will take place on May 27 at 5:30 pm in the MPA lecture hall.

#9 Elisabeth Gall: Underwater Hockey

 Underwater hockey is a sport that requires all your senses. Under rather unnatural conditions, both body and mind are demanded in a 6-dimensional environment (ahead, behind, left, right, above, below). Speed, force, skill, and agility are just as important as tactics, position play, fighting spirit, concentration, and a good overview over the game. It is a fast game, where decisions have to be made in a split second: Shall I go up to breathe, or stay down, to help a teammate?

Actually, you have to try underwater hockey yourself to really understand the fascination of this game. Nonetheless I will attempt this impossible task and explain how underwater hockey works, how it is played and hopefully at least give you an idea of why you will never stop playing again, once you've really begun…

The talk will take place on Feb. 25 at 5:30 pm in the MPA lecture hall.

This text was inspired by Anna Joest. The photograph is used with permission of the photographer Stefan Jerg.

#8 Michele Cappetta: Photography

What's a beautiful picture? Good eye or an expensive camera? Years of experience or just 1/60 of second? In few slides I introduce different point of view of photography, basic definitions, brief instrumental history, technical details. I will give some tips on which techniques to use to make a good portrait, sports photography or landscape picture. In the end I will show a selection of my best pictures of Munich, Rome, Venice, Paris and Turkey.

#7 Akila Jeeson-Daniel: Spices in Indian Cooking - How and Why

In this talk, we learn that Indian Spices are much more than "curry powder". Indian cuisine varies greatly over the different regions of the subcontinent, and we learn about the origin of popular dishes such as the Naan, Baati, Kurma, Biryani or the famous Chiken Tikka Massala, which, like the Tandoori cuisine, did not originate in India. From starters, to main dishes, to deserts, spices always play an important role. They are not only added for taste, but also for their health benefits, providing vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants. But the proof of the pudding (or curry) is in the eating: We also get to sample a range of Indian herbs and spices, as well as a spicy lentil paste.

The image shows a vegetarian tali from the Gujarat region. Copyright wikipedia.org, under the Creative Commons License

#6 Philipp Edelmann: Esperanto

Esperanto is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto, the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887.

#5 Caroline D'Angelo: The history and physics of stringed instruments

The violin family (violin, viola, cello and contrabass) of musical instruments are the result of an impressive amount of precise engineering and artistry that gives them a range of volume, pitch, and tone unmatched by any other instrument. In this talk I will discuss the evolution of the violin, from the murky origins of bowed instruments (which exist in many different cultures) all the way up to the present day. I will then focus on the physics of sound production in the modern violin, starting with the mechanics of producing a sound with a bow (a driven harmonic oscillator, with complications), and exploring how the normal modes of resonance (which produce "Chladni patterns") produce the characteristic "violin" sound. I will round out my talk with a discussion (with a live demonstration) of some of the different techniques used in playing a stringed instrument, and discuss how they affect the quality (pitch, timbre and volume) of the sound. Depending on interest and time, some audience members will get a chance to try out some of what they have learned on a real instrument ...