Continuum

Posted on 11 April 2013 by Mika

I’m writing a column for reviewing science in television in movies over at Physics Today. This month’s instalment? Continuum, a police drama set in present-day and near-future Vancouver exploits the possibility of jumping back and forth in time.

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#saveBCfilm

Posted on 1 March 2013 by Mika

Why do I support expanding BC tax credits to match other Canadian provinces?


Because BC needs to support its knowledge-economies. The resource industry alone cannot support the hopes, dreams, careers, and futures of this province.

Because BC specializes in creating alternate worlds and realities, and I love watching the results. MacGyver and Stargate, Rambo and Twilight, Battlestar Galactica and the X-Files: this province is home to a lot of favourite shows and movies.

Because working as a science consultant is the most creative, playful thing I’ve done in math and science, and I’m always excited when another opportunity arises to play.

Because working in the film industry helped cover my bills when grad school plans hiccuped, and was the odd-job that let me focus on my research to graduate, yet avoid student debt.

Because tax credits are a variation of “the more you spend, the more you save!” where everyone wins.

Because even the resource industry, favourite of the BC Jobs Plan and my day job, uses tax incentives.

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Reemergence

Posted on 3 January 2013 by Mika

I’ve finally resumed city-life and will be back to writing again. Considering that I’ve got an enormous pile of desperately-in-need-of-love-and-attention draft posts to start from, any requests with where I should start? Science from a neglected Stargate episode? Tales from conventions? Reviews of more recent scifi?

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Summer Science Program

Posted on 1 January 2013 by Mika

Do you know science-inclined high school students who would love a chance to work themselves into exhaustion this summer? The Summer Science Program teaches physics, mathematics, astronomy, and computer science while setting students on telescopes to monitor and collect data on near-Earth objects. Their observations get submitted into official tracking databases, reducing our risk for planetary annihilation.

SSP Y2K

Orbital Dynamics at SSP.

I was a resident of this program once upon a time and not-so-long ago. Aside from being the first time I was seriously academically challenged (an exhilarating experience!), it also included me in the most amazing alumni network I’ve had the pleasure to join. This is a network based on intelligence, curiosity, and respect, where every few months we get into lively debates over current events in science and technology. The experiences of individuals spanning more than 50 years of programs, scattered around the world, and working in every imaginable field, has been invaluable to me when picking undergraduate and graduate programs, when job-seeking, and when struggling with work-life balances. It’s an open, helpful, supportive community of brilliant people, and I’m give back every chance I get through my own experiences in unusual science careers.

So if you know a high school student looking for a real challenge, applications are open.

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Dragon*Con: Apocalypse Rising

Posted on 20 August 2012 by Mika

I’m visiting the DragonCon Apocalypse Rising Track for two panels on Friday afternoon and Monday morning; check my schedule for the other tracks I’ll be at during DragonCon 2012.

2012: It’s Here

Friday, August 31: 4:00pm-5:00pm
Westin Vinings 1-2, 6th Floor

Our experts attempt to sort fact from fiction as they work to demystify the mythological 2012 – the year the world ends (maybe).

I’ll be joining cryptographer Elonka Dunin and author Elizabeth Donald to indulge in the oh-so-many catastrophe predictions for this year. Debunking disaster hype is one of my favourite pastimes, as is dreaming up all new disaster scenarios, so this panel should really fun!

Related Panels
2012 – Don’t Panic!, Sunday 10:00am in the Hilton Crystal Ballroom, 1st floor

Year Two: What Now?

Monday September 3: 10:00am-11:00am
Westin Vinings 1-2, 6th floor

Civilization has ended and you have survived the first year. Now it’s time to figure out what’s next, and how to live long term.

This panel brings together disaster specialists from a wide slew of paths:
disaster preparation consultant David Harmer knows the processes and procedures while author Nacy L. Holder can dream up disaster scenarios. Nuclear engineer Patrick Mason will ground us in the realities of man-made catastrophes, while I’ll be representing the wrath of Mother Nature in the impacts of large-scale geohazards. Between the four of us, we should have a thought-provoking, rambunctious, and just-possibly-informative discussion on what happens after we’ve settled into a post-apocalyptic world.

