In this chemistry activity, learners will test the pH of various foods and household sustances using cabbage. The kids will explore the concept of acidic and basic chemicals, learn that pH is a common measure of acidity, and explore various common usses of acids and bases. Ages: 8-11. Classes need ...
The Manila Galleon San Felipe, 1576A slide series tells the San Felipe's saga, shows how she was rediscovered, and describes the contents and meaning of her recovered porcelains and other artifacts. Our ten Mexico-United States expeditions from 1999 to 2011 to a wreck site along the desert shore of Baja California, and study of newly ...
Where: Point Reyes StationCost:
How brains create knowledge and meaning from fragments of informationCommonly we sniff, glance, palpate, or hark some event or object and experience a sudden flash of meaning: we know what it is. This experience highlights the difference between sensation, which is the acquisition of fragments of information by intentional search, and perception, which is the contextualization of the acquired ...
Where: StanfordCost: Free
Nipah Virus: Emergence and Epidemiology of a Dangerous Zoonotic PathogenSpeaker: Dr. Steven Luby, Head, Programme for (IDVS)Infectious Disease & Vaccine Sciences Projects Health Systems & Infectious Diseases Division International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B)Bechtel Conference Room
As the former emphasis on preventive care during the Maoist era has given way to a market-driven pursuit of high-tech interventions, changes in the political economy of health care have transformed China's urban medical system into a laboratory for entrepreneurial tactics. Despite critical scrutiny from scientific experts and tightening guidelines ...
Where: StanfordCost: Free
No More Circling Around the Block: Evolving Ethnography to Guide Innovation in Parking Systems Parking. The biggest pain for many drivers and cities, and yet the least evolved in many ways... After many years with little innovation in parking technology, many cities are now exploring new systems meant to improve the use of limited parking real estate, increase parking convenience, and raise additional revenue.PARC ...
Just days before Halloween, NightLife will be overrun with zombies! Take a crash course in zombie neuroscience with Zombie Research Society's Brad Voytek, and learn how zombie-like symptoms would manifest themselves in real life. You won't want to miss horror maven and hostess Peaches Christ and her Zombie Drag Show and ...
Scientists are studying global migratory animal movements throughout their annual cycles to improve conservation efforts Changing climate conditions have accentuated this need, as species movements and their ranges are fluctuating every year Technology being used to study the migratory patterns ranges from leg bands to satellite telemetry and isotopic markers ...
Where: Menlo ParkCost:
Measuring the color of the seas from satellites and the fun science that followsDr. Cara Wilson, NOAA's Environmental Research Division By literally detecting the color of the ocean from satellites, scientists can measure and monitor the amount of chlorophyll at the surface of the ocean, which represents the base of the oceanic food chain. we now have a 14 year record of global ...
Where: Pacific GroveCost: free to Museum Members; $5 for the general public
Once and Future GiantsWhat caused the megafauna die-out at the end of the last ice age? Sharon Levey tells that fascinating story from all angles. She even goes further and covers a plan to, in a strange way, replace the vanished species. She will give a short talk followed by signing her book.
Lighting energy represents 30-40% of commercial building electricity consumption, yet very few buildings have advanced lighting controls. The potential energy savings are tremendous as is the opportunity to reduce demand on the grid during critical peak use periods. Charlie will describe how low-cost wireless radio technology develop at UC Berkeley ...
Enhancing thermodynamic efficiency and reducing kinetic losses through size effects can improve energy conversion. I will discuss bandgap tuning for light absorption in solar cells and reducing activation overvoltage as well as ohmic lossesin fuel cells:(1) I will report on the deposition of Lead sulfide (PbS) thin films by atomic ...
How many colors make black? Be amazed as black magically turns into vibrant purples, blues, greens, magenta, and more with just a drop of water! This hands-on science activity for children 5 and older introduces the concept of chromatography. Chromatography comes from the Greek word chroma meaning "color" and graphia meaning ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: Free
Come to Foothill Observatory and join us in the exploration of our Universe!Foothill Observatory Friday Evening ProgramCome to Foothill Observatory and join us in the exploration of our Universe!Foothill Observatory is open for public viewing every clear Friday evening from 9:00 p.m. until 11:00 p.m. Visitors can view the wonders of the universe through the observatory's new computer-controlled 16-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope. Views ...
