Drinks and discover: Speaker series brings scholar to brewery

Carolyn Slingluff, Contributing Writer

Molly Manning, Contributing Writer

Triple Crossing Beer in Fulton hosted the first Profs and Pints of the month in Richmond on Sept. 15. 

The brewery welcomed Scott Paulson, a professor of physics and interdisciplinary liberal studies at James Madison University, to deliver his lecture, “The Physics of Baseball.” His lecture dug into the mechanisms behind some of the basic features of baseball, such as why a curveball curves, he said. 

“I definitely enjoy the opportunity to try to connect science with things that people are interested in to maybe get them a little more interested, or at least understand a little bit better the role of science,” Paulson said.

Paulson is just one of many speakers who educate communities in venues all over the eastern United States through Profs and Pints.

Profs and Pints puts on multiple events each month, and topics range from civic issues to astronomy to bird-calling. Launched in Washington D.C., Profs and Pints has since expanded to Annapolis, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Nashville, Philadelphia and Richmond, according to its website.

Peter Schmidt, CEO of Profs and Pints, worked in education journalism for nearly 30 years before starting the series in 2017, he said.

Schmidt said he created Profs and Pints, a social enterprise aimed at bringing about social change in academia, to help remedy the problems he had identified throughout his work in higher education.

“People aren’t going to college — or they’re having to leave school for financial reasons. Or, they’re studying what’s gonna pay off the student loans rather than what they’re passionate about,” Schmidt said. “A lot of departments were withering, so a lot of dissemination of knowledge in valuable areas was happening less.”

Profs and Pints is based on the ancient Greek model of higher education called symposium, where scholars would stimulate discussion on a subject over conversation, music and drinks, Schmidt said. Similarly, the events bring in scholars to speak to eager audiences at free venues, such as restaurants and cafes. 

Attendee Lonnie Hamilton enjoyed the event, especially the fact Paulson took the time to explain and introduce concepts, he said. 

“I liked that it started with no assumption of any physics knowledge,” Hamilton said.

Attendee and Richmond local Joe Kaperick said he enjoyed the event. As a chemist and fan of baseball and beers, he said he liked being able to put some science behind it and talk about it.

Nancy Brizendine, another Richmond local in attendance, said Paulson’s lecture piqued her interest as the mother of a baseball pitcher at William & Mary. She enjoyed how the lecture went into detail, explaining some of the things she sees watching games from the stands.

Both Kaperick and Brizendine were first-time attendees who said they plan to come to future events hosted by Profs and Pints.

The next Profs and Pints event in Richmond will be held on Sept. 25 at 6:00 p.m. at Triple Crossing Beer in Fulton where Angie Hilliker, an associate professor of biology at the University of Richmond, will present “Hacks for Human Cells.”Advance tickets are $13.50 for this upcoming event and can be purchased at its website.