'Access to Scientific Expertise in Fast Growing African CountriesThe Nigerian government halted polio vaccination after pressure from religious leaders in 2007, and vaccinators continue to be attacked. In South Africa, current president Jacob Zuma publicly expressed the belief that showering after sex prevents HIV transmission. In Zambia, genetically-modified food aid was rejected because of misleading safety claims from the British ...
Explore interactive science exhibits, learn about cool science jobs, and have your questions answered by scientists! Family Science Days are FREE and open to all, and features hands-on demos, shows, talks by scientists, and other activities appropriate for K-12 children and their families. The event runs from 11AM-5PM at the ...
Some secrets are just too cool to keep to yourself. Bring your sweetie on this adventure among Golden Gate Park's magnolias and other wonders, but don't give it away! Thinkwalks has created a treasure hunt for adventurous couples to discover the park's most romantic, flowery secret. There's a surprise activity ...
MSI takes to the tidepools for a treasure hunt of nature's beautiful intertidal secrets. We'll spend our time taking advantage of the low tide to reach the outer edges of Pillar Point, while taking in spectacular vantages as we slowly retreat to shore. Will we find crabs, sea stars, eels ...
Where: Redwood CityCost: $20 General, $10 Members
Parent's Night Off at Oakland ZooChocolate & Roses – check! Romantic dinner reservation – booked! Do not disturb sign – printed! Child care – uh oh! Let us look after your kids for you, while you take some quality time for yourselves! Even though they are for kids, Parent's Nights Off are designed with adults in ...
Where: OaklandCost: $45 per child and $30 for each additional sibling
Explore interactive science exhibits, learn about cool science jobs, and have your questions answered by scientists! Family Science Days are FREE and open to all, and features hands-on demos, shows, talks by scientists, and other activities appropriate for K-12 children and their families. The event runs from 11AM-5PM at the ...
Marine mammals are notoriously difficult to study in their natural environment. They travel vast distances and dive to incredible depths. Recent advances in technology have revolutionized our ability to study these animals. As a result, a new field of study called "biologging" has emerged.Small sensors and transmitters are attached to ...
Where: Santa CruzCost: Free with admission
Innovations in Clinical Trial RegistersThe amount of publicly available information from clinical trials is increasing rapidly and going to continue to increase. The new European Union Clinical Trials law will require all future drug trials to be registered on a public register and to report results. The recently launched AllTrials campaign, calling for all ...
Bring the family to The Tech for the 3D Print Jam on President's Day, Monday, Feb. 16! Learn exactly what 3D printing is, make your own designs, and explore the horizons of what's possible with this rapidly developing technology. Most offerings are drop-in and free with admission (fee-based workshops noted ...
Where: San JoseCost: Free with Admission
CUBESATS FOR EARTH IMAGING Planet Labs co-founder and CTO Chris Boshuizen will discuss their plans to deploy an Earth-imaging satellite network via CubeSats.
Where: Rohnert ParkCost: Free
Tuesday, 02/17/15
Bird Walk Hike at Lake Merritt in OaklandJanuary is the perfect time to observe wintering waterfowl. Join the Lindsay Wildlife Museum for a morning of birding with experienced birdwatchers from the Mt Diablo Audubon Society. Bring your binoculars and learn how to tell the difference between a tern and a gull. Bird walk hike will be at ...
Where: Walnut CreekCost: $15.00 (Member: $10.00)
The Anthropocene Epoch in Cosmic EvolutionInformed by comparative planetology and a survey of the major episodes in Earth history, Dr. Grinspoon will offer a taxonomy of planetary catastrophes meant to illuminate the unusual nature of the "Anthropocene", the current epoch of human-driven planetary-scale changes, and reframe our current environmental and technological predicaments as part of ...
Kosovo's Fight for Sustainable Energy Access: Where is American Aid Going?With support from the World Bank and US Government, the Kosovar Government has already begun the initial process of designing a new, inefficient coal power plant, Kosovo C, with air pollution emissions up to twice as high as those allowed under both US and Chinese regulations. The Kosovar people and leading ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Tide Talks by Kame RichardsRacers, cruisers, power boats, kayaks, and swimmers will see and learn how the tide currents move on San Francisco Bay. $15 cash only. Reservations a must, call 707-759-2045 or email tjimtantillo@comcast.net
BREAKING THE SEEING BARRIERS FOR PLANETARY ASTRONOMYWhen Galileo pointed his telescope toward Jupiter in 1609, and discovered what we now call the Galilean moons, he did not realize that he had just established a new research field in astronomy. In the past four centuries, planetary astronomy, the study of our solar system bodies using telescopes, has ...
