Posts Tagged ‘life’
Tuesday, October 5th, 2010
Our California Academy of Sciences will have a new treat for you starting in November, 2010. Check out the deets, below.
See, Jodie Foster has been into this kind of stuff for a while:
All the deets:
LIFE: A COSMIC STORY OPENS ON NOVEMBER 6, 2010 IN MORRISON PLANETARIUM. Narrated by Jodie Foster, the second all-digital show produced by the California Academy of Sciences is a high-speed ride through the history of life
SAN FRANCISCO (October 5, 2010) — How did life on Earth begin? This tantalizing question forms the basis of Morrison Planetarium’s upcoming show, Life: A Cosmic Story, which will premiere on November 6, 2010. Located inside the California Academy of Sciences, the Morrison has transported audiences to the far reaches of the Universe and back since its opening in 2008. Like the inaugural show Fragile Planet, Life takes audiences on an immersive, all-digital journey, featuring visualizations based on the latest scientific data.
“The show’s core concept is that all life on Earth is related, having evolved from a common ancestor,” says Ryan Wyatt, Director of Morrison Planetarium and Science Visualization. “Taking an even longer view, we see that life’s origins begin with dark matter and the first stars—our pedigree is actually 13.7 billion years in the making.”
Narrated by two-time Academy Award winner Jodie Foster, Life begins in a grove of towering redwoods, majestic emblems of Northern California. From there, the audience “shrinks” dramatically as it enters a single redwood leaf and then a redwood cell, learning that despite their unique appearance, redwoods are composed of the same basic molecules as all other organisms on Earth. After this opening statement of shared ancestry, the audience launches on a journey through time, witnessing key events since the Big Bang that set the stage for life. The first stars ignite, galaxies coalesce, and entire worlds take shape. On the early Earth, two scenarios for the dawn of life are presented—one near a turbulent, deep-sea hydrothermal vent, and the other in a primordial “hot puddle” on a volcanic island. From these microscopic beginnings, life transformed the entire Earth as it evolved and diversified: filling the atmosphere with oxygen, turning the continents green, and altering global climate patterns. The 25-minute show ends with a review of geological evidence and the connectedness of all living things on Earth.
Ever more deets, after the jump.
(more…)
Tags: 2010, A COSMIC STORY, bay area, california, California Academy of Sciences, California Academy of Sciences Golden Gate Park, county, digital, Director of Morrison Planetarium, golden gate park, Jill Tarter, Jodie Foster, life, LIFE: A COSMIC STORY, Morrison Planetarium, NASA Astrobiology Institute, November 6, Planetarium, Ryan Wyatt, San Francisco, Science Visualization, SETI, show
Posted in museums | 1 Comment »
Saturday, April 10th, 2010
San Francisco First Lady Jennifer Siebel Newsom is emcee-ing NARAL Pro-Choice California’s non-partisan FORUM for CHOICE 2010 today, Saturday, April 10th, 2010 up at the Nob Hill Masonic Center at 1111 California Street near Taylor.
See? She’s looking for people to write down questions for all the state-wide candidates who will soon address the crowd this AM. It’s $50 to get in but they have discounts. Anyway, all the deets are here.
Tags: 2010, abortion, Alberto Torrico, April 10th, attorney general, california, California's, choice, Chris Kelly, dave jones, Democrat, First Lady, FORUM for CHOICE, FORUM for CHOICE 2010, Governor, gray davis, grey davis, health, Hector De La Torre, Insurance Commissioner, Jennifer Siebel, jennifer siebel newsom, jerry brown, Kamala Harris, life, masonic center, NARAL, NARAL Pro-Choice California, Newsom, nob hill, pedro nava, pregnancy, Pro-Choice, reproductive, San Francisco, street, taylor, Ted Lieu, unintended
Posted in politics | No Comments »
Thursday, April 8th, 2010
San Francisco First Lady Jennifer Siebel Newsom will emcee NARAL Pro-Choice California‘s non-partisan FORUM for CHOICE 2010 this Saturday, April 10th, 2010 up at the Nob Hill Masonic Center on California Street near Taylor.
Pony up a little dough and then you’ll be able to hear from Californians running for governor, attorney general and insurance commissioner. Looks like only Democrat candidates are going to show, but you never know.
Here are some deets from SF FYI Net:
April 10, 2010 – Saturday
NARAL – Forum for Choice
When: April 10, 2010 – Saturday
8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Where: Nob Hill Masonic Center, 1111 California Street, San Francisco
What: Your decisions in the 2010 election will impact the future of reproductive health in California. Hear directly from the candidates about their views on women’s access to abortion and unintended pregnancy.
Jennifer Siebel Newsom will be emceeing the Forum
Featuring candidates:
Jerry Brown, Hector De La Torre, Kamala Harris, Dave Jones, Chris Kelly, Ted Lieu, Pedro Nava, Alberto Torrico
$50., $15 for students.
ForumForChoice.com – Tickets are required.
