The Rabbit Reads the SciSchmooze
The Rabbit Reads the SciSchmooze
January 22, 2023
Hello again Science Fans, and welcome to the Year of the Rabbit!
The weather has been on everyone’s mind over the past month. The last time the Bay Area received this much rain in a 3 week period, Abraham Lincoln was President! Some areas were hit worse than others, of course. This all started the day after I left for Europe, and stopped when I returned. Strictly a coincidence, I assure you.
Most of us would recognize that there is a correlation between climate change and all the extreme weather events occurring around the world. For the past four years, the planet’s oceans have set records for the highest temperatures since record keeping began. Temperature extremes are being observed both on the hot and cold sides of normal, with Mars-like cold in Russia that could end up in Canada soon.
The changing climate is causing governments world wide to focus on energy conservation and generation. Automobile makers are working on electric vehicle development. I saw this first hand during a tour of the Volkswagen factory while in Germany. While engineering challenges continue, such as battery development, one issue seems to stand out. Can our electrical grid withstand the demand from all the chargers needed to keep the EV’s going? Palo Alto offers a case study in the challenges having so many Teslas in the city has created.
Who doesn’t like Penguins? No one? That’s what I thought. Found only in Antarctica, penguins have some unique breeding habits. The erect-crested penguins in New Zealand reject their first-laid eggs, but incubate their second one. They are the only bird species to do this.
A new (to us) colony of Emperor Penguins has just been discovered, one of only 66 known colonies, at Verleger Point. Discovered in December, the announcement was delayed so it could be made on Penguin Awareness Day, which was last Friday. Did you miss it?
Maybe penguins should replace one of the animals on the Asian zodiac, perhaps the rat. “Year of the penguin” sounds better to me.
Back to Mars, as Ingenuity, the plucky little helicopter just completed its 40th flight! Remember, it was only designed to make five flights!
It is humbling to remember that each of us is just a small spec in the grand scheme of the cosmos. Our planet is one of billions in the universe. We have the means to view Earth from space, and here are some beautiful pictures from various satellites, including a time lapse showing the storms coming onshore in California these past weeks.
The number of papers being published covering aspects of data from the James Webb Space Telescope are unprecedented. There is so much data to analyze! Our understanding of the early universe is being upended. Yet, despite all these new discoveries, the Standard Model of Cosmology survives JWST’s findings.
As always, there are plenty of astronomical happenings coming in 2023, including eclipses, meteor showers, even a comet. Here’s a link to a calendar of upcoming events.
Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF), also known as the Green comet, should be visible to the naked eye at the start of February. If you don’t catch a glimpse now, you will have to figure out how to live for around 50,000 more years to catch it next time it comes to visit.
Here are my picks for this week:
Astronomy Picture Of The Day: Postcards from the Universe 2022 - 6:00 PM Tuesday, Jan 24, online
Building a National Volcano Early Warning System for the Future - 6:00 PM Thursday, Jan 26, online
Mycological Society of San Franciso Fungus Fair - 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM Sunday, January 29, Pleasant Hill
The James Webb Space Telescope: Atmospheres of Other Worlds - 7:00 PM Monday, January 30, Stanford University or online
Have a great week in Science!
Upcoming Events:
Click to see the next two weeks of events in your browser.
Monday, 01/23/2023
Memory in a Glassy Landscape - Livestream - 01/23/2023 03:30 PM
SLAC Colloquium Series
Out-of-equilibrium systems preserve memories of their formation and training history in a variety of ways allowing for an innovative classification of material and dynamics. I will discuss one case where a cyclically sheared suspension of particles or a charge-density-wave solid (or even a walk in the park!) remembers multiple values from a series of training inputs yet forgets all but two of them at long times despite their continued repetition; however, if noise is added all the memories can be encoded indefinitely! When the packing density is increased, so that the particles become jammed, the evolution takes place in a very rugged energy landscape where scores of local energy minima are visited during each applied oscillation. Nevertheless the jammed solid can readily find the periodic orbits. Memory formation in such a system not only sheds light on how glassy ground states are selected and communicate with one another but also shows a form of memory that allows a new probe of the interactions within a material.
