Graduate Students

Join us for Moshi Toastmasters Club Meetings (Hybrid) We meet every Saturday! Time: 6:10 PM onwards Online: Zoom Meeting ID: 819 4955 5108 | Passcode: 589358 https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81949555108?pwd=bC0b1au3citt81jU7ae0zhahyYfXjM.1 Offline: Global Achievers School, Near Moshi Toll Plaza, Gaikwad Vasti, Moshi, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Maharashtra 412105 https://maps.app.goo.gl/5gYraevFLmMviVwp9 Get ready for an evening of inspiring speeches and insightful discussions! Contact TM Prashant +91 91455 13682 for more details

Join us for Moshi Toastmasters Club Meetings (Hybrid) We meet every Saturday! Time: 6:10 PM onwards Online: Zoom Meeting ID: 819 4955 5108 | Passcode: 589358 https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81949555108?pwd=bC0b1au3citt81jU7ae0zhahyYfXjM.1 Offline: Global Achievers School, Near Moshi Toll Plaza, Gaikwad Vasti, Moshi, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Maharashtra 412105 https://maps.app.goo.gl/5gYraevFLmMviVwp9 Get ready for an evening of inspiring speeches and insightful discussions! Contact TM Prashant +91 91455 13682 for more details

Lego has a campaign slogan "adults welcome"... yeah duh... lol. This group is for adult Lego enthusiasts to bring their brick collections, any sets they're working on, and come build together and socialize with fellow Lego enthusiasts at the Chesterbrook Shopping Center Starbucks in McLean, VA. I look forward to meeting you all!

[Profs and Pints Northern Virginia](https://www.profsandpints.com/washingtondc) presents: **“Love and Monsters,”** on the inescapable bond between romance and horror, with Joshua Barton, scholar of horror and lecturer in English at Virginia Commonwealth University. [Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at [https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/nv-love-monsters](https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/nv-love-monsters) .] Romance and horror might seem like opposite genres, but they share a deep emotional core, and the combination of them has captivated audiences across time and culture. Put even your worst Valentine’s Day in perspective by hearing this strange relationship discussed by Joshua Barton, who has earned a big following among Profs and Pints fans with his past talks on cryptids, American horror, and Christmas ghosts. He’ll explore the undeniable and unsettling intersection of romance and horror and examine how and why love and fear intensify each other and combined to create tension, drive narratives, and explore human vulnerability. We’ll look at works that have blended passion and terror, including Gothic literature like the vampire novella *Carmilla* and modern films like *Spring* and *Crimson Peak*. We’ll study the fine line between obsession and adoration running through Stephen King’s “I Know What You Need,” Adrian Lyne’s *Fatal Attraction*, and the timeless *The Phantom of the Opera.* We’ll discuss the seeds of monstrous love that were planted with *Beauty and the Beast* and *Creature from the Black Lagoon* and bloom ferociously in works like *Twilight* and *The Shape of Water*. Through it all, we’ll find the threads of otherness and the taboo that intertwine horror, love, and reflections on identity. Join us for a journey through storytelling that combines the grotesque and the scintillating as we uncover why romance and horror are a match made in the dark. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. Talk starts 30 minutes later.) Image: From the original 1954 advertising poster for *Creature from the Black Lagoon* (Artist: Reynold Brown / Public Domain).

[Profs and Pints Northern Virginia](https://www.profsandpints.com/washingtondc) presents: **“The Hidden Cleopatra,”** an excavation through myth and slander to uncover the real Egyptian queen, with Jacquelyn Williamson, an Egyptologist and associate professor of archaeology and ancient art at George Mason University. [Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at [https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/hidden-cleopatra](https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/hidden-cleopatra) .] Depictions of Cleopatra are abundant in popular culture. A long list of painters have depicted her, Marilyn Monroe and Kim Kardashian have posed as her, and Vivien Leigh and Elizabeth Taylor famously portrayed her in Hollywood films. At the end of the day, however, what most of us think we know about Cleopatra is wrong, the product of the ancient Rome’s “fake news” and anti-Egypt propaganda. Learn about the real Cleopatra—and how our understanding of her came to be so distorted—with Professor Jacquelyn Williamson, scholar of women and power in ancient Egypt, teacher of courses on ancient Egyptian art and archaeology, and author of *Nefertiti’s Sun Temple: A New Cult Complex at Tell el-Amarna.* Dr. Williamson will walk us through how the first Roman emperor, Octavian, created the distorted image of Cleopatra as seductress that we know today as part of his political scheming to defeat his rival Antony and end the Roman Republic once and for all. Cleopatra has been the subject of debate and controversy ever since. William Shakespeare later relied on ancient Roman sources such as Horace and Plutarch in writing *Antony and Cleopatra*, and his play helped give rise to countless other works offering a distorted picture of her. Professor Williamson argues that “Cleopatra was a human being, like you and I,” and “deserves the dignity of being represented as accurately as possible.” Her efforts to set the record straight have met frustration, however—after being extensively interviewed for the recent Netflix historical docuseries Queen Cleopatra, she concluded that it, too, had missed the mark. You’ll gain a much deeper appreciation of the challenges of researching and accurately depicting the ancient past from Dr. Williamson, who also has taught at Harvard, Brandeis, and the University of California at Berkeley and is involved with an ongoing archaeological investigation of Queen Nefertiti’s sun temple. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. Talk starts 30 minutes later.) Image: Layla Taj portrays Cleopatra VII as part of an Egyptian Cultural Performing Arts Society production. (Photo by Amos Gvili / Wikimedia Commons.)

