Dr. Mitsunuma has made pioneering contributions to catalytic sp³ C-H activation through his development of a cooperative catalyst system in which distinct catalysts operate synergistically. This strategy enabled mild sp³ C-H functionalization that combines high stereocontrol with high functional group compatibility. In particular, his ternary catalytic platform integrating a hydrogen ...
Disentangling the drivers of past ice sheet vulnerability is key to projecting future ice retreat and sea-level change. In particular, increased attention has focused on the importance of solid Earth-ice sheet interactions in modulating the vulnerability of marine ice sheets. In this talk, I consider how solid Earth feedbacks modulate ...
The emission of high-order harmonics of intense femtosecond lasers has long been understood as a result of a short-lived and rapidly oscillating “quantum antenna”: the result of the dynamical interference of the wavefunctions of an accelerated electron and that of its correlated hole, setup by an intense laser field during ...
Most climate founders know what needs to be built, but fewer understand the ground-level friction that prevents everyday homeowners, renters, and local businesses from adopting it. Acterra sits directly at the intersection of local climate action and regional tech.In this session, Acterra’s Executive Director Lauren Weston highlights how non-profit program design solves adoption bottlenecks. ...
Are cacti ready to face climate change? - Eddy Mendoza-Galindo, Plant and Microbial BiologyPlants are constantly challenged by climate change, and their ability to survive depends on their genetic composition. In this talk, we will explore the genetics of Saguaro cacti living in the Sonoran Desert. We will also look ...
In her new book, Why We Ask Why, Lombrozo explores one of our most fundamental human habits: the drive to understand why things happen. From everyday questions about traffic and relationships to deeper questions about meaning and existence, our explanations shape how we learn, connect with others, and make sense ...
For decades, a buzzy branch of science has spread a deeply flawed story about romantic relationships, cloaking itself in the language of incontrovertible Darwinian fact. Evolutionary psychology claims our minds were shaped by primal drives that pit the genders against each other, from the myth that men are wired to ...
Scientists often divide the natural world into neat categories: ocean and seafloor, land and water, surface and subsurface. But nature rarely follows those boundaries, and the categories we create can shape what we notice, what we miss, and what we choose to protect.Geological oceanographer Ivano Aiello explores this idea through ...
Where: San JoseCost: $27
The Limits of Computer Decision-Making: Where Human Judgment Still MattersIn the 1940s, mathematicians and engineers set out to build machines that could make critical decisions under uncertainty. Within a decade, they had invented tools that not only launched modern computer science but quietly rewrote what it means for a human being to make a "rational" choice.Benjamin Recht, a professor ...
The land down under is quite a stunner when it comes to fungal diversity. A wide array of landscapes coupled by equally fascinating plants and animals has pressured fungi into some unique forms and niches. The talk will focus on fungi found in Western Australia, the Daintree area of Queensland, ...
Rising from the deep Atlantic off the coast of the Sahara, the Canary Islands are an extraordinary yet still underexplored marine laboratory. Their volcanic origins, steep submarine slopes, deep waters close to shore, and remarkable diversity of climates and microclimates have created exceptional conditions for marine life. The archipelago supports ...
Plants sense extracellular cues through several hundred cell surface receptors. The most rapidly evolving group of receptors is the leucine-rich repeat receptor-like proteins (RLPs), which transduce immune signals as a bipartite receptor complex with the adapter SOBIR1. In recent years many new examples of immunogenic patterns detected by specific RLPs ...
The dual quests - to understand intelligence as it arises in biology and to build it in machines of our own making - have been with us for nearly a century. While neuroscience and psychology seek to characterize intelligence in terms of underlying neural mechanisms and emergent behavior, we still ...
Mars’s early magnetic dynamo may have had a significant influence on the planet’s climatic evolution and habitability, with its termination potentially triggering the shift to Mars’s present cold and dry conditions. Generation of the dynamo in Mars’s core also connects the magnetic field’s strength and longevity to otherwise-obscured properties of ...
Salt lakes are some of the world’s most extraordinary ecosystems, but nearly all of them - from the Great Salt Lake to the Aral Sea - are drying up, a harbinger of dust storms, rising sea levels, and worsening human health. Caroline Tracey’s book Salt Lakes: An Unnatural History, a ...