The Sonoma State University Field Stations & Nature Preserves proudly presents the 3nd Annual Insecta-Palooza!Our arthropod extravaganza includes something for everyone, from the smallest enthusiast, to master gardener, watershed ecologist and the simply curious.The 2011 theme is Metamorphosis in its many guises. Our interactive exhibits, engaging activities and seminars explore ...
Where: Rohnert ParkCost: See listing
Pepperwood offers class on Invasive PlantsEcologist Peter Warner will provide an introduction to the identification, ecology, and management of several invasive wildland weeds common in Sonoma County on Saturday, October 29, 2011, from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm at Pepperwood Preserve. The class is $10.00 and students can register online at http://www.pepperwoodpreserve.org. Peter Warner, M.A., is ...
Where: Santa RosaCost: $10.00
San José Clean Energy ShowcaseCome see the latest in solar, wind turbine, electric vehicle and solar hot water technologies. Bring the family and get everyone excited about clean energy! The time for clean energy is now! With money-saving rebates from the State, making home energy improvements has never been easier or more affordable. Come ...
Ever wonder how plants live? Or how worms produce compost? Get hands-on with science to find out! Join Cal scientists for cool, food-related investigations.This program is jointly supported by Science@Cal, Community Resources for Science, and the UC Botanical Garden at Berkeley.
Ever wonder how plants live? Or how worms produce compost? Get hands-on with science to find out! Join Cal scientists for cool, food-related investigations.This program is jointly supported by Science@Cal, Community Resources for Science, and the UC Botanical Garden at Berkeley.
Calling all Educators! Leveraging excess stock/equipment/materials from labs/companies across the area, educators will have access to high quality materials for their classrooms. Everything at the event is free, but please only take what you need for your classroom. This FREE Giveaway is for educational and non-profit use ONLY.If you are an EDUCATOR, ...
Cal State East Bay's Science Festival kicks off the Bay Area Science Festival with a celebration of science, technology, engineering, and math. Join us on this opening day with experiments, hands-on activities, games, exhibits, lectures and much much more.Some highlights:Chemistry Magic ShowPotpourri of PhysicsObserving the Sun with a TelescopeRobots in ...
Where: HaywardCost: Free with admission
Gold Fever: How the Gold Rush Forever Changes SF BayIn 1848 gold was discovered in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, luring people by the thousands to California. Join Ranger Tammi to find out how this event changed San Francisco Bay forever.
Join Geophysics Professor Gregory Beroza of Stanford's Earthquake Seismology Group and docents Mike Alexander, Paul Billig, and John Wertzler from the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District for a leisurely hike to examine remnants left by thousands of major earthquakes, discuss the wonders of plate tectonics and learn how to prepare ...
Where: Los AltosCost: Free
FIRST Robotics LeagueWhat the Olympics are for sports and the Nobel Prize is to science, FIRST Robotics is to kid's engineering.Take part in the most prestigious robotics competition for youth in the world this fall by joining Celsius and Beyond team. You will learn about project management, computer programming, robotics design, analytical ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $950 full, $330 per month
Come to Hawk Hill in the Marin Headlands and get an up-close view of the fall raptor migration with the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory (GGRO), a cooperative program of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and National Park Service.A GGRO docent gives an hour-long talk about hawk monitoring and identification ...
Day: Solar Viewing and PlanetWalk are FREE.State Park Admission: $8.00Docents will be on hand to show you our only star; the Sun, through specially filtered telesccopes and other devices. This is both a fun and safe experience for the whole family!Tours of the observatory are always available.Handicapped parking and wheelchair ...
Is there really such thing as climate change? Is it politically motivated? What's all the hype about? Find out what's going on with the Earth's thermostat. Meet Ranger Linda at the reception desk.
It may seem like a barren, lifeless rock with only the haunting memories of the past, but a battle for survival continues daily throughout Alcatraz Island. Cut off from the mainland, Alcatraz is a protected, prime nesting ground for many bird species - especially black-crowned night-herons, gulls and ravens. These ...
