CAMS: The Night-time Survey of Meteor Showers

If you ever spend a night under the stars watching for meteors and saw something unusual, you may want to meet astronomer Dr. Peter Jenniskens. He’s an expert on meteor showers and author of Meteor Showers and their Parent Comets, a 790 page book containing predictions on what unusual meteor showers to expect in the next 50 years.

Peter is best known for his recovery of fragments of asteroid 2008 TC3 in the Nubian Desert of northern Sudan with Sudanese astronomer Muawia Shaddad and his students from the University of Khartoum. This was the first time that an asteroid was spotted in space, observed by telescopes, then samples retrieved for study.

For more information visit their website at http://www.smcas.com/events/meetings/upcoming_meetings/.

Join a ranger guided tour of the Bay Model, a 1.5 acre hydraulic model of San Francisco Bay and Delta. Discover the stories of the two major operations that took place at this location between 1942 – 2000.

For more information, email Susan@susansearway.com, call 415-332-3871 or visit their website at http://www.spn.usace.army.mil/bmvc/.

The City of LA was fast outgrowing it’s water supply in the late 1800s.  The Owen’s Valley looked like the most likely source for the precious resource.  Tension grew between ranchers, farmers and developers.  Lies and subterfuge were at hand. William Mulholland’s aqueduct was the spark that ignited the CA Water Wars in 1913.  What happened?  Where are we today in terms of CA water?  Have things improved?  Is the war over?

For more information, email Susan@susansearway.com, call 415-332-3871 or visit their website at http://www.spn.usace.army.mil/bmvc/.

With over $139 billion U.S. dollars invested in medical research each year-a number expected to increase-only 30 new drugs reached patients in 2011. Learn how Silicon Valley entrepreneur Scott Johnson, also a multiple sclerosis patient for 36 years, became an unlikely revolutionary to reform the medical research system that has failed to produce new patient treatments for millions living with chronic and debilitating diseases.

Scott Johnson, who has been living with multiple sclerosis since 1976, is using his acumen as a business consultant and serial entrepreneur to reform a system for medical research and drug development that has failed to produce new patient treatments for millions living with chronic and debilitating diseases.  He holds an M.B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business and a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Davis.

Speaker: Scott Johnson, CEO, Myelin Repair Foundation

For more information email kvoneill@stanford.edu or visit their website at http://bloodcenter.stanford.edu/news/Scientifique.html.

Near-shore marine ecosystems face unprecedented challenges, regionally and globally, with threats from adjacent lands and oceans.

Sea otter populations are experiencing reduced rates of increase across much of their range.  Scientists are evaluating the status of north Pacific near-shore ecosystems from southern CA to southwest Alaska looking for clues about processes influencing the sea otter and the near-shore.  New technology is being used to study near-shore food webs, define the effects of adjacent watersheds, and demystify sea otter behaviors.

For more information call 650-329-5000 or visit their website at http://online.wr.usgs.gov/calendar/.

NASA is using lessons and innovations from space exploration to build the government’s greenest building on Earth.  Sustainability Base will be an evolving exemplar for the future of buildings.

Speaker: Krisstina Wilmoth, NASA-Ames Research Center

For more information about the Mt. Tamalpais Interpretive Association, visit their website.

Visit http://www.parks.ca.gov/Lat_Long_Map/?page_id=471 for directions.

Wikipedia, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter. That’s where the action is for a new generation of critical thinkers and a host of “fence sitters” wondering how to navigate extraordinary claims. The single most powerful skeptical tool on the Internet today is Wikipedia. Just over ten years old, this living, breathing encyclopedia has already changed the epistemology in every language.

Shouting and belittling believers does nothing but force them to circle the cognitive dissonance wagons and shut down. Allowing them to do their own research and think things through independently, without pressure, is the only way to potentially change minds. Susan will discuss the most relevant modern tools and techniques for shaping the public into better critical thinkers, with emphasis on Wikipedia.

Guerrilla Skepticism is the act of inserting well written, carefully cited skeptical references into Wikipedia pages where they are needed, while still following the guidelines and rules of everyone’s online encyclopedia. This grassroots method allows skeptics working at home to contribute to the skeptical movement without personally confronting people.

Speaker: Susan Gerbic

For more information visit their website.

Photographer and naturalist Becky Jaffe will discuss the Bay Area’s seasonal wildlife migrations and offer tips on the best local observation sites. She will illustrate her talk with photographs that unite a biologist’s curiosity with an artist’s sensibility.
For more information visit their website.

