CPS Seminars on Capitol Hill

The Coalition for Plasma Science (CPS) organizes lunch-time seminars for Washington, DC Congressional staff (and the occasional member), covering a range of plasma science and applications, as part of its effort to inform a wide audience how plasma affects their lives. The talks, held in House facilities such as the Science and Technology Committee rooms, range in topics from plasma science (high density plasmas, the origins of magnetism), to present applications (plasma displays, computer chip fabrication), and to applications under development (fusion, medicine). Presentations have also focused on the spectacular displays of plasma in auroras, solar flares and lightning. A memorable talk, at least for Washington D. C. residents, was titled ``What You Don't Know About Lightning Might Hurt You,'' and featured in its announcement an actual photo of lightning striking the Washington Monument. The broad topic of plasma has been covered through talks about how plasmas can be used to teach hands-on science, and about ``The State of the Universe'' (presented the same week as the State of the Union address). If you know of a dynamic speaker and a ``cool'' plasma topic, let us know.