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2016 SUMMIT SESSIONS

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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20

Roundtable Networking Breakfast
Sponsored by HHMI Tangled Bank Studios

8:30-9:30 AM, Yawkey Atrium
Join our fourteen SMASH Fellows for a structured roundtable networking breakfast. This pre-SMASH event is a chance for delegates to meet the Fellows, and strategize for three days packed with meaningful a week of networking and engagement! If you have signed on to be a mentor for more extended involvement, this will be your official first meet-up.

​SESSION 1: 9:30 - 10:30
Opening Keynote: 

Paula Apsell talks with Joi Ito
Sponsored by Panasonic ​
Poised to lead the MIT Media Lab into its fourth decade of disruptive innovation, self-described “now-ist” Joi Ito has operated at the bleeding edge of culture and technology since the dawn of the internet age. Paula Apsell, Senior Executive Producer of NOVA, leads a provocative discussion exploring the evolving role of media in our digital culture—with a look toward envisioning what the future may hold. This session will be live-streamed on Facebook.
Session Producer: Pamela Rosenstein, NOVA/WGBH

SESSION 2: 11:00 - 12:00
Online Video Revolution = Science Programming Disruption
The online video revolution is accelerating, and creating fundamental challenges for producers and networks. Peter Katsingris, SVP/Audience Insights presents Nielsen's latest findings on how Americans consume media today. DocumentaryTelevision.com’s Peter Hamilton moderates a conversation with leading network executives, distributors and producers about how this big picture analysis shapes their decisions about which science projects to develop and green light.  
Produced and Moderated by: Peter Hamilton, DocumentaryTelevision.com​
Peter Katsingris, Nielsen 

​Networking Lunch
Sponsored by Nature/WNET & PBS
​12:00 - 1:30, Yawkey Atrium


SESSION 3: 1:30 - 2:30
Breaking Science: In the News

We are in the midst of a revolution in the real-time transfer of information. From A.I. to Zika and everything in between, breakthroughs in science and technology captivate audiences around the globe almost instantly. Revisiting the most important science news stories of the past two years: how effectively did we tell them and what did we miss?  
Session Producer: Suzanne Tobias, Miles O’Brien Productions
Miles O'Brien (Moderator), Miles O'Brien Productions
Deborah Blum, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
David Ropeik, Ropeik Associates 


SESSION 4: 3:00 - 4:00
Experiential Media and Immersive Storytelling

From virtual reality to crowd-sourced science to games, interactive media has deep reach and measurable impact. What transforms audiences from passive observers to active participants and what actually works in this realm to elevate science literacy? This session takes a hard look at the science behind science engagement in this rapidly-morphing sector.
Session Producer & Moderator: John Fraser, New Knowledge, Inc.
Anthony Geffen, Atlantic Productions and Alchemy VR
Kurt Squire, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Peggy Wu, Smart Information Flow Technologies 
Albert Yu-Min Lin, Planet3


SESSION 5: 4:30 - 5:30
Idea Salon - Precision Food
Sponsored by HHMI Tangled Bank Studios

Cooking has long been considered more of an art than a science. But now a suite of empirical methods and high-tech tools are muscling in. From parametrically tested recipes to genetically engineered flavors to the nuances of fermentation, science and engineering have turned up the heat in the kitchen.
Session Producers: John Rubin & Anne Tarrant, HHMI Tangled Bank Studios
Michael Brenner (Moderator), Harvard University
Christina Agapakis, Ginkgo Bioworks 
Will Meyers, Cambridge Brewing Company

Dan Souza, Cook's Science 
Ben Wolfe, Tufts University


SMASH Opening Night Reception: Immerse Yourself
Sponsored by National Geographic and Terra Mater Film Studios 
Here’s your chance to experience first-hand the power of being inside an unfolding story in the world of virtual experience, with an evening of hands-on demos with some of the year’s most compelling Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality and interactive games and apps.
5:30 (Yawkey Atrium): Reception & VR Demos
6:00 (Fraser Studio): Bill Grant Memorial 

