Can we understand biology at the atomic level by looking at a cell’s molecular machinery under the electron microscope? Unfortunately, most human macromolecules are just too small to be studied in noisy, low-contrast images. Now, we’ve imported a 1930s breakthrough in light microscopy to electron microscopy: phase contrast. We’re using the world’s most intense continuous-wave laser to quantum-manipulate the wave function of the electron beam to convert small phase shifts into visible image contrast. Macromolecules much smaller than ever are now coming into focus.
Our Wonderfest speaker is Dr. Holger Müller, Professor of Physics at UC Berkeley. He leads the Müller Group’s work in using light to trap molecules and to record subtle biological signals.
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
In recent years, our anthropoid cousins have been getting good press. For example, changing legislation in England has brought primates into the light and out of private homes. Going from news to gossip, have you heard of the risque “love triangle” formed when a female Japanese macaque seized management of her troop? And who can forget monkey Punch, the cute baby who, spurned by his mother, befriended a stuffed orangutan toy? Let’s explore the scientific side of timely monkey business.
Our speaker is biological anthropologist Julie Hui, Adjunct Professor at the College of Marin. Julie was — and is — a Wonderfest Science Envoy who takes science outreach seriously.
Julie Hui
WHAT: Primates in the News
WHO: Julie Hui, Adjunct Professor, College of Marin
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
While our visual perceptions are informed by the patterns of light entering our eyes, our conscious experience is actively constructed by our brains. This construction is impacted by our expectations and attention, making it a “controlled hallucination.” Inferences generated by the brain literally make sense of the patterns of neural activity coming from the eyes. How does research at the UC Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics help us understand our brains as reality-conforming experience generators?
Our Wonderfest speaker is Dr.Michael Silver, Professor of Optometry & Vision Science in the Neuroscience Department at UC Berkeley. Dr. Silver is also Director of Cal’s Center for the Science of Psychedelics.
Dr. Michael Andrew Silver
WHAT: Experienced Reality as a Controlled Hallucination
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
A few shark species are, indeed, dangerous wildlife. However, the public portrayal of these animals as villains and killers is overblown. What is the real life of a large shark like? How do they eat? How long do they live, and where do they migrate? Knowing about sharks in this way — especially how they think — helps us see them as part of our ocean world to be respected … and to be amazed by.
Our Wonderfest speaker is Dr.Stephen Palumbi, Professor of Marine Sciences at Stanford University. Steve is also Professor of Biology, Senior Fellow at Woods Institute for the Environment, and leader of The Palumbi Lab at Hopkins Marine Station, all at Stanford.
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
Much of what we think we know about outer space comes from film and television, but Hollywood’s job is more often to entertain than to educate. In this fun and informative presentation, Prof. Thomas Targett will sort fact from fiction, taking a tour through the worlds of Star Trek, Star Wars, and much more.
Dr. Thomas Targett is Professor of Physics & Astronomy at the Sonoma campus of California State University. His 2023 Wonderfest presentation, Fast & Faraway: The High-Redshift Universe, was equally far out. 🙂
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
Just for fun (and for bragging rights), how many science facts lie within your grasp, and within the grasp of a few friends? That beautiful word science originates from the Latin word scientia, meaning “knowledge,” so it covers a lot of ground! This particular bit of information — involving the etymology of “science” — might be precisely what your team needs to claim victory in Wonderfest’s Team Science Quiz: a fun contest with questions, music, and visuals from all fields of science. Play solo or join up to three fellow Wondernauts to form a quiz quartet … and earn Wonderfest bragging rights for years to come.
Our science quiz host is Howard Rachelson, Marin’s Master of Trivia and author of the weekly Trivia Cafe column in the Pacific Sun newspaper.
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
When minds “connect,” the underlying brains synchronize their activity. The stimuli that most potently evoke this neural synchrony includes, perhaps surprisingly, the sharing of stories. Neuroscience now recognizes that narrative constitutes not only the basis of conscious experience, but also the principal mechanism that shapes human selves and societies — for good or for ill.
Our Wonderfest speaker, Dr.Thomas Lewis, M.D., is Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at UC San Francisco and Adjunct Professor at the University of San Francisco. Dr. Lewis is co-author of A General Theory of Love.
