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We’ve all been there: you’re sitting at the movies watching the latest very entertaining Hollywood blockbuster and you stop and think, "Well, wait ... that’s not how it would happen! That’s not realistic." If you have a background in science and tech, it’s even more likely you’ll notice all the technical inaccuracies in the movies the public loves.

In this spirit, the Graduate Student Advisory Board for the College of Engineering & Applied Science decided to take this to the next level, and we’ve invited two faculty experts to our free screening of (2015) starring Matt Damon, a popular movie about what happens when an astronaut is left behind on Mars to fend for himself.

We’ll enjoy the movie, and then these experts will discuss what it’s really like to be in space, what Hollywood did right and what they got so painfully wrong.

Faculty members Rick Hieb and Allie Anderson are experts in aerospace and are excited to pick out details of a sci-fi movie to an audience that will appreciate it.

Rick Hieb, a former astronaut and scholar-in-residence for the Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences, has logged over 750 hours in space, including extra-vehicular activity and space walks. He is looking forward to discussing his own personal experience and what Hollywood got wrong.

Faculty member Allie Anderson studies aerospace biomedical engineering and human physiology in extreme environments. Her focus is to develop technologies to measure and mitigate the body’s adaptations to extreme environments. She loves to nerd out on both movies and spacesuits, so she is particularly excited to participate in this event.

So, come enjoy this free event hosted by your Graduate Student Advisory Board. Bring some cash, as we’ll have drinks and concessions for only $1 each – so much cheaper than the movies!

Meredith Canode is director of graduate programs in the College of Engineering & Applied Science.