Introduction to Garden MaintenanceLearn gardening techniques to help care for your landscape, maintain aesthetic and keep it looking fresh! Desmond Murray (Presidio Nursery Community Coordinator & Longtime Bay Area Gardener), Rebecca Blanck-Weiss (Nursery Manager & Landscape Designer) and Will Schell (Nursery Intern), will emphasize natural pruning techniques, fertilizing, pest care, and water management ...
Join Exploratorium scientist Ron Hipschman for colorful explorations of the physical world.In 1960, the laser was known as “a solution looking for a problem.†Now we can hardly imagine life without them. Learn what’s special about laser light, how it’s made, and how it’s used in everything from DVD players to eye surgery to ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: included with admission
Motion NightlifeThis week, NightLife explores the science and beauty of motion in the natural world - and on the dance floor.Brush up your moves and try out a dance class, including a rhythm and motion class from Dudley Flores, artistic director of the world-renowned Alonzo King LINES Ballet.Explore human-animal relationships with ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $15 General, $12 Members
Friday, 08/25/17
Wildflowers for Photographers, Poets & Artists Join ACR Resource Ecologist Dave Self on an excursion to see and photograph (or sketch, paint, or write about) wildflowers on the Modini Mayacamas Preserves. You're encouraged to share your best for a 'flower show' the next day from 3:00pm-4:00pm at ACR's Conservation Center. Dave will coach beginners on close-up flower ...
Where: GeyservilleCost: $20 General, $15 Members/Students, Free < 18
Make cheerful paper blooms with local artist Irma Ortiz. Traditionally used as party decorations, Mexican paper flowers are simple to create and charming to receive. All ages welcome.Irma Ortiz has been making flores de papel and candy skulls at the Exploratorium since 2008. She believes art is a very important part of her ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: Included with museum admission.
Nerd Nite East Bay, Tommy and Pinball PlayThe Science of Pinball Success The amazing plays, “bad luck†and bright lights of the best pinball games are guided by principles of geometry, pattern recognition, physics, mechanical engineering, material properties and hand-eye coordination. Learn about simple scientific tricks to game geometry and manipulate math to free up free ...
Where: OaklandCost: $15
Grounds for Science - Mummies, whiskey and capturing CO2Can We Stop Emitting CO2 While Still Using Fossil Fuels for Energy? As humans continue to emit CO2 from our power plants and vehicles, the global average temperature continues to rise. Our dependence on fossil fuels is causing this change in our climate, but we might be too dependent on ...
Where: EmeryvilleCost: Free
Biohack The Planet - A Biohacker Conference - Day 1A Biohacker is someone who is doing something interesting, new and creative with biology. While the term biohacker has historically been used to identify people working outside traditional environments our conference has a mix of people, Berkley and Stanford Professors, Bay Area CEOs and individuals working mostly out of their ...
Where: OaklandCost: $35 - $100
Evenings with the Stars: Vardha Bennert - SOLD OUTOur 'Evenings with the Stars' programs are held annually as part of our Summer Series. Each year we bring world-renowned astronomers to the summit of Mount Hamilton for a night with the "stars" you won't forget!Activities include:Astronomy talk by "star" scientistsViewing through the historic 36-inch Great Lick Refractor telescopeViewing through ...
Biohack The Planet - A Biohacker Conference - Day 2A Biohacker is someone who is doing something interesting, new and creative with biology. While the term biohacker has historically been used to identify people working outside traditional environments our conference has a mix of people, Berkley and Stanford Professors, Bay Area CEOs and individuals working mostly out of their ...
Where: OaklandCost: $35 - $100
Family Bird WalkLet family walks become a shared time of nature learning. We’ll begin by helping kids create their personal bird watching field guides, and then head out onto the trails to find those birds. A limited number of binoculars are available to borrow. Recommended for children ages 5-10. RESERVATIONS REQUIRED. Register ...
Decorate a fossil necklace, dig for real fossils, create casts, and more. Spend the day learning about the animals and plants that lived on earth before humans. The Carmel Valley Gem and Mineral Society have partnered to lead Science Saturday this month, and they will have their private fossil collections ...
Where: Pacific GroveCost: Free
Wetlands Walking TourOur refuge consists of salt marshes, salt ponds, tidal and non-tidal sloughs. How do humans and wildlife depend on our wetlands? Come enjoy a 0.5 mile walk through the wetlands, while be depict the life and death struggles of our marsh inhabitants. Open to all ages but best suited for ...
Play around with paper in three activities inspired by our new Wildcard exhibition.Paper CircuitsUsing copper tape and surface-mount LEDs allows you to make fully functional simple or complex electrical circuits on a flat surface, such as a piece of paper. You can make light-up greeting cards, origami animals come to life, or ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: Included with museum admission.
Do you sometimes see paw prints in mud or scat (poop) on the trails and assume that a dog left it? It could be from something else. Come along with me and I will show you how to distinguish and identify the markings of a gray fox. Gain some insights ...
Where: FremontCost: Free
Sailing Ships of SF BayIn commemoration of the building of the Matthew Turner, the first Brigantine ship to be built in California in 100 years. This ship will have a permanent home on our Bay Model pier. This program will cover some of the interesting early sailing vessels that made their way in and ...
