This month’s Science@Cal lecture will feature Dr. Lucianne Walkowicz, Kepler Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley speaking on the topic of “Magnetic Stars, Space Weather and Life: Stellar Activity and its Effect on Planets:”

Sunspots are some of the oldest astronomical phenomena observed by human beings. These “freckles” on the the face of our Sun may look innocuous, but they are actually the footprints of huge magnetic loops that protrude from our star. These loops sometimes twist and snap, causing spectacular solar flares that send radiation and energetic particles hurtling towards Earth. These flares are responsible for beautiful aurorae, but they can also cause the troubling disruption of satellites and other infrastructure. Similar phenomena are observed on many other stars in our Galaxy, with some stellar flares being even more powerful than those of the Sun. What is it like to be a planet around those stars? How do flares and starspots affect a planet’s ability to support and sustain life? These are just some of the questions we will explore.

The talk will be in the Genetic and Plant Biology Building, Room 100. These talks are pretty well attended so get there when the doors open at 10:30am.

Now, if you can’t make it, the talk will be live-streamed via UStream at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/science-cal. You’ll find previous talks archived there as well.

Early Saturday morning, a magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck off the coast of Chile near the town of Maule. The earthquake generated a tsunami, and much of the Pacific Basin was placed on alert for a possibly severe tsunami.

The initial reports from Chile are sketchy, and indicate moderate damage from the quake and tsunami. Officially, 147 people are reported killed. The epicenter is 200 miles from Santiago, Chile.

While the US West Coast is only under an advisory (below watch and warning), the State of Hawaii is under a tsunami warning, with the initial wave expected to arrive at 11:05am HST. Wave heights in the Hawaii are projected to be potentially as high as 8ft. at Hilo, HI.

Juliana Gallin of “Ask a Scientist” is spinning off a new monthly event called “How-To Night.” This month’s event at Bazaar Cafe will teach attendees some magic tricks:

“How-To Night” will take place the second Wednesday of each month at San Francisco’s wonderful Bazaar Cafe (birthplace of Ask a Scientist). Each event will feature a different guest instructor who will lead a one-night workshop on how to do…just about anything.
We’ll launch the series on February 10th with “How to do Magic Tricks,” taught by professional magician Robert Strong. Twice voted the Bay Guardian’s “Best Comedian in SF,” Robert knows how to put on an awesome show, as you’ll see. Suggested items to bring: coins, deck of cards, dollar bill, business card, pencil, 6 feet of rope, scissors, and $1 donation to cover other supplies. (If you don’t have all of these items, no worries, we’ll bring extra.) The fun starts at 7:00pm.

Admission is to the event is free. Bazaar Cafe is located at 5927 California Street at 21st Ave in San Francisco.

This month’s Cafe Scientifique is on a topic close to the hearts of almost every Californian: water:

At the February Café, Stanford Professor Richard Luthy will host a wide ranging discussion on the various facets of California’s water crisis, including:
• Potential solutions
• Supply sources and constraints
• Allocation choices (farmers vs. cities vs. the environment)
• Water pollution, remediation and reclamation.

And…Kepler’s will be giving away a $30 gift card to one lucky attendee! I recommend you spend it on a copy of the late Mark Reisner’s Cadillac Desert ⁽kplr|amzn|bandn|pwls).

If you’re planning to attend, the organizers would like you to help them out with a little survey.

Cafe Scientifique is held at SRI, Middlefield Road at Ringwood Ave in Menlo Park at 6:30pm (doors open at 5:15).

As museum and zoological parks around the country look for ways to appeal to broader (older, hipper, willing to part with discretionary income) audiences, Valentine’s Day provides the perfect opportunity for a community that typically caters to the under-12 set to let down their hair for a little after-hours action, if you know what I mean.

Here’s a list of events around the Bay Area for those looking to mix a little science with pleasure:

Sexplorations
Exploratorium
Thursday, February 4, 6pm

The Pitch:

Join us as we delve into the whys and wherefores of sex, and investigate the ways nature is both conservative and creative in its pursuit of procreation. Explore insect peep shows, collect your DNA, enjoy the latest reproductive dress fashions, and check out a variety of sperm from across the plant and animal kingdoms. See sex-related exhibit prototypes that will one day grace the Life Sciences collection in an Exploratorium greenhouse, films, and much more!

