The Daily Bulletin

The Earth Sciences Department and the Whitworth Ferguson Planetarium are excited to announce the 2023 Dr. Jack Mack Lecture in Astronomy and Planetary Science, when Jen Connelly, associate director of the planetarium delivers this year’s lecture, “Welcome to the Neighborhood: The Evolution of Galaxies in the Group Environment” on Monday, May 8, from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the LoRusso Alumni and Visitor Center. Light refreshments will follow the talk. This event is free and open to the public. 

Dr. Connelly describes the focus of her lecture this way: “Most galaxies live complicated lives, growing, interacting with other galaxies, changing shape, and ultimately losing the ability to form new stars. One of the most fundamental discoveries about the evolution of galaxies is that their properties depend on the environment they live in. This public talk focuses on how we define that environment, determine the environment for very distant galaxies, and disentangle the role of nature versus nurture for these complex, diverse, and integral components of our universe.”

The Dr. Jack Mack Lecture in Astronomy and Planetary Science was established in honor of associate professor John E. “Jack” Mack following his retirement from the Earth Sciences Department in 2008. Dr. Mack died in December 2021.