The main arguments against geo-engineering (direct climate intervention) to stop global warming are: 1) It would be a massive, irreversible, risky bet; 2) everyone has to agree to it, which they won't; 3) the unexpected side effects might be horrific; 4) once committed to, it could never be stopped.What if ...
The use of molecular population genetic data and analytical techniques allows the investigation of elements of animal life history that are difficult or impossible to understand in other ways. This is because they describe lines of descent at multiple scales, from ecological time, elucidating direct family relationships, to evolutionary time, ...
Where: Moss LandingCost: Free
Believer Author David Axelrod in Conversation with Museum CEO John Hollar The strategist who masterminded Obama's historic election campaigns, and their breakthrough use of technology, opens up about his years as a young journalist, political consultant, and ultimately senior adviser to the president. The man behind some of the greatest political changes of the last decade, David Axelrod has devoted ...
Big data is a hot topic in computing. Most research has focused on automatic methods of data processing such as machine learning and natural language processing. Another important direction of research is how to build systems that can store and process massive data sets. Unfortunately, what has been lost ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Civic Engagement and the Management of Water ResourcesHuman life depends on the availability and quality of water to sustain our health, grow our food, power our homes with electricity and stimulate our economies. However, due to overpopulation, increased demand for food, climate change and pollution, as much as two-thirds of the world's citizens may face water stressed ...
An environmental case for solar geoengineeringThe combination of inertia and uncertainty makes the coupled climate-human system dangerously hard to control. Emissions cuts are necessary to manage climate risks, but they are not necessarily sufficient. I will argue for a broad solar geoengineering research program–from laboratory to outdoor field experiments–that aims to develop new technologies that can limit ...
Algorithmic random number generators are everywhere, used for all kinds of tasks, from simulation to computational creativity.Yet most people haven't given much thought to the random number generators they use. Is the RNG you're using a good source of randomness? What does it even mean to be a good RNG?In ...
The goals of Prof. Hunley's research program in genetic anthropology are to improve our understanding of the evolutionary processes that have molded human biological and cultural diversity at different times and places in the past, and to explore the larger social and scientific meaning of these evolutionary processes. His specific ...
Join Tom Steyer, advanced energy advocate, investor and philanthropist, for the 6th Annual Michael Nacht Distinguished Lecture in Politics & Public Policy. Moderated by Governor Jennifer Granholm.
Tide Talks by Kame RichardsRacers, cruisers, power boats, kayaks, and swimmers will see and learn how the tide currents move on San Francisco Bay. $15 cash only. Reservations a must, call 707-759-2045 or email tjimtantillo@comcast.net
Where: SausalitoCost: $15 cash only
Nerd Nite SF #57: Viking Gender, Induced Quakes, and more!Change! – changing gender norms, changing landscapes, and changing lineups (as soon as we finalize the details of our third talk) – is the accidental theme at this month's Nerd Nite SF. So change up your Weds routine to come down to the Rickshaw Stop, order a different beer than ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $8
Thursday, 02/19/15
The Cleantech Open StoryMany Bay Area entrepreneurs are taking on the challenges of global climate change. Each year some of the best local clean tech entrepreneurs look to the Cleantech Open to help them refine their business plans, sell their concept to investors and customers, and build a successful clean tech enterprise. The ...
Where: SaratogaCost: Free
The Bay Model Wants You!!! Become part of Sausalito's very own attraction known around the world! We have a variety of volunteer positions that are suited for people just like you! Greet visitors, lead tours, work with school groups, and more! Come and be a part of one of the largest working hydraulic models in ...
The Law of Artificial Intelligence"OFFICER, ARREST THAT ROBOT!"Humans have rights, animals have rights, corporations have rights ... but what about artificially intelligent systems?Sound ridiculous? Jerry Kaplan, Visiting Lecturer in Computer Science and Codex Fellow, will argue that it makes perfect sense to accord sufficiently capable AI systems rights and responsibilities, in order to control ...