7:00 (Yawkey Theater): Terra Mater & Red Bull sneak preview: Mind Gamers 
Terra Mater Film Studios will present an exclusive sneak peak of Mind Gamers, their upcoming grounded science-fiction thriller and its unique trans-media story world—created in close collaboration with MIT Game Lab for Red Bull Mind Gamers MISSION:UNLOCK ENOCH gaming championship.
8:00 (Yawkey Theater): National Geographic Premiere Screening: Continent 7—Antarctica 
Antarctica is the harshest place on Earth. The temperature drops to more than 100 degrees below zero, winds gust over 200mph, crevasses big enough to swallow trucks hide beneath a thin sheet of snow, storms bury entire buildings in snow and ice, and despite all that frozen water, the air is as dry as the Sahara in places. It’s a place where humans aren’t meant to survive. Yet… there is a community rugged individuals whose work puts them in the path of all these challenges. They make this place hospitable, and not just for themselves, but for others. These scientists and the community play a vital role in many urgent fields of science, from climate change to studies of glacier movement, active volcanoes and the search and tagging of marine megafauna that calls this ice home.

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21

Roundtable Networking Breakfast
Sponsored by National Geographic Society

8:30-9:30 AM, Yawkey Atrium
Seasoned industry veterans join our inaugural class of SMASH Fellows for frank roundtable conversations and a continued opportunity  for networking and engagement!

SESSION 6: 9:30 - 10:30
Idea Salon - Being Human

Some scientific discoveries radically alter our sense of self. Neuroscience has started to unveil the mystery of our memories and emotions. Advances in synthetic biology and gene editing techniques may soon force us to reckon with the fundamental blueprints of humanity and our nascent understanding of the microbiome reveals just how little we know about the intricate balance of our own basic physiology. In this session, we’ll explore recent discoveries that are changing our understanding of ourselves.
Session Producer & Moderator: Graham Townsley, Shining Red Productions
Heather Berlin, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
James J. Collins, Massachusetts Institute of Technology 
Steve Ramirez, Harvard University


SESSION 7:  11:00 - 12:00
Idea Salon - Bringing Big Data to Life

By 2020 We will have generated 44 zettabytes of data—just one zettabyte is equivalent to one trillion gigabytes! But all of this data is value free without the people who search for meaning in its unfathomable depths.  From viruses on your personal computer, to predicting terrorism and pandemics and into glorious visions of galaxies beyond earth, join three new world explorers as they bring Big Data to life.   
Session Producer & Moderator: Ruth Berry, Terra Mater Factual Studios
Kim Arcand, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
Yaneer Bar-Yam, New England Complex Systems Institute
V.S. Subrahmanian, Professor, University of Maryland


Networking Lunch
Sponsored by PBS Distribution
12:00 - 1:30, Yawkey Atrium

SESSION 8: 1:30 - 2:30
Beyond Clickbait: Creating Smart, Strategic & Irresistible Online Content
Facebook Live. Snapchat. Instagram. The list of content distribution platforms is only getting bigger. In this ambitious session we’ll meet some of the science producers experimenting on the frontiers of digital storytelling. Using detailed analytics to understand their audiences and inform their narrative strategies, can they uphold the editorial standards so vital to science communication? Viral content doesn’t have to be clickbait to be compelling. This session will be live-streamed on Facebook.
Session Producer & Moderator, Anna Rothschild, WGBH
Erin Chapman, American Museum of Natural History
Joe Hanson,  PBS Digital Studios 
James Williams, VP of Digital Video for National Geographic Partners


SESSION 9: 3:00 - 4:00
Scientists Taking a Stand
Science should inform our responses to big challenges, such as a rapidly changing planet, the demands of a growing population, and dramatic economic inequality. Few scientists disagree. Yet many scientists remain above the fray. To what extent should scientists “take a stand,” and how can they work with communicators -- like filmmakers -- to do it? This panel features veteran scientists and communicators with a range of perspectives and experiences on the questions of whether, why, and how scientists should take a stand.
Session Producers: Nate Dappen and Neil Losin, Day’s Edge Productions
Session Moderator: Neil Losin, Day's Edge Productions
Sean B. Carroll, Howard Hughes Medical Institute

​Chris Filardi, Conservation International
Jared Lipworth, Independent Producer

Sonya Pemberton, Genepool Productions


SESSION 10: 4:30 - 5:30
Idea Salon - EUREKA! 
Sponsored by Panasonic 

Session Moderator: Kirk Johnson, Smithsonian Museum of Natural History
A look at “game changing” discoveries and technological innovation just beyond the horizon, in a session designed to surprise!
Session Producer: Sarah Goforth, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
Session Moderator: Kirk Johnson, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
Robbert Dijkgraaf, Director and Leon Levy Professor, Institute for Advanced Study
Nancy Kanwisher, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Doug Owsley, Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History
Sara Seager, Massachusetts Institute of Technology