Speaker: Sidney Nagle, The James Franck Institute, The Enrico Fermi Institute, and the Department of Physics, The University of Chicago
First results from the LUX-ZEPLIN dark matter search - 01/23/2023 04:15 PM
Physics North Berkeley
Unveiling the true nature of dark matter is one of the most significant challenges in modern particle physics and astrophysics. Determination of the dark matter particle mass and interactions will shed light on a wealth of physics beyond the Standard Model, and will have a fundamental impact on our understanding of the universe from the smallest to the largest scales. A global experimental effort has been ongoing for almost forty years to directly detect weakly interacting dark matter in the laboratory, and technologies using liquid xenon (LXe) have emerged to lead this search. As these LXe-based detectors increase in size and sensitivity, one particular technical challenge has been the application of sufficiently high electric field across the liquid xenon, which is necessary to achieve sufficient background rejection. LUX-ZEPLIN is the largest and most sensitive LXe-based dark matter experiment to ever be constructed, and has been many years in the making. After its final construction and commissioning during the depths of the COVID lockdown, LUX-ZEPLIN has now collected its first science data. I will present these first data and what they tell us about dark matter so far.
Speaker: Dan McKinsey, UC Berkeley
Tuesday, 01/24/2023
How Ignition and Target Gain > 1 Was Achieved In Inertial Fusion - 01/24/2023 03:30 PM
Hewlett Teaching Center Stanford
For many decades the running joke in fusion research has been that `fusion’ is twenty years away and always will be. Yet, this year we find ourselves in a position where we can talk about the milestones of burning plasmas, fusion ignition, and target energy gain greater than unity in the past tense - a situation that is remarkable! In this talk, I tell the story of the applied physics challenges that needed to be overcome to achieve these milestones and the strategy our team followed. To help understand the story, several key physics principles of inertial fusion will be presented, and I will try and dispel any confusion about what the terms burning, ignition, and gain mean in the context of inertial fusion research.
Speaker: Omar Hurricane, Lawrence Livermore National Labs
New insights into the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation instabilities during the last glacial cycle - 01/24/2023 03:30 PM
Natural Science Annex Santa Cruz
Speaker: Yuxin Zhou, UC Santa Barbara
This event was originally scheduled for November 29, 2022
Stanford Symbolic Systems Forum: Sergiu Pasca on Building the Brain - 01/24/2023 04:30 PM
Margaret Jacks Hall (Bldg 460) Stanford
Speaker: Sergiu Pasca, Stanford University
Room 126
Astronomy Picture Of The Day: Postcards from the Universe 2022 - Livestream - 01/24/2023 06:00 PM
Astronomical Society of the Pacific
Join the Night Sky Network and Robert Nemiroff for a tour of the highlights from the Astronomy Picture of the Day archive for 2022.
Along with Jerry Bonnell, Robert Nemiroff has written, coordinated, and edited NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) since 1995. The APOD archive contains the largest collection of annotated astronomical images on the internet.
See weblink for YouTube links
Sperm Whales: the Gentle Goliaths of the Oceans - Livestream - 01/24/2023 07:00 PM
American Cetacean Society
Gaelin Rosenwaks is a marine scientist, explorer, photographer, filmmaker, and author of the newly published "Sperm Whales: The Gentle Goliaths of the Oceans”. Please join us as Rosenwaks takes us on a journey exploring ocean ecosystems around the globe, culminating with and highlighting her latest project on Sperm Whales. She will share her intimate observations of these fascinating whales, the world’s largest toothed predator. Rosenwaks’s years as a marine biologist, diver, and underwater filmmaker, and photographer prepared her to tell this beautifully stirring story with never-before-seen photographs of the world’s most marvelous ocean species.
Speaker: Gaelin Rosenwaks, Marine Scientist, Author
Register at weblink to attend
Wednesday, 01/25/2023
The Multitasking Motorist: Interactions With Technology - Livestream - 01/25/2023 12:00 PM
CITRIS Research Exchange
Safety concerning human performance in complex multitask environments relies heavily upon the fundamental psychological principles of limited-capacity attention and top-down mechanisms of attention allocation. To develop a suitable model for distraction and safety with automobiles, Spencer Castro’s team at UC Merced implements converging measures from established physiological, behavioral and subjective proxies for effort in realistic goal-directed settings. In this talk, Castro presents interesting examples of measuring, modeling and attempting to predict effort in the lab, in simulations and in automobiles on the road. The work measures fluctuations in cognitive workload for various manipulations of multitasking, including instruction-induced task priority and intermittent secondary task cues. The results indicate that multiple parameters are necessary to capture variations in processing priority for people and machines, with strong implications for safety. The most robust finding suggests that - contrary to strictly resource-limited theories of attention - strategic allocation of resources can drive performance more than a slowing in the rate of information processing.
