Science Under the Dome
Join us听for our听Science Under the Dome听monthly听live talk series.听Talks in this series are presented by graduate students and postdoc researchers at CU Boulder.
These are a part of听our regular talk series. Regular ticket prices apply.
Please be aware that our shows and some talks may incorporate one or several of the following features: bright lights, flashing visuals, loud sounds, or intense motion effects.
CU Boulder students are admitted FREE on THURSDAY NIGHT TALKS with valid Buff OneCard.听
Upcoming Science Under the Dome Talks
October 23, 2025 at 7pm
Drinking wastewater? You probably already are, just a little bit. Across Colorado and the West, treated wastewater flows downstream and can become someone else鈥檚 drinking water. This is de facto reuse. Planned reuse means stronger treatment and closer monitoring. As drought and climate change strain supplies, advanced treatment offers a sustainable path forward. Explore the types of reuse, why reverse osmosis isn鈥檛 always the answer, and where reuse is already happening. Wastewater isn鈥檛 gross鈥攊t鈥檚 a valuable and cool resource.
Kylie Boenisch-Oakes is a fourth-year environmental engineering Ph.D. Candidate. She thinks that wastewater treatment is cool. Of course, when you think wastewater, the word cool probably isn't the first that comes to mind. She is here to help change that.听Beyond wastewater, she is passionate about all types of water treatment and hopes to enable greater engagement with the systems and processes that provide one of the most vital and precious resources in our lives, water.
October 30, 2025 at 7pm
We trust that our water is clean, but what if the real risks come from invisible chemical mixtures we don鈥檛 fully understand? From wildfire ash and industrial runoff to pharmaceuticals and plastic by-products, today鈥檚 water pollution is shaped by complex, interacting contaminants that challenge traditional science and regulation. This talk explores how tools from analytical chemistry and toxicology help detect these hidden threats, and how public perception, policy, and environmental justice influence our understanding of what 鈥渟afe water鈥 really means. Whether you鈥檝e never read your water quality report or you鈥檙e curious about how science reveals the unseen, this talk invites you to explore the hidden world of water quality and why it matters for everyone.
Mackenzie Bowden is a PhD candidate in environmental engineering whose work explores how complex chemical mixtures in water impact ecosystems and public health. Her current research combines analytical chemistry and environmental toxicology to better understand emerging risks to water and wastewater systems following wildland-urban interface fires. Mackenzie is passionate about making science accessible and engaging, using storytelling and community outreach to connect research with real-world impact. She sees public engagement as a vital part of scientific work, helping bridge the gap between research and the communities it serves.
November 13, 2025 at 7pm
As humans, our memories of the past influence how we behave in the present. But nature, too, has memories. Past events, like fires, storms, droughts, and other catastrophes can determine how ecosystems look and function, well into the future. We refer to this as ecological memory. One type of ecological memory are the physical remains of dead organisms left after these catastrophic events occur. In particular, we can think about the remains of foundation species鈥攊conic and abundant organisms like trees, grasses, corals, or oysters that build the very frameworks of the ecosystems we know and love. When these organisms die, their influence lives on as their remnant structures actively shape the way ecosystems recover, or do not. In many cases, we use our knowledge of these influences to guide recoveries in nature through targeted restoration efforts that add, remove, or stabilize dead remains. In this talk, I鈥檒l discuss the many roles foundation species play both before and after they die, the cutting-edge tools we use to study these incredibly important organisms on land and underwater, and how we can interact with them to support their health.
Kai Kopecky is a postdoctoral researcher at the (ESIIL), based at CU Boulder, using data science to identify commonalities between very different ecosystems. Before moving to Colorado, Kai split time between California and French Polynesia, earning a PhD studying aspects of coral reef resilience under climate change and explored strategies to stimulate recoveries after coral bleaching events. While it may seem strange that a marine scientist decided to move to the Rocky Mountains, Kai tries to break the misconception many people have that studying the ocean means you must live near it鈥攊t鈥檚 not true, anyone can contribute to ocean science and conservation from anywhere in the world!听
Watch this space for more compelling talks at Fiske.
Our climate is changing and we must adapt to a world that is transforming right before our eyes. Early warning signs of climate change were seen in far away places like the Arctic, Antarctica, and Greenland. Now these impacts are affecting us here at home and changing the way we live our lives. Join us as we explore the local and global impacts of climate change and ways in which we can contribute to a solution.
Science and technology don鈥檛 exist in a vacuum - there are countless ways that research and innovation play a significant role in society at large. What are some of the ways in which they overlap? This series听explores the intersection of science and society, addressing topics such as light pollution, GMOs, and mining asteroids, and the talks invite the audience to consider ways in which they have been impacted by this intersection.
From warp drives to artificial intelligence to living on Mars, this series is to explore a variety of scientific ideas that surface in science fiction books, movies, and video games. Where have popular sci-fi movies portrayed science correctly, and where has Hollywood gone off the deep end? What technologies were once 鈥榮ci-fi鈥 but are now rapidly becoming a reality?听