Arguably, quantum field theory (QFT) presents humanity's deepest insights into the rules of reality, i.e., into the laws of existence. QFT allows us to describe — with remarkable accuracy — the particles and forces that animate the cosmos, including the stuff of mind and body. Note that calling QFT a theory pays the highest scientific compliment: QFT has vast scope, and QFT is supported by an extraordinary amount of evidence.
Wonderfest and the Commonwealth Club present physicist Sean Carroll to discuss key ideas in his latest book, The Biggest Ideas In the Universe: Quanta and Fields. As in his first Biggest Ideas book (Space, Time, and Motion), Dr. Carroll goes beyond analogies to show how physicists really think about nature's underlying principles.
WHEN: 2024-05-14 — 3pm PT, Tuesday, May 14 (1 hour)
HOW:
Use the "Tickets" link (below) to access the Commonwealth Club's event webpage. During online ticket purchase, use discount code WONDERFESTPROMO for a ticket price reduction of $10, making this entire Sean Carroll online experience FREE.
Collaborators: The Commonwealth Club of California
Wonderfest Science Envoys are early-career researchers with special communication skills and aspirations. Following short talks on provocative modern science topics, these two Science Envoys will answer questions with insight and enthusiasm:
• Stanford ecologist Chinmay Sonawane on How Scavenging Animals Protect Human Health — Wildlife is rapidly disappearing globally. But why should we care? The loss of scavengers (consumers of already-dead animals) provides an intriguing example of how biodiversity loss has had, and will continue to have, profound consequences for human health.
• UC Berkeley physicist Bethany Suter on Direct Detection of Dark Matter — Ubiquitous, yet deeply mysterious, dark matter constitutes 85%(!) of the material universe. What do we know — and not know — of elusive dark matter particles? Novel laboratory materials may allow us to detect dark matter directly, shining light into the pervasive cosmic shadows.
This interactive science presentation, free and unticketed, is produced by Wonderfest in partnership with Marin Science Seminar.
WHAT: Ask a Science Envoy: Scavengers & Dark Matter
What value does this free science experience have for you and, indirectly, for society? Accordingly, please consider making a donation to nonprofit Wonderfest via the Eventbrite box, below.
Wonderfest Science Envoys are early-career researchers with special communication skills and aspirations. Following short talks on provocative modern science topics, these two Science Envoys will answer questions with insight and enthusiasm:
• UC Berkeley psychologist Sophia Li on Imperfect Communication — As a communicator, I want to transfer information from my mind into the minds of listeners. Research shows that both listeners and uninvolved observers have overly positive perceptions of any communicator. They believe that the communicator knows more than s/he actually does, and has articulated thoughts better than s/he actually has.
• Stanford physicist Josh Tong on Growth and Form — Living creatures grow and transform their shape, to the awe of many scientists. What does it mean to grow? How do we compare an organism at different stages of its growth? Mathematics can help us find the way to understand this fundamental transformation.
This interactive science presentation, free and unticketed, is produced by Wonderfest in partnership with Marin Science Seminar.
WHAT: Ask a Science Envoy: Imperfect Communication; Growth & Form
WHEN: 2024-04-30 — 7pm, Tuesday, April 30 (1.5 hr)
HOW:
What value does this FREE science experience have for you and, indirectly, for society? Accordingly, please consider making a donation to nonprofit Wonderfest via the Eventbrite box, below.
Radio and TV journalist Ira Flatow produced his first science stories back in 1970 during the inaugural Earth Day. Since then, he has worked for Emmy Award-winning science programs and covered science for a number of high-profile news organizations, and has hosted the popular public radio program Science Friday for more than three decades. In the process, Ira has become a well-known and influential popularizer of science for millions of people — a status highlighted by repeated appearances as himself on the sitcom The Big Bang Theory.
In his career, Ira Flatow has interviewed countless researchers about the most exciting developments in science. Now, Wonderfest welcomes Ira to Commonwealth Club headquarters — and online — for a special evening of conversation with journalist and author Annalee Newitz, in which Ira gets interviewed!
WHAT: An Evening with Ira Flatow
WHO: Ira Flatow, Host & Executive Producer, Science Friday
WHERE: Commonwealth Club, 110 The Embarcadero, San Francisco CA 94105
HOW:
This program is available in two formats: in-person and online-only. Please pre-register for either format via the "Tickets" link below. Use promo code WONDERFEST20 for a $20 ticket discount, rendering the online live-stream event entirely FREE.
