Wednesday, 10/19/16
Doors at 7 pm, show at 8
Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell St @ Van Ness
$8, all ages
Tickets here

Remember the good old days, when people flashed their Muni Fast Passes, took selfies with collodion wet plates, and, um, dug up their dead mistresses and crowned them queen? No? Well, come refresh your memories, slake your thirst, and sate your hunger with talks, booze, and bao, respectively. Add the usual aural (DJ Alpha Bravo) and biblio (SFPL) support and you have Nerd Nite in a nutshell. Be there and be square!

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“The Muni Fast Pass: A Tale of Transportation, Innovation, and Obsession” by Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez

Long before The City was a home of digital doo-dads, that new technology was a simple slip of colored paper: the Muni Fast Pass. It may be old hat to San Franciscans now, but at one time, offering a monthly ticket for infinite bus and train rides was a novel idea. Catch an express ride through the history of the Fast Pass, from its early champions in the 1970s, including Harvey Milk, through its technological innovations and creative presentation over the decades, and come to a stop at its boring terminus: the Clipper Card.

Born and raised in San Francisco, Joe was a staff writer at the SF Bay Guardian and now writes the Examiner’s political column “On Guard.” He is also a transportation beat reporter covering pedestrians, Muni, BART, bikes, and anything with wheels.

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“Through the New Looking Glass: Reality Capture from the Camera Obscura to 3D Scanning, VR and AR” by Scott Page

Prior to 1839, one had to be both keen observer and careful listener to get things right. Mechanical recording devices of light and sound simply did not exist. After this watershed year, the brain got a brief reprieve as an explosion of ingenious memory aids came to the marketplace. With the invention of the photographic process, a “mirror with a memory” emerged, able to permanently capture reality onto light sensitive materials, filling an insatiable human need for storytelling, novelty, and wonder. It took the combined efforts of artists, scientists, and entrepreneurs to usher in a revolution in imaging that continues to this day.

Scott, M.Arch, is a designer in Berkeley who thinks we need wonder as much as good cheese, chocolate and sex.

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“Love Unhinged: King Pedro & the Corpse Bride of Portugal” by Annetta Black

True love may undo us all… but in the mid-14th century one extraordinary, forbidden love affair threatened to tear apart an entire kingdom. The passion of King Pedro of Portugal for his mistress, Inês de Castro, began with the usual medieval mix of political intrigue, illicit affairs, and fair ladies walled in towers, moved on to murder and open rebellion, and culminated in corpses exhumed, bloody revenge exacted, and an eternal love that extended beyond the grave. And it’s mostly true.

Annetta is a Bay Area-based writer and salonist, ferreting out stories of overlooked history, strange science, doomed expeditions, and marvels of the natural world. She’s co-founder and curator of Odd Salon, the Bay Area’s other nerdy cocktail lecture series.

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With: Alpha Bravo, who’ll be spinning tunes specially selected to match the presenters’ themes. Follow the setlist on Twitter @djalphabravo.

Food: Delicious pork-belly bao and other bun goodness from Cross Hatch Eatery.

Plus: The San Francisco Public Library will be on hand to dole out library cards, reading lists, and the hottest branch gossip.

Wednesday, 9/21/16
Doors at 7 pm, show at 8
Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell St @ Van Ness
$8, all ages
Tickets here

This Wednesday we’re in for quite a ride! We’ll build up the evening with self-organizing tissue assembly, then dive deep into the legacy of the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea attraction, before leveling off with a talk about the neuroscience and evolutionary biology of the endlessly irrational decisions we make. Throughout the night, enjoy refreshing beverages from the Rickshaw Stop bar, beats by DJ Alpha Bravo, books from the SFPL, and bites from Alicia’s Tamales los Mayas. Buckle up, be there, and be square!

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“How Tissues Build Themselves” by Zev Gartner

The human body contains over 10 trillion cells–spanning hundreds of different cell types–that must work together for our bodies to function. But it remains a mystery how these diverse cells coordinate their behaviors. Tissue structure, the composition and arrangement of the cells, helps this coordination by organizing the flow of information between cells. Learn how Zev’s lab at UCSF constructs tissues in a dish using the same strategies that tissues use to build themselves in the body: through the process of self-organization. Someday, these “built” tissues will engineer transplantable organs and help suppress diseases like cancer.

Zev hails from Santa Cruz, California. Although originally trained to build molecules as a chemist, he now focuses on building tissues. When not in the lab, he tries to find time to surf.

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“A Journey Through Liquid Space: Disney’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Ride” by David Shuff

In 1971, Disney unveiled the greatest theme park attraction ever: the 20K ride. For decades it inspired, delighted, and scared the crap out of anyone with half an imagination. In 1994, the ride was temporarily “closed for maintenance,” but that was a LIE. It never sailed again, and the ruins were unceremoniously demolished in 2004. David Shuff has dedicated himself to keeping the memory and magic of 20K alive, despite having ridden it only once, when he was 3. Sharing rare photos, video, and actual crew-member accounts, he will helm a spine-tingling adventure through the rise, fall, and surprising afterlife of the 20K ride–the lost 8th wonder of the world.