Speaker: Spencer Castro, UC Merced
Register at weblink to attend
Uncovering the Past: Using Genetic Data from Present-day and Ancient Genomes to Reconstruct Human History and Evolution - 01/25/2023 12:10 PM
Archaeology Research Facility Berkeley
Recent advances in sequencing DNA have opened up new opportunities to use genetic data to improve our understanding of human history and evolution. For example, genetic data can be used to reconstruct migration patterns, understand how genomes change across different species or lineages, and understand how our evolutionary history impacts disease and adaptation. In this talk, I will discuss two ongoing projects within her lab: 1) Reconstructing the history of human-Neanderthal mixture using ancient genomes, and 2) Characterizing the patterns of major mixture events occurring in ancient Europe; both critical movements in human history. These analyses highlight the power of genomic data to elucidate the legacy of human migrations, providing insights that complement research done in archaeology and linguistics.
Speaker: Priya Moorjani, UC Berkeley
Register in advance for Zoom link, or attend in person
Room 101
Altering the course of wildland fire through anyalytics and shared stewardship - Livestream - 01/25/2023 12:30 PM
Stanford University
Due to a variety of factors including a century of fire suppression, climate change and past management practices, we are experiencing larger and more severe wildland fire. These fires are impacting communities, critical infrastructure, habitat and more. To alter that trajectory, we are needing to think and act at larger scales - we do this through data and analytics to design projects, and through shared stewardship to implement treatments at scale.
Speaker: Jason Kuiken, Stanford University
See weblink to join the livestream
U.S. CHIPS & Science Act: What It Means for the Future of, Well, Everything - 01/25/2023 04:00 PM
CITRIS at UC Berkeley Berkeley
Major tectonic shifts, decades in the making, are taking place across the globe right now. Russia's illegal war against Ukraine drags on, inflation has not yet been tamed, recession is looming, supply chains are being uprooted, China is shifting inward with an uncertain economic trajectory, and Taiwan is a growing geopolitical flashpoint. Despite these uncertain headwinds, technological innovation marches on.
At the center of this tempest is a tiny sliver of silicon, lightning in a bottle improbably captured and harnessed to drive human progress. Semiconductor technology is finally taking its rightful place in the public consciousness and just in time.
Come learn about the critical centrality of semiconductors to geopolitical rivalry, economic growth, innovation and emerging technology and about current incentives, policies, research opportunities, and commercial efforts in the United States. J. Travis Mosier - one of the foremost experts in the nexus between national security, industry, and technology, who played an early role in the implementation of the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act - will present the case for how semiconductors drive geo-strategic competition, upending established markets and supply chains, and how these little microchips will shape the future of everything as we know it.
Speaker: J Travis Mosier, International Trade Administration
The Data Behind Deep Fakes - Livestream - 01/25/2023 04:00 PM
Stanford University
A Deepfake is a photo, video or audio file that has been digitally altered or created to misrepresent reality [1]. In this talk I will describe the consequence of Deepfake technology, new challenges and propose a way to describe training datasets.
Last summer, I joined Reality Defender [2], working closely with the Chief Defender and learned how hard it is to detect Deepfakes even using machine learning. Since the term was coined in 2017, Deepfakes have improved tremendously where we may no longer be able to tell the difference between fakes and reality.
If we train an AI to detect Deepfakes, the detection can only be as good as the suitability of the training data set for the challenge it is facing during inference.
Speaker: Benjamin Mencer, Reality Defender
Farm to Table: Busting the Myths of our Food Systems - Livestream - 01/25/2023 07:00 PM
City of Sunnyvale
Want to grow your knowledge of the agricultural industry? Join Dr. Sarah Taber to learn how our food systems came to be
Dr. Sarah Taber, Crop Scientist, will teach you about the history of our food systems, environmental land protection, debunking farm mythsand much more.
