Online Chat at 1 P.M. EDT on Massive Blackouts in India and Beyond

Join us for a live online chat with Melissa C. Lott, an SA blogger and energy systems researcher, who will help us understand the scope of the blackouts and risks in the U.S.

Join Our Community of Science Lovers!

Join us below at 1 P.M. Eastern on Wednesday (August 1) for a live 30-minute online chat with engineer and energy writer Melissa C. Lott, who will discuss the blackouts that have afflicted hundreds of millions of people in India this week and whether such a catastrophe could occur in the U.S. She writes for the "Plugged In" group blog with the Scientific American network which investigates the connections between energy, environment and our lives.

Lott is a 2011 Presidential Management Fellow. Her work blends technology and policy in the field of energy systems research. She focuses on the economic and environmental tradeoffs of energy systems, including electricity generation (power plants) and transportation fuels, as well as on electricity transmission (smart grid, RETI, CREZ) and energy efficiency programs. Lott has worked for more than 6 years as an engineer and consultant for YarCom, Inc. She has previously interned for the Department of Energy and the White House Council on Environmental Quality, Energy & Climate Change Team for the Obama Administration.

We invite you to post chat questions in advance. We have already turned on the capacity to log in to the chat box below. Lott will join us at 1 PM EDT on Wednesday, August 1.

On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

It’s Time to Stand Up for Science

If you enjoyed this article, I’d like to ask for your support. Scientific American has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.

I’ve been a Scientific American subscriber since I was 12 years old, and it helped shape the way I look at the world. SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.

If you subscribe to Scientific American, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.

In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can't-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world's best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.

There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you’ll support us in that mission.

Thank you,

David M. Ewalt, Editor in Chief, Scientific American