David is a well-rounded human being with a healthy dislike of most things Disney. He’s a video creative at AKQA in San Francisco. Beware the plush giant squid behind his couch.

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“I Am Deeply Biased” by Jacob Ward

This late-breaking addition to our line-up will be a preview of a four-part PBS series Jake is hosting, about the neuroscience and evolutionary biology of the endlessly irrational decisions people make about strangers, food, credit cards, presidents, and everything else in modern life.

You’ll remember Jake from his 2013 NNSF talk, but he’s probably a little more famous for having been a science and tech correspondent for Al Jazeera and the editor-in-chief of Popular Science.

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With: Alpha Bravo, who’ll be spinning tunes specially selected to match the presenters’ themes. Follow the setlist on Twitter @djalphabravo.

Food: Delicious meals from Alicia’s Tamales los Mayas.

Plus: The San Francisco Public Library will be on hand to dole out library cards, reading lists, and the hottest branch gossip.

Wednesday, 8/17/16
Doors at 7 pm, show at 8
Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell St @ Van Ness
$8, all ages
Tickets here

Ah, the brave new world: Commuters make up their sleep deficits snoozing at the wheels of driverless cars on their way to their jobs using lasers! We are living in the future! Come explore it using the finest in, um, 1990s technology: PowerPoint! With vinyl records (1940s) to tickle your eardrums, grilled cheese (invented circa the Jazz Age) to fill your bellies, SFPL book recommendations (to mark the mid-15th century) for homework, and booze (from time immemorial). Be there and be square!

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“F**ked If You Don’t Sleep!” by Matthew Walker

Allow us to ask you a question: Can you recall the last time you woke up without an alarm clock, feeling refreshed, not needing caffeine? If the answer is “no,” you’re screwed, and this talk will describe why.

Matthew eavesdrops on sleeping brains at night and is a professor of neuroscience at UC Berkeley during the day.

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“Microwaving Proteins with X-Ray Lasers and Galloping Horses” by James Fraser

In 1872, Leland Stanford gave photographer Eadweard Muybridge the task of proving that all four of a horse’s hooves are off the ground at the same time during a gallop. Little did he know he’d be setting in motion (ha!) early cinema, with the concomitant improvements in camera shutters and film emulsions. Fast-forward to today and discover the surprising geographic and scientific parallels between the first “movie” and current efforts to make molecular movies of proteins using the world’s first X-ray free electron laser.

James is a professor at UCSF–where his lab studies the structure and dynamics of macromolecules–and consulting professor at SLAC National Lab, as well as an advocate for the beer-and-tacos approach to scientific publishing, wherein work is made immediately accessible to a wide audience via preprints and eventually also peer-reviewed by traditional journals.

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“Driverless Vehicles: Who’s Really in Control?” by Lauren Isaac

Driverless vehicles have the potential to change so much in our society: Boozers will never have to worry about DUIs, Grandma Gertie can get around without people fearing for their lives, and the millennials can do their elliptical workout while commuting! Are we really going to be safer, though? Will they do more harm than good for society? And who is going to make sure we aren’t just overrun with robo-cars? Who’s really in control and what can we do to prepare for this disruptive technology?

Lauren is a transportation enthusiast/nerd who works at WSP|Parsons Brinckerhoff and has spent her career helping government agencies with public transit, bike sharing, ride sharing and now driverless cars.

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With: Alpha Bravo, who’ll be spinning tunes specially selected to match the presenters’ themes. Follow the setlist on Twitter @djalphabravo.

Food: Delicious hot goop between crispy slices of bread, brought to you by the scientist of the sammie, Grilled Cheese Guy.

Plus: The San Francisco Public Library will be on hand to dole out library cards, reading lists, and the hottest branch gossip.

Wednesday, 7/20/16
Doors at 7pm, show at 8
Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell St @ Van Ness
$8, all ages
Tickets here

On the 20th day of Quintilis, the Stop of the Rickshaw will unbar its gates and receive throngs of imbibing smarty pants come to worship at its PowerPoint altar. Will you be among the faithful? If so, remove your health-tracking wristband (a doctor will tell us how our “Fitbits” come factory-installed), pipe down (while we’re schooled on our favorite edge-blown aerophone), and “hodor” for your fellow Game of Thrones aficionados (as we traverse fantasy landscapes with a geologist). In other words: Be there and be square!

