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Most colloquia are open to the public, please check for details.
All colloquia are held in Wilson Hall, 1 West unless otherwise specified.
All colloquia are held in Wilson Hall, 1 West unless otherwise specified.
The Fermilab colloquium introduces a wide range of scientific and science-related topics presented by notable speakers from across the country and around the world.
Upcoming colloquia
An integral part of Fermilab’s academic culture, “orange” colloquium talks are aimed at a broad scientific and technical audience, while “green” talks are of general interest to everyone.
Appropriate for physicists Appropriate for all attendees
April 22, 2026, 3:30 pm US/Central
Urban forests provide critical ecosystem services, from stormwater runoff mitigation and heat island mitigation to biodiversity support and public health benefits, yet their structural composition varies enormously across and within cities. Understanding this variation is essential for evidence-based urban forest management.
This study applies a multi-scale principal components analysis (PCA) framework to census-tract-level urban forest inventory data across five U.S. cities: Washington DC, New York City, Columbus (OH), Minneapolis (MN), and Seattle (WA), representing a combined sample of 3,084 tracts. Preliminary global PCA results suggests that canopy extent and treediversity represent a shared dimension of urban forest quality. Marked structural differences across cities further indicate that no single management benchmark is universally applicable. Spatially constrained PCA (sPCA) and geographically weighted PCA (GWPCA) (in progress) will characterize the degree to which these structural gradients are spatially clustered and identify neighborhoods where local forest composition diverges from citywide patterns. Findings will inform targeted urban reforestation priorities and support planners in identifying underserved areas where strategic investment.
April 29, 2026, 3:30 pm US/Central
2027 marks the 100th anniversary of the invention of the first high-frequency linear accelerator (LINAC), built in Aachen. In 1927, Rolf Widerøe’s 27-page doctoral thesis opened new windows for science with his description of the LINAC and of a circular accelerator he had already invented in 1923 at the age of 21.
The lecture begins by exploring the fascinating but tragic life of a man and his family driven by science and progress. During World War II, Dr. Widerøe was faced with a moral dilemma that is still relevant for many scientists today and may be even more pressing now. It also determined much of his fate. As we follow Rolf Widerøe through the arc of the 20th century, the full breadth of accelerator applications up to the present day comes into view. For more than a century, technical facilities that accelerate subatomic particles to ever higher energies have been an integral part of science and research, as well as of medical and industrial applications. The most modern applications repeatedly allow quantum leaps in science, which are discussed towards the end of the lecture.