Join this 2-mile, 2.5 hour walking tour from Discovery Street Tours to get up close and personal with some of the city's most stellar rock formations. Explore the twisted rock n' roll stories of our Bay Area landscape with edible geology activities and a hike through the city's heights. Includes snacks ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $25 special price for BASF
ComBots returns to the San Mateo Fairgrounds for ComBots Cup VI - the biggest cash prize purse in robot combat! 220 pound robots from around the world compete for dominance, cash, and the glory that is the ComBots Cup – 100 pounds of trophy-shaped awesome.
Where: San MateoCost: Free
Exploring Antarctica (Just Like Mars, Only Closer!)NASA Scientist Dr. Chris McKay will discuss his research in Antarctica and its connections to Mars' environment. How does this prepare us for human exploration of Mars? What can we learn from simulated exploration that brings us closer to reaching Mars? What is the current status of Mars exploration projects ...
Where: BurlingameCost: Free
Autumn Stargazing at Pepperwood PreserveEscape from the city lights to experience nature's autumn night sky on Saturday, October 29, 2011, from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm at Pepperwood Preserve. Bing Quock and Ron Damann will guide you through a tour of the season's celestial sights, using a combination of historic and modern telescopes to ...
Fee: $3.00 per. adult, under (18yrs. free) Parking Fee: $8.00Park in the gravel area near the horse corrals just outside the gate to the Group Camp/Observatory site.(Handicapped parking and wheelchair access are available at the entrance to the Observatory.)The Robert Ferguson Oservatory (RFO) is open to the public at least ...
Where: KenwoodCost: $3.00 - Parking $8.00
SMCAS Star Party Come out and bring the kids for a mind expanding look at the universe.Setup of telescopes begins around sunset, with observations beginning about 1 hour later.
Ever wonder how plants live? Or how worms produce compost? Get hands-on with science to find out! Join Cal scientists for cool, food-related investigations.This program is jointly supported by Science@Cal, Community Resources for Science, and the UC Botanical Garden at Berkeley.
Where: OaklandCost: Free
FIRST Robotics LeagueWhat the Olympics are for sports and the Nobel Prize is to science, FIRST Robotics is to kid's engineering.Take part in the most prestigious robotics competition for youth in the world this fall by joining Celsius and Beyond team. You will learn about project management, computer programming, robotics design, analytical ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $950 full, $330 per month
Come to the Point Reyes National Seashore to hike the Estero Trail! This trail takes us through an old Christmas tree farm (a good place to look for owls) then we'll head down to the waterside to find waterfowl and shorebirds. We'll stop for lunch on a bluff that gives ...
Where: Point Reyes StationCost: Free
Mathematical Magic ShowFrom Sir Isaac Newton to Dr. John Dee, many of the world's greatestmathematicians were surprisingly, also conjurers.Mathematicians were seeking the unknown and some of their findings wereunexpected and non-intuitive; just like magic!With the audience's help, Dr. Elran of the Weizmann Insittue of Science will demonstrate card tricks that are based ...
Which Is More Fun - Dinosaurs or Robots?As part of the Bay Area Science Festival, the Hall will host a "Dinos vs. Robots" event, in which visitors participate in activities from each discipline and decide which is more fun! You will become a paleontologist for the day and discover things ...
Visit SF State's marine research campus in Tiburon for our 22nd annual open house. Learn about our research from scientists and graduate students by exploring interactive science displays and listening to fascinating lectures (see Speakers). Touch live organisms at our touch tanks, combine art and science with ceramics and other ...
Where: TiburonCost: Free
The World of Simulations - The Game of Life and Derivatives Computer games may appear to be based on complex math and computer science, but in fact they are based on a very simple set of rules and procedures.These rules and procedures formed the very first simulation prototype called"The Game of Life", invented by the British mathematician John Conway. Thegame is ...
Stanford's Genetics department leads hands-on activities every day of the festival. Try your hand at DNA spooling from animal cells and look at your own DNA from cheek cells under a microscope. Figure out what 1000 letters of your DNA look like. Solve a mystery by looking at "DNA" patterns ...
