The Broad Institute’s Midsummer Nights’ Science is hugely popular. If you haven’t been able to make it, they’ve already got a video up on the first session– this one is on microfluids.

You can catch the last two live. Or stay tuned to their YouTube site.

Wednesday, July 25th, 6-7pm Regeneration of missing body parts: lessons from flatworms Peter Reddien, Ph.D.
The ability of some animals to regrow missing body parts following injury is one of the great mysteries of biology. Planarians are flatworms that can regenerate new heads, or any other body part, in about a week. Peter Reddien will discuss the fundamentals of planarian regeneration, and new findings that are critical for understanding their dramatic regenerative feats.

Wednesday, August 1st, 6-7pm Harnessing genomics to decipher fundamental differences Stacey Gabriel, Ph.D.

Since the days of the Human Genome Project, the Broad’s Genomics Platform has harnessed DNA sequencing and genotyping technologies to illuminate similarities and differences in the strings of As, Ts, Gs & Cs found in different cells, organisms, and species. Stacey Gabriel will discuss the implications of using these techniques to compare DNA from cancerous cells to normal cells, from one person to another, and from humans to other animals.