Featuring:

• Mary Roach, author of Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex
• Project Inform Evening of Hope: A Night of Life-Saving Fashion
• Condom Couture Fashion Show

Sign me up:
$15/free to members

Nightlife: Romance and Reproduction
California Academy of Sciences
Thursday, February 11, 6pm

The Pitch:

We have a pre-Valentine’s day treat, “Romance and Reproduction”. Throughout the Academy, you can learn about how different plants and animals from many different parts of the natural world reproduce. Among other things, you’ll see baculum (penis bones) from a variety of different mammals, learn about how the invertebrates in the tidepool exhibit reproduce, and find out exciting information about the frequency and duration of lion mating, penguin mating and zebra mating.

Featuring:

Sign me up:
$12/$10 for members

Woo at the San Francisco Zoo
San Francisco Zoo
Saturday February 13, 6pm (Evening Event)
Sunday, February 14, 11am (Brunch Event)
Sunday, February 14, 6pm (Evening Event)

The Pitch:

“Woo At The Zoo – Finally turns 21! Be you penguin, primate or possum you are cordially invited to celebrate a San Francisco Zoo original – the 21st Annual Sex Tour/Woo At The Zoo led by Jane Tollini. Come join us for her exciting presentation full of wild animal facts and kinky information about animal mating. It includes all animals A to Z including U! Heads and Tails above flowers and candles, there is no better way to impress your Valentine. If that isn’t enough, there will be up-close animal encounters from some Zoo residents to top off this unique event.

Featuring:

• Romantic brunch including mimosas, A French toast station, maple sausages, scrambled eggs, pastries, fresh fruits and delicious desserts.
• Evening event dinners of beef tenderloin, herbed couscous, salad, chocolate delights, champagne and more.

Sign me up:
Brunch: $65/$60 for members
Dinner: $75/$70 for members
Reservations recommended

Animal Amore Tour
Oakland Zoo
Saturday, February 13, 9am
Sunday, February 14, 9am

The Pitch:

Ever wonder about the love lives of Animals? Are they Monogamous or Romantic? Do they really fall in Love?

This Valentine’s Day, surprise your sweetie with something unique—an animal encounter you both will never forget! Join us for “Animal Amore” and learn about the courting, mating, and child-rearing habits of some of Oakland Zoo’s most amorous Zoo animals. We’re featuring a special walking tour in honor of Valentine’s Day!

Sign me up:
$11/free to members
Reservations recommended

Valentine’s Day Love Missions
Chabot Space and Science Center
Saturday, February 13, 1:30pm and 3:30pm
Sunday, February 14, 1:30pm and 3:30pm

The Pitch:

Celebrate with your Valentine on a simulated space mission to the Red Planet. This package includes an all access pass to the Center, chocolates, fizzy Martian beverage, and a souvenir of your trip.

Sign me up:
$85 per couple/$80 members
Reservations recommended.

Valentine’s Day comes a little early as the Exploratorium gets Cinemax’d up and becomes the Sexploratorium for this month’s After Dark program.

Join Bonk author Mary Roach for a “droll journey through understandings and misunderstandings about our sexual parts, their relationship to our minds, and scientific techniques for studying them.” Doesn’t everyone want to hear a droll discussion of matters sexual? Come on guys, work with me here!

Here’s the rundown on the night’s events:

• Mary Roach, author of the bestselling Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex, who will take us on a droll journey through understandings and misunderstandings about our sexual parts, their relationship to our minds, and scientific techniques for studying them.
• Project Inform Evening of Hope: A Night of Life-Saving Fashion
  Condom Couture Fashion Show
  Models will strut their stuff in fetching dresses fabricated from hundreds of condoms
• Flower dissection
• Sea urchin fertilization
• A discussion about the female feline reproductive system
• Bull testicle dissection
• DNA extraction
• Take-apart sex toysFilms and Projections
  
• Love Life of the Octopus (1965, 12 min.)
  
