Home
QR Code

Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland 20771

ENGINEERING COLLOQUIUM

Monday, May 22, 2017 / 3:45 PM, Building 8 Auditorium
Start time is 3:45 PM, 15 minutes later than usual.

Margaret Weitekamp

"Scientists and Engineers in 'The Big Bang Theory'"

photo of Margaret Weitekamp

ABSTRACT -- Do you watch The Big Bang Theory? Come hear Dr. Margaret Weitekamp, curator for the Social and Cultural History of Spaceflight at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, talk about the show’s depictions of scientists and engineers in this popular television comedy. Weitekamp argues that one hallmark of the show has been its authenticity: it gets the science (and the science fiction fan references) largely right. As a result, The Big Bang Theory has attracted cameo appearances from a number of prominent real-life scientists and media stars.

How should The Big Bang Theory be understood in terms of popular perceptions of scientists? And how does it relate to broader stereotypes of the "nerd" or the literary "mad scientist"? This Engineering Colloquium talk will offer a fresh look at a popular television program in which geek has become chic.

SPEAKER -- Margaret A. Weitekamp, Ph.D. , is a curator in the Space History department at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum. She oversees the collection of more than 4500 pieces of space and science fiction memorabilia, including the 11-foot model of the the USS Enterprise from Star Trek, Original Series. The collection includes such everyday objects as toys, games, clothing, and medals, as well as comics and trading cards. She worked on the Museum's Moving Beyond Earth exhibit and is lead space history curator for the Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall.

Her book Right Stuff, Wrong Sex: America's First Women in Space Program won the Eugene M. Emme Award for Astronautical Literature from the American Astronautical Society. Her published articles include topics such as Apollo 11 commemorative medals, Lt. Uhura, and Space Shuttle toys. Pluto's Secret: An Icy World's Tale of Discovery, her book for young readers, was co-written with David DeVorkin and illustrated by Diane Kidd. She is working on a history of space memorabilia.

She earned a B.A. at the University of Pittsburgh and a Ph.D. at Cornell University. She spent a year at the NASA Headquarters History Office as American Historical Association/NASA Aerospace History Fellow. She also taught in the Women's Studies Program at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York. She lives in Burke, Virginia with her husband, Kevin Days, and their three children.


Next Week: No colloquium, Memorial Day. Seen you in the fall!
Engineering Colloquium home page: https://ecolloq.gsfc.nasa.gov