Collaborators: The Commonwealth Club of California
Around the world, people recognize that E=mc^2 oozes cosmic insight. But what does this "most famous equation" really say? What are energy and mass? And what makes the speed of light, c, so important? [Hint: mass, moving at speed c, doesn't turn into energy!] Using little more than common experience and middle-school math, Einstein's "special relativity" gem can come to life — with surprising insights into the nature of reality.
This event is co-produced by Wonderfest and the East Bay Astronomical Society. Our speaker is long-time physics teacher Tucker Hiatt, founding director of Wonderfest. Tucker has been a Visiting Scholar in the Stanford Chemistry Department, and is a recipient of the Amgen Award for Science Teaching Excellence.
Tucker Hiatt
WHAT: The Most Famous Equation
WHO: Tucker Hiatt, Wonderfest Founding Director
WHERE: Chabot Space & Science Center, Classroom 4, 10000 Skyline Blvd, Oakland CA 94619 [https://chabotspace.org]
WHEN: 2024-02-17 — 7:30p, Saturday, Feb 17 (1.5 hour)
HOW:
This event is free, unticketed, ... and valuable. Please assess its value for you, and, in the Eventbrite space below, consider a corresponding donation to nonprofit Wonderfest.
Around the world, people recognize that E=mc^2 oozes cosmic insight. But what does this "most famous equation" really say? What are energy and mass? And what makes the speed of light, c, so important? [Hint: mass, moving at speed c, doesn't turn into energy!] Using little more than common experience and middle-school math, Einstein's "special relativity" gem can come to life — with surprising insights into the nature of reality.
This event is co-produced by Wonderfest and Marin Science Seminar. Our speaker is long-time physics teacher Tucker Hiatt, founding director of Wonderfest. Tucker has been a Visiting Scholar in the Stanford Chemistry Department, and is a recipient of the Amgen Award for Science Teaching Excellence.
Tucker Hiatt
WHAT: The Most Famous Equation
WHO: Tucker Hiatt, Wonderfest Founding Director
WHERE: The Innovation Hub at Terra Linda High School, 320 Nova Albion Way, San Rafael, CA 94903
WHEN: 2024-01-31 — 7:30pm, Wed, January 31 (1 hour)
HOW:
This event is free, unticketed, ... and valuable. Please assess its value for you, and, in the Eventbrite space below, consider a corresponding donation to nonprofit Wonderfest.
In astronomy, the redder a galaxy appears, the faster it is fleeing, and the older a tale its light can tell. Such "redshifts" in the spectra of galaxies (symbolized with the letter "z") allow compelling cosmic insights. The recently-launched James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has allowed astronomers to study the properties of high-z galaxies in existence only 250 million years after the Big Bang, when the universe was only 2% of its current age! How are these objects detected in such very "deep" space, and what are the early science results from this JWST research?
Our speaker is Dr. Thomas Targett, Associate Professor of Physics & Astronomy at the Sonoma campus of California State University. Dr. Targett's Wonderfest history includes an eye-opening talk entitled Popular Myths of Astronomy, presented as part of the Mt. Tam Astronomy Program.
Dr. Thomas Targett
WHAT: Fast & Faraway: The High-Redshift Universe
WHO: Dr. Thomas Targett, Assoc. Professor of Physics & Astronomy, Sonoma State University
WHEN: 2023-11-28 — 7:00pm, Tuesday, Nov 28 (1.5 hour)
HOW:
This event is FREE and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have for YOU? Accordingly, please consider a donation to nonprofit Wonderfest via the Eventbrite window, below.
Next Scientist is a new Wonderfest series of online presentations. Every Next Scientist Zoom consists of two 30-minute presentations (including 10 minutes of Q&A), each featuring a young researcher describing next-level science:
UC Berkeley arachnologist Trinity Walls on Creepy or Captivating: A Spider Scientist's Perspective — How have recent discoveries about spiders changed beliefs that have been passed down for generations? Can we see that the study of spiders is beneficial to society? One person's life-long journey — from curious child to rigorous researcher — reveals spider science to be an avenue of creative self-expression that offers rich insights into nature.
UC Berkeley astrophysicist Tyler Cox on Creating the Largest-Ever Maps of the Universe — New datasets from the James Webb Space Telescope have begun to reveal some of the oldest known galaxies in the universe. But what lies beyond these extremely remote objects, and what more can we learn by going deeper? Next-generation experiments are working to map the most distant regions of the universe to help explain the origins of the first galaxies.
