Lichen: A Closer LookThis easy 1.5-mile out-and-back nature walk will explore habitats where lichen communities thrive. Learn to identify some of the most common forest lichen and discover ways these fascinating organisms benefit both wildlife and the environment. Meet at the Wood Road parking lot. Severe rain cancels. Questions? (408) 918-7770
THE FUTURE WILL BE EPICThe future of our world is being created every day, in offices, labs, garages, and classrooms. While some talking heads spread fear about what lies ahead, we’ve seen the future and can't wait for it to arrive.Join us for a whirlwind two-day festival filled with technology, futurist ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $45 early bird to $120
7th Annual Whalefest MontereyThis free fun and educational, interactive family event for all ages celebrates the migration of the gray whales! The event also benefits many local and national marine organizations that educate, inspire, and empower the public to protect the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.Among the highlights will be a symposium with ...
Bair Island is now open! On this 1.5-mile walk, witness wetland restoration in progress. Hear the story of Bair Island and see how we are turning the former salt pond back into a healthy tidal marsh. RESERVATIONS RECOMMENDED. Go to http://innerbairtour.eventbrite.com. Questions? Call Julie at 408-262-5513 ext.104.
Where: Redwood CityCost: Free
Science Saturday: MigrationsCome see what it’s like to travel hundreds, or even thousands, of miles, as you learn what migration is like for different animals. Discover the incredible migratory journeys of whales, birds and salmon (and even humans!) during Science Saturday: Migrations. In honor of Sandy the Whale’s birthday, we’ll dive into gray ...
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 ...
Where: AlvisoCost:
Trekking the ModelJoin a ranger-guided tour of the Bay Model, a 1.5-acre hydraulic model of the San Francisco Bay and Delta. Discover the stories of the two major operations that took place at this location between 1942 - 2000.
Where: SausalitoCost: Free
Fungi and autoimmunity: Talk by Martin Laurence, Shipshaw LabsMany strong links between fungi and diseases involving chronic inflammation have been found recently. This talk reviews the evidence linking fungal infections to Crohn’s disease, psoriasis, seronegative spondyloarthropathies (ex: reactive arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis) and multiple sclerosis. It focuses on multiple sclerosis, where the evidence is strongest. The hypothesis of ...
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 ...
THE FUTURE WILL BE EPICThe future of our world is being created every day, in offices, labs, garages, and classrooms. While some talking heads spread fear about what lies ahead, we’ve seen the future and can't wait for it to arrive.Join us for a whirlwind two-day festival filled with technology, futurist ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $45 early bird to $120
Docent Orientation: Become a Docent for Coyote Creek!The Santa Clara County Creeks Coalition is looking for volunteer docents! We are launching a new docent training program to promote education and stewardship of the Coyote Creek watershed.- Train with a professional naturalist- Learn about the ecology of Coyote Creek- Learn about the wildlife and plants of the watershed- ...
Where: San JoseCost: FREE!
7th Annual Whalefest MontereyThis free fun and educational, interactive family event for all ages celebrates the migration of the gray whales! The event also benefits many local and national marine organizations that educate, inspire, and empower the public to protect the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.Among the highlights will be a symposium with ...
Where: MontereyCost: Free
Coyote Point Field TripJoin the Nature Journal Club at Coyote Point for great opportunities to sketch waterfowl and shorebirds. The mud flats opposite the Marina are heavily used by migratory shorebirds and the marsh at the southern end of the Coyote Point golf course is a good place to look for ducks. We will ...
Where: San MateoCost: $20 suggested donation
Tilden Fungal FairWinter rains make the East Bay hills come alive with mushrooms! View local mushroom specimens, enjoy a presentation on fungi, and peruse our favorite guidebooks at this mini-fungus fair.RSVP requested at weblink
Water Birds at Lake MerrittMigrating birds are here! See which winter visitors are currently at Lake Merritt, the nation's oldest wildlife refuge.  Join us for a short walk along the lake. Learn about the Pacific Flyway and how to identify some winter migrants as well as year-round residents. We'll begin the walk in front of the ...
Former SF Environment Director Jared Blumenfeld is coming to SFE to talk about his hike from Mexico to Canada on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). Bring your lunch and come listen to his talk. There will be props, gear and lots of pictures from his hike. Read more about his ...
The initiative to curtail greenhouse gas emissions that President Barack Obama has made a centerpiece of his second term and that our president-elect will hopefully make it as a priority in his yet-to announced energy policy, has been spurred great interest among automotive companies to expand their portfolio with new ...
The second law of thermodynamics states that for a thermally isolated system entropy never decreases. Most physical processes we observe in nature involve variations of macroscopic quantities over spatial and temporal scales much larger than microscopic molecular collision scales and thus can be considered as in local equilibrium. For a ...
