Like a phoenix from the ashes, like Spring after a cold Winter, like a Tribble you thought you got rid of,, WE ARE BACK!

3 amazing speakers for your elucidation TODAY!!! Tuesday March 10 at our usual home, The Thirsty Scholar! This event’s lineup includes…….(Tix link below)

Caroline Arbuckle: Magic, Mummies, Curses, and Carpenters: The Truly Fascinating Study of Ancient Egyptian Coffins

Jeff O’Brien: The Screaming Woman (and other stories)

Andres Posso-Terranova: Naming poison frogs before they die: a surprisingly complicated hobby

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/saskatoon-nerdnite-6-tickets-1983461981179?aff=oddtdtcreator

Caroline Arbuckle: Hollywood has an interesting way of depicting coffins from ancient Egypt. Often they are shown as part of a cursed prison, filled with spikes or flesh-eating beetles, used to magically torture the souls of evil priests or scantily wrapped priestesses. When the treasure hunters masquerading as archaeologists disturb these ornate, ghastly objects, they inevitably release a partially decayed, reanimated corpse who seeks to lash out irrationally at these misguided American or European idiots. The true stories of these artefacts, is arguably, much more interesting. The coffin was indeed a magical vessel. The carpenters who made them wove spells, sacred timbers, and protective paints into their construction. Coffins protected the body and the BA and KA, aspects of the soul, on their journey to the afterlife.

In this talk, Dr. Caroline Arbuckle will demystify these objects, and share insights from her research on Egyptian coffins and the carpenters who made them. This tells a very different story of the ancient world, but one no less full of magic and people struggling to prepare themselves for death.

Dr. Caroline Arbuckle MacLeod is Assistant Professor of Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology at St Thomas More College and the University of Saskatchewan. She studies the archaeology of wood and working and specializes in the development of Egyptian wooden coffins. She serves as the wood specialist for excavations in Egypt, most recently at the site of Saqqara. Her most recent publication is Archaeological Wood and Woodworking, part of the Elements in
Archaeology series by Cambridge University Press. She enjoys a good scotch, and terrible
archaeology movies.

Jeff O’Brien: For all of human history, we’ve told each other ghost stories. Tales of mystery and theunexplained, and the spirits who walk among us. Some are malicious, some are lost, some are simply sad. But are they real? Do the spirits of the unquiet dead really linger here on the
material plane? Join City of Saskatoon Archivist Jeff O’Brien for a critical look at ghosts and
ghost stories, both in Saskatoon and beyond.

Jeff O’Brien was born in Saskatoon and raised in Regina where, despite his best efforts to
the contrary, he received an undergraduate degree in Canadian history. He went on to earn a
master’s degree in archival studies from the University of British Columbia before returning
home to Saskatchewan where he eventually settled down as the City of Saskatoon Archivist in

As the City Archivist, Jeff believes in bringing history out of the archives and into the
community. In 2006, he co-authored the book Saskatoon: A History in Photographs. He is a
regular contributor to Saskatoon HOME and Prairies North magazines, and to our own historical journal, the Saskatoon History Review. He is frequently called on to speak to community groups, city classrooms, and at local events—like this one. He can also often be seen and heard on radio and TV here talking about the history of his beloved city. In 2023, he was awarded the Queen’s Jubilee medal in recognition of his work in this area.

Andres Posso-Terranova: What does a frog’s name have to do with saving it from extinction? As it turns out – everything. In this talk, we dive into the vibrant, complex world of Colombia’s poison dart frogs, a group socolourful and variable that even scientists struggle to understand how many species actuallyexist. By using a combination of fieldwork in the Chocó rainforest, a plethora of scientific data, lots of muddy boots, and a heroic amount of coffee, I explore how misidentified or unnamed species can slip through the cracks of conservation policy, sometimes with life-or-death consequences.

You’ll hear the story of how a “widespread” species turned out to be several distinct (and highly
endangered) ones, and how proper species delimitation became the key to reshaping national
and international conservation decisions. Come for the frogs (no licking allowed), stay for the story about names, data, and how science can actually change policy and the communities on the ground.

Andres Posso‑Terranova is a Colombian biologist who has spent years trying to make sense of
poison dart frogs that refuse to follow any taxonomic rules. He’s currently an Instructor and Lab Coordinator at the University of Saskatchewan, after a postdoc in plant sciences that somehow didn’t stop him from wandering back into the rainforest to study frog chaos. He’s known for revealing that a supposedly “single” frog species was actually several hiding in plain sight, reshaping how scientists understand — and protect — these tiny, charismatic amphibians. His work spans evolution, biodiversity, and the occasional field adventure involving mud, humidity, and frogs with no respect for boundaries. Andre’s passion for biodiversity conservation has shown how naming frogs correctly is harder (and much funnier) than most people expect.