When you discuss your locality with astrophysicists, be prepared for a shift in scale. While you might define “local” as your neighbourhood or municipality, Marshall McCall has something wider in mind.

“We live on a planet around a star in a galaxy in the local group encompassed by the Council of Giants of the Local Sheet next to the Local Void at the periphery of the Local Supercluster of Laniakea in our corner of the cosmic web,” explains Dr. McCall, professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at York University.

He will discuss the organization of galaxies in the neighbourhood of the Milky Way in a free public lecture entitled “Structure in the Near Universe and its Relevance to Your Life” at 3 p.m. Wednesday, March 4, in Katzman Lounge, Vanier Hall.

His richly-illustrated talk will present recent discoveries and their astrophysical implications for human development—helping audience members understand their address in the universe.

The UWindsor physics department is organizing the event as part of the Canadian Association of Physicists’ 2015 student lecture tour in celebration of the International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies proclaimed by the United Nations.