The Universe of Galaxies, James Webb Space Telescope, and STEAM Research Opportunities for Young People - 01/25/2023 07:00 PM
Museum of Art and History Santa Cruz
My Science on Tap presentation will touch upon highlights from my group's research on galaxies. We tend to focus on nearby spiral galaxies like the Andromeda and Triangulum galaxies and the smaller galaxies that orbit around these two large galaxies. I will also present results from our ongoing research on the outer regions of the galaxy we live in, our Milky Way galaxy. The properties of the resolved populations of stars that make up these galaxies tell us a lot about the formation and complex evolutionary history of these galaxies. For example, the motion of stars tells us about the dark matter content of galaxies and their canni- balism history. My talk will include some of the latest images from the James Webb Space Telescope, Hubble Space Telescope, and ground based telescopes. Finally, I will describes three outreach programs under the Creating Equity in STEAM (CrEST) umbrella that engage young aspir- ing students: (1) Shadow the Scientists (StS); (2) Python and Research (PyaR); and (3) Science Internship Program (SIP).
Speaker: Puragra GuhaThakurta, UC Santa Cruz
The Science of Designer Babies: a genetic counselor’s perspective - 01/25/2023 07:30 PM
Marin Science Seminar San Rafael
Speaker: Liya Rabkina M.S. of Igenomix USA
Thursday, 01/26/2023
NightLife: Lunar Underground - 01/26/2023 06:00 PM
California Academy of Sciences San Francisco
So you’re looking for a different kind of Lunar New Year party. You know, the kind where you can play mahjong, get a tattoo, and wander through a bustling night market. You in? Join the celebration and welcome the year of the rabbit and cat the NightLife way.
Featured programming:
Did someone say kong? We’re busting out the mahjong tables but be warned: This won’t be your grandma’s mahjong night (unless your grandma plays after-hours at a science museum, cocktail in hand - in which case, can you invite her?). Hosted by our friends at Baba’s House, grab a drink and a seat and pick your lucky tiles for free play and mahjong tutorials all night long. Celebrate Lunar New Year with a lasting memento - real tattoos (yep, the permanent kind). While spots to get inked are limited, partygoers can look on all night as a lucky few memorialize the year with a Lunar New Year inspired tattoo. Check back soon for details about how to snag a spot at this special tattoo pop-up shop.
Building a National Volcano Early Warning System for the Future - Livestream - 01/26/2023 06:00 PM
US Geological Survey Public Lecture Series
Learn about:
How NVEWS implementation will improve our capability to detect eruption precursors at the earliest stages
The top priority volcanoes for implementation
How the implementation of NVEWS builds upon volcano monitoring investments already made
Speaker: Charles Mandeville, USGS Volcano Hazards Program Coordinator
See weblink to attend.
After Dark: Ice Stories - 01/26/2023 06:00 PM
ExplOratorium San Francisco
Delve deep into Jen Lewin’s luminous installation The Last Ocean before it leaves the Exploratorium floor! Traverse the artwork’s 1,200-square-foot landscape of interactive platforms =- inspired by an Antarctic ice shelf - then learn about how ice sheets are studied, reflect on the impacts of climate change, and get up close with some fascinating ice science. Plus, enjoy special performances from dance collective Mix’d Ingrdnts that will activate and illuminate The Last Ocean.
Ice Hours By Nathan Clevenger, Kristina Dutton, Kim Miskowicz, and Camille Seaman 6:00 - 10:00 p.m. Osher Gallery 1, Microcinema
Crafted from over a decade of video footage, Ice Hours features stunning views of Antarctic landscapes and the surrounding ocean set to an original score. Offering a glimpse into the overwhelming majesty of the natural world, the piece reflects on nature’s fragility, and, in turn, on our own fragility. Ice Hours illustrates the interdependence of humans and the natural environment and documents inspiring and endangered features of our changing planet.
Ice Hours is a collaboration between photographer Camille Seaman, film artist Kim Miskowicz, and composer/musicians Kristina Dutton and Nathan Clevenger.
Dance Performance By Mix’d Ingrdnts 7:30 and 8:30 p.m. Bechtel Gallery 3
Celebrate the final days of our winter exhibition Glow with this special performance from dance collective Mix’d Ingrdnts! They’ll activate Jen Lewin’s luminous installation The Last Ocean with vibrant, high-energy movement that fuses different dance styles.
Mix’d Ingrdnts Dance Company is a multi-ethnic, multi-genre dance collectivecomposed of female-identified artists who work together to contribute to social change.
Flaming Ice With Eric Muller 7:00 and 8:00 p.m. Gallery 5
You won’t believe your eyes as Exploratorium Educator Eric Muller sets ice ablaze - without the ice melting. Join Eric in our outdoor gallery to witness this phenomenon and learn how it’s done!