The Berkeley Space Sciences Lab has been flying successful space missions for over 60 years. We have some astounding projects to share, and a faculty affiliate program. The newest mission to join SSL is the NASA Psyche mission. Humankind has never visited a space object with a metal surface, and ...
Speaker: Sayatan Ghosh, LinkedinAttend in person or online. See weblink
Where: Mountain ViewCost: Free
Living with the Stars on Day of the DeadEquinoxes and solstices are familiar astronomical markers of the seasons, but the cross-quarter days - the halfway points between them - are less commonly considered in popular culture. At the latitude of some of the oldest Maya cities in Mesoamerica, the cross-quarter day between the September equinox and December solstice ...
Ah, Fall. The time of year when trees shed their greenery and leave only their skeletons behind, so too does your friendly neighborhood Nerd Nite embrace our spooky side, and what’s more frightening than the end of the Nerd Nite SF 2026 Season? (Jump Scare!) We’re bringing out our best ...
Tsunami early warning systems today rely on models that can take precious minutes to run - minutes that coastal communities don't have. New research is changing that by building a "digital twin" of the earth's crust, one that can simulate the physics of an earthquake and its resulting tsunami in ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: $27
Vanished: Extinct (or Possibly Extinct) Birds of Notrh America and Why Their Stories Matter - LivestreamExtinction is a poignant, fascinating, and important topic in conservation. Join Carolyn Knight and Julie Amato for an introduction to the extinct (and possibly extinct) birds of North America. We’ll define extinction (a surprisingly difficult determination to make); discuss the history and causes of bird extinctions; and share the moving ...
The census of confirmed exoplanets has grown to the thousands, with nearly all known systems demonstrating fundamental properties distinct from those of the solar system. We have entered an era of population-level planetary system characterization - yet the demographics of planetary systems are not static. Instead, they are subject to ...
When a lake turns green, it’s natural to want a simple answer: What caused it, and is it dangerous? Is it because of climate change? The farms? Within hours, the internet usually has a verdict. But lakes are complicated systems, and the first explanation is rarely the whole story. The ...
Generative AI is fast becoming the first-place people turn for expert advice. The advice it provides can be directional rather than neutral, shaped in part by the choices of its designers and regulators. When clients consult AI before meeting an expert, they carry this directional advice into a relationship that ...
Where: Cost: Free
Expert Talk: Living with Lions in the North BayDr. Quinton Martins, co-founder of True Wild Conservation, will present an update on the Living with Lions Project, an exciting grassroots predator conservation project in the San Francisco North Bay. Since 2016, Dr. Martins has studied the movement of mountain lions fitted with GPS collars in the North Bay to ...
Where: Santa RosaCost: Free
Baratunde Thurston & Blaise Agüera y Arcas: On InterdependenceJoin us for a conversation exploring interdependence as the core governing principle of nature and intelligence. Featuring Baratunde Thurston (Emmy-nominated producer and host of How to Citizen) and Blaise Agüera y Arcas (VP at Paradigms of Intelligence team at Google), we will examine how cooperation, rather than dominance, will shape ...
Where: Cost: TBA
Birds of a Feather Lurk Together: The Spooky Parallels Between Spiders and Birds - LivestreamFeathered structures, complex social lives, and soaring flight aren’t just for the birds ??" spiders have evolved their own unique takes on all of them. While birds and spiders might seem worlds apart, their evolutionary strategies tell a remarkably similar story of survival and innovation. In this talk, we’ll dive ...
Biological enzymes have evolved over billions of years to mediate kinetically challenging transformations under mild conditions and with excellent selectivities. Inspired by nature, our group works at the interface of bioinorganic chemistry and materials science toward the precise engineering of void spaces that can kinetically stabilize high-valent, bio-inspired complexes. This ...
Where: BerkeleyCost: Free
Saturday, 10/24/26
Birding for Beginners at Bair IslandCalling all community members! Come birding with POST and San Mateo County Bird Alliance and meet other birders! Whether you are experienced or completely new to birding, this event will provide a fun opportunity to get out in nature and gain a bird’s-eye view of species found locally.Join us for ...