Jackson Hole Science Media Awards Gala Celebration
Sponsored by Jackson Hole WILD with Sony Electronics
Harvard Art Museum, 6:00 - 10:00

5:30: Buses begin leaving WGBH for Harvard Art Museum.
6:00 - 7:00: Strolling Dinner
7:30 - 9:00: Awards Ceremony
9:00 - 9:30: After Celebration & Champagne Toast
Emcees: Brooke Runnette, National Geographic Society 
Kirk Johnson, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History


THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22

SESSION 11: 9:30 - 10:30
The Sound of Science

As it turns out, in science storytelling, a picture may not be worth a thousand words. Some of the most compelling and timely science media is delivered in audio-only podcast or radio. And the medium is only growing in popularity: audiences in the MILLIONS are getting initial exposure to science stories through radio/podcast. This session examines the challenges and opportunities of an audio-only medium when it comes to complex scientific topics. Join us as we tune into the sound of science.  
Session Producer: Nathan Tobey, Nathan Tobey Consulting 
Session Moderator: Ari Daniel, NOVA
Adam Cole, National Public Radio
​Mary Harris, New York Public Radio 

Genevieve Sponsler, Public Radio Exchange


SESSION 12: 11:00 - 12:00
Closing Keynote:

Marco Werman talks with Richard Wrangham and Steven Pinker
Sponsored by HHMI Tangled Bank Studios
More than at any point in history, media today has the power to break down cultural barriers and forge a sense of interconnectedness across the planet. At the same time, it can be used as a tool to incite violence, evidenced by the terrifying new dimensions of terrorism and crime. But, what does the future hold? Can society shed the mantle of our ancestors to forge a more peaceful future or is violence hard-wired into our DNA? Marco Werman interviews two of our generation’s most incisive thinkers on this subject. This session will be live-streamed on Facebook, and edited for later distribution as a segment on PRI’s The World.
Session Producer: Andrew Sussman, The World
Moderator: Marco Werman, Public Radio International and BBC
Steven Pinker, Harvard University 
Richard Wrangham, Harvard University


SESSION 13:  12:00 - 1:30
Wrapping Things Up: A Lunchtime Dialogue
Sponsored by Discovery
Yawkey Atrium
Considering twelve provocative sessions to last night’s awards--and all the conversations in between--we’ve covered a lot over the past few days. What are the big takeaways and surprising revelations? Join a frank and interactive discussion that will lay the groundwork for continuing the conversation in Jackson Hole next year, and at SMASH18.
Brian Leith (Moderator), Brian Leith Productions
Michael Rosenfeld, Twin Cities PBS


SESSION 14: 2:00 - 3:00 
Using Science to Sculpt Science Filmmaking
Sponsored by HHMI Tangled Bank Studios
Can science’s distinctive methods for enlarging knowledge be used to increase our understanding of how to make engaging films about science? This session will feature results from an ongoing series of studies on the “science of science filmmaking” being conducted by the Yale Cultural Cognition Project and HHMI Tangled Bank Studios. The presenters will demonstrate how the project’s “science curiosity scale” can be used to evaluate the engagement of culturally diverse audiences with films on controversial topics like human evolution and climate change. Can curiosity be an antidote to biased thinking about science, and if so, how can it be triggered?
Session Moderator: Katie Carpenter, Executive Director, Evidence-Based Science Communication Initiative, Yale Law School
Laura Helft, Senior Manager for Public Outreach and Evaluation, HHMI Tangled Bank Studios

Dan Kahan, Elizabeth K. Dollard Professor of law at Yale Law School

3:00
Special SMASH Tour of the Harvard Natural History Museum


Public Forum: Survival
Yawkey Theater, 6:30pm
Join SMASH16, NOVA and the Leakey Foundation for tonight’s public forum: Survival, featuring
Ruth DeFries, Daniel Lieberman, Stuart Pimm, Steven Pinker, Pardis Sabeti, Dan Schrag, and Richard Wrangham. Please contact kathryn@jhfestival.org if you are interested in attending.
Yawkey Theater, 6:30pm
Conference WiFi:
WGBH-Event
password: WGBH-Event
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2016 Science Media Summit Guide
Read Q&A's with all of our finalists, learn more about SMASH programming and more!

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