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VirusSecrets

Virus Secrets – Aug 25

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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.

Dr. Robert Siegel

WHAT: The Secret "Life" of Viruses
WHO: Dr. Robert Siegel, Professor of Microbiology & Immunology, Stanford [https://med.stanford.edu/profiles/robert-siegel]
WHERE: HopMonk Tavern, 224 Vintage Way, Novato CA 94945 [https://www.hopmonk.com/novato]
WHEN: Tuesday, August 25th — 7pm (1.5 hour)
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.
Help share the scientific outlook - donate!
StandUpForScience

Stand Up for Science – Mar 7

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Science is for everyone, and benefits everyone. But American science is in deep trouble. In a podcast entitled Cuts to Science Funding and Why They Matter, physicist and author Sean Carroll thunders that recent presidential executive orders constitute “an absolutely devastating blow to the way science gets done in the United States.” On Friday afternoon, March 7th, Wonderfest joins thousands of the thoughtful to Stand Up for Science at San Francisco’s Civic Center Plaza. Please join us!

Stand Up for Science is a grassroots organization led by five early-career scientists — along with many volunteers (like us) — who work to protect the American science enterprise.

 


Stand Up for Science

WHAT: Stand Up for Science - 2025
WHO: Stand Up for Science [https://standupforscience2025.org/about/]
WHERE: Civic Center Plaza, 335 McAllister Street, San Francisco, CA 94102
Map: [https://maps.app.goo.gl/LzyxmyVHZXSe9Zem6]
WHEN: Friday, March 7th, 1:00 PM (2 hours)
COLLABORATORS:
Stand Up for Science [https://standupforscience2025.org]
HOW: Please register via the Eventbrite link, below. Then, to join your fellow Wondernauts on March 7th, look for a big hand-held sign bearing Wonderfest's blue-and-black eyeball logo.
Register
Air-Borne

Life in a Breath – Mar 3

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Earth’s air teems with invisible life. Each of us inhales roughly 100 gallons of air per hour, and the possible peril is, alas, anything but palpable: from gaseous pollutants to weaponized pathogens. The study of life in the atmosphere, aerobiology, is a particularly challenging subject. For example, scientists needed two years to finally agree that the Covid pandemic was caused by an airborne virus. Wonderfest joins the Commonwealth Club online to present science writer Carl Zimmer in discussion of his latest book, Air-Borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe. The conversation will likely be breathtaking.

Carl Zimmer is the author of fifteen books about science, and his “Origins” column (on life’s diversity) appears regularly in the New York Times. Of Zimmer’s preceding book, Life’s Edge (2021), Nobel Laureate Jennifer Doudna wrote, “Carl Zimmer shows what a great suspense novel science can be. … Prepare to be enthralled.”

 

WHAT: Air-Borne with Carl Zimmer
WHO: Carl Zimmer, Science Writer [https://carlzimmer.com]
WHERE: ONLINE
WHEN: Monday, March 3, 2025 — 3pm PT (1 hour)
COLLABORATORS:
The Commonwealth Club of California
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 Carl Zimmer online experience FREE.

Tickets
PandemicsUpdate

Pandemic(s) Update – July 25

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The SARS-CoV-2 virus has killed 7 million people. (16% of those deaths were in the US, yet we have only 4% of global population!) Last century, the influenza virus killed more than 20 million. Humankind may face famine, war, and disease for centuries to come, but we are learning to lessen the death toll. Dr. Robert Siegel, infectious disease expert at Stanford, will discuss the progress that we’ve made — and must extend — against COVID and other, future, scourges. Welcoming attendee questions, he will address our growing understanding of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and its affects on the human mind and body.

Dr. Robert Siegel 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.

 


Dr. Robert Siegel

WHAT: Pandemic(s) Update
WHO: Dr. Robert Siegel, Professor of Microbiology & Immunology, Stanford [https://profiles.stanford.edu/robert-siegel]
WHERE: HopMonk Tavern, 224 Vintage Way, Novato, CA 94945 [https://www.hopmonk.com/novato]
WHEN: 2023-07-25 — 7pm, Tuesday, July 25 (1.5 hr)
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.

COVID Perspectives

COVID Perspectives – Dec 9

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We are confronting a challenging Pandemic paradox. Just as vaccines have begun to show promise and new coordinated policies provide a sense of optimism, the virus onslaught rages uncontained producing a wave of death and disease exceeding anything we have seen. Stanford virus expert Dr. Bob Siegel will discuss humanity’s year-long struggle with COVID-19: where we are now, how we got here, and where we might be heading. He will discuss the unusual biology of SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses, and he will identify some key unanswered questions. Dr. Siegel will also respond to audience queries pertaining to all things viral.

 

Robert Siegel, MD/PhD, is Professor of Microbiology & Immunology at Stanford University. Bob has won more than a dozen awards for his teaching at Stanford, and he has served as Wonderfest Advisor for nearly twenty years.


Dr. Robert Siegel

WHAT: COVID Perspectives — Historical, Personal, Biological, and Medical
WHO: Dr. Robert Siegel, Professor of Microbiology & Immunology, Stanford
WHERE: Online via Zoom [https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82615789734]
WHEN: 2020-12-09 — 8:00pm PST, Wed, Dec 9 (1 hr +)
HOW:

Before joining with the Zoom link above, please make a Wonderfest contribution — via the Eventbrite portal below — commensurate with the value this event has for you.