Science On Tap 7/23 In PDX: Doctors By Nature: How Ants, Apes, & Other Animals Heal Themselves (Photo) -07/02/25

Date: Wed, July 23, 2025

Time: 7 pm

Location: Alberta Rose Theatre

Tickets: $15-$45

Event Website: scienceontaporwa.org/events/alberta_july_23_doctors_by_nature/

The astonishing story of how animals use medicine and what it can teach us about healing ourselves.

 

Ages before the dawn of modern medicine, wild animals were harnessing the power of nature’s pharmacy to heal themselves. Animals of all kinds—from ants to apes, from bees to bears, and from cats to caterpillars—use various forms of medicine to treat their own ailments and those of their relatives.

 

Meet apes that swallow leaves to dislodge worms, sparrows that use cigarette butts to repel parasites, and bees that incorporate sticky resin into their hives to combat pathogens. De Roode asks whether these astonishing behaviors are learned or innate and explains why, now more than ever, we need to apply the lessons from medicating animals—it can pave the way for healthier livestock, more sustainable habitats for wild pollinators, and a host of other benefits.

 

Doctors by Nature explores how scientists are turning to the medical knowledge of the animal kingdom to improve agriculture, create better lives for our pets, and develop new pharmaceutical drugs.

 

Get 15% OFF the ticket AND book by selecting the Book/Ticket Combo option at checkout.

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Science on Tap is a science lecture series where you can sit back, drink a pint, and enjoy learning. Listen to experts talk about the science in your neighborhood and around the world. You don't have to be a science geek to have fun--all you need is a thirst for knowledge! For more information on this event or about Science on Tap, visit Science on Tap OR WA.

Science On Tap 7/9 In Vancouver: Sex Is A Spectrum: The Biological Limits Of The Binary (Photo) -06/24/25

Date: Wed, August 25th, 2025

Time: 7 pm

Location: Kiggins Theatre Vancouver, Wa

Tickets: $15-$45

Event Website:https://www.scienceontaporwa.org/events/kiggins_jul_9_sex-spectrum/

 

When it comes to variation within the sexes, binary thinking is just bad science.

 

Agustín Fuentes debunks common myths about male brains vs. female brains (no such thing) and explains why pharmaceutical research and medical care would be well-served to pay closer attention to the biological differences among men and women, as overly simplistic thinking can negatively skew dosage recommendations and impact diagnosis of, and care for, common afflictions, such as cardiovascular disease, as well as medical procedures like organ transplants.

 

Hear the case that ideas about what a man or woman “should look like” are the product of culture, not biology. Indeed, traits that we think are inherently male or female – body hair, breast tissue – are not limited to one sex. And a close focus on hormones doesn’t always tell the full story either.

 

Fossil and archaeological records reveal the diversity of our ancestors’ sexual bonds, gender roles, and family and community structures, showing how the same holds true in the lived experiences of people today.

 

Agustín Fuentes PHD is a well versed and charismatic science communicator, a contributor to Nature, Scientific American, and American Scientist, among other publications. He is the author of Race, Monogamy, and Other Lies They Told You and many others, as well as Professor of Anthropology at Princeton.

 

Get 15% off a ticket AND the book! Select the book/ticket combo upon checkout.

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Science on Tap is a science lecture series where you can sit back, drink a pint, and enjoy learning. Listen to experts talk about the science in your neighborhood and around the world. You don't have to be a science geek to have fun--all you need is a thirst for knowledge! For more information on this event or about Science on Tap, visit Science on Tap OR WA.