SCIENTIST TO REVEAL TRUTH BEHIND 'THE X-FILES'

The popular television show "The X-Files," which enjoyed a prosperous nine-year run on Fox and now survives in syndication, is the subject of virologist Anne Simon's lecture at Old Dominion University Thursday, March 27.
Simon's talk is part of the President's Lecture Series and will be held at 8 p.m. in the Mills Godwin Jr. Life Sciences Building Auditorium. It is free and open to the public.

A former science adviser for the show, Simon worked with creator Chris Carter to verify the science behind the stories. In her book, "The Real Science Behind the X-Files: Microbes, Meteorites and Mutants," she cites specific episodes with excerpts from the script, then explores the wider scientific background from evolution to exobiology, and from cryptozoology to DNA sequencing.

Simon views her consulting work with this program as a service to science in dispelling stereotypes about scientists. "The life of a research scientist is filled with mysteries as complex as any that appear on 'The X-Files.' We are Scullys," she said.

In addition to her "X-Files" work, Simon is an eminent plant virologist, editor of the international journal Virology and associate editor of Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions. She graduated magna cum laude with a degree in biology from the University of California, San Diego, and earned her doctorate in genetics from Indiana University.

For more information call 683-3114.