PTSD & OUR REPTILIAN BRAIN: Reid Lyon’s Neurological Research. As a tunnel rat, Reid Lyon knows a few things about PTSD. But he’s more: He’s a researcher who has spent his remarkable professional life studying the effect of trauma on the brain. Lyon’s personal history and his important research into PTSD’s effects on the brain are examined.

GUY BLUFORD: Fighter Pilot, Astronaut, Aeronautic Consultant. The first African American in space went from Penn State to the U.S. Air Force where he flew fighter jets over Vietnam. Afterward, he joined NASA and spent hundreds of hours in space, then started his own aeronautics consulting firm.

A CONVENTION OF SUPERLATIVES: VVA Meets in Jacksonville describes the largest Convention in VVA history. Eight hundred delegates debated the issues and voted for candidates. Along the way, they managed to have a good time, work hard, and honor those who have died. Speakers included David Bonior, the Michigan congressman who coined the phrase, “Never again will one generation of veterans abandon another,” and Eric Shinseki, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. At Saturday night’s banquet two men received the President’s Award for Excellence in the Sciences: Guy Bluford and Reid Lyon.