Electricity companies around the world use complex pricing schemes to promote affordable basic electricity services while also encouraging conservation for those who use more electricity. Unfortunately, the basic goals of such pricing systems risk being undermined by their sheer complexity: if households do not understand how they are being charged ...
Where: StanfordCost: Free
Electron Superhighway: a Quantum Leap for ComputingFor the past 60 years, progress in information technology has been governed by Moore's law, which states that the number of transistors on a semiconductor chip doubles every 18 months. However, this remarkable trend is drawing to a close, mostly because the electrons that carry current in chips move like ...
Where: StanfordCost: Free
Nerd Nite East Bay #49: Asteroid Law, Dragonflies, and Cognitive DissonanceSo You’d Like to Buy an Asteroid: The Law of Property in Outer Space by Kevin UnderhillGrowing up Dragonfly: the Weird, Wild and Wonderful Life of a Nymph by Christopher BeattyCognitive Dissonance: What’s Feeding Your Inner Zombie by Maren Connary
Where: OaklandCost: $10
Tuesday, 01/31/17
How Stars FormStars are the atoms of the universe. The process by which stars form is at the nexus of astrophysics since they are believed to be responsible for the re-ionization of the universe, they created the heavy elements, they play a central role in the formation and evolution of galaxies, and ...
History at Lake MerrittDive into Lake Merritt's past with this easy walk near the water's edge. We'll talk about the past and present ecology of the area, and how Lake Merritt has changed over the years.
Federal Fiscal Perspective on Risk of Climate Impacts and Rewards from Climate InnovationSpeaker: Ali Zaidi, Stanford
Where: StanfordCost: Free
Design Field Notes: Danielle ApplestoneEach informal talk in this pop-up series brings a design practitioner to a Jacobs Hall teaching studio to share ideas, projects, and practices.Danielle Applestone is CEO of Other Machine Company, the makers of the Othermill CNC desktop CNC machine. Other Machine Company strives to empower nontraditional makers, giving everyone “the ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
On the reality of black holesThe gravitational waves detected recently by LIGO were produced in the final phase of the inward spiraling of two black holes before they collided to produce a more massive black hole. The experiment is entirely consistent with the so-called Final State Conjecture of general relativity, according to which general solutions ...
Dr. Larry Brilliant has spent his career working to improve livesâ€"locally and globallyâ€"through his work helping eradicate smallpox with the UN, curing millions of people of blindness with Seva Foundation, and building technologies of the future with Google.org and public tech companies. Now he has written a memoir, Sometimes Brilliant: ...
This public symposium features Sapna Cheryan (2016-17 CASBS fellow; associate professor of social psychology, Univ. of Washington) and Shelley Correll (2015-16 CASBS fellow; professor of sociology and organizational behavior; Barbara D. Finberg Director, Clayman Institute for Gender Research, Stanford Univ.).Cheryan will speak on "Stereotypes of Computer Scientists Constrain Women’s Opportunities ...
The Here and Now of Electric Vehicles with NIO CEO Padmasree Warrior in a moderated discussion with Stephen Zoepf, CARS Executive Director.Â
Where: StanfordCost: Free
Science at the Library: Wild Weather There are 4 activities at each presentation after a show presentation. Parents work with their children to learn about science. Recommended for elementary age children. Families are encouraged to attend. Limited seating. Funding provided by Lam Research Foundation and free.Register at weblink
Join MARE’s Dirk Rosen and unlock the mysteries of the Channel Islands’ deep waters and see spectacular new footage of California’s ocean wilderness. Dirk will highlight the remarkable success of California’s network of marine reserves in the Santa Barbara Channel Islands.Speaker: Dirk Rosen
Where: SausalitoCost: $5 suggested donation
Galaxy Clusters and the Life and Death of the UniverseThe distribution of galaxies in the universe is patchy. Galaxies are bound together in clusters made of stars, hot gas and invisible dark matter. These galaxy clusters are part of a cosmic web of filaments, nodes and empty voids that has been building up over 13 billion years. How do we observe ...
Where: Menlo ParkCost: Lecture and parking are free
Jimmy Chin is an avid outdoor adventurer whose career combines amazing photography and film making with his experience as a veteran of The North Face Athlete Team. He’s filmed and photographed some of the world’s most progressive athletes and explorers while participating in breakthrough expeditions around the planet. He has ...
Weeds of Lake MerrittWhat's a "weed"? Join us for a short stroll around Lakeside Park to look at some of the often-ignored and sometimes-reviled plants that are considered weeds.
