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What's on at the California Academy of Sciences
Exhibits, Lectures, Programs and Events
May 2002
-Exhibits-
Skulls
ONGOING through 2003
Skulls includes almost 1,500 different dead heads -- ranging from monkeys
and giraffes to warthogs and rats to bears and dolphins. The exhibit is
festooned with 860 sea lion heads in a 93-foot-long undulating display.
Created by Academy staff, Skulls will show visitors what the study of
human and animal skulls can reveal about behavior, injury, disease, evolutionary
adaptation, and more. This strange and stunning display will captivate
young and old alike.
X-Ray Ichthyology
Ongoing through 2003
Prepare to look at fish in a whole new light. X-Ray Ichthyology captures
forty-six fish from the Academy's ichthyology collection on X-ray film.
Blown up and backlit, these large-format photographs transform scaly swimmers
ranging from piranhas to guitarfish into eerie, luminescent works of art.
Powers of Ten
Opening date to be announced
Come visit a place where the farthest reaches of the Universe and the
familiar features of your own back yard are just a few steps - and a few
zeros - apart. Powers of Ten, an exhibit based on the landmark film by
Charles and Ray Eames, will bring this exponential journey through time
and space to The California Academy of Sciences.
Photo Contest Winners
April 20, 2002 - December 2002
From France to Fresno, children ages 618 have been busy submitting
photographs to the Children's Photography Contest at the Academy. Come
see the winning entries on display in Wild California Hall.
-Special Events-
Luis Baptista Memorial Concert
In honor of Academy Scientist Luis Baptista and his passion for music,
the Academy presents a highly regarded chamber music ensemble performing
Olivier Messiaen's monumental Quartet for the End of Time at the Herbst
Theatre, benefiting the Baptista Memorial Fund.
Wednesday, May 22 8 pm
Herbst Theatre
$40, $60, $75, $125 (includes on-stage reception)
-Asian Pacific American Heritage Month-
Japanese Gift Wraps
In traditional Japanese culture, objects are never transported openly
but are always enveloped in some fashion. This practice, based on a defined
notion of discretion, has led to the development of styles of wrapping
specific to certain objects. In this program, artist Vicky Mihara demonstrates
the Japanese art of wrapping objects in paper and fabric.
Saturday, May 11 1 pm Free
Sounds of Vietnam
Join the Khac Chi ensemble and feel the rhythm of traditional Vietnamese
music. Khac Chi, features an exquisite mixture of rare instruments unique
to Vietnam, such as the chum nhac, a percussion instrument, and the t'rung
(a suspended bamboo xylophone). The ensemble's combination of musical
virtuosity and sheer entertainment has taken them around the world.
Adults only performance
Under the Stars in the Morrison Planetarium
Saturday, May 11 6:30pm Reception/7:30 pm
Concert $6 members/$8 non-members
Family performance
Sunday, May 12 1 pm Morrison Auditorium
Free after admission (Seats available on a first-come-first-serve basis)
The Soft Sounds of the Jaw Harp
The jaw harp is a musical instrument made of metal, wood, or bamboo and
known in various forms throughout much of the world. In this program,
musician and scholar Steev Rothman Kindwald discusses and demonstrates
jaw harps from South and Southeast Asia.
Saturday, May 18 1 pm Free
-Kids: Things To Do-
Nature Discovery - ongoing
Each year the California Academy of Sciences offers children, families
and adults more than 200 field trips, workshops and classes focusing on
science and the natural world. Explore tide pools in Marin, discover birds
in Golden Gate Park or learn how to draw and paint animals in Steinhart
Aquarium. For more information call (415) 750-7100 or visit www.calacademy.org/education.
Children's Story Time - ongoing
Story Time takes place near the T-rex at the front entrance of The California
Academy of Sciences each Saturday at 10:30 am.
Free with admission
Free Wednesday
The first Wednesday of every month is free, all year long! The museum
stays open until 8:45 pm on Free Wednesdays - at 5 pm step into Morrison
Planetarium for a free half-hour concert.
Wednesday, May 1 10 am - 8:45 pm
California Academy of Sciences
Free
Bare Bones
Take a crash course on recognizing animals by their skulls. Learn important
details used by experts to compare species. Examine a variety of skulls
including those of humans, hyenas, turtles and rodents.
Thursday, May 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 11:30 am & 1:30 pm
Free with admission
Scottish Dance Traditions
The Dunsmuir Scottish Dancers, under the direction of Ron Wallace, will
perform highland dances, ladies step dances, jigs, reels, airs and strathspeys
to the accompaniment of live music piano, fiddle, recorder, guitar and
bagpipes.