This Halloween, you can enjoy some creepy crawlers – human and non-human – at the Exploratorium's Halloween Haunts and Happenings! On October 30, from 12 – 4 pm, come see giant insects, tarantulas, blood-sucking leeches, maggots and much more. Dress up in your Halloween costume and join us in a ...
Come to Hawk Hill in the Marin Headlands and get an up-close view of the fall raptor migration with the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory (GGRO), a cooperative program of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and National Park Service.A GGRO docent gives an hour-long talk about hawk monitoring and identification ...
Where: SausalitoCost: Free
Bees Explained at the Observation HiveStudy the behavior of the honey bees residing in our Observation Hive in the Tropical House. The bees are encased in a glass case, revealing the comb and flurry of bee activity. Stop by at this time when a docent will be available to explain the inner workings of the ...
The Tech Museum does! Join in all the robotic fun when we roll out the robot red carpet for the Bay Area Science Festival. Meet some of our favorite robots, from Buster to AIBO, and then design and build your own robot out of Robotix parts.More details at: http://www.thetech.org/bayarea_science
Anamanaguchi is a four-piece melodic 8-bit rock band from Brooklyn, New York. Combining raw guitars and thrashing drums with sound chips from hacked Nintendos and Game Boys, they create a powerful, energetic sound that rests somewhere between organic and robotic.They are paired on this tour with Starscream, another Brooklyn band ...
Stanford's Genetics department leads hands-on activities every day of the festival. Try your hand at DNA spooling from animal cells and look at your own DNA from cheek cells under a microscope. Figure out what 1000 letters of your DNA look like. Solve a mystery by looking at "DNA" patterns ...
School groups will be joining us for an international science pantomime, with a live-link to the Genoa Science Festival in Italy. The students in Italy will pantomime science concepts through live-link technology to our students, and then our students will guess the concepts – and vice versa – as they ...
Hear experts describe how stress changes your body, even at the cellular level, and impacts everything from aging to your risk of disease. Learn about innovative research on stress, health implications we may predict in the future, in addition to proven ways to reduce stress in your life today.
Join us for ghoulish fun at The Tech Museum on Halloween! Discover the chemistry behind the creepy as you make slimy worms and ghost-like bubbles filled with fog. Find out what the hand print of a ghost looks like as you make your own disappearing prints and learn some seriously ...
A weekly program for teachers and students centering around a community of students who want to work together on intriguing and challenging mathematical problems. The San Francisco Math Circle (SFMC) is an enrichment program specifically aimed at enthusiastic math students and their teachers.
Where: Cost: Free with admission
2011 Nobel Prize in Physics: Supernova, Cosmic Acceleration and the Fate of the UniverseThe 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Saul Perlmutter, Adam Reiss and Brian Schmidt for their discovery that the universe is accelerating. This realization, which was made by studying exploding stars called supernovae, may have vindicated a 93 year old proposal by Albert Einstein that space is permeated ...
Where: Menlo ParkCost: Free
A Sharper Image: Adaptive Optics and Laser Guide Stars for AstronomyAdaptive optics is a technology that can remove the blurring effects of turbulence in the earth's atmosphere, so that telescopes on the ground can "see" as clearly as if they were in space. I will describe the basic principles of adaptive optics, and illustrate why lasers are needed to increase ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Nonlinear Optics in Optical Fiber Communications: For Worse and For BetterOptical nonlinearities in various materials pose some of the biggest challenges and opportunities in optical communications. On the one hand, it is critical to minimize deleterious nonlinear effects in order to transmit data undistorted across vast distances. This has been accomplished for present-day optical fiber communication systems, but future systems will always be pushing the limit of ...
This talk will explore the relationship between the performance of computers and the electricity needed to deliver that performance. Computations per kWh grew about as fast as performance for desktop computers starting in 1975, doubling every 1.5 years, a pace of change in computational efficiency comparable to that from 1946 ...
Stanford's Genetics department leads hands-on activities every day of the festival. Try your hand at DNA spooling from animal cells and look at your own DNA from cheek cells under a microscope. Figure out what 1000 letters of your DNA look like. Solve a mystery by looking at "DNA" patterns ...
Dr. Brian Cole of Stanford University and U.C. Bodega Marine Lab presents a talk entitled "Coastal Marine Ecotoxicology: Assessing Contaminant Effects from the Cell to the Organism" as part of the Sonoma State University's Biology Colloquium.
Nearly a century has passed since the discovery of injectable insulin in the 1920s turned the tide on diabetes, helping to save countless lives. Today, even as research into the disease proceeds apace, the diabetes epidemic continues to grow. In California alone, an estimated 4 million people (one out of ...
Ever wonder how plants live? Or how worms produce compost? Get hands-on with science to find out! Join Cal scientists for cool, food-related investigations.This program is jointly supported by Science@Cal, Community Resources for Science, and the UC Botanical Garden at Berkeley.
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Electric Cars, Residential Energy Monitoring Systems & Smart MetersChris Hunt, principal at PowerDown, will present the current state of inexpensive, residential home energy monitoring systems. Many of these systems have browser-based front-ends that allow users to monitor their usage over the web. Ron Freund, director of Plug In America, will discuss range, utility and reliability of electric vehicles, focusing ...
Where: Mountain ViewCost: $15 General, day of, $10 Members advance
Cancer claims the lives of more than a half million Americans each year. The lengthy battle against cancer has been one of human ingenuity, dramatic technologic advancement, and tireless commitment, but also of misperception, endless complexity, and frustration. Leading cancer researchers discuss the discoveries, and their collective hope for the ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $12 General, $10 Members & Seniors
Modern science offers us a startling and highly detailed account of Cosmology-the origin of everything. This same issue-and its significance-have occupied religious thinkers for thousands of years. Their insights are very different from those of science, but can also be beautifully complementary. In this evening's unique Wonder Dialogue, an astrophysicist, ...
Join Michael Nielsen for a lecture and book signing for his latest book, Reinventing Discovery. He'll reveal dramatic changes in science driven by powerful tools that are greatly accelerating scientific progress, and show how scientists are spontaneously collaborating online to tackle unsolved problems and make astonishing discoveries.
More than a billion people around the world are engaged in a massive and unprecedented experiment in how social media technologies are changing society, commerce, politics, health, innovation, love, work, the arts and more. But what is this new tech literally doing to our brains? How is it impacting who ...
An evening of stories about ideas, experimentation and when it all goes wrong with New York Times bestselling author, Gail Carriger, MythBusters host Adam Savagem Physicist and inventor, Nicholas Sheridon, New York Times bestselling author Scott Sigler, and Machine artisan Kal Spelletich.RSVP
Find out what happens when artists spend nine months in a science lab. This exhibition features eight works developed during the Swiss artists-in-labs residency, which places artists in scientific settings.
Stanford's Genetics department leads hands-on activities every day of the festival. Try your hand at DNA spooling from animal cells and look at your own DNA from cheek cells under a microscope. Figure out what 1000 letters of your DNA look like. Solve a mystery by looking at "DNA" patterns ...
We like to think that intelligent aliens would have the same basic ideas about numbers and geometry as us, but, even if they do, they might express those ideas very differently. To illustrate what different forms a concept can take, I will show how differently the law ab=ba has been ...
Join David Ewing Duncan, bestselling author and chief correspondent of public radio's Biotech Nation in conversation with three leading UCSF researchers as they discuss the prospects for retraining the brain to perform better. Their explorations range from investigations of how the brain works, to the development of practical remedies for ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: Free
There's nothing as practical as a good theoryTheoretical analyses of the development of numerical representations suggest that playing linear number board games, akin to Chutes and Ladders, should enhance young children's numerical knowledge. Consistent with this prediction, playing such a game for roughly one hour increases low-income, urban preschoolers' proficiency on a diverse set of numerical tasks: ...
Santa Clara University encourages and supports scientific and technological research that is performed responsibly within ethical guidelines, promotes engagement in scientific discussions with a desire to explore the facts, and foster thoughtful debate on the ethical and societal implications. This serves as a model by which students can examine and ...
Join astronomer Jill Tarter, whose work and life was a key model for the character Jodie Foster plays in the film Contact, for a very special evening of science fiction and cutting-edge science. We will screen the full-length film about the discovery of intelligent life among the stars, and then ...
