Past Colloquia
Mind the Gap: The far-infrared gap and Canadian milestones on the Far-Infrared astrophysical roadmap
Cody Hall
Prof. Locke Spencer, University of Lethbridge
October 11, 2023
2:00pm - 3:00pm
Abstract: Over half of the energy emitted by the Universe appears in the relatively unexplored Far-Infrared (Far-IR) spectral region, which is virtually opaque from the ground and must be observed by space-borne instrumentation. The dominant limiting factor of many current open questions in astrophysics is…
The Quantitative Reasoning Skills and Numerical Affect of Astronomy Students
Cody Hall
Kate Follette, Amherst College
October 04, 2023
2:00pm - 3:00pm
Much of the dialogue surrounding effective pedagogy for college-level general education astronomy courses has been focused on how best to engender “science literacy”, yet students cannot be scientifically literate without also being quantitatively literate. Basic numerical skills such as graph reading, proportional reasoning, and estimation are tools that…
From Pixels to Parameters
Cody Hall
Prof. Stephen Portillo, Concordia University
September 27, 2023
2:00pm - 3:00pm
Much of astronomy uses pixelized data, but the size and complexity of these data often strain the capability of existing data analysis techniques. I will present algorithms built on advances in statistics and machine learning that allow more science to be done with the same…
U of T Astronomy Jamboree
BA 1130
Various Speakers from UofT Astro Units
September 20, 2023
2:00pm - 4:00pm
More information coming soon.
Transcending the Limits of Astrostatistics with Machine Learning Methods
Virtual Colloquium
Yuan-Sen Ting, Australian National University
April 11, 2023
9:00 am - 10:00am
Astronomy has undergone a profound transformation in recent years, as the acquisition of ever-growing amounts of data through increasingly powerful instruments has opened up a wealth of new avenues of exploration. However, this boon is not without its own set of challenges, as astronomical observations…
Astro Colloquium: Witnessing the Universe with ACT
Cody Hall
Suzanne Staggs
March 29, 2023
3:00pm - 4:00pm
The Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) made measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) for fifteen years, with a series of three cameras. ACT was designed to complement Planck, the latest and most sensitive CMB satellite. To compete with the powerful data set provided from a …
DADDAA Faculty Search: “Atomic Gas in Nearby Galaxies as a Cosmological Probe”
AB88
Dr. Kristine Spekkens
March 28, 2023
2:00pm - 3:30pm
The atomic gas (HI) content of nearby galaxies provides important insight into how they form and evolve within the standard cosmology. In this talk, I will highlight some of my group’s recent progress towards building statistical samples of HI detections for nearby galaxies to use…
Astro Colloquium: The formation of galaxies and supermassive black holes. Early results from JWST.
Cody Hall
Prof. Tommaso Treu, UCLA
March 22, 2023
3:00pm - 4:00pm
In just a few months, JWST has revolutionized our understanding of the universe. Its unprecedented sensitivity and angular resolution have given us a new view of the cosmos, enabling new discoveries in many areas of astronomy. I will describe first results from my GLASS-JWST Early…
Astro Colloquium: Fast flares and furious transients: exploring the deep, high-speed sky
Cody Hall
Nick Law
March 15, 2023
3:00pm - 4:00pm
Current sky-survey telescopes’ limited fields of view hinder the rapid detection of rare fast events, including superflares capable of rendering exoplanets uninhabitable, fast stellar dips from Oort-cloud occultations, and electromagnetic counterparts to gravitational waves. I will discuss the impacts of stellar superflares on planet habitability…
DADDAA Faculty Search: “From Blips to Bits: FRB cosmology, Radio Cameras, and Astroinformatics”
UC179
Dr. Liam Connor
March 09, 2023
2:00pm - 3:30pm
Modern radio telescopes have seen tremendous gains in sensitivity, field of view, and frequency bandwidth, thanks largely to advances in signal processing. This has allowed us to uncover entirely new source classes, such as fast radio bursts (FRBs). Beyond the mystery of their origin, FRBs…