Dr. Zdilla at Philadelphia Nerd Nite Cafe

On Feb 8, 2012, Dr. Zdilla presented a talk for the Philadelphia Nerd Nite Cafe, an entertaining evening of talks for enthusiasts of science and other "nerdy" topics. The following blurb was taken from the Nerd Nite Cafe website

"Chemistry and energy. From alternative fuel to blowing sh*t up" by Mike Zdilla

Chemistry was once about mixing substances and changing them into other things, but this is not the case today. Perhaps with the exception of drug discovery, most every facet of chemistry today is concerned with energy. From food to fuel to batteries to bombs, chemists are concerned with storing and using energy. A talk highlighting usage and transformations of chemical energy will be presented, with a focus on the oft overlooked role of the inorganic elements. The talk will include chemical demonstrations, and a live musical performance.

Mike Zdilla is a professor of Inorganic Chemistry at Temple University. His focus is inorganic chemistry, which means the study of the chemical elements that usually get ignored by the more popular yuppie elements (I'm talkin' to you, carbon oxygen and hydrogen). He teaches courses on inorganic chemistry, metals in biology, and crystallography. He has a wife who is an English and literacy educator, and who indulges his love of all things nerdular, and a 2 year old son who loves letters like his Mom, but whom Mike hopes to convert to his own camp in time.

The talk covered chemical energy in its various forms with a focus on Photosystem II, and included chemical demonstrations, including the thermite reaction, detonation of a hydrogen baloon, and a liquid nitrogen demonstration, and a musical performance. The powerpoint slides may be downloaded here.