WHAT: Next Scientist: Spider Love & Deep Cosmic Maps
WHO: Trinity Walls & Tyler Cox, Wonderfest Next Scientists
WHEN: 2023-11-07 — 7:30pm, Tuesday, Nov 7 (1 hour)
HOW:
This free, online, science presentation is produced by Wonderfest in partnership with the Castro Valley Educational Foundation and Castro Valley Science.
What value does this experience — and these insights — have for YOU? Accordingly, please support nonprofit Wonderfest, the Bay Area Beacon of Science, by donating via the Eventbrite space, below.
The warping of space becomes noticeable near small massive objects — black holes, in particular. Beyond "noticeable," that curvature becomes beautiful when rendered with the skilled artist's hand and described with the poetic physicist's verse. Lia Halloran and Kip Thorne team up to describe an odyssey through black holes, wormholes, time travel, and gravitational waves. In fact, that is the subtitle of their soon-to-be-published book, The Warped Side of Our Universe. Kirkus Reviews calls the book "Beautiful art in the service of cutting-edge astrophysics."
Award-winning artist Lia Halloran is Associate Professor and Chair of the Chapman University Art Department. Nobel Prize-winning physicist Kip Thorne is Emeritus Professor of Physics at Caltech. These two authors will be in conversation with the Commonwealth Club's George Hammond.
WHAT: The Warped Side of Our Universe
WHO: Physicist Kip Thorne and artist Lia Halloran
WHERE: The Commonwealth Club, 110 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94105
WHEN: 2023-10-30 — 5:30pm, Monday, Oct 30 (1 hour)
HOW:
Visit the Commonwealth Club event webpage (link below) to purchase tickets for this in-person event. During the final steps of ticket acquisition, use code WonderfestPromo for a $10 discount.
How do the methods of science enrich the world for us? The latest book by physicist Jim Al-Khalili, The Joy of Science, invites us to engage with the world as scientists do. It discusses the nature of truth and uncertainty, the role of doubt, the pros and cons of simplification, the value of guarding aginst bias, the importance of evidence-based thinking — all ideas that can empower us to think more objectively, see through the fog of our preexisting beliefs, and lead a more fulfilling life.
Dr. Jim Al-Khalili is Distinguished Professor of Theoretical Physics at the University of Surrey in England. Having written 14 popular books and having earned the Stephen Hawking Medal for Science Communication, he is also a university chair in the public engagement in science. Dr. Al-Khalili will discuss The Joy of Science with Kishore Hari, Science Correspondent at Tested.com.
Dr. Jim Al-Khalili
WHAT: The Joy of Science
WHO: Dr. Jim Al-Khalili, Professor of Theoretical Physics, University of Surrey, UK [https://jimal-khalili.com]
WHERE: ONLINE, with the Commonwealth Club
WHEN: 2023-10-16 — 5:30, Monday, Oct 16 (1 hour)
HOW:
Please register for this event with the Commonwealth Club via the "Tickets" link, below. Use discount code WonderfestPromo for $10 off, rendering that ticket completely FREE. Upon registration, you will receive an email containing a link to this live-stream event.
Humans have sought "signs from above” for millennia. The scientific search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) began circa 1960, and, today, grows ever deeper and more technologically diverse. The scope of modern research is breathtaking. Methods include targeted searches for electromagnetic (EM) signals near known Earth-like exoplanets, continuous EM scans over the entire sky (e.g., PANOSETI at the Bay Area's Lick Observatory, pictured),the hunt for exotic forms of communication, and the careful search for ET artifacts on/near Earth.
Our speaker, Dan Werthimer, is Chief Scientist at the Berkeley SETI Research Center. He is also co-founder of SETI@Home, and principal investigator of CASPER, the Center for Astronomy Signal Processing and Electronics Research. Since 1979, Dan has helped to design and build numerous sensitive tools for the detection of ET. In 2019, Dan earned Wonderfest's Carl Sagan Prize for Science Popularization. And, in 2021, he received the prestigious Frank Drake Award of the SETI Institute.
This free event is produced by Wonderfest and by the Alameda Free Library. In the Eventbrite space below, please consider a donation to help nonprofit Wonderfest in its mission of science outreach.