Dr. Thomas Lewis
WHAT: Neural Synchrony
WHO: Dr. Thomas Lewis, Asst. Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, UC San Francisco [https://thomaslewis.com]
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
In The Story of Doctor Dolittle (1920), author Hugh Lofting imagines a physician who enjoys two-way communication with non-human animals. In 2026, for real, neuroscientist Dr. Julie Elie, earned the Coller Dolittle Prize for Two-way Interspecies Communication, describing a breakthrough in genuine animal talk. Dr. Elie and her team were able to classify zebra finch vocalizations into “core words” based on their significance. Then Dr. Elie verified that the “chatty songbirds” could distinguish — and derive meaning — from those sounds!
Our Wonderfest speaker, Dr. Julie Elie, is Associate Project Scientist in the neuroscience lab of Frédéric Theunissen at UC Berkeley. [Zebra finch photo by Wolfgang Forstmeier.]
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
Viruses are infectious agents that exist in the twilight zone between the living and the non-living. Despite their tiny genomes and diminutive nature, viruses hold the power of life and death. They also contain remarkable molecular tools, some of which researchers have learned to harness to understand and control the fundamental powers of biology. Stanford’s Bob Siegel will shine light on the basic structure and function of viruses. He’ll also explore those features that distinguish viruses from the living organisms they commandeer.
Dr. Robert Siegel, MD PhD, is Professor of Microbiology & Immunology at Stanford University, and he is a member of the Wonderfest Advisory Board. Dr. Siegel has won numerous awards for his teaching at Stanford, and has given hundreds of public service interviews on radio and TV.
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
It’s a science double feature! Wonderfest presents two half-hour talks — each followed by Q&A (of course) — by outstanding UC Berkeley researchers:
• Biologist Dr. Stephen Gaughran on The Genetics of Extinction (and Survival) — Species are now disappearing faster than at any point in the last several million years. Decades of conservation and management has made real progress in protecting endangered species, yet we still struggle to understand why some recover while others go extinct. By combining new genomic technologies with evolutionary theory, we are entering a new era of species conservation — one where we can use a species’ evolutionary past to plan for its future survival.
• Chemist Dr. Colin Gould on Building Next-Generation Medicines with Light & Electricity — Modern medicines have revolutionized treatments for cancer, heart disease, chronic illness, and more. These therapeutics often consist of carefully engineered organic molecules, which are designed in an iterative process of chemical synthesis and biological testing. Alternative energy sources, such as light and electricity, can help to speed up drug discovery, while also making manufacturing more environmentally friendly.
WHAT: Genetics of Extinction (& Survival) + Next-Gen Meds with Light & Electricity
WHO: Dr. Stephen Gaughran & Dr. Colin Gould, UC Berkeley professors
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
The USA has developed ground- and space-based telescopes that have helped revolutionize our view of the cosmos … and of ourselves. In this Commonwealth Club event, astrophysicist John Mulchaey explores current and future developments in telescope innovation, the state of national investment in those developments, the global collaboration on extremely large telescopes such as the Giant Magellan, and the future of American leadership in this particular leg of the modern space race.
Wonderfest joins Commonwealth Club World Affairs to present Dr. John Mulchaey, President of the Carnegie Institution for Science, in conversation with the George Hammond, author of Conversations with Socrates.
This event can be enjoyed in-person only. Pre-register with the Commonwealth Club / World Affairs via the “Tickets” link, below. Use promo code WONDERNAUTS for a $10 ticket discount.
Dr. John Mulchaey
WHAT: Tremendous Telescopes: The Future of US Space Observation
HOW: During the last stage of online ticket purchase from the Commonwealth Club (via the "Tickets" link, below), use promo code WONDERNAUTS to secure a discount of $10.
Despite decades of progress, women continue to face systemic barriers to success in medicine and science. This is the considered view of Dr. Jennifer Grandis, Distinguished Professor at UC San Francisco. In her new book, Harsh Medicine: Why Women Can’t Get Ahead in Science and Health Care, Dr. Grandis draws on case studies, rigorous analysis, and decades of experience to reveal how gender bias is embedded in the structures of academic medicine and scientific research. How do science policies, funding systems, promotion practices, and cultural norms disadvantage women throughout their careers in science and medicine?
Wonderfest joins the Commonwealth Club to present Dr. Jennifer Rubin Grandis in conversation with journalist Katie Hafner, co-creator and host of the “Lost Women of Science” podcast.
Two types of tickets are available: in-person and online-only. Pre-register with the Commonwealth Club / World Affairs via the “Tickets” link, below. Use promo code WONDERNAUTS for a $10 ticket discount (which renders the online ticket entirely FREE).
Dr. Jennifer Grandis, MD
WHAT: Harsh Medicine: Gender Bias in Science & Health Care
WHERE: The Commonwealth Club's Taube Auditorium, 110 The Embarcadero, San Francisco
WHEN: Monday, July 6 — 6pm (1 hour)
COLLABORATORS: Commonwealth Club World Affairs of California
HOW: Get tickets by clicking the "Tickets" box, below. In the final stage of online purchase from the Commonwealth Club, use promo code WONDERNAUTS to secure a discount of $10 for either type of ticket, in-person or online.
Charles Darwin was deeply troubled by the sudden appearance of complex animal life during the Cambrian Explosion about half a billion years ago, animal evolution’s Big Bang. He felt the sudden appearance of such diverse animal body-plans was inexplicable, fearing that it was the Achilles heel of his theory. What do we now know of this spectacular event? Drawing on the fossil record, ecology, developmental biology, genetics, and computer simulation, can we understand how and why the Cambrian Explosion occurred?
Our Wonderfest speaker, Dr.Charles Marshall, is Distinguished Professor of Integrative Biology at UC Berkeley. He is also Director of the University of California Museum of Paleontology.
Dr. Charles Marshall
WHAT: Animal Evolution's Big Bang: The Cambrian Explosion
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
Synthetic biology — creating new capabilities with life — promises to foster an innovative future for planet Earth in fields as diverse as agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and nanotechnology. As humans move beyond Earth to long duration stays in the International Space Station, and then onward to the Moon and Mars, the challenges of supporting human life will need radical new solutions that synthetic biology can deliver. In turn, those new solutions will facilitate technical, industrial, and social improvements back here on our home planet.
Our Wonderfest speaker is Dr.Lynn Rothschild, Adjunct Professor of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, and Biochemistry at Brown University. Dr. Rothschild also has a laboratory at NASA Ames Research Center, and teaches Astrobiology and Space Exploration at Stanford University.
Dr. Lynn Rothschild
WHAT: An Innovative Future for Planet Earth ... via Space
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
Earth’s Arctic endures the dual threat of climate change and geopolitical competition. Sea ice is melting, and permafrost is thawing. At the same time, global interest is growing rapidly as the region continues to transform from frozen expanse to contested international waterway. The consequences of the emerging “Arctic Anthropocene” are truly global — from rising sea levels due to melting glaciers to tensions between great powers determined to protect their territories and resources, and the well-being of Indigenous peoples who have fought for centuries for rights and recognition.
Wonderfest joins Commonwealth Club World Affairs to present Dr. Mia Bennett, Associate Professor of Geography at the University of Washington, in conversation with Andrew Dudley, co-host of “Earth Live,” about her new book Unfrozen: The Fight for the Future of the Arctic.
This event can be enjoyed in-person only. Pre-register with the Commonwealth Club / World Affairs via the “Tickets” link, below. Use promo code WONDERNAUTS for a $10 ticket discount.
HOW: During the last stage of online ticket purchase from the Commonwealth Club (via the "Tickets" link, below), use promo code WONDERNAUTS to secure a discount of $10.
Wonderfest Science Envoys are early-career researchers with enhanced 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 geophysicist Caroline Hasler on Measuring Geologic Time with Rock Clocks — In microscopically small crystals within rocks, radioactive elements decay at predictable rates and function as tiny clocks. These “rock clocks” help us to figure out the timing of major events in Earth history — from the moment of Earth’s formation to the asteroid impact that killed the dinosaurs.
• UC Berkeley astronomer Eli Wiston on Seeing Core-collapse Supernovae with Radio Telescopes — At the end of its life, a massive star will contract and explode in spectacular fashion, outshining the light of an entire galaxy. While most astronomers focus on the optical light given off by these stellar explosions, there is a wealth of new information to be gained by observing invisible wavelengths. With radio telescopes, we can study new aspects of supernovae: their stars’ activity in the years before death, their environments, and what they leave behind after the explosion fades.
This interactive science presentation, free and unticketed, is produced by Wonderfest in partnership with Marin Science Seminar.
WHAT: Ask a Science Envoy: RockClocks & Supernovae
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
A few shark species are, indeed, dangerous wildlife. However, the public portrayal of these animals as villains and killers is overblown. What is the real life of a large shark like? How do they eat? How long do they live, and where do they migrate? Knowing about sharks in this way — especially how they think — helps us see them as part of our ocean world to be respected … and to be amazed by.
Our Wonderfest speaker is Dr.Stephen Palumbi, Professor of Marine Sciences at Stanford University. Steve is also Professor of Biology, Senior Fellow at Woods Institute for the Environment, and leader of The Palumbi Lab at Hopkins Marine Station, all at Stanford. This event is co-presented by Wonderfest and the San Francisco Public Library.
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
Wonderfest Science Envoys are early-career researchers with enhanced 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 Marina Luccioni on Fish that Make Dreams — Hawaiian traditional knowledge from the 1400s references “nightmare fish.” Indeed, eating the heads of certain fish species does induce dizziness, severe hallucinations, and nightmares. How do these fish come to contain and accumulate neurotoxins, and how do those molecules cause hallucinations? Of equal importance, how do we do such science that is respectful of indigenous knowledge and fair to local communities and ecosystems?
• Stanford ecologist Ryan Rogers on What’s Up with Wetlands? — Tidal wetlands are environments of constant change: tides rise and fall, salinity shifts, and waters stay perpetually in motion. In these challenging conditions, seagrasses flourish, creating underwater meadows that support rich and diverse communities. Studying these ecosystems reveals how biodiversity sustains them, and why protecting wetlands and estuaries is critical for resilient coastlines.
This interactive science presentation, free and unticketed, is produced by Wonderfest in partnership with Marin Science Seminar.
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
Wonderfest Science Envoys are early-career researchers with enhanced 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 astronomer Natalie LeBaron on Origins of the Elements — From the oxygen we breathe to the gold in our jewelry and the calcium in our bones, most periodic table elements are forged by stars. How does the universe transforms simple hydrogen into the rich diversity of atoms that build planets, life, and everything we see around us? Beginning their lives in vast clouds of gas and ending in massive explosions, every star in the night sky creates and scatters ingredients for new worlds.
• UC Berkeley psychologist Colin Jacobs on Children’s Sense of Fairness — Our motivation to enact fairness shapes human behavior across societal and individual levels: from outrage at economic inequalities, to personal protest against not being considered in a discussion. As parents and teachers know, our motivation to insist upon fairness starts early, often through shouts of “that’s not fair,” or very strict regulation of turn-taking. What motivates children to object to unfairness, and how does this moral impulse develop throughout early childhood?
This interactive science presentation, free and unticketed, is produced by Wonderfest in partnership with Marin Science Seminar.
HOW: This event is free and unticketed ... and valuable. But what value does it have FOR YOU (and, indirectly, for society)? Accordingly, please use the DONATE button (below) to support Wonderfest in its nonprofit mission to share the scientific outlook.
What if we could communicate — clearly and deeply — with animals? In Disney and Pixar’s new feature film HOPPERS, scientists have discovered how to “hop” human consciousness into lifelike robotic animals, allowing us to communicate with denizens of the animal world as animals. Wonderfest comes to the Napa Valley to help present this special Science In Cinema event. Immediately following the screening of HOPPERS, UC Berkeley biologist Dr. Eileen Lacey answers our questions about animal behavior in HOPPERS and in the real world.
Dr. Eileen A. Lacey is Professor and Chair in Biological Sciences at UC Berkeley’s Department of Integrative Biology. At Cal’s Lacey Lab, her research focuses principally on vertebrate social behavior. Dr. Lacey also works with Cal’s Museum of Vertebrate Zoology.
HOW: For advance ticket purchase ($10) at the Cameo Cinema event webpage (linked directly above), scroll down and click the "1:00 PM" box under "Times & Tickets."
