With winter fast approaching, you’re probably looking for a good bar to post up and drink until spring. We’ve got you covered.

Celebrations in honor of the the first person to traveled to space — cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who launched in the Vostok 1 for one 108-minute orbit around the Earth on April 12, 1961 — are an annual tradition. And they’re awesome. Especially so this year, when Yuri’s Night participants will mark the golden anniversary of Gagarin’s circle around the world.

by DCist Contributor Tracy K. Clayton Forty young men and women chosen as Intel Science Talent Search finalists gathered in the Great Hall of the National Academy of Sciences to compete for more than $500,000 in awards and scholarships to support careers in science — including one top prize, a $100,000 scholarship. Two area budding young scientists, both hailing from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology in Fairfax, Virginia, are among the finalists….

In which DCist interviews area scientists, researchers, and academics on topics pertaining to natural and scientific interests. As Thomas Dolby would say: science! Jonathan Alderfer began his career as a bird painter in the 1980s by illustrating bird identification articles for the Los Angeles Audubon Society’s newsletter, The Western Tanager. He is the editor of National Geographic’s Complete Birds of North America, published in 2005, and co-editor of the 5th edition of their Field Guide…

In which DCist interviews area scientists, researchers, and academics on topics pertaining to natural and scientific interests. As Thomas Dolby would say: science! Jonathan Ballou is the population manager at the National Zoo. His work as a conservation geneticist focuses on the genetic and demographic problems pertaining to small populations — in particular small populations from endangered species. This work has included analyses of the effects of inbreeding on mortality in captive populations and the…

In which DCist interviews area scientists, researchers, and academics on topics pertaining to natural and scientific interests. As Thomas Dolby would say: science! Robert Oerter has taught at the University of Maryland, Howard University, and George Mason University, where he has worked for the past 10 years. He is the author of The Theory of Almost Everything: The Standard Model, The Unsung Triumph of Modern Physics (Plume Press), which has been translated into Italian and…