BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Memento EPFL//
BEGIN:VEVENT
SUMMARY:MechE Colloquium: The Image Forming Mirror in the Eye of the Scall
 op
DTSTART:20171024T121500
DTEND:20171024T131500
DTSTAMP:20260510T165012Z
UID:03ad8bf96f234ec0eeda587a18bed070c85d1538bd34876850667d2c
CATEGORIES:Conferences - Seminars
DESCRIPTION:Dr. Benjamin Palmer\, Weizmann Institute of Science\nAbstract:
 \nOrganic crystals are found in many photonic systems in nature\, where th
 ey are used to produce an extraordinary array of optical phenomena from th
 e white color in certain spiders\, to the silvery reflectance of fish scal
 es and the brilliant iridescent colors of planktonic crustaceans and tropi
 cal fish. Organisms are able to manipulate the optical properties of such 
 systems "simply" by varying the size\, morphology\, and arrangement of the
  crystals. Here we discuss how optically-functional organic crystals are u
 sed to produce images in two of Nature’s most spectacular visual systems
  – the eyes of scallops and shrimp.\n\nBio:\nDr. Benjamin Palmer studied
  chemistry as an undergraduate at Cardiff University and continued there f
 or a Ph.D. with Prof. Kenneth Harris. Dr. Palmer’s Ph.D. focused on fund
 amental studies of the interaction of polarized X-rays with materials (the
  phenomena of X-ray birefringence and X-ray dichroism). This work led to t
 he development of the X-ray Birefringence Imaging (XBI) technique. Followi
 ng a short postdoc at Swansea University he moved to the Weizmann Institut
 e in 2014. From 2014 to 2015\, he was a Dean of Faculty and Koshland Prize
  Fellow\, followed by a Cross-Disciplinary Human Frontiers Fellowship. Dr.
  Palmer is currently interested in how organisms make and use organic crys
 tals to manipulate light for different optical functions (the field of ‘
 organic biomineralization’)\, with a particular focus on visual systems 
 based on reflective rather than refractive optics.
LOCATION:MED 0 1418 https://plan.epfl.ch/?room==MED%200%201418
STATUS:CONFIRMED
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR