Marcelo Gleiser: The Island of Knowledge - The Limits of Science and the Search for MeaningTo be human is to want to know, but what we are able to observe is only a tiny portion of what's "out there." Brazilian theoretical physicist Marcelo Gleiser traces our search for answers to the most fundamental questions of our existence and reaches a provocative conclusion: science, the main ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $20 non-members, MEMBERS FREE, $7 students
A neural basis for attention in humans and monkeysThe Stanford Neurosciences Institute hosts a weekly seminar series to bring together members of the Stanford neuroscience community to hear about and discuss cutting edge basic and/or clinical research that is relevant to the future of neuroscience.Speaker: Robert Desimone, MITRooms 101-102
Where: StanfordCost: Free
STUDYING X-RAYS FROM SOLAR FLARESDr. Lindsay Glesener of University of California, Berkeley will discuss her work using sounding rocket experiments to study solar X-rays.
Where: Rohnert ParkCost: Free
The Revolution in Graph Theoretic OptimizationGraph theoretic optimization problems that have been dormant for fifty years are now seeing new and exciting algorithms. These advances have been made possible by Spectral Graph Theory, the interplay between linear algebra and combinatorial graph theory. One application of this interplay is a nearly linear time solver for Symmetric ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Answering Calls of Our Time: Energy Technology Transitions and EquityHow can we deploy clean energy technologies on a scale that matters and in a time frame that makes a difference? Market conditions that motivate private equity investments are framed in part by public policy decisions taken in contexts where social equity is a factor. Claims for justice are persistent ...
Where: StanfordCost: Free
Collecting New and Hardy Plants in the Mountains of Northern VietnamPlant explorers Bleddyn and Sue Wynn-Jones will talk about their plant-collecting expeditions in the north of Vietnam. They have explored that region's mountainous forests seven times since 1999, discovering new species and other exciting plants-"exciting sometimes to the extreme," they report. The main emphasis will be on the plant ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: $25
Joshua Wolf Shenk, author of 'Powers of Two: Seeking the Essence of Innovation in Creative Pairs'What drives creative success? According to Shenk the magic number is two. Even when we're alone, we are "collaborating" with the voice inside our head.Shenk examines dynamic duos in all fields of business, entertainment, social activism, etc. and unveils the "electrified space" of a partnership. He also identifies some of ...
Peter Thiel, who co-founded PayPal and made the first outside investment in Facebook, says we must think about the future for more than just 140 characters or 15 minutes at a time to make real long-term progress. He discusses some of the ideas in his new book, Zero to One, ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $40 - $80
A Planet for GoldilocksNot too hot, not too cold reads the prescription for a world that's just right for life as we know it. Finding evidence of life beyond Earth is one of the primary goals of astronomy focused science agencies in the United States and abroad. The goal looms closer as a ...
Recurring Slope Lineae: Confirmation of shallow subsurface flowing water on MarsRecurring Slope Lineae (RSL) are narrow (0.5 to 5 m) dark albedo features that incrementally lengthen down steep slopes and reoccur each year. RSL are well correlated with temperature, as they lengthen as temperature increases and fade as temperature decreases. RSL have been observed within a latitude band from 37°N ...
Where: Mountain ViewCost: Free
Public lecture by Dr. Laurie Marker, founder of The Cheetah Conservation FundEver wondered what goes into saving an endangered species? Dr. Laurie Marker, founder of The Cheetah Conservation Fund, has been working with cheetahs in Namibia for decades. In the race for survival, she has had to work with various stakeholders and use innovative strategies such as genetic research, re-wilding programs, ...
Go Wild! Nature Program for KidsEver wonder about the San Francisco Bay wetlands and the wildlife in your very own backyard? Join us for an adventure here at your local library. You'll get up close and personal with real feet and beaks of birds while you play bird games and create your very own wild ...
Where: San JoseCost: Free
Sunset/Full Moon walk to Point Bonita LighthouseJoin park staff and docents for a tour down the Point Bonita Trail, through the hand carved tunnel and out to the Lighthouse. We will walk along a half-mile trail which is steep in places. Arrive early as parking is limited. Meet at the Point Bonita Lighthouse trailhead. Dress warmly ...
Where: SausalitoCost:
Nerd Night North Bay #1Join us for the first ever Nerd Nite North Bay! Drink beer and learn about ancient Andean culture, sustainable beermaking, and Deadheads! How do they all connect? Sustainability! The ancient Moche civilization farmed with very little water, you can in fact brew beer in a sustainable way with very little ...
Where: NovatoCost: $5
Wednesday, 10/08/14
Total Lunar EclipseThe observatory deck opens at 2am for a special presentation about the eclipse. Stay after the presentation for the late night viewing festivities. A Lunar Eclipse occurs when the Moon passes through the shadow of the Earth. For this to happen the Sun, Earth, and Moon must be closely aligned ...
Where: OaklandCost: $15 General, Free for members
Data Analytics in EnergyEd Abbo is currently President and Chief Technical Officer of C3 Energy, which offers smart grid analytics SaaS solutions that enable utilities to realize the full promise of their investments in the smart grid Mr. Abbo was formerly Senior Vice President at Oracle Corporation responsible for Oracle's application and SaaS ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Enhancing Decision Making for New Vaccine Development and Health PolicyThe Institute of Medicine has developed SMART Vaccines-a decision support software system that offers the promise of enhancing decision making about the priorities for developing new vaccines and prioritizing for deployment among existing vaccines. It can also be used to help specify desirable vaccine characteristics, and potentially applied in comparing ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Steven Pinker: The Science of Writing WellSteven Pinker, a leading scientist of language and the mind, regularly appears in lists of the world's top 100 thinkers. A psychology professor at Harvard, he is the bestselling author of eight books including The Stuff of Thought and How the Mind Works. His latest, The Sense of Style: The ...
The Baltic Sea is an ideal natural laboratory for the study of climate change impacts on the ocean, where the greatest rate of change is now being found in semi-enclosed seas. The recent IPCC AR5 assessment reports that under RCP 8.5 Baltic sea surface temperatures will increase by 4.3°C by ...
I will start by describing specific ecological systems that have multiple stable states, lakes and coral algal grazer systems giving models of the latter. I will then discuss approaches for predicting sudden shifts in the face of slow parameter change. The approach will depend on developing a simple stochastic model and using ...
Go Wild! Nature Program for KidsEver wonder about the San Francisco Bay wetlands and the wildlife in your very own backyard? Join us for an adventure here at your local library. You'll get up close and personal with real feet and beaks of birds while you play bird games and create your very own wild ...
Critical information systems remain vulnerable to attack by a wide range of potential adversaries. Unfortunately, the risks are real and the problem continues to worsen in scope. This talk will describe the current and evolving nature of the threat and will highlight dangers in cyberspace today. The talk will discuss ...
Twitter's 250 million users generate tens of billions of tweet views per day. Aggregating these events in real time - in a robust enough way to incorporate into our products - presents a massive scaling challenge. In this talk I'll introduce TSAR (the TimeSeries AggregatoR), a robust, flexible, and scalable ...
Where: StanfordCost: Free
Spooky Halloween ScienceGet ready for Spooky Halloween Science Fun! In this workshop, you will handle slimy worms and learn about their role in decomposition, turn your lab partner into a "mummy", make a witch's potion, concoct Oger boogers, create a skull mask, and observe a real sheep's brain. If you like disgusting, nasty, ...
Where: San JoseCost: Free
How Google Works: Authors Eric Schmidt & Jonathan Rosenberg in Conversation with Yahoo's Marissa Mayer Google Executive Chairman and ex-CEO Eric Schmidt and former SVP of Products Jonathan Rosenberg came to Google over a decade ago as proven technology executives. At the time, the company was already well-known for doing things differently, reflecting the visionaryâ€" and frequently contrarianâ€"principles of founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin. ...
Where: Mountain ViewCost: TBA
8 Big Ideas - Science at the TheaterAt Berkeley Lab, we pride ourselves on great, socially responsible ideas. But can we explain them in a way that non-scientists can understand -- and applaud -- in only 8 minutes? The answer is yes and we will prove it on October 8 at Oakland's Kaiser Theater from 7-9 p.m. when 8 Berkeley Lab scientists take ...
Where: OaklandCost: Free
Exploring the Frontiers of Astronomy and the Lick ObservatoryThe Sonoma County Astronomical Society and the Robert Ferguson Observatory present:A benefit lecture by Prof. Alex Filippenko, Professor of Astronomy at UC Berkeley.Hosted by the Sonoma Academy 'Black Box Theater'Purchase tickets here.
7:00-7:25: Alison Gopnik(UC Berkeley/ Psychology) on "The Philosophical Baby"What Children's Minds Tell Us About Truth, Love and the Meaning of Life...Read more7:25-7:50: Edward Frenkel(UC Berkeley/ Mathematics) on "Love and Math"Abstract...Read more7:50-8:10: BREAK. Before or after the break, anyone in the audience currently working within the intersections of art ...
Judy Irving, a Sundance-and-Emmy-Award-winning filmmaker known for The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill, is coming to Sonoma. Now it's pelicans and their ancient magic, near-extinction and recovery paralleling our human relationship to the environment. One August afternoon, a confused, tired, and very hungry young pelican landed on the roadway of ...
Where: SonomaCost: $8
The Copernicus Complex: Are We Special in the Cosmos?Is humanity on Earth special or unexceptional? For the first time in human history, we stand poised to answer this question from a scientific perspective. Extraordinary discoveries in astronomy and biology have revealed a universe filled with endlessly diverse planetary systems, and a picture of life as a phenomenon intimately linked with ...
In an age of terrorism, where should a democratic society draw the line on government surveillance? Edward Snowden's explosive disclosures about the National Security Agency's intelligence-collection operations have ignited an intense debate about the appropriate balance between security and liberty in America. In a special series this year, nationally prominent ...
Engineer/Comedian Don McMillan headlines and hosts a FULL night of Nerdy Comedy on Wednesday, October 8 at Roosters! This is not your typical comedy show: Don't expect jokes like "Cats are different than dogs". It's more like "Einstein was way different than Newton..." Combining a solid scientific method and 25 ...
Where: SunnyvaleCost: $14
Thursday, 10/09/14
Characterizing Exoplanets with Transit Timingundreds of exoplanets have now been discovered via Doppler shifts and transits of their host stars. The Doppler shift is sensitive to planet mass and eccentricity, while the transit to planet size. However, we would like to measure size, mass and eccentricities to get at the bulk density, escape velocity, ...
Since Fall 2002, the Charles W. Davidson College of Engineering has hosted the Silicon Valley Leaders Symposium (SVLS). The Symposium hosts industry and technology leaders to talk about business and technology trends. It also features prominent leaders who discuss broader societal and political issues that shape our life and society.Speaker: Thomas ...
Where: San JoseCost: Free
From the Eocene to the Anthropocene: An Engineer's View of Climate ChangeDr. G. Wayne Clough (CEE PhD '69), Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, will be the honored speaker for the 2014 Fall CEE Distinguished Lecture. Dr. Clough's talk, "From the Eocene to the Anthropocene: An Engineer's View of Climate Change" will focus on Smithsonian science in multiple disciplines that is adding ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
HAPPY HOLLOW EDZOOCATION presents Go Wild!Happy Hollow Park and Zoo comes to your library! Join us with yourwhole family for a fun filled program with live crittersand learn about adaptations, habitat, diet,and more
Where: San JoseCost: Free
Near-Field Cosmology, Data Processing and the Cambridge Astronomical Survey UnitThe Cambridge Astronomical Survey Unit (CASU) is part of the Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge University. This group is responsible for processing data for all the imaging surveys carried out on the ESO VISTA and VST telescopes and for all data taken on WFCAM at UKIRT, together with imaging and spectroscopic ...
Where: Palo AltoCost: Free
Kevin Roe: The Ultimate Robot Challenge at FukushimaThe triple meltdowns at Fukushima could be the greatest industrial disaster in history. But the disaster is not over, it has only just begun. Without repair at the reactors, endless radionuclide contamination from Fukushima will poison the Pacific Ocean. Kevin is a patent attorney in Silicon Valley and was formerly an ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: Cost: $20 non-members, $8 members, $7 students
An Evening of Genius with Dr. Carl HaberPlease join us for a stimulating evening with Dr. Carl Haber, Audio Preservationist, Physicist, and 2013 MacArthur Fellow. An experimental physicist with the Lawrence Berkeley Lab, Dr. Haber is part of the ATLAS Group that discovered the Higgs boson particle. He is the founder of the Berkeley project ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Current Topics in CybersecurityThe 21st century is characterized by the use of the Internet for our personal and professional daily lives. National security depends on a stable, safe and resilient cyberspace. We rely on this vast array of networks to communicate, socialize, network, travel, automate our homes, run the world economy, and provide ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: Free
Big Soda and the EnvironmentSugary drinks harm our bodies, but what about our ecosystems? Earth Island Journal editor Jason Mark and guests explore the environmental impacts of Big Soda, from litter and recycling woes, to greenwashing, water wars, and GMO corn in the Midwest.Speakers:Jason Mark, Editor, Earth Island Journal (moderator)Susan Collins, Director, Container Recycling ...
What:7:00-7:25: Andrea Stevenson Won(Stanford's Communication Dept) on "The Stanford Virtual Human Interaction Lab"Understanding the dynamics and implications of interactions among people in immersive virtual reality simulations...Read more7:25-7:50: Margot Knight(Djerassi Resident Artists Program) on "Scientific Delirium Madness"A retreat that linked artists and scientists for 30 days of collegial interaction...Read ...
Where: StanfordCost: Free
Tinkering Social Club: Lock Picking with TOOOLUnlock the mysteries of lock picking at this month's Tinkering Social Club with The Open Organisation of Lockpickers (TOOOL). Tinker with locks and tools typically only seen in movies starring criminals and secret agents! TOOOL is dedicated to advancing the public's knowledge of locks and lock picking. You'll learn how ...
Robert A. Burton, MD PhD, former Chief of the Neurology Division at UCSF Mt. Zion, will present his ever-evolving view of the nature of what a mind might and might not be.Dr Burton is author of "On Being Certain: Believing That You Are Right Even When You're Not," and of ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: FREE
Friday, 10/10/14
UC Berkeley Homecoming at the Lawrence Hall of ScienceShow your Bear pride the scientific way by spending your UC Berkeley Homecoming weekend at the Lawrence Hall of Science. All events are free with a Homecoming name tag, UC Berkeley ID, Berkeley Lab/Lawrence Livermore National Lab employee ID, or Hall admission.
Where: BerkeleyCost:
Homecoming: Dodging ExtinctionThe new book Dodging Extinction weaves together perspectives from the deep past and the present to alert us to the looming Sixth Mass Extinction and offer a practical, hopeful plan for avoiding it. Unless we rethink how we generate power, where we get our food, and how we make our ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
A Resilient Response: The Transition MovementTransition is an international grassroots response to climate change, ecological and economic instability. Learn how communities in California, across the US, and around the world are taking action to transition away from fossil fuels while building resilience and responding to the great challenges of our time.Speaker: Marissa Mommaerts is Communications ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: $3 donation requested
The Secret World of BatsYSI presents a special talk on bats at YSI's Vasona Park location, led by Dave Johnston, Ph.D, a world-renowned expert on bats. It will include a bat discovery hike along Vasona Lake and nearby lawn areas. Yes, there are bats at Vasona!Ages 6 and up, accompanied by parent or guardian
Where: Los GatosCost: Check with YSI, website shows two costs
Searching for Meteorites at and near the South PoleIn 2011, 2013, and 2014, a group from TravelQuest International searched for meteorites just below the surface of the ice in "The Land Waaaaay Down Under". Landon Curt Noll, who served as the expedition scientist, will discuss the challenges of working and living in Antarctica. Landon will bring a collection ...
UC Berkeley Homecoming at the Lawrence Hall of ScienceShow your Bear pride the scientific way by spending your UC Berkeley Homecoming weekend at the Lawrence Hall of Science. All events are free with a Homecoming name tag, UC Berkeley ID, Berkeley Lab/Lawrence Livermore National Lab employee ID, or Hall admission.
Where: BerkeleyCost:
Wildlife Conservation Expo 2014The world's leading wildlife conservationists will come together in San Francisco to share their stories of saving wildlife around the world with you at the annual Wildlife Conservation Expo.See weblink for more details and speaker list.