With an increase in international student populations, it has become more critical for educators to reach students in a culturally responsive manner. International students need instructional methods that are comprehensive and transformative and that honor their unique diversity and culture. Educators, counselors and administrators are invited to this dynamic free seminar presented by a panel of distinguished linguists and educators. Panel members discuss how language and culture shape thoughts and literacies inside and outside of the classroom. Teachers and students of language will find this discussion to be critical to their understanding of language acquisition as well as cross-cultural literacy.

For more information visit their website here.

Speaker: Curt Haney, President, Mycological Society of SF
Each general meeting begins with mushroom identification and cultivation delights, then features a guest speaker on a selected mycological topic.
For more information, check out their website at http://www.mssf.org.

Cooking is all about chemistry! Students will be introduced to the virtual laboratory we call a kitchen in a novel and practical application of science! Dinnertime will never be the same….

This program is limited to the first 30 students.

For more information visit their website at http://www.sjpl.org/event/mad-science-kitchen-chemistry-1.

Cooking is all about chemistry! Students will be introduced to the virtual laboratory we call a kitchen in a novel and practical application of science! Dinnertime will never be the same….

This program is limited to the first 30 students.

For more information visit their website.

Cooking is all about chemistry! Students will be introduced to the virtual laboratory we call a kitchen in a novel and practical application of science! Dinnertime will never be the same….

This program is limited to the first 30 students.

For more information visit their website at http://www.sjpl.org/event/mad-science-kitchen-chemistry.

Did you know that there is a 30,000 acre wildlife refuge right here in the South Bay? That it is home to over 280 species of birds each year? Join us as we learn more about Don Edwards SF Bay National Wildlife Refuge with stories and fun activities.

For more information, email hb.sjpl@sjlibrary.org call 408-808-3033 or visit their website.

Did you know that there is a 30,000 acre wildlife refuge right here in the South Bay? That it is home to over 280 species of birds each year? Join us as we learn more about Don Edwards SF Bay National Wildlife Refuge with stories and fun activities.

For more information, email hb.sjpl@sjlibrary.org call 408-808-3033 or visit their website.

Did you know that there is a 30,000 acre wildlife refuge right here in the South Bay? That it is home to over 280 species of birds each year? Join us as we learn more about Don Edwards SF Bay National Wildlife Refuge with stories and fun activities.

For more information, email hb.sjpl@sjlibrary.org call 408-808-3033 or visit their website.

At the Delta of the Niger River in Nigeria, where a vast proportion of the planet’s oil is excavated, bomb attacks, abductions and murders form part of the daily routine. The documentary portrays the image of “development”, as giant multinational petroleum companies  leaks in the River destroy the flora and fauna, poison the food chain and consequently wipe out the 27 million indigenous people of the area – the Ijaws, the Ogoni and the Itsekiris. The inhabitants dare to ask the self-evident, they demand an end to it.

For more information email Susan@susansearway.com or call (415) 332-3871.  You can find out more about the Bay Model here.

While continuing semiconductor miniaturization enables ever more complex systems, the cost and complexity of system innovation becomes increasingly out of reach.

A standard solution consisting of high performance processors, hardened peripherals, and a programmable logic fabric is ideal to address system integration challenges. Complementary to similar advances in software, a host of hardware-design tools and high-level programming methodologies are also making system design more user-friendly. Together these industry advances allow design teams to flexibly implement any system to achieve the sweet spot of performance and power dissipation according to team capabilities.

In his talk, Ty Garibay will share Altera’s view on silicon convergence, the integration of SoC and FPGA, and the direction the company is taking to increase system design efficiency through the use of high-level design languages and tools.

For more information, email info@seti.org or call 650.961.6633.

The City of San Carlos Department of Parks and Recreation and the San Mateo County Astronomical Society have open Star Parties twice a month. http://www.smcas.com/events/crestview_park/
Reasons to Attend
1. If you have kids interested in space or planets bring them here for a real life view of planets, nebula, star clusters and galaxies.
2. If you are thinking of buying a telescope or want help using a telescope you own, come here to talk with experienced users.
3. If you think you might have an interest in astronomy come and talk to experienced amateur astronomers.
Setup will begin at sunset and observing about one hour after sunset. In the event of inclement weather (rain, clouds, fog or excessive wind) the star party will not to be held. Because each astronomer makes his or her own decision about bringing their telescope, there is no official cancellation notice.
If you would like help with setting up a telescope or would like to learn about telescopes, come at sunset. If you would just like to see the universe through a telescope, come at about one or two hours after sunset.
For more information email SMCAS@live.com or call 605-862-9602.

