We will hold the 8th ELSI Annual Public Lecture as follows.
Date and Time: 4th (Tue.), Feb., 2020
19:00- 20:30 (Doors open at 18:30)
Title: Extremophiles -Enchanted by Mystery of Life-
Venue: Digital Hall, Tokyo Institute of Technology
(Ookayama station, Tokyu Line, 3 min. walk)
Sponsor: The Earth-Life Science Institute(ELSI), Tokyo Tech
Lecturers: Prof. Ryuhei Nakamura (ELSI, Tokyo Institute of Technology)
Prof. Toshiko Ichiye (Georgetown University)
Language: Japanese/English (Simultaneous Interpretation)
Fee: Free (Prior Registration Required: first 350 people)
Deadline: 2nd (Sun.), Feb., 2020 (*We will close application once all the places are taken.)
Registration: https://elsi-public-lecture-20200204.peatix.com/
Inquiry: pr@elsi.jp
Lecture 1
Title: Deep-Sea Battery -Seeking the Riddle of Origin of Life-
Lecturer: Ryuhei Nakamura (ELSI, Tokyo Institute of Technology)
Abstract:
In recent years, we detected massive flows of electrical current at the hydrothermal vents on the deep ocean floor. This naturally generating electrical current supports microbial life in present day, and may have supported the creation of early life. In this presentation, I will present our over-10-years research for understanding how deep-sea electric currents may have provided the spark for the origin of life on Earth.
Bio.:
Ryuhei Nakamura studied electrochemistry at Osaka University and obtained his doctoral Degree in Science in 2005. He has worked at RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Center (CSRS) from 2013, and Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI), Tokyo Institute of Technology from 2017. Based on the discovery of electricity generation at deep-sea hydrothermal vents, he has been researching how electric currents may have provided the spark for the origin of life on Earth.
Lecture 2
Title: The Mystery of Life in Extreme Environments: A Molecular Viewpoint
Lecturer: Toshiko Ichiye (Georgetown University)
Abstract:
Life has been found flourishing at amazing extremes of temperature and pressure, such as above the boiling point of water or over a thousand times atmospheric pressure. At a cellular level, “extremophiles”, organisms that live in extreme conditions, are composed of surprisingly similar proteins, nucleic acids, and membranes as “mesophiles”, organisms that live in normal conditions. Our biophysical studies of proteins are revealing the mechanisms that extremophiles use to adapt to living in extreme environments.
Bio.:
Professor Ichiye has a B.A. in Physics from Rice University and a Ph.D. in Biophysics from Harvard University under Martin Karplus. She did postdoctoral work in theoretical chemistry with David Chandler and Anthony Haymet at the University of California at Berkeley. She was assistant to full professor in the Department of Biochemistry/Biophysics at Washington State University. In 2003, she moved to Georgetown University as the William G. McGowan Professor of Chemistry.
Route Map:
Flyer of the event:
(Please click the image to download the PDF file.)