Where: San FranciscoCost: $40 - $75
100th Anniversary Event at Saratoga LibraryThe celebration will include presentations and hands-on activities for all ages----- Magician Kim Silverman: Special Performance -- 3D Printing: Introduction and DemonstrationsHands-On Activities: -- Space and Science: Hands-on Chabot Activities -- Robotics with Toothbrushes-- Henna Body Art-- Lego Inspired Engineering -- Coffee-Ground Painting-- Rubber Band Knitting-- Postcard Creating-- Bath Salts Making-- Gardening-- Button Making-- ...
Where: SaratogaCost: Free
East Bay Global FrackdownOn October 11, people all over the world will be calling for an end to fracking and the dangers it poses to our environment, health, and communities. Here in Oakland, we'll be having a day of action at Lake Merritt, where our community can come together to learn about fracking and ...
Our Hawk Talks and Banding Demonstrations occur every Saturday and Sunday from noon to 2pm (weather permitting – heavy fog or rain cancels) during September and October. The Hawk Talk begins at noon, when a GGRO volunteer speaks about hawk migration and identification, and what we do here at the ...
Where: SausalitoCost: Free
Meet the MakersAt the Lawrence Hall of Science, meet Xunfeng Zaoh, a noted woodworker, artist, designer, and inventor. Work alongside Xunfeng to learn new skills and get inspired by his work.
Where: BerkeleyCost:
Science Saturday: Butterflies 101 - Butterflies of Mountain Lake and Beyond!Join Liam O'Brien at Mountain Lake for a talk on the fascinating world of local butterflies. Liam will give a beginner's overview of these beautiful invertebrates, and discuss the rich history of Lepidoptera in San Francisco. He'll also discuss a number of butterfly restoration and conservation efforts he's been involved ...
3:30-3:40: Piero Scaruffi (Cultural Historian): Introduction to the national LASER program3:40-4:00: Robert Buelteman (Photographer) on "Photography Without the Camera"The application of high-voltage electrical currents and hand-delivered fiber optic light can create fine-art photographs of living plants through a creative process inspired by Japanese ink-brush painting and improvisational jazz4:00-4:20: ...
Where: San MateoCost: Free
A Hard Rain's A-Gonna FallThe explosion of a small asteroid near Chelyabinsk in 2013, and numerous near-misses since then (such as the September 2014 close pass by asteroid 2014 RC) serve as reminders that we live in a cosmic shooting gallery. We'll look at the threats posed by Near Earth Objects (NEOs), the strategies ...
Where: San JoseCost: Free
Sunday, 10/12/14
Founder's Day - Free day at the ExploratoriumAdmission to the Exploritorium is free today, sponsored by UNIQLO USA.In collaboration with the Exploratorium, UNIQLO will make 700 advance tickets available for pick-up at their Bay Area locations beginning one week before the Free Day.
This month we celebrate Halloween with a creepy collection of stories about the animals that live in the deepest parts of the ocean! Learn how elephant seal's can dive to 5000 feet and stay underwater for 2 hours at a time without imploding (!), find out how a sperm whale ...
Where: SausalitoCost: Free with admission
UC Berkeley Homecoming at the Lawrence Hall of ScienceShow your Bear pride the scientific way by spending your UC Berkeley Homecoming weekend at the Lawrence Hall of Science. All events are free with a Homecoming name tag, UC Berkeley ID, Berkeley Lab/Lawrence Livermore National Lab employee ID, or Hall admission.
Our Hawk Talks and Banding Demonstrations occur every Saturday and Sunday from noon to 2pm (weather permitting – heavy fog or rain cancels) during September and October. The Hawk Talk begins at noon, when a GGRO volunteer speaks about hawk migration and identification, and what we do here at the ...
Where: SausalitoCost: Free
QUANTUMThe QUANTUM dance performance was developed by Swiss choreographer Gilles Jobin and German visual artist Julius von Bismarck in the Collide@CERN residency, at the world's largest particle physics lab.QUANTUM takes the quark as muse, fusing choreography and installation art into an ode to subatomic randomness. Six dancers vibrate, scatter, and ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $15 at door, $10 in advance