Studying Ice: New Tools for Deeper Understanding With Dustin Schroeder and Thomas Teisberg 7:30 p.m. Osher Gallery 1, Kanbar Forum
Learn how emerging technologies are poised to reinvent how we capture data about ice sheets and help us better predict rising sea levels. Hear from researchers Dusty Schroeder and Thomas Teisberg about how they’re pairing autonomous drone technology with scientific machine learning to study ice sheets, reduce uncertainty in sea level rise modeling, and expand data collection to support effective future planning.
Dustin Schroeder develops and uses geophysical radar to study Antarctica, Greenland, and the icy moons of Jupiter. He is an Associate Professor of Geophysics at Stanford University and leads the Stanford Radio Glaciology Lab. He has participated in three Antarctic field seasons with the ICECAP project and NASA’s Operation Ice Bridge.
Thomas Teisberg is a PhD candidate in electrical engineering at Stanford University. He works in the Stanford Radio Glaciology Lab and is a Stanford Data Science Scholar.
Studying Ice: Drone Show-and-Tell With Dustin Schroeder and Thomas Teisberg 8:30 - 9:30 p.m. Osher Gallery 1
Get an up-close look at the autonomous drone technology used by Stanford’s Radio Glaciology Lab to study ice-sheet melt. Researchers Dusty Schroeder and Thomas Teisberg are pairing drones with scientific machine learning to reinvent how ice-sheet data can be collected and better inform sea-level models. After joining them for a talk in the Kanbar Forum at 7:30 p.m., head out to Gallery 1 for this chance to engage in informal conversation and check out some of the tools of their trade.
Friday, 01/27/2023
Thermal tides in the Martian atmosphere = Livestream - 01/27/2023 12:00 PM
UC Santa Cruz
Speaker: Siteng Fan, Laboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique, Institut Pierre-Simon Laplace
See weblink for connection information
Saturday, 01/28/2023
Science Saturday: Amazing Migrations & Sandy's 40th birthday - 01/28/2023 10:00 AM
Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History Pacific Grove
Join us as we investigate the world of long-distance animal travels. Whales, birds, insects, and more will be the focus of our deeper look at these natural phenomena. Learn about the many amazing migrators that visit Monterey County every year and celebrate another birthday for Sandy the Whale!
TEDx Berkeley 2023: Channel X - 01/28/2023 10:00 AM
Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley Berkeley
The TV is on. It is January 28, 1986 and you are watching the Challenger explode on live television. Click. It is September 11, 2001, and you are in Ohio, watching New York crumble. It is the final two minutes of Super Bowl XLII and the New England Patriots’ perfect season comes to an end. Click. Our first African American president is inaugurated. Click. Tony Stark dies. As we flip through channels, we switch between endless streams of ideas, thoughts, and opinions, each a glimpse into another life. In our current digital age, we are inundated with images and data, millions of pixels shifting across our screens at any given moment.
But what happens if we take a step back? Who are we once separated from the overexposure to others’ content?
At TEDxBerkeley 2023: Channel X, we invite you to record, rewind, and remap our futures in this ever-changing world. What happens when information (and misinformation) is available on every digital device and platform? How is the next generation reshaping the terrain of social justice advocacy? From landmark representation on our television screens to new energy solutions, there is no shortage of stories, movements, and innovation that deserve to be featured and celebrated.
Tune in to TEDxBerkeley 2023 on January 28, 2023 to discover your new channel: Channel X.
Advocate for the Ocean with Ke Kai Ola Hospital - Livestream - 01/28/2023 11:00 AM
Marine Mammal Center
Get ready to explore The Marine Mammal Center’s Hawaiʻi Hospital & Education Center, Ke Kai Ola! We are offering an exclusive opportunity to virtually tour our hospital in Kona on Hawaiʻi Island. Through this tour we will explore the facilities that help The Marine Mammal Center care for the endangered Hawaiian monk seal. We will also work together to determine how to best use findings from this tour to excite our families into taking action to protect our oceans.
We encourage you all to come ready with a LOT of questions about Ke Kai Ola and our work in Hawaiʻi, and encourage you to speak up during our time together to share ideas around engaging siblings, cousins, and other family members in ocean conservation. You all play a crucial role in our planet’s future, and we are excited to help you on your way to becoming effective ocean educators!