Where: SausalitoCost: Free
Jazz Under the StarsCome peer through our telescopes and see craters on the Moon, the visible planets, star clusters, and more while we listen to CSM's very own KCSM Jazz 91 FM. Dress warmly.  Free parking in Marie Curie Lot 5.  Directions here.
Professor Kron is Assistant Chair for Academic Affairs of the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Chicago. He was director of the Yerkes Observatory 1989 - 2001. His research interest includes the evolution of stellar populations in galaxies (history of the star-formation rate), the cosmic evolution of ...
Where: Mt. HamiltonCost: $45-$210
The Search for Life Beyond EarthBesides Earth, several planetary bodies in our solar systems are recognized as having the potential to host primitive forms of life. This talk will describe why and how NASA plans to search for life on Mars and the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn.Speaker: Carol Stoker, NASA Ames
Where: Mill ValleyCost: Free
Sunday, 08/27/17
Sunrise Tour of Muir WoodsYou are cordially invited to attend a sunrise guided tour through Muir Woods National Monument. While the early hour may seem uncivilized, if not down-right obscene, sunrise is a particularly beautiful time to visit an old-growth redwood forest. Participants will be introduced to the local plant and animal residents (more ...
Where: Mill ValleyCost: Free
Wildflower TourJoin this excursion to see wildflowers of the Modini Mayacamas Preserves, one of the wildflower hotspots of Sonoma County. We'll stop at numerous places along the road, and then we'll hike to the top of Redhill (a 3-mile loop) looking for the first of the fawn lilies, baby blue-eyes, hounds-tongues, ...
Come explore the bustling birdlife that call the Marin Headlands home with volunteer Jan Haley in this easy walk along Rodeo Lagoon! Bring field guides and binoculars. Dress in layers. For ages 8 and older. No dogs. Reservation required, please call 415-331-1540.
Where: SausalitoCost: Free
Birds, bikes, and beer!Do you like birds? And biking? And beer? If you’re anything like CCNH naturalists, you love all those things! Join us for a leisurely bike ride along the shore of the Oakland Estuary, led by two bird enthusiasts.We’ll meet at 10 am at Fruitvale BART. Look for us in the ...
Where: OaklandCost: $20 suggested donation
Ocean Explorations FundayStep into the shoes of a real scientist aboard the E/V Nautilus research vessel with hands-on deep sea science and a live-stream from the ship.Plus, make sure to stop by the OpenROV station to learn about underwater drones and how they are being used for science.
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free with admission. Free for Members.
Join Exploratorium scientist Ron Hipschman for colorful explorations of the physical world.In 1960, the laser was known as “a solution looking for a problem.†Now we can hardly imagine life without them. Learn what’s special about laser light, how it’s made, and how it’s used in everything from DVD players to eye surgery to ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: Included with museum admission.
The Web is the most powerful communication medium and the largest public data repository that humankind has created. Its content ranges from great reference sources such as Wikipedia to ugly fake news. Indeed, social (digital) media is just an amplifying mirror of ourselves. Hence, the main challenge of search engines ...
Where: Palo AltoCost: Free
Nerd Nite: Vintage Arcades, SETI, Spice ReceptorsCitizen Kanes of the Arcade Maintaining the Great Arcade Games of the 1980s and 1990s Reminisce about the great and groundbreaking arcade games of the 1980s and 1990s and learn about the essential qualities that make these machines resonate today. As spare parts become scarce, the effort to find ...
Where: OaklandCost: $8
Tuesday, 08/29/17
Mount Diablo Astronomical Society General MeetingOur monthly meetings begin with a short “What’s Up†presented by one of our members followed by a speaker. This month’s speaker is Professor Amy Furniss, CSEB; Title: The Violent Universe Observed with the Fermi Telescope.There is no fee for visitors but we appreciate a donation for light snacks and ...
Where: Walnut CreekCost: Free
Wednesday, 08/30/17
Making carbon-14 measurements more accessibleCarbon-14 is a valuable tool used to probe the transport of carbonaceous species through oceanic, terrestrial, and biological systems. Due to its isotopic rarity, minute concentrations of carbon-14 labeled species can be detected. Historically, chemical targets were labeled with concentrations well above the terrestrial abundance and quantified with liquid scintillation ...
Fake Silk: The Hidden Story of a Workplace TragedyIn a comprehensive and disturbing history of viscose rayon, or “fake silk,†Paul Blanc sheds light on the environmental and public health hazards of producing this ubiquitous textile. In Fake Silk: The Lethal History of Viscose Rayon, Blanc asks a fundamental question: When a new technology makes people ill, how high ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $20 General, $8 Members, $7 Students
This presentation will introduce the innovative process of “Design Thinking†as it applies to the discovery of unmet clinical needs and to the conceptualization and development of commercial medical technologies. Dr. Azimpour will use case examples from his work at IDEO to illustrate this process.IDEO is a Stanford-born global design ...
Where: Palo AltoCost: Free
Evolutions big bang and Coding TheoryEvolutions big bang: The Cambrian explosion and origin of Animals.Just over half a billion years ago, almost all major groups of animal life seem to appear suddenly in the earths oceans, according to the evidence in the fossil record. These new organisms brought innovations like brains, vision, predation, even the ...