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“The Geology of Game of Thrones: Real Science in Fantasy” by Miles Traer

From towering peaks to candlelit crypts, vast seas to vertiginous canyons, the worlds of fantasy stories entice and entrance. But just how realistic is that mountain range? Or that river crossing? Or that wall? Yes, THAT Wall? Using what we know from Earth, we can reconstruct the geological history of mythical places, like Game of Thrones’ Westeros. And when we do, we see that the geological forces that shape our world are just as awesome and terrifying as anything beyond The Wall.

Miles is a geologist and educator at Stanford University and creator of the award-winning Generation Anthropocene podcast. He studies landscape evolution on Earth, Mars, and Saturn’s largest moon, Titan. Explore Miles’s research and pop-sci articles at www.milestraer.com.

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“Piping Up: The Secret World of Flute-Making” by Linda Watkins

Ever wonder how flutes are made? Which is correct: flutist or flautist? (Or fluter? Or flutenist?) And how did these metal tubes end up flouting the “wood” part of “woodwind”? Come learn about the history, science, and art of flute-making in America, including the man who started it all and why all the great American flute makers are in Boston. Not to toot our own flute or anything, but the stories will surprise you! This presentation includes a live performance.

Linda is a flute nerd: She’s played it for over 30 years, has a Masters in Music Performance from Arizona State University, and worked for four years at a flute manufacturing company. Though now in marketing at a startup, she performs regularly with community orchestras and chamber groups.

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“Epigenetic Fitbits: How Genes Can Keep Track of Your Body Weight” by Dr. Lucia Aronica

Our genes are smarter than wearables when it comes to tracking health data. Biological “Fitbits” within our DNA — epigenetic modifications — store information about our lifestyle habits, such as diet, exercise, and stress. But how do these modifications work? How do they track our weight? And how might they help us know which diet works best for us?

Lucia is a research associate at Stanford University and an award-winning science communicator (Ed: Including winner of the 2009 FameLab Germany competition, and third in the final FameLab International competition. Shout-out to the Rickshaw Stop for hosting FameLab heats the past two years in SF, too!).

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With: Alpha Bravo, who’ll be spinning tunes specially selected to match the presenters’ themes. Follow the setlist on Twitter @djalphabravo.

Food: Delicious pork belly-bao and other bun goodness from Cross Hatch Eatery.

Plus: The San Francisco Public Library will be on hand to dole out library cards, reading lists, and the hottest branch gossip.

This month’s amusing and occasionally immodest show promises mud, machines, and mites. So put on your tallest boots to walk along the Thames, accompanied by walking PVC construct companions, and perhaps arachnids walking on your skin! Fortify yourself with drinks while our presenters take us on this journey, along with our bartenders, deejay, librarians, and food-slingers. Be there and be square!

Wednesday, 6/15/2016
Doors at 7pm, Show at 8pm
Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell St @Van Ness
$8, all ages
Tickets here

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“Mudlarking and Material Culture” by Laura Rubin

The River Thames has a long memory. The river and its tributaries have shaped and informed the daily life of Londoners from lithic times all the way to the present, and preserve the material culture of their daily lives. In this lecture Laura Rubin will give a brief overview of the Thames, a short methodology, and talk about her personal finds from the summer of 2015.

Laura is a costumer, writer, and interdisciplinary scholar. When not writing software manuals for money, she researches and interprets Western clothing, foodways, and culture from the 16th through the 20th centuries.

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“The Blind Watchmaker: Theo Jansen and the Art of Creating Life” by Paul Dancstep

“Strandbeest: The Dream Machines of Theo Jansen” is a new exhibit at the Exploratorium. It features the work of a Dutch artist who creates elaborate walking structures out of PVC tube. These “strandbeests” are made up of many interesting organs. They have legs that take elegant strides. They have stomachs to store energy, allowing them to walk even when there’s no wind. They can even detect water and count their steps. Explore strandbeest anatomy and what it reveals about living creatures and the process of natural selection.

Paul grew up in San Diego but has never been on a surfboard. He studied physics in college but is still baffled by things like zippers. He’s been at the Exploratorium for over a decade, building boxes, changing lightbulbs and occasionally speaking to the public.

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“Mite-y Sexy: The Scandalous Sex Lives of Mites” by Jane Ishka

There are more species of mites than anything else on earth, and almost as many weird ways that they have sex. Some male mites carry immature females until they grown up and are ready to mate, while certain females mate once and carry the sperm for their whole lives, impregnating themselves at any time. Hear these and more Barely Safe For Nerd Nite sex stories about the mighty mite!

Jane is the author of The Year of the Mite and a biotechnology professional living in Berkeley. Her technical writing supports approval of new medical products. Her first book, The Year of the Mite, chronicles a year-long infestation of her home and skin by the parasite Dermanyssus gallinae. Visit Jane at www.yearofthemite.com

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With: Alpha Bravo, who’ll be spinning tunes specially selected to match the presenters’ themes. Follow the setlist on Twitter @djalphabravo.

Plus: The San Francisco Public Library will be on hand to dole out library cards, reading lists, and the hottest branch gossip.