Register at weblink
For grades 9 - 12
Saturday Cinema: Shimmering Phenomena - 01/28/2023 01:00 PM
ExplOratorium San Francisco
In celebration of Glow: Discover the Art of Light we invite you into gleaming worlds of cinematic light and color. A selection of animated and abstract short films shimmer in the theater's darkness to conjure luminous worlds, both kinetic and contemplative.
Dawning by Elon Goliger Mallimson (2021, 30 sec.) A time-lapse capture of a winter sunrise over the San Francisco Bay, with nimbus clouds transitioning through varied hues into welcomed striking luminosity.
Hillocks by Maria Constanza Ferreira (2021, 3.5 min.) Thousands of iridescent structures shimmer in enigmatic rhythms, reflecting and refracting glassy pastel hues. Edges and facets cut through the light and define a moody color field. This meticulous animation breathes life into the otherwise inert and inanimate lab-grown crystals. Specially colored to take advantage of the optical quality of the material, the irregular shapes and abstract compositions suggest clouds, magma, icicles, and otherworldly phenomena.
Luminae by Dominic Angerame (2022, 4 min.) Black-and-white imagery of a pulsating Sun reminds us of the intense animated glow of stars fueled by hydrogen and helium.
Two Space by Larry Cuba (1979, 8 min.) The filmmaker explores color afterimages and the illusion of figure-ground reversal through the creation of computer-generated images based on Islamic tile patterns.
Showings at 1:00 and 3:00
Jazz Under the Stars - 01/28/2023 06:00 PM
College of San Mateo Bldg 36 San Mateo
Jazz Under the Stars is a FREE monthly public stargazing event! Occurring on the Saturday nearest the 1st quarter moon (check our Events Page), join us on the 4th floor observatory for a night of smooth jazz, bright stars, and a lot of fun! We play our jazz from CSM's own KCSM 91.1. Founded in 1964, KCSM has grown to become one of the top 35 most listened to non-commercial stations in the US. With their help, the Astronomy department at CSM opens its observatory doors and balcony, for a night of science and fun! We operate for public viewing four 8” dobsonian telescopes, prefect for viewing the planets Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. We also have a 140mm refractor, with which we view the craters on the moon. Finally, our 8’ schmidt-cassegrain is for our deep sky needs. It can peer deep into globular clusters, and nebulae! Our astronomers will also be available for questions and conversation, which you wouldn’t get anywhere else! Feel free to ask us your questions about the cosmos. Occasionally we even have the chance to image galaxies! Don't miss out, join us at our next Jazz Under the Stars!!
Event is weather dependent. Check the website for up-to-date information.
Fort Point Candlelight Tour - 01/28/2023 06:30 PM
Fort Point San Francisco
The Candlelight Tour of Fort Point is a popular guided program that allows visitors to experience the fort in a new light. This evening tour will maze through the shadows of the historic structure by candlelight and visitors will see the glimmering lights of the Golden Gate Bridge towering up above them. Upon arrival, a park ranger will check-in guests and provide visitors with a lantern. A ranger will lead this 90-minute excursion and interpret the history and the life that once existed within the old brick walls of Fort Point.
The Candlelight Tour explores all four level of the fort including the roof (approximately 76 steps). Visitors will be invited to engage in dialogue as they learn about the fascinating and sometimes complex history of the fort, its role in San Francisco history, and its cultural relevance today. Recommended age for this tour is 12 years and up.
Visitors with reservations will begin their tour when the fort is otherwise inaccessible to the public.
An Introduction to Astrophotography - Livestream - 01/28/2023 07:00 PM
East Bay Astronomical Society
Have you ever wondered how astronomers take a picture of another galaxy or celestial object? In this presentation, you will hear how amateur astronomers produce these images. This includes the required equipment, what an imaging session looks like, and finally, an overview of processing data into a final image. Whether you are a casual observer or just getting started, this presentation will provide you insight into astrophotography.
Speaker: Frank Seminaro, East Bay Astronomical Society
See weblink for link to the talk
We originally listed this talk for January 21
Sunday, 01/29/2023
Drop-in at Palo Alto Baylands - 01/29/2023 09:00 AM
Palo Alto Duck Pond Palo Alto
Drop-in anytime between 9 am and 11 am to bird with us! SCVAS volunteers will be stationed at Palo Alto Baylands on the north side of the duck pond with binoculars to help you identify the huge variety of shorebirds and ducks that call the Bay Area home. No RSVP required.