An August-24th New York Times article about audacious astronomer Avi Loeb concludes with this: "Now, that being said, if [Dr. Loeb] finds something, it's life-changing ... It will change everything." What was "being said" referred to professional academic complaints about Dr. Loeb's alleged "transgressions against scientific norms and protocols." However, no one disputes the excitement of Prof. Loeb's investigations. Wonderfest joins the Commonwealth Club to present controversial Harvard astronomer Avi Loeb in conversation about ideas in his latest book, Interstellar: The Search for Extraterrestrial Life and Our Future in the Stars. That conversation will explore some vital — if highly speculative — long-term questions: How do we prepare for first contact with ET? And how can our species itself become interstellar?
Dr. Avi Loeb is Professor of Science and former chair of the Astronomy Department at Harvard University. During this online event, he will be in conversation with the Commonwealth Club's George Hammond.
Please pre-register with the Commonwealth Club (via the URL below) to receive a link — via email — to this live-stream event. Use discount code WonderfestPromo for $10 off the ticket price, rendering that ticket completely FREE.
How far off are the "goldilocks" worlds? These are the planets, orbiting other stars, that have just the right environmental traits to make life possible — not too hot, not too cold, etc. Will we be able to detect the chemical signals of alien life from so far away? In her new book, Life on Other Planets: A Memoir of Finding My Place in the Universe, Dr. Aomawa Shields discusses these questions alongside the personal challenges she's encountered on the path to success in the thrilling field of astrobiology. Dr. Shields is in conversation with author and journalist Julia Flynn, and in touch with the online audience via the chat bar.
Dr. Aomawa Shields is Associate Professor of Physics & Astronomy at UC Irvine. She is also founding director of Rising Stargirls, dedicated to encouraging girls to explore the universe using theater, writing, and visual art.
Please pre-register with the Commonwealth Club (via the URL below) to receive a link — via email — to this live-stream event. Use discount code WonderfestPromo for $10 off the ticket price, rendering that ticket completely FREE.
The past few decades of astronomical discovery have been breathtaking: thirty years of awe-inspiring images from two Space Telescopes (Hubble & Webb), thousands of planets found circling nearby stars, mind-bending and spacetime-bending gravity waves and, quite recently, a stunning image of the black hole at the center of the Milky Way. What is the value of all of these discoveries? Can learning about our place in the Universe inspire us, as Carl Sagan put it, to preserve and cherish the Pale Blue Dot?
Our speaker, Dr. Adrienne Cool, is Professor of Physics & Astronomy at San Francisco State University. She is also co-founder of Astronomers for Planet Earth, an international organization working to address climate change from a cosmic perspective.
WHEN: 2023-06-20 — 7pm, Tuesday, June 20 (1.5 hour)
HOW:
Since Wonderfest is COVID-cautious, consider wearing a mask; the warm feeling of Wondernaut(!) camaraderie radiates through masks and across wide seat-spacing.
This event is FREE and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have for you? Accordingly please consider a donation to nonprofit Wonderfest via the Eventbrite window, below.
Wonderfest Science Envoys are early-career researchers with special communication skills and aspirations. Following short talks on provocative modern science topics, these two Science Envoys will answer questions with insight and enthusiasm:
• Stanford biologist Billie Goolsby on Family Feud: Familial Decision-Making in Poison Frogs — Cooperation between parents tends to ensure family success, especially among poison frogs. Through direct observation, sound recordings, and hormone analysis, researchers test how coordination of parenting happens in nature — and how it predicts offspring survival.
• UC Berkeley physicist Ashwin Singh on Exploring Quantum Chemistry with Earth's Strongest Laser — Quantum mechanics helps describe cold chemical reactions, like those that occur in outer space. By building the world's strongest laser to hold molecules in place, we can watch quantum chemistry happen in real time.
WHAT: Ask a Science Envoy: Poison Frogs & Quantum Chemistry
WHEN: 2023-05-11 — 8pm PDT, Thu, May 11th (1 hour)
HOW:
This free, online, science presentation is produced by Wonderfest in partnership with the Berkeley Public Library.
What value do these science insights have for you? Accordingly, please consider making a donation to nonprofit Wonderfest via the Eventbrite box, below. (Note: No "sales" or "tickets" are involved; it's just a thoughtful contribution to help Wonderfest promote science understanding and the scientific outlook.)
Wonderfest Science Envoys are early-career researchers with special communication skills and aspirations. Following short talks on provocative modern science topics, these two Science Envoys will answer questions with insight and enthusiasm:
• UC Berkeley arachnologist Trinity Walls on Creepy or Captivating: A Spider Scientist's Perspective — How have recent discoveries about spiders changed beliefs that have been passed down for generations? Can we see that the study of spiders is beneficial to society? One person's life-long journey — from curious child to rigorous researcher — reveals spider science to be an avenue of creative self-expression that offers rich insights into nature.
• Stanford physicist Jyotirmai "Joe" Singh on Exploring the Dark Side of the Universe — Deeply mysterious dark matter constitutes a staggering 85% of the material universe. What is the evidence for dark matter's ubiquitous existence, yet why has it been so difficult to detect in the laboratory? Cutting-edge theories and experiments within modern physics do give us hope that we can understand dark matter, unlocking key mysteries of the cosmos.
WHAT: Ask a Science Envoy: Spider Love & Dark Matter
WHO: Trinity Walls & Joe Singh, Wonderfest Science Envoys
This free, online, science presentation is produced by Wonderfest in partnership with the Berkeley Public Library.
What value do these science insights have for you? Accordingly, please consider making a donation to nonprofit Wonderfest via the Eventbrite box, below. (Note: No "sales" or "tickets" are involved; it's just a thoughtful contribution to help Wonderfest promote science understanding and the scientific outlook.)
Wonderfest Science Envoys are early-career researchers with special communication skills and aspirations. Following short talks on provocative modern science topics, these two Science Envoys will answer questions with insight and enthusiasm:
• UC Berkeley physicist Jeske Dioquino on "Laser Micro-imaging" — With the help of the electron microscope, researchers are taking pictures of some of nature's smallest biological structures. To improve the contrast in these images, allowing us to study even smaller structures, a high-intensity laser joins the fray.
• Stanford neurobiologist Marc Harrison on "Mental Time Travel" — As we grow older, our ability to mentally time travel via episodic memory begins to change. Recent advances that utilize biomarkers of disease states, in combination with neuroimaging, have opened exciting new doors in the early detection of Alzheimer's disease.
WHAT: Ask a Science Envoy: Laser Micro-imaging and Mental Time Travel
WHO: Jeske Dioquino (UC Berkeley) & Marc Harrison (Stanford), Wonderfest Science Envoys
This event is FREE. But what value do these science insights have FOR YOU? Accordingly, please use the space below to contribute to nonprofit Wonderfest, and help to promote the scientific outlook broadly — as through our outstanding Science Envoy Program.
"Nothing in life is to be feared; it is only to be understood." - M. Curie
Wonderfest is delighted to present Madame Curie, a new musical-theater tribute to Earth's most accomplished female scientist. As Maria Sklodowska was becoming Marie Curie, she emigrated 1000 miles from Poland to France, overcame xenophobia and sexism, and pioneered our understanding of radioactivity. In the process, she earned Nobel prizes (plural!) in physics and chemistry, and treated — directly and indirectly — over a million WWI soldiers with her mobile X-ray units.
"I have frequently been questioned, especially by women, regarding how I could reconcile family life with a scientific career. Well, it has not been easy." - M. Curie
Madame Curie brings to life the story and spirit of a revolutionary. It features a compelling narrative, beautiful music, and eleven experienced actors who sheltered in their respective homes during recording! Fully orchestrated in the Rodgers and Hammerstein tradition, Madame Curie will revive your love of science, and it will especially inspire young women to heed their call to the passionate exploration of Nature.
"All my life through, the new sights of Nature made me rejoice like a child." - M. Curie
Madame Curie's YouTube Premiere took place on the evening of December 21st. This musical experience will continue to be available at the Wonderfest Science YouTube channel through the morning of December 24th. Simply visit the webaddress above for an inspiring start to your next revolution of the Sun ... with a revolutionary!
Can the greatest escape artist even escape death? In the spirit of scientific skepticism, TWO on-stage séances will summon the ghost of Harry Houdini — on Halloween, the anniversary of his death. The first séance will be earnest, conducted by a professional “psychic medium.” The second will be full of illusion and special effects, conducted by master magician Paul Draper. Other magicians will perform: Brian Brushwood, Robert Strong, & Justin Willman. Skeptics and scientists will speak: Michael Shermer, Jamy Ian Swiss, and Dr. Melina Uncapher (UCSF neuroscientist). Even if/when we don’t make contact with the great Houdini, this spectacular event will be a memorable evening of science, skepticism, and wonderful magic.
BIG THANKS to these generous donors for supporting Wonderfest through the Official Houdini Séance Kickstarter campaign:
Alicia Dattner
Joshua Finnell
Perkeo Flarg
Maribel H. Fraser
Eric Gamonal
Yvonne Lin
Brendan Simon
Joseph Zompetti
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