UCSB Research Talks Reopen to the Public

Despite the absence of students flooding lecture halls, UCSB still offers plenty of academic events in the summer, including the “Groundbreaking Research/Innovative Technology,” or GRIT Talks lecture series. The talks are hosted at Campbell Hall every Monday and Wednesday starting at 5:30 p.m. The talks will continue until July 24 and are professionally filmed for global distribution on UCTV starting in the fall. 

Each summer, notable faculty are invited to share their expertise in research and the ongoing impact of their work. This year’s talks feature faculty from a variety of academic departments including Mechanical Engineering, Philosophy, and Materials. Each talk is 28 minutes, followed by a half-hour Q&A session where attendees can engage with the presenters through microphones set up near the front of the lecture hall.

For the first time since 2020, this series will be open to the public and audience members are encouraged to ask questions about the speakers’ research and ongoing work on campus. Organized by UCSB’s Office of Summer Sessions, Director of Academic Programs Lina Kim told the Independent, “We are so excited to once again share with our community and the world the exciting research our faculty are conducting at UC Santa Barbara.”

Pre-college high school students participating in the Research Mentorship Program (RMP) and Summer Research Academies (SRA) will also be attending the event alongside the public. Both highly selective and intensive research programs give students the opportunity to engage with ongoing research on campus and their eager rush during the Q&A session speaks to the students’ excitement to ask questions. It is advised that guest attendees arrive early enough to find a seat amidst the eager sea of students. 

“We want to showcase how our researchers are pushing boundaries in interdisciplinary fields and changing lives through innovative advances,” Kim said.

The next GRIT Talk on July 15 will dive into the philosophy and pragmatism research of Aaron Zimmerman. The following talks will cover an anthropological perspective on the U-shaped Happiness Curve by Michael Gurven on July 17 and a discussion on AI and security by Christopher Kruegel to close out the series on July 24.

Doors open around 5:15 p.m. and close at 5:30 p.m for filming. The complete list of speakers, their departments, and their talk titles can be found here.