Joe Vinson, from the University of Scranton, will be giving two lectures this week. The first lecture, titled “Chocolate Chemistry: The Science Behind the World’s Guilty Pleasure,” will be presented in the lobby of the Eric and Sarah Rodgers Library for Science and Engineering today at 3:30 p.m. The second lecture, “Science of Coffee,” will be held in 205 Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library at 3 p.m. tomorrow afternoon.
The lectures are sponsored by the Capstone International Center, the department of chemistry, the Faculty in Residence Program, New College, the University Libraries and Strip Teas and Coffees. Both lectures will have free samples of their titular subject matter.
Vinson, who graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, is a professor of chemistry at the University of Scranton. He has been at Scranton since 1974 and he has started conducting analytical research on chocolate over the past four years.
“Last year we worked on analyzing the chemical composition of chocolate,” he said. “We now have sophisticated techniques that allow us to take most things apart and find out what they are made of.”
Vinson has also done studies of the composition and effects of coffee. He has been featured on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered” and “The People’s Pharmacy,” as well as ABC’s “Good Morning America Sunday.”
“Chocolate Chemistry” will examine the history of chocolate beginning with its origins and early development. Vinson will talk about the early uses of the cacao tree and the chemical composition of chocolate, including how it affects the taste. He will also discuss the good and bad health effects of chocolate, yearly chocolate consumption and the differences between milk chocolate and dark chocolate.
“Science of Coffee” will follow with a similar premise to “Chocolate Chemistry,” but will provide a unique and sometimes humorous presentation about the history and cultural importance of coffee.
Caffeine will play a large roll in the lecture and the health effects of caffeine on the human body will be discussed. The lecture will also feature a poetic exercise for attendees, inviting them to write a limerick or haiku about their personal experiences with and reactions to coffee. Both lectures will end in a Q-and-A session with Vinson.
Although Vinson has previously held a lecture tour in Alabama, this is the first time he will speak at the University. Mangala Krishnamurthy, an assistant professor and reference librarian at Rodgers Library originally contacted him this summer.
“I was at the June 2008 annual conference of the Special Libraries Association in Seattle, but I missed his presentation of ‘Science of Coffee,’ ” she said. “Several other attendees told me that I had missed a wonderful talk.” Krishnamurthy said she chose this week for Vinson to lecture for a specific reason.
“The University of Alabama celebrates International Education Week during the third week in November and I felt that it would be nice and fitting to have him present ‘Science of Coffee,’ which will have a global touch to it.”
She approached Capstone International, and Vinson was contacted a short time later.
“The lectures are really for those students who do not have a science background,” Vinson said of his target audience, “but it should be interesting for all who attend.”
What: “Chocolate Chemistry: The Science Behind the World’s Guilty Pleasure”
When: Today at 3:30 p.m.
Where: Lobby of Eric and Sarah Rodgers Library of Science and Engineering
What: “Science of Coffee”
When: Thursday at 3 p.m.
Where: 205 Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library
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