Mycological Society of San Franciso Fungus Fair - 01/29/2023 10:00 AM
Diablo Valley College Horticulture Department Pleasant Hill
When the first rains tease up the chanterelles and porcini, fungus lovers head to the Fungus Fair: A Celebration of Wild Mushrooms
The 2023 Fungus Fair will display expertly identified fungi collected in various locations in the Bay Area. Annual collections have been made by MSSF since 1972. This historical information is a potentially important contribution to science as climate change affects our local ecosystems.
Activities for children and adults.
Lectures and workshops: Alan Rockefeller, Christopher Hobbs, Damon Tighe, Gordon Walker, Jack Laws, JR Blair, Melany Kahn
Educational tables on varied subjects such as medicinal mushrooms, myco-remediation, cultivation, ecology, lichens, psychedelic fungi, dyes from fungi, toxicology, edible mushrooms, and more...
Microscopes and spore printsNaturalistic displays of more than 300 species of locally collected fungiIdentification table - bring your specimens to find out the species!
The Fair provides information on the uses and abuses of fungi, with displays and exhibits on ecology, toxicology, and cultivation. Campsite gourmands learn how to serve up the safe and scrumptious species through identification tutorials, and sales of books, teas, snacks, and fresh edibles.
Children under 5 Free
Afternoon Hike at Mindego Hill - 01/29/2023 02:00 PM
Skyline Ridge Open Space Preserve Los Altos
Join Peninsula Open Space Trust for a beautiful 5-mile hike from the Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve to the top of the POST-protected Mindego Hill. You will be guided by POST ambassadors who will share details about how we protected this beautiful property featuring panoramic views of redwood ridges and undulating hillsides.
The hike is strenuous at about 5 miles round trip with about 1,000 feet of elevation gain, so be prepared for a workout! Athletic wear and sturdy shoes are recommended! If you’d like to bring your own hiking poles, you’re more than welcome.
Protected by POST and recently opened to the public by the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, Mindego Hill is an excellent example of how POST works with various partners to protect some of the most threatened lands in our area.
Please note that dogs are not allowed at this Community Hike and that all minors must be accompanied by a parent and guardian for the entirety of the hike.
Register at weblink
How the brain maintains homeostasis, from thirst to aging - 01/29/2023 04:00 PM
James H. Clark Center (Bldg 340) Stanford
William Allen trained in both molecular and systems neuroscience as a Ph.D. student at Stanford’s Interdepartmental Neurosciences Program, Dr. Allen plans to use state-of-the-art spatial transcriptomics, systematic CRISPR-based in vivo screen, and imaging to identify the mechanisms underlying brain aging and neurodegeneration at the level of cells, tissues, and organisms. He is currently a Junior Fellow of Harvard Society of Fellows, where he initiated research on brain aging.
Editor's Note: As we list this, Stanford has this event scheduled for Sunday, January 29. This seminar series is usually held on Tuesdays, so it is unlikely that this date is correct. We will correct our listing if we find the date changed, but if we still have it listed as Sunday and you wish to attend, verify with Stanford's weblink that the date is still the same.
Monday, 01/30/2023
Storytelling Science: The Conversational Path from Hypothesis to Discussion - Livestream - 01/30/2023 12:00 PM
Sonoma State Biology Colloquium
Speaker: Dr. Dennis Mangan, Sonoma State University
See weblink for connection information
Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Copper-Dependent Nutrient Signaling and Metabolism in Cancer - 01/30/2023 04:00 PM
James H. Clark Center (Bldg 340) Stanford
While kinase inhibitors have dramatically changed the landscape of cancer treatment, the near-universal emergence of resistance limits their clinical durability. Our research program is founded in a new paradigm in nutrient sensing and protein regulation, termed metalloallostery, whereby redox-active metals control kinase activity. Our laboratory’s focus lies at the intersection of kinase signaling and copper (Cu) homeostasis with the goal of defining the mechanisms regulating Cu-dependent kinases in order to target them in cancer through drug development or repurposing. The emergence of this new and clinically relevant signaling paradigm has highlighted the need to understand how redox-active metals interact with signaling pathways and underscores the promise of discovering new modes of kinase regulation as orthogonal therapeutic vulnerabilities.
Speaker: Donita Brady, University of Pennsylvania
UC Berkeley Physics Colloquia - 01/30/2023 04:15 PM
Physics North Berkeley
Speaker: Irfan Siddiqi, University of California, Berkeley
Generative Art and Deep Learning AI - Livestream - 01/30/2023 05:00 PM
UC Berkeley
Emerging AI technology has the potential to replicate some of the processes used by artists when creating their work. Dr. Nettrice Gaskins uses AI-driven software such as deep learning to train machines to identify and process images. Her approach puts the learning bias of race to the forefront by using AI to render her artwork using different source images and image styles.