• Sexual Encounters of the Floral Kind (1983, 55 min.)
• Live sperm
• Sea urchin fertilizationExhibits
• Love Nest: Take a peek inside a dollhouse that’s home to amorous insects
• Pollination Partners: Explore flowers and the pollinators they attract
• Sense Appeal: Tease apart your sense of smell and your sight in terms of attraction
• Sperm to Scale: Discover which organisms have the largest sperm size to body ratio and what impact this has on the organisms
• Blown-Up Sperm: Check out fish, chicken, dog, and, lizard sperm. When these animals grow up they don’t look like humans; why does their sperm look so much like ours?

After Dark opens at 6pm and runs until 10. Cash bar opens at 6pm. Admission is $15 or free to members. The Exploratorium is located in the Palace of Fine Arts, 3601 Lyon Street in San Francisco.

This month at the East Bay Science Cafe, the topic is early man. Henry Gilbert, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at UC Berkeley will speaking about recent anthropological discoveries in Ethiopia:

The human fossil record has grown exponentially since the discovery of the first Neanderthal. We now have a continuous record of the last 6 million years, replete with many exceptional sites that offer well preserved hominins, prehistoric habitats, and stone tool troves.
One million years ago a population of Homo erectus lived in a riverine drainage basin in what is now a remote part of Ethiopia. This presentation will provide a detailed introduction to the fossils and stone tools found in this region, and provide a look at paleoanthropology history and the broader human fossil record.

Just for fun, ask him a question about “hominids.”

East Bay Science Cafe is held at 7pm at Cafe Valparaiso in the La Pena Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Avenue, in Berkeley.

If you’re in the mood to play with bugs, head on over the California Academy of Sciences this Thursday night for Nightlife:

This installment of NightLife also sees the return of the Insect Discovery Lab, which allows guest to see, feel, and learn about live insect specimens. It is the leading education outreach facility in the San Francisco Bay Area for hands-on learning and the conservation of invertebrates worldwide and has been highlighted on Evening Magazine, Bay TV, and Bay Area Backroads.

Academy entomologists Dave Kavanaugh, Norm Penny, andCharles Griswold join the presentation, showing of specimens of beetles, flies and moths that they have done research on.

The evening’s entertainment will be provided by DJs J-Boogie and Fred Everything.

Nightlife is $12 for adults only ($10 for members), and admission permits entry to the museum as well as the special programming.

The California Academy of Sciences is located at 55 Music Concourse Drive, Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.

This week’s Nightlife at the California Academy of Sciences is themed “Game Night,” and participants are encouraged to bring along their own games, but please, no wagering:

Come out and exercise your brain this week at NightLife at our first ever Game Night! We’ll have a veritable cornucopia of activities out on the floor for you to join in on: put Claude back together again in one of our puzzles, amaze your friends with your stellar IQ by solving one of our brain teasers, guess which skull goes to which animal in the Academy’s version of match, or go on a scavenger hunt throughout the building.

Music will be provided by DJ Zealot, and Fragile Planet will be screened in the planetarium.

Nightlife is $10 for members, $12 for everybody else. Special VIP Nightlife tours are $59. Only adults 21 and older are admitted as they do serve the alcohol. The museum is open for Nightlife from 6pm until 10pm.

Christopher Richard, Curator of Aquatic Biology, Oakland Museum of California, will be the featured speaker at this month’s Ask a Scientist. He’ll be describing San Francisco’s long-vanished watershed environment:

Did you know that the southeastern portion of San Francisco was once dominated by the watersheds of two large creeks, Mission and Islais, while large parts of the north and west of the city had no creeks at all because they were covered with sand dunes? Our waterscape has changed dramatically over the years, from the natural creek- and dune-scape to today’s modern sewersheds. Come learn about the unique features of San Francisco’s primeval waterscape and find out how the city used and abused its many creeks and lakes as it grew into the modern metropolis we call home. The Oakland Museum of California’s Christopher Richard will explain the geological and political history of this transformation and will take us on a virtual tour of the remaining free-running creeks in San Francisco (which you can visit!).

Ask a Scientist takes place at 7pm at the Axis Cafe, 1201 8th Street (btw. 16th & Irwin) San Francisco. Admission is free, but come early for indoor seating. Some (cold!) outdoor seating may be provided, weather permitting.