Calling all bookworms!
Did you know that the Naturalist Center at the Academy hosts a book club for adults? Known as Bookworms, this monthly book group focuses on science-themed books hand-picked by our librarians and the group. Expand your knowledge of a science topic, engage in dialogue, and perhaps meet an author or two!
Did we mention that the book club is free? This book group meets after the museum closes, so you’ll have time to commute after school. Academy staff just need to know to expect you, so you can be escorted to the meeting room from the business entrance off Middle Drive. To reserve a place, pick up a “ticket” on the online calendar or call 800-794-7576.
Here’s the line-up for the next few months. Purchase a used copy from Amazon, or place a hold on the book at the San Francisco Public Library (SFPL).
BOOKWORMS, Tuesday, December 15 at 6:30 pm
Topic: Evolution at the Academy
Evidence of Evolution by Susan Middleton and Mary Ellen Hannibal
Something special for our book club meeting this month! Join the authors for a group discussion of their new book about evolution which uses specimens from the Academy’s research collections to illustrate evolutionary development in plants and animals.
BOOKWORMS, Tuesday, January 19 at 6:30 pm
Topic: Science in the Late 18th Century
The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science by Richard Holmes
Join a dedicated group of readers for a discussion of this winner of the 2009 Royal Society Prize for Science Books. Come prepared with your thoughts about this book about scientists such as Joseph Banks, Humphrey Davy and William Herschel “who changed our understanding of the world forever.”
BOOKWORMS, Tuesday, February 16 at 6:30 pm
Topic: Medical Detectives in New Guinea
The Collectors of Lost Souls: Turning Kuru Scientists into Whitemen by Warwick Anderson
Join us for what promises to be a lively discussion about this compelling story of scientific research in the 20th century. Kuru, a rare brain disease affecting people in the central highlands of New Guinea came to the attention of scientists in the 1950’s who were puzzled by its origins. This led to the new field of medical investigation where the scientists learned from the natives and vice versa.