Saturday, May 4 1 pm
Free with admission
Make a Skull
Examine actual skulls and then make simple Balsa wood skull models complete
with false teeth and hinged jaws. Learn how function dictates form, in
this orthodontic adventure.
Saturday, May 4 & 11 11:30 am & 1:30 pm
Sunday, May 12 & 19 11:30 am & 1:30 pm
Free with admission
How Do They Do That?
How do animals locate prey without seeing it or hearing it? How do they
swallow prey bigger than their heads? Uncover the connection between skulls
and animal skills in this family presentation.
Tuesday, May 7, 14, 21, 28 11:30 am & 1:30 pm
Free with admission
How Come Dolphins Are Always Smiling?
Dr. Alejandro Acevedo-Gutierrez will look at the modifications that have
occurred in the skulls of dolphins in relation to the production and the
reception of sound, and relate them to their perpetual smile.
Wednesday, May 1 & 29 11:30 am & 1:30 pm
Free with admission
Skulls Assignment
Museum as the Classroom Project (MAC) is a new education program in which
elementary school students set the curriculum. Fifth graders from the
Jefferson School will present to the public what skulls can teach us May
23, at 12:30 pm.
Free with admission
Skulls Culture
Explore beliefs, practices, myths, and medical treatment associated with
skulls around the world. Topics include the head shrinking in the Shuar
sub-tribe of Jivaro Indians and Aztec skull burials.
Saturday, May 18 & 25 11:30 am & 1:30 pm
Free with admission
Skull Detective
Join Academy naturalist Juan-Carlos Solis and examine mammal, bird, reptile
and fish skulls. Look for clues that may reveal how the skull's owner
lived. We'll look at samples of the food they may have eaten when they
were alive.
Wednesday, May 22 11:30 am & 1:30 pm
Free with admission
West African Music & Dance
The Kucheza Ngoma troupe specializes in dance and drumming from West Africa.
Their beautifully choreographed pieces, with live drumming and singing,
reflect both African Forms and New World influences, resulting in a performance
that highlights the richness of the African diaspora.
Saturday, May 25 1 pm
Free with admission
-Kids: Places To Go-
Steinhart Aquarium
Come watch live sharks, alligators, penguins hundreds of fish and a living
coral reef at the Steinhart Aquarium. The Steinhart houses over 600 varieties
of aquatic life in 165 individual tanks. Open ocean fish swim around you
in the 100,000-gallon fish roundabout (feedings take place at 1:30 pm
daily). Penguin feedings take place at
11:30 am and 4 pm each day.
California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park
Open 365 days of the year
-Lectures-
Conversations at the Herbst Theater 2002
The Academy of Sciences is pleased to announce the 2002 Conversations
at the Herbst Theater series presented in conjunction with City Arts and
Lectures. All lectures take place at Herbst Theatre. Tickets may be purchased
through City Box Office at (415) 392-4400
E.O. Wilson
The Annual Claire Matzger Lilienthal Distinguished Lecturer in conversation
with Penny Nelson
Thursday, May 9 8 pm
Luis Baptista Memorial Concert
In honor of Luis Baptista and his passion for music, the Academy presents
a highly regarded chamber music ensemble performing Olivier Messiaen's
monumental Quartet for the End of Time at the Herbst Theatre, benefiting
the Baptista Memorial Fund.
Wednesday, May 22 8 pm
$40, $60, $75, $125 (includes on-stage reception)
Tony Hillerman
In conversation with Roy Eisenhardt
Wednesday, May 29 8 pm
Gretel Ehrlich & Michael Pollan
In conversation with Renee Rothmann
Wednesday, June 5 8 pm
Feast, Famine, and Fertility: How Orangutans Cope with an Uncertain
World
Dr. Cheryl Knott
Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Harvard University
In this lecture, Dr. Knott explores the evolution of orangutans: their
fascinating social and reproductive phenomena, and how they relate to
the unique ecology of Borneo and Sumatra. She also explores how orangutan
adaptations shed light on human evolution.
Thursday, May 23 7:30 pm
$8 members/$12 non-members/$6 students
X-ray Telescopes: Present and Future
Dr. Harvey Tananbaum will review and interpret recent high-resolution
images of the X-ray sky from the Chandra X-ray Observatory. He also will
outline the proposed Constellation-X mission, an array of X-ray satellite
telescopes that will be 100 times more powerful than any single previous
X-ray telescope. This project is key to unlocking such mysteries as black
holes, general relativity, and missing matter.
Tuesday, May 7 7:30 pm
Tickets are $3 and are available in advance through the Planetarium.
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