Economic prosperity in the coming decades will depend on innovations built on scientific and technological breakthroughs. Unfortunately, findings from international assessments show that the U.S. no longer has an edge over other countries in educating its young people. This dialogue will take a critical look at current educational policies and ...
Where: Menlo ParkCost: Free
Fermentation Lecture w/ Gordon Biersch Brewing Co.You're cordially invited to attend our lecture series on Beer FermentationSpeaker: Master Brewer Dan Gordon, Cal Alumni, Co-founder and Director of Brewing Operations of Gordon Biersch Brewing Company http://www.gordonbiersch.com/You'll have the opportunity to ask any question at the end of the lecture during Q/A session.Room 126
What happens when one of the funniest and smartest authors around gets interviewed by a MythBuster? Hear which space legends might be as combustible as urban ones when Mary Roach and Adam Savage chat it up about Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void, San Francisco's ...
Sip on a glow-in-the-dark Cosmo as you enjoy the cosmic music stylings of the Physics Chanteuse. Learn about cosmic dynamics with hands-on activities by UCSC astrophysicists. Journey through the universe in the Holt Digital Starlab. Explore the museum under moody lighting, play space-themed video games on our giant IMAX screen, ...
The Marin Math Circle is a weekly math meeting for students. Manystudents come each week and are presented with difficult, original and always fun mathematical puzzles. As part of the Bay Area Science Festival, the math circle will be open to new members this night only.
Where: San RafaelCost: Free
Can we make it to Mars? - a film introduced by Katie BerryhillCan humans survive a trip to Mars that would take two to three years? Among the innovations covered in the film are meteoroid-proof materials, new space foods and spacesuits, and novel modes of transport. PBS; 53 minutes, 2011. Katie Beryhill is assistant professor of space studies at American Public University ...
Ready to put your science smarts to the test? Ask a Scientist will be celebrating the Bay Area Science Festival the best way we know how - with a boisterous science trivia contest hosted by Robin Marks of Discovery Street will be celebrating the Bay Area Science Festival the best ...
Environmental Defense Fund marine ecologist Dr. Rodney M. Fujita will moderate a panel of scientists, ocean explorers, futurists, and communicators who first gathered for an inquiry summit called BLUEMiND this summer at the California Academy of Sciences. The panel will explore cutting edge ideas of how gratitude and feelings of ...
Almost 14 billion years ago, the Big Bang created the seeds of our present-day Universe. Modern astronomers use telescopes and computers as time-machines, compressing millions of years of history into the blink of an eye to study the inexorable forces at work during that process. Material from space – the ...
The San Jose Math Circle (SJMC) is a weekly math meeting for middle school and high school students. Over 30 students come each week and are presented with difficult, original and always fun mathematical puzzles. As part of the Bay Area Science Festival, the math circle will be open to ...
Kelp forests are found throughout the world; however, their histories in the northern and southern hemispheres are dramatically different - from the timing of their formation to the origin of the key species that inhabit them. For example, in the North Pacific, the sea otter is the youngest component in ...
As neuroscientists are learning more and more about our body¹s hidden frontier, we have gained fleeting insights into our own intuition, habits and seemingly unexplainable preferences. Can we solve those mysteries by creating a complete compute model of our brain? Or is the brain an unsolvable puzzle? Two leading neuroscientists ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $12 General, $10 Members & Seniors
dorkbot San FranciscoAs always, dorkbot brings "people doing strange things with science." Swiss Ph.D. student Philipp Reist joins the roster to describe his Blind Juggler robot and other projects. If you would like to give a presentation in the future or host a dorkbotSF meeting, please contact Karen Marcelo at dorkbotsf@dorkbot.org.(Dial #230 ...
Get your geek on! From the lighter side of helium to the darker side of the moon, join science comedian Brian Malow on a rocket ride through the humorverse. Brian will dispel myths & misconceptions about science, explore the science in science fiction films, and exercise your brain as well ...
Find out what happens when artists spend nine months in a science lab. This exhibition features eight works developed during the Swiss artists-in-labs residency, which places artists in scientific settings.