Security cleared professionals with a polygraph please join us for the CI or FS Poly Cleared Job Fair, Thursday, March 5, from 2pm – 5.30pm at the Hyatt Dulles in Herndon, Virginia. Whether you’re between contracts, transitioning out of the military / government, or just casually looking around, please join us! Our hiring employers include Amentum, AT&T, BAE Systems, CACI, Core4ce, GDIT, Leidos, Markon, RealmOne, Redhorse, SilverEdge, System High, Two Six Technologies and more! Opportunities for Intel, Program and Project Managers, Data Scientists, Cyber, Geospatial, Malware Analysts, Malware Programmers, Software Engineers and Developers, CNO Engineers and Analysts, Database Administrators, System Administrators, Software and Application Developers, Network Designers and Engineers, Help Desk, Trainers and more. A CI or FS Polygraph is required for entry. For more info and to pre-register visit: [https://clearedjobs.net/events/ci-or-fs-poly-cleared-job-fair-march-5-2026-7?utm_source=event+posting+march+5%2C+2026&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=job+fair&utm_term=february+5%2C+2026](https://clearedjobs.net/events/ci-or-fs-poly-cleared-job-fair-march-5-2026-7?utm_source=event+posting+march+5%2C+2026&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=job+fair&utm_term=february+5%2C+2026)

[Profs and Pints Northern Virginia](https://www.profsandpints.com/washingtondc) presents: **“Satanic Panics,”** a look at waves of fear of demonic activity as an American tradition, with Luxx Mishou, cultural historian and former instructor at the U.S. Naval Academy and area community colleges. [Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at [https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/profsandpints/nv-satanic-panics2](https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/profsandpints/nv-satanic-panics2) .] The 1980s found the United States gripped by fear of Satanic cults targeting children. They were believed to be corrupting young ones in daycare centers and tempting teens through subliminal messages on heavy metal albums or through the quiet inclusion of demonic rituals in role-playing games. Satanic serial killers supposedly stalked the suburbs. Doctors helped patients uncover what were claimed to be repressed memories of ritualistic satanic abuse. Parents, police, and politicians were urged to protect impressionable youths from both moral and physical danger. With Satanic cults deemed to be a real and material threat, it was a frightening time for everyone, including those who suddenly came under suspicion for doing evil deeds. Then, suddenly, it all faded from public consciousness, just as surely as did eighties fads such mullet haircuts, leg warmers, and Cabbage Patch Kids. Why did it all start? Why did it stop? And has this happened before or since? Hear such questions tackled by Luxx Mishou, a cultural historian and media specialist who has long researched the devious and villainous in cultural artifacts. She’ll discuss moral panics as a longstanding cultural tradition, with each new one stemming from fear of cultural shifts and shaped by the time and place where it occurred. Among the panics we’ll look into are the Red Scare of the 1950s and the public response to the gruesome 1969 murders committed by the Manson Family. Delving into the 1980s panic, Mishou will describe how it began with the 1980 publication of psychiatrist Lawrence Pazder’s memoir *Michelle Remembers*, detailing the suppressed memories of ritualistic abuse reportedly suffered by a patient. As that book quickly became a best seller, its ideas saturated American culture. A California daycare center became the focus of a three-year investigation, followed by three years of trials, based on allegations that its owner had engaged in secret ritualistic abuse of the children in its care. Mishou will lead you through the media that convinced the public that devil worshipers were among them, and she’ll talk about how reactions to imagined threats can have very real social costs. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. The talk starts 30 minutes later.) Image by Canva.

**✅ First class is FREE – only 10 spots available!** Learn real self-defense skills in a small-group setting. No experience needed, open to all adults. 📲 RSVP now and text Jim at **301-326-9146** to confirm—once spots are gone, they’re gone. ## **Free Intro Self-Defense Class – Maryland Systema** Want to learn how to protect yourself while also improving your health, focus, and confidence? Join us for a free first class at **Maryland Systema**, a unique approach to self-defense that blends both physical and mental training. *** ### **Why This Class is Different** Unlike most programs that only teach physical moves, Systema trains your body **and** your mind. You’ll explore: * **Structure** – staying balanced under pressure * **Breathing** – keeping calm and controlling fear * **Relaxation** – avoiding panic and wasted energy * **Movement** – adapting naturally to any situation You’ll also learn to read an attacker’s intentions and respond proportionately—aligned with Maryland’s self-defense laws. *** ### **What You’ll Gain** ✔ Practical skills you can use right away ✔ Better stress control and awareness ✔ Improved strength, mobility, and coordination ✔ Confidence in handling real-world situations *** ### **Class Info** 📍 **Location:** Woodley Gardens Park in the brick building (free parking) 🕒 **Length:** 1.5 hours 👥 **Small Group:** Max 10 students for personalized guidance 👖 **What to Wear:** Comfortable long pants and clothes you can move in 💵 **Cost:** Free for first-time students *** ### **How to Join** RSVP here on Meetup to save your spot, then text Jim at **301-326-9146** to confirm. Spots are limited—once the group fills, we close registration. *** **Maryland Systema** Real-world self-defense training for adults—helping you stay ready, stay calm, and stay safe.

Join us for another session of our study group as we continue our coverage of the book Domain-Specific Small Language Models. In this session, we will Chapter 2 which is titled Tuning for a Specific Domain. This isn't just a lecture! Come ready to ask questions, share insights, and code along. Whether you're a beginner or have some experience, this is the perfect opportunity to continue to learn together. If you plan to work with the code on your own laptop during the session, try and download the code from here https://github.com/virtualramblas/Domain-Specific-Small-Language-Models/ ahead of time. We will be meeting at the University of North America in room 2215 for this event.