Register at weblink to receive Zoom information
The James Webb Space Telescope: Atmospheres of Other Worlds - 01/30/2023 07:00 PM
Hewlett Teaching Center Stanford
JWST is an extraordinary technological achievement. Its ultra-precise optical system makes it a powerful tool for studying extrasolar planets (exoplanets) - worlds that orbit around other stars. Specifically, JWST is capable of measuring the chemical composition of exoplanet atmospheres with unprecedented sensitivity. In this lecture, Prof. Macintosh will discuss the most exciting exoplanet science planned for JWST: it will study giant planets like our own Jupiter by blocking the glare of bright stars, allowing us to understand how these worlds form. The telescope will also study smaller planets as they eclipse their host stars; we can identify chemical traces in their atmosphere when these planets are backlit by starlight. Prof. Macintosh will highlight recent results using both techniques. The same techniques will be adopted by JWST and future successor telescopes to study Earth-sized planets and look for signs of life.
Speaker: Bruce Macintosh, UC Observatories
Register at weblink to attend in person or online
Editor's Note: This event was originally scheduled to occur on January 31 and has been rescheduled due to room availablity. Note the new location.
Tuesday, 01/31/2023
Encore Movie: A Life's Work - 01/31/2023 10:00 AM
SETI Institute
A game of drones: Advancing discover and innovation in coastal research - 01/31/2023 03:30 PM
Earth and Marine Sciences Building Santa Cruz
Stanford Applied Physics/Physics Colloquium - 01/31/2023 03:30 PM
Hewlett Teaching Center Stanford
Stanford Symbolic Systems Forum: James Landay - 01/31/2023 04:30 PM
Margaret Jacks Hall (Bldg 460) Stanford
Happy 40th Birthday Lisa: Apple's Most Important Flop - 01/31/2023 05:30 PM
Computer History Museum Mountain View
Wonderfest: Neuroplasticity, Sensitive Periods, & the Adolescent Brain - 01/31/2023 07:00 PM
Hopmonk Tavern Novato
The James Webb Space Telescope: Atmospheres of Other Worlds - RESCHEDULED - 01/31/2023 07:00 PM
Lathrop Library Stanford
Wednesday, 02/01/2023
Climate Change Effects on Hurricane Risk for Single-Family Houses in the United States - Livestream - 02/01/2023 12:00 PM
CITRIS Research Exchange
Birds of Patagonia - Livestream - 02/01/2023 07:30 PM
San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory
Thursday, 02/02/2023
Introduction to Microgrids - Livestream - 02/02/2023 04:00 PM
Sonoma State Engineering Colloquium
NightLife with Cafe Ohlone - 02/02/2023 06:00 PM
California Academy of Sciences San Francisco
After Dark: Wondrous Fungus - 02/02/2023 06:00 PM
ExplOratorium San Francisco
Friday, 02/03/2023
Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics Seminar - 02/03/2023 12:00 PM
Earth and Marine Sciences Building Santa Cruz
Planetarium Show of the Night Sky - 02/03/2023 08:00 PM
College of San Mateo Bldg 36 San Mateo
Saturday, 02/04/2023
Family Nature Walks - Baylands Nature Preserve - 02/04/2023 10:30 AM
Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve Palo Alto
Afternoon Hike at La Honda Open Space Preserve - 02/04/2023 01:00 PM
La Honda Creek Open Space Preserve La Honda
Fire Ecology - EcoCenter Family Event - 02/04/2023 02:30 PM
Environmental Volunteers EcoCenter Palo Alto
Sunday, 02/05/2023
Birding Drop-in at the Charleston Slough Observation Deck - 02/05/2023 09:00 AM
Charleston Slough Observation Deck Palo Alto
Monday, 02/06/2023
Sonoma State University Biology Colloquium - 02/06/2023 12:00 PM
Sonoma State University - Biology Colloquium Rohnert Park
UC Berkeley Physics Colloquia - 02/06/2023 04:15 PM
Physics North Berkeley
Unveiling a Dark Universe: from Tiny Galaxies to Cosmic Maps - 02/06/2023 07:30 PM
California Academy of Sciences San Francisco