Design, the process of artifact creation, has historically been a qualitative art. But that has changed. We now understand the cognitive and communicative basis of artifact creation and diffusion. We can measure artifact creation at the human interaction level, and can measure its diffusion at the economic, ecological, and sociological ...
Where: Palo AltoCost: Free
Noise Pop NightlifeBeauty is in the ear of the beholder this week as Noise Pop Festival takes over NightLife for an evening that explores the science of ear candy.In the Piazza, catch a live DJ set from Northern California's own !!! (pronounced chk chk chk, for those in the know) as they ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $12 General, $10 Members
Sugar and Health -The Sweet, the Sour, and the Sticky!We will examine the role of sugar in our food supply, how sugar in the diet affects our health, and the many controversies surrounding this nutrient.Speaker: Alison Ryan, RD, MS, CSO, CSNC
The 2.4 square miles of Midway Atoll host over a million nesting Laysan Albatrosses each year, along with tons of marine debris. Nets, buoys, and plastic trash wash onto beaches. Albatross parents often swallow plastic pieces and regurgitate them to their young. Yet, amazingly, the albatrosses thrive.Susan Scott, a volunteer ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: Free
It's ComplicatedWe're celebrating the return of the Museum of Broken Relationships to San Francisco with an event we're calling It's Complicated, because… well, relationships are exactly that. Confirmed presenters and performers:UCSF neuroscientist & science podcast host Sama Ahmed will talk about how animals make mating decisions, and about the brain circuits that ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: Free
Mastering the Pixel, 25 Years LaterAdobe Photoshop is one of the most successful pieces of software ever written. Now used by millions of graphics and photographic professionals worldwide, Photoshop has come to shape the entire visual environment of 21-century culture. Gum wrappers, subway signs, billboards, book covers, Hollywood special effects, posters, portraits, product packaging, brochures, ...
Where: Mountain ViewCost:
A new field guide to California MushroomsDennis is lead author on an all-color field guide that treats over 1,100 species of CA mushrooms, with complete descriptions of 650 species, and over 750 color photographs. It is published by Timber Press in large format (8.5" x 11"), hardcover, about 580 pages. He will present what the field ...
The periodic table outlines the fundamental building blocks of all known matter in the universe. Composed of irreducible atoms, these elements arrived from the earliest reports of the Big Bang, the fusion wombs of stars and supernova, and collisions between interstellar matter and cosmic rays-as well as through artificial production ...
SF Carbon Cycles, Humans & the ClimateJohn Wick is making great strides in organizing around carbon with everyone from the mayors' conference to the White House. Come hear what you can do, what the city is planning, and how the Randall Museum will be part of a demonstration project on carbon dioxide. We'll discuss the whole ...
What happens when a UC Santa Cruz astronomer meets a playwright on the garden path of faculty housing? A wildly successful collaboration of the arts and sciences.Join us for a behind the curtain look at an original theatrical production that explored the life of the stars and those that gaze up ...
Where: Santa CruzCost: Free
Friday, 02/20/15
LSST@SLAC: Matthew BeckerOn the topic of cosmological simulations and requirements for dark energy science
Where: Menlo ParkCost: Free
Computing: The Human Experience- Anarchy and ChaosThe care of human life and happiness, said Thomas Jefferson, is the first and only object of good government. As such, governments – and the political institutions, legal structures, and economic infrastructures that support them – seek to apply all of the resources around them to further their reach and ...
Where: Mountain ViewCost:
Zoovie Night at Oakland Zoo: Over the HedgePut on your jammies and enjoy an evening of Zoovie magic with the whole family. Bring your pillows, blankets, and chairs and snuggle up in our auditorium for a specially selected animal-or nature-themed movie. Meet some of our movie themed education animals and Roosevelt, Oakland Zoo's costumed alligator mascot. Hot ...
Would You Baptize an Extraterrestrial?This is a series of conversations, set in specific settings, on a half dozen topics coming from the sorts of questions we get asked all the time at the Vatican Observatory- ranging from the Big Bang to the Star of Bethlehem, from Galileo to Extraterrestrials. Neither science nor religion are ...