Michaelangelo will present selected portions of his dissertation titled “Leveraging New Data for Renewable Integration and Energy Efficiencyâ€, which seeks to answer two questions. First, how will the locations of photovoltaic (PV) generators affect the variability and uncertainty of the power they generate? And as a result, will locations of ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Rigidity of black holesThe gravitational waves detected recently by LIGO were produced in the final phase of the inward spiraling of two black holes before they collided to produce a more massive black hole. The experiment is entirely consistent with the so-called Final State Conjecture of general relativity, according to which general solutions ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Is Mt. Tam at Peak Health?One Tam is the community initiative of the Tamalpais Lands Collaborative and is focused on expanding stewardship and engaging the community to ensure a healthy future for the mountain. Hear about the results of a recent science-based health assessment of Mt Tam and its plants and wildlife and measures to ...
Where: RossCost: $20
A Message from the Sea: Climate Change and Marine EcosystemsDrawing from his experiences in diverse places across the Pacific Rim, Dr. Michael V. McGinnis will discuss how climate disturbances impact diverse coastal cultures. He is passionate about forging a more sustainable future that includes the protection of  the ecosystems we are connected to and dependent on.
Where: Pacific GroveCost: $5 General, Free for members
Mass extinctions â€" episodes during which many groups of previously successful organisms disappeared from Earth in a geologically short timespan â€" are one of the most striking and earliest recognized features of the fossil record. As the modern biodiversity crisis unfolds, scientists are increasingly turning to these events to understand ...
Where: AlbanyCost: Free
Thursday, 02/02/17
Respect: A Developmental Science Approach to ‘Wise' Behavior Change in AdolescenceIn this presentation he will discuss a conceptual framework for more effective behavior change interventions in adolescence through the use of developmental-science informed approaches. This builds on a series of studies he and his colleagues have conducted focusing on the challenges and limitations in many traditional approaches to behavior change ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Global Technology Supply Chains: What they are and why you need to know about themThe Global Technology Supply Chain is an AND world! As electronic instruments and products become more complex, and more prevalent, designers are challenged to design state of the art equipment that is state of the art AND cost competitive AND environmentally responsible. In this lecture we will explore what a ...
Where: Rohnert ParkCost: Free
The Problem of StabilityThe gravitational waves detected recently by LIGO were produced in the final phase of the inward spiraling of two black holes before they collided to produce a more massive black hole. The experiment is entirely consistent with the so-called Final State Conjecture of general relativity, according to which general solutions ...
Engineering in the United States was long regarded as masculine territory. For decades, women who studied or worked in engineering were popularly perceived as oddities, outcasts, unfeminine, or inappropriately feminine. Amy Bix tells the story of how women gained entrance to this traditionally male world, starting with a handful who ...
Where: StanfordCost: Free
Cafe InquiryMeet up with rationalists, skeptics, and freethinkers south of San Francisco
Where: Menlo ParkCost: Free
Lunar New Year NightlifeKick off the Lunar New Year with lion dance performances, martial arts, tea tastings, and more!SCHEDULE OF EVENTSLion Dance ​(African Hall) 7:30-8:45pm, Celebrate the "Year of the Rooster" with  four powerful performances by SF’s own Jing Mo Athletic Association, a Chinatown-based martial arts performance troupe and renowned Bay Area magician, Dan Chan.7:30pm - Chinese ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: $15 General, $12 Members
Plumas Audubon, in partnership with other Northern California chapters and Audubon California, has been working to conserve grebes and owls. Clark’s and Western Grebes are colonial water birds that nest on floating mounds of vegetation and have elaborate courtship rituals including a “rushing†display where pairs dance across the water ...
Where: San FranciscoCost: Free
Friday, 02/03/17
Birds & BotanyHike the forests, meadows and hills around Pine Flat and up Redhill with ACR Volunteer Patrick Woodworth & ACR Resource Ecologist Dave Self. We’ll be watching (and listening) for birds on the hike out. After lunch, we'll botanize as we consider the seasonal interplay between bird foods, habitat history and current activity ...
Where: GeyservilleCost: Free
The Cyber-Circus -- What The Rise of Hacking Everyday Things Means for All of UsIn 2017, cybersecurity is about the trust people place in “everyday†things like baby monitors, cars, insulin pumps and anything in between, and researchers are eager to demonstrate just how untrustworthy these can be. Amid media frenzy, stunt hacks, Internetâ€ofâ€Things attacks and highâ€profile disclosures, can friendly hackers help industry build ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Traffic Estimation and Control in an Era of Mixed Human Piloted and Automated VehiclesThis talk will explore some new directions in estimation and control when the traffic stream is composed of a mix of human piloted and autonomous vehicles. The first part of the talk investigates the problem of modeling and estimating traffic streams in this mixed setting. A connection between the generalized ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
The Problem of CollapseThe gravitational waves detected recently by LIGO were produced in the final phase of the inward spiraling of two black holes before they collided to produce a more massive black hole. The experiment is entirely consistent with the so-called Final State Conjecture of general relativity, according to which general solutions ...