Where: Redwood CityCost: Free
Community-access hiking day at Bouverie PreserveJoin us for the rare opportunity to connect with the land at Bouverie Preserve, 535 acres of mixed evergreen forest, riparian woodland, and chaparral. The preserve is home to a rich combination of plants and animals, including 130 species of birds, 350 species of flowering plants, and numerous large mammals, ...
Where: Glen EllenCost: Free
Feed the Farm AnimalsGet ready for an unforgettable animal adventure! Join our dedicated animal care team and dive into the excitement of feeding our delightful farm friends: goats, chickens, rabbits, sheep, and adorable pigs! You'll gain hands-on experience and discover fascinating insights into each animal's unique personality and needs. This interactive experience is ...
Where: San JoseCost: $16 SJ Residents, $20 Non-Residents
Join us any time to explore fun, hands-on activities about Spiders, Snakes and Owls. Our interactive touchscreens and Baylands Marshcam will also be available to explore.
Where: Palo AltoCost: Free
We All JourneyExplore the life cycle and migratory patterns of the Monarch butterfly, whose arrival in Mexico often coincides with Día de Muertos, the annual "Day of the Dead" celebration. Paint your own butterfly or butterfly wing and add a personal message on the back. Then they'll be added to the Exploratorium's ...
It’s tarantula season!Join Youth Science Institute for a special late-afternoon hike through Alum Rock Park in search of one of California’s largest and most misunderstood spiders - the tarantula!For much of the year, tarantulas live surprisingly secretive lives and can be difficult to spot. But each fall, mature male tarantulas ...
Where: San JoseCost: Free
Bowl the Planet 2026Join us for SaveNature.Org's biggest fundraiser of the year!At Bowl the Planet your can expect endless glow-in-the-dark bowling, silent auction bidding, unlimited pizza, music, and more.Whether you're a serious bowler or just here for the fun, grab your friends and join us for a wild evening in support of conservation ...
Where: Daly CityCost: $50 adult, $25 youth under 18.
Sunday, 10/25/26
Churn and Learn- Butter Making Class - Youth sessionIt's time to churn and learn! Join us at Emma Prusch to learn how to churn your own butter! Participants will learn how to make butter from scratch and then taste their butter on different breads. Registration is required at weblink.This session is for children ages 7 through 10.
Where: San JoseCost: $33 SJ residents, $37 non-residents
Up Close with Whales - while supporting the American Cetacean Society!Enjoy four hours on Monterey Bay with humpbacks, dolphins, and other marine mammals alongside marine biologist Nancy Black and ACS community members. This is a benefit whale watch hosted by the American Cetacean Society SF Bay Chapter to support our mission toward the protection of cetaceans and their habitat.In the ...
Where: MontereyCost: $84.80 (full price)
Churn and Learn- Butter Making Class - Adult sessionIt's time to churn and learn! Join us at Emma Prusch to learn how to churn your own butter! Participants will learn how to make butter from scratch and then taste their butter on different breads. Registration is required at weblink.Ages 18 and up
Where: San JoseCost: $33 SJ residents, $37 non-residents
Monday, 10/26/26
'North: The Future of Post-Climate America'Climate change is already influencing how and where people live.Join us at BESI as urban planner Jesse M. Keenan discusses his new book, North: The Future of Post-Climate America, which explores how climate change is shaping the physical and demographic future of the United States. The book documents a new ...
I'm really interested in understanding how environmental factors impact an individuals' life history strategy and how this strategy in turn impacts their performance in future environments. In the Williams lab, I'm using the wing polymorphism in Gryllus crickets as a model to tease apart this interaction between the environment and ...
Scientific progress is a key driver of economic growth and prosperity. There is great excitement- but also concerns- about the impacts of AI on science, but so far little data. We provide early insights on this from three data sources: a sample of 15 million Gemini interactions, an inventory of ...
Speaker: Orion Weiner, UC San FranciscoRoom: Auditorium
Where: StanfordCost: Free
In-cell structural biology at a systems levelSpeaker:Julia Mahamid, European Molecular Biology Lab, HeidelbergSeth Shipman, Gladstone Institutes and UC San Francisco was originally scheduled to speak today.
The camera is a common metaphor for human vision. In the eyeball, the comparison holds up: both cameras and eyes have an aperture, a lens, and a sheet of detectors that turn light into an image. But once you consider the rest of the brain, the metaphor completely falls apart.In ...