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Dragon*Con: Space Track

Posted on 20 August 2012 by Mika

I’m visiting the DragonCon Space Track for one panel on Friday; check my schedule for the other tracks I’ll be at during DragonCon 2012.

To Boldly Go – Where?

Friday, August 31: 11:30am-12:30pm
Hilton 203, 2nd floor

Panel & audience discussion on where our next step into space should be. The Moon? Mars? The Asteriods?

My co-panelists have solid Rocket Scientist credentials to draw on for this panel. Kim Steadman is a long-time scientist with the Cassini-Huygens Mission to Saturn who also worked on the getting rovers safely onto the Martian surface, and A.C. Charania is a specialist at getting things into space with his leadership roles at Generation Orbit Launch Services & SpaceWorks. Not in the program, but certainly on the panel, is academic Stephen Fleming, with an extremely long history of involvement in space policy and venture investments. I’ll be playing the role of Rocket Surgeon on how we’ve explored the “What if?” aspects of space exploration (…and maybe pulling a tiny bit from my days of working science policy in DC for public perceptions of exploration). This should be a lively way to kick off the convention, and I do hope we get some robotics specialists, planetary scientists, and big dreamers from the audience participate!

Fermi Paradox – Where Are Our Cosmic Neighbors?

Monday, September 3: 4:00pm-5:00pm
Hilton 203, 2nd floor

We celebrate our 5th year of Space Track with a fun discussion of THE question – Where IS Everyone? We’ll enjoy LN2 ice cream to say goodbye to 2012

I will not be at this panel! Although I was originally scheduled to be here gossiping about prospective aliens, I need to catch a flight to the West Coast. So go on, enjoy the ice cream, hassle Scott Edgington (JPL planetary scientist), Dr. Pamela L. Gay (astronomy podcaster), and Les Johnson (NASA scientist & fiction author), and let me know how it goes!

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DragonCon: Science Track

Posted on 20 August 2012 by Mika

I’m visiting the DragonCon Science Track for one panel on Sunday; check my schedule for the other tracks I’ll be at during DragonCon 2012.


Disasters Past, Present, and Future – Hear from the Feds

Sunday September 2: 11:30am-12:30pm
Hilton 202, 2nd floor

Ever wonder if the U.S. government is truly prepared to respond to a mass-casualty emergency? What about if 2, 3, or 4 occurred simultaneously?

Kara M. Stephens, Ali S. Khan, and Dave Leroy Daigle of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are experts on zombies. I’m a Master in Disaster, an expert in ways the planet is trying to kill us all. Between us, we spend our lazy Sunday afternoons dreaming up horrible ways for the world to end, then head back to work on Monday morning to try to keep it from happening. This panel is your chance to ask questions about just how bad things can go, what the government has planned, and what you can do to mitigate inevitable catastrophe.

We’re All Doomed, DOOMED!!! Or Are We?

Saturday September 1: 5:30pm-6:30pm
Hilton 202, 2nd floor

What are some real or imagined doomsday scenarios, how dangerous and likely are they? It’s eschatological fun for everyone!

With Matthew Prince Lowry and “others” at this point, it’s going to be similar to the Disasters: Past, Present, and Future panel, but a lot more speculative with the farthest reaches of what can go very, very wrong.

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Dragon*Con: Sci-Fi & Fantasy Literature

Posted on 20 August 2012 by Mika

I’m visiting the DragonCon Sci-Fi & Fantasy Literature Track for one panel on Saturday night; check my schedule for the other tracks I’ll be at during DragonCon 2012.

The Science in Science Fiction

Saturday, September 1: 8:30pm-9:30pm
Hyatt Greenbriar, Conference level

Are they doing it right?

The panel will be talking about the current and potential role of science in scifi literature. My co-panellists are Tedd Roberts, a neuroscientist, and Les Johnson, a NASA rocket scientist and fiction author. I’ll be rounding the panel out as a geophysicist & disaster researcher, and depending how the night goes, contrast how science is used in literature to its role in the entertainment industry.

Related Panels
Hollywood Science: The Process and Results, Friday 5:30pm in the Hilton Crystal Ballroom, 1st floor

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Dragon*Con: Stargate Multiverse Track

Posted on 20 August 2012 by Mika

My home for DragonCon is the DragonCon Stargate Multiverse Track with three panels, one each on Friday, Sunday, and Monday; check my schedule for the other tracks I’ll be visiting during DragonCon 2012.