The City of San Carlos Department of Parks and Recreation and the San Mateo County Astronomical Society have open Star Parties twice a month. http://www.smcas.com/events/crestview_park/
Reasons to Attend
1. If you have kids interested in space or planets bring them here for a real life view of planets, nebula, star clusters and galaxies.
2. If you are thinking of buying a telescope or want help using a telescope you own, come here to talk with experienced users.
3. If you think you might have an interest in astronomy come and talk to experienced amateur astronomers.
Setup will begin at sunset and observing about one hour after sunset. In the event of inclement weather (rain, clouds, fog or excessive wind) the star party will not to be held. Because each astronomer makes his or her own decision about bringing their telescope, there is no official cancellation notice.
If you would like help with setting up a telescope or would like to learn about telescopes, come at sunset. If you would just like to see the universe through a telescope, come at about one or two hours after sunset.
For more information email SMCAS@live.com or call 605-862-9602.

The City of San Carlos Department of Parks and Recreation and the San Mateo County Astronomical Society have open Star Parties twice a month. http://www.smcas.com/events/crestview_park/
Reasons to Attend
1. If you have kids interested in space or planets bring them here for a real life view of planets, nebula, star clusters and galaxies.
2. If you are thinking of buying a telescope or want help using a telescope you own, come here to talk with experienced users.
3. If you think you might have an interest in astronomy come and talk to experienced amateur astronomers.
Setup will begin at sunset and observing about one hour after sunset. In the event of inclement weather (rain, clouds, fog or excessive wind) the star party will not to be held. Because each astronomer makes his or her own decision about bringing their telescope, there is no official cancellation notice.
If you would like help with setting up a telescope or would like to learn about telescopes, come at sunset. If you would just like to see the universe through a telescope, come at about one or two hours after sunset.
For more information email SMCAS@live.com or call 605-862-9602.

The City of San Carlos Department of Parks and Recreation and the San Mateo County Astronomical Society have open Star Parties twice a month. http://www.smcas.com/events/crestview_park/
Reasons to Attend
1. If you have kids interested in space or planets bring them here for a real life view of planets, nebula, star clusters and galaxies.
2. If you are thinking of buying a telescope or want help using a telescope you own, come here to talk with experienced users.
3. If you think you might have an interest in astronomy come and talk to experienced amateur astronomers.
Setup will begin at sunset and observing about one hour after sunset. In the event of inclement weather (rain, clouds, fog or excessive wind) the star party will not to be held. Because each astronomer makes his or her own decision about bringing their telescope, there is no official cancellation notice.
If you would like help with setting up a telescope or would like to learn about telescopes, come at sunset. If you would just like to see the universe through a telescope, come at about one or two hours after sunset.
For more information email SMCAS@live.com or call 605-862-9602.

San Jose Astronomical Association, Houge Park, Twilight Drive, San Jose

Meet with members of San Jose Astronomical Society for a Star Party, weather permitting.

For more information visit their website at http://www.sjaa.net/.

San Jose Astronomical Association, Houge Park, Twilight Drive, San Jose

Meet with members of San Jose Astronomical Society for a Star Party, weather permitting.

For more information visit their website at http://www.sjaa.net/.

San Jose Astronomical Association, Houge Park, Twilight Drive, San Jose

Meet with members of San Jose Astronomical Society for a Star Party, weather permitting.

For more information visit their website at http://www.sjaa.net/.

San Jose Astronomical Association, Houge Park, Twilight Drive, San Jose

Meet with members of San Jose Astronomical Society for a Star Party, weather permitting.

For more information visit their website at http://www.sjaa.net/.

Exploration of space is not just about increasing knowledge of the solar system and universe, though those are important reasons. It’s also about addressing the challenges that we face as a society and civilization, such as energy supply and resource acquisition. But more immediate concerns can also be addressed, including international security and job creation. Space exploration is maturing to the point where it is possible to increase the number of missions while greatly reducing the cost, which would open up possibilities for greater utilization. The factors that will enable major exploration and development of space are converging and “the beginning is near” for a period of rapid advance.

For more information visit their website for more information.

Free Parking in Lot 5.

Did you know that there is a 30,000 acre wildlife refuge right here in the South Bay? That it is home to over 280 species of birds each year? Join us as we learn more about Don Edwards SF Bay National Wildlife Refuge with stories and fun activities.

For more information, email al.sjpl@sjlibrary.org, call 408-263-3636 or visit their website.