SOCORRO, N.M. August 22, 2011 – The Discovery Channel show MythBusters has developed a home-away-from-home in New Mexico. Now, one of the stars is coming to Socorro to speak to his legions of fans at New Mexico Tech.

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Grant Imahara
MythBuster extraordinaire

Grant Imahara, a star of the show and an expert in special effects, will take the stage at Macey Center at 7 p.m. Tuesday, August 23. Imahara will present a short video of outtakes from the show and answer questions from college students and other audience members.

Tickets for the public are free, but limited. Call Lisa Garcia at (575) 835-5646 for tickets. New Mexico Tech students can pick up their free tickets at the Fidel Center on campus.

MythBusters has filmed eight segments at New Mexico Tech, most of which involved dramatic explosions or high-speed impacts.

Three of the stars of the show – Imahara, Cari Byron and Tori Belluci – filmed three new tests this summer. Those three experiments will air this fall. In a new promotional video that will be shown on campus, Byron said New Mexico Tech is one of the show’s favorite places.

“We come here when we need to blow something up really, really big or shoot off a rocket,” she said. “Where do you go when you need to make a rocket-powered super-plow? Well, New Mexico Tech.”

Techies showed up in force for a similar public forum in 2010. More than 500 students and community members came out to hear Imahara, Byron and Belluci speak and peppered them with questions about the show. Techies are excited to have another chance to interact with a celebrity of science and engineering.

Camden Mullen, a graduate student in materials engineering, said he likes the show because they “do fun stuff and it’s cool to see them try to prove or disprove these myths.”

Mullen, a graduate of Del Norte High School in Albuquerque, said he’s also impressed that his university has developed a working relationship with the show’s producers and stars.

“It’s great that we have the facilities to do these tests,” he said. “It shows off that we have the ability to do these experiments.”

 

– NMT –