MARION — One local university is sponsoring a monthly discussion on science to engage the Marion community.
The Ohio State University at Marion’s Science Cafe is a monthly event that has been going on for more than two years. Each month, the college brings in a different expert to talk about science topics that range from health to technology to geology and beyond.
“It is outreach and engagement with the community,” said Wayne Rowe, Director of Marketing and Communications at OSUM. “Science Cafe brings the discussion of science to everyone; it makes it accessible.”
Science Cafes are lively events that take place in casual setting, such as pubs and coffee houses, and are open to everyone, according to sciencecafes.org.
OSUM was the second college in Ohio to promote and host this international phenomenon, Rowe said. The first school was Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.
There are now science cafes in Findlay, Dayton, Columbus, Cincinnati and Athens.
Today’s Science Cafe is a discussion titled “Teeth, Jaws and Claws: The carnivorous dinosaurs and why birds are dinosaurs.” The discussion will be led by Dale Gnidovec, curator of the Orton Geological Museum at The Ohio State University.
The event will be at 7 p.m. at Marion’s Infinity Restaurant, 267 West Center Street.
An OSUM media release states that nearly 1,000 species of dinosaurs have been discovered, and about one quarter of those are carnivorous.
“From the puny velociraptor to the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex, this science cafe looks at the tremendous variety of theropods (carnivores),” it states.
“While most dinosaurs became extinct 65 million years ago, one small group of the theropod family tree survived. We call them birds. Come and learn why birds are dinosaurs.”
For information on the Science Cafes, visit http://osumarion.osu.edu/ sciencecafe or email OSUM professor of mathematics Dr. Brian McEnnis at mcennis.1@osu.edu.