At the moment, all my talks in the SGMT are going to be discussion panels, so I’m hoping for substantial audience participation to keep me from going hoarse! All of them are part of the mini sub-theme of “Know Your Role.”

Command Decisions: Ethics in SG

Friday, August 31: 5:30pm-6:30pm
Westin International FGH, 6th floor

The SG franchise is rife with ethical dilemmas. Share your thoughts about which decisions were near, on, or across “the line.”

Science fiction is a wonderful space to explore the ethical challenges brought on by changes in technology and society. The entire Stargate franchise embraced the opportunity to experiment with the with possible consequences of changes big and small. SG-1 literally has an episode entitled Shades of Grey debating the choices made in the name of security, every interaction with Atlantis‘s Todd is an exercise in questionable compromises, and Universe‘s premiere immediately hit on a fundamental debate in consequentialist vs deontological morality. So come on down with your favourite philosophical dilemma, gear up with the downright dirty choices our less-than-perfect heroes have made, and join the debate!

Oh, the Humanity! The Doctors of Stargate

Sunday, September 2: 1:00pm-2:00pm
Westin International FGH, 6th Floor

All too often, SG fans endured the losss of a favourite medical officer. Discuss the “who” and “why” regarding doctors and their fates in the shows.

…with just maybe a sigh of loss for Stargate: Universe‘s only geoscientist getting lost into the unknown during the very first episode. Holders of non-medical doctorates are still technically doctors!

Lasers, Zat Guns, and Puddle Jumpers, Oh My!

Monday, September 3: 1:00pm-2:00pm
Westin International FGH, 6th floor

How does Stargate physics keep it real? Knock heads with science minds and find out!

Of all the places I’m going during DragonCon, this panel is why I’m here. I worked as the Stargate Rocket Surgeon for SGA & SGU, and as you might pick up from previous interviews (fan Q&A, Physics Today, S&EE), I loved creating the science behind our geniuses. I’ll start off with a bit of storytime, and then it’s an open Q&A on anything from teaching our actors to write Greek variables, what exactly Eli & McKay were arguing, to the practicalities of bring science into fiction.

WARNING: This is my last panel for DragonCon 2012, and I’m going to need to dash off pretty quick afterwards to make my flight. If you want to catch me for an extended chat, I highly recommend going to any of my other panels, or looking for me before this one starts!

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Dragon*Con: Schedule

Posted on 3 August 2012 by Mika

I’ll be at Dragon*Con in Atlanta on Labor Day weekend. Although my schedule is still subject to change along with the rest of the convention, it looks like you can find me at 8 panels on 5 tracks in 4 days:

Friday, August 31
11:30am-12:30am, 203 Hilton: Space “To Boldly Go – Where?”
4pm-5pm, Vinings 1-2 Westin: Apocalypse Rising “2012: It’s Here”
5:30pm-6:30pm, International FGH Westin: Stargate Multiverse “Command Decisions: Ethics in SG”

Saturday, September 1st
5:30pm-6:30pm, 202 Hilton: Science “We’re All Doomed, DOOMED!!! Or Are We?”
8:30pm-9:30pm, Greenbriar Hyatt: Science Fiction & Fantasy Literature “The Science in Science Fiction”

Sunday, September 2nd
11:30am-12:30pm, 202 Hilton: Science “Disasters Past, Present, and Future – Hear from the Feds”
1pm-2pm, International FGH Westin: Stargate Multiverse “Oh, the Humanity! The Doctors of Stargate”

Monday, September 3rd
10am-11am, Vinings 1-2 Westin: Apocalypse Rising “Year Two: What Now?”
1pm-2pm, International FGH Westin: Stargate Multiverse “Lasers, Zat Guns, and Puddle Jumpers, Oh My!”
4pm-5pm, 203 Hilton, Space “Fermi Paradox – Where Are Our Cosmic Neighbors?” (Sorry, I have a flight to catch!)

All this information is also listed in the Dragon*Con mobile application under Performers/Presenters > Mika McKinnon.

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