Tags: 2010, abortion, Alberto Torrico, April 10th, attorney general, california, California's, choice, Chris Kelly, dave jones, Democrat, First Lady, FORUM for CHOICE, FORUM for CHOICE 2010, Governor, gray davis, grey davis, health, Hector De La Torre, Insurance Commissioner, Jennifer Siebel, jennifer siebel newsom, jerry brown, Kamala Harris, life, masonic center, NARAL, NARAL Pro-Choice California, Newsom, nob hill, pedro nava, pregnancy, Pro-Choice, reproductive, San Francisco, street, taylor, Ted Lieu, unintended
Posted in health, politics | No Comments »
Saturday, January 23rd, 2010
Let me tell you about how things were back in the day, back in aught-five when the pro-life / “anti-choice” West Coast Walk for Life had smaller numbers and the competing pro-choice / “anti-life” side had more.
Those were the days, complete with heckling and back-and-forth.
Remember?
From 2005, click to expand
Well, things have changed. After giving it some thought, a lot of the organizations and political representatives who oppose the March for Life have decided to ignore the entire affair. Sure, there were some folks in the counter-march that went up the Herb Cain Way sidewalk, but only about 130 or so. Throw in a marching band that was going the other way (marching to its own drummer hither and yon) and I’d say about 200 locals showed to oppose today’s WCMFL. Don’t know for sure though. People were on hand to listen to BACORR’s Gemma Mirkinson earlier in the morning at 10:00 AM anyway.
But what about the other side, the actual marchers themselves? They went up the Embarcadero for a full 51 minutes – it was a river of people.
How many marchers this year? Tens of thousands anyway. I’m thinking 22,000 minimum this year, which is about ten percent more than last year – that jibes with the fact that everybody passed by the intersection of Broadway and Embarcadero in 51 minutes, which is about ten percent more time than last year.
How fast do you think this river of humanity was going on average? If it went 10/second then you mulitply by 3060 seconds to get and crowd estimate of over 30K, which I think is a stretch. It was going anywhere from zero to 20+ people per second:
And here are the local countermarchers:
And here is the joyful reed and brass marching band going the other way:
Noe we’re back to the March. I thought this was advertising for a new kind of eHarmony thing but now I don’t think so. CFC = Couples for Christ, so this is just their unmarried contingent.
Hey kid, what’s an abortion?
These bused-in marchers would show up regardless of the weather, so a cloudburst at the start of the parade didn’t seem to affect them a bit. Anyway, the weather soon cleared and most of the march was under blue skies and fluffy white clouds.
Click to see the cloudburst raindrops – it was like being in the shower with your clothes on for a little bit.
And there’s your March for Life West Coast for 2010.
Tags: abortion, annual, anti, baby, bacorr, choice, Embarcadero, fetus, indybay, justin herman, life, march, muisic concourse, plaza, protest, San Francisco, walk for life, west coast
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Tuesday, January 19th, 2010
Why did Shanghai, the largest city in China, become one of our 16 Sister Cities in 1979? Well, we should all thank former Mayor and current U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein:
“It was sort of a race between Los Angeles and San Francisco to establish a Sister City relationship with Shanghai and of course San Francisco won – and it was the first such Sister City relationship between an American city and a Chinese city.”
(Once again L.A. loses, of course(?) - thanks DiFi.) Now it turns out that our Big Sis is hosting a big party this year – it’s World Expo 2010. So, that’s a good excuse for a bunch of the Bay Area’s cultural organizations to represent, via the Shanghai Celebration featuring Honorary Chair and San Francisco First Lady Jennifer Siebel Newsom.
Jay Xu, Director of the Asian Art Museum, confronting a media scrum after today’s announcement:
Check out the calendar of upcoming events all related to the Paris of the East - it’s packed, baby. Swan Lake featuring San Francsico Ballet Principal Dancer and Shanghai native Yuan Yuan Tan will kick things off from January 23-31 and then on February 12th comes the debut of the cornerstone of the Shanghai Celebration, a big exhibit at our Asian Art Museum simply called Shanghai. It’s going to be mega.
Just ask Jay Xu:
“The 2010 World Expo that opens in May is Shanghai’s coming-out party, the official debut as the city reclaims its position as a global powerhouse. The Asian Art Museum’s Shanghai exhibition was timed to coincide with this prominent international event. Only through understanding its tumultuous history, can one truly understand the progressive and stylish Shanghai of today.”
O.K. then.
Our jet-setting mayor was on hand to cheerlead for San Francisco, a part of his job which I think everybody would agree he does well. He was dressed for rain today, with blue jeans, and a pair of brown shoes that he claimed were “ruined” by the wet:
More deets from the AAA:
“The Shanghai Celebration is an unprecedented, year-long festival presented by more than thirty San Francisco Bay Area organizations commemorating the 30th Anniversary of the sister city relationship between San Francisco and Shanghai.
Spearheaded by the Asian Art Museum, the Celebration runs throughout 2010, coinciding with the World Expo presented in Shanghai from May to October. The more than 50 Shanghai-related programs feature exhibitions, concerts, performances, films, lectures, book readings, artist demonstrations and other special events and cover topics such as Shanghai’s architecture, jazz, historic Jewish communities, Art Deco design, filmmaking industry, contemporary art, cuisine, high-rise urban planning and fashion.
The cornerstone of the Celebration is the Asian Art Museum’s presentation of Shanghai, a major exhibition examining the visual culture of one of the world’s most cosmopolitan cities, scheduled for February 12-September 5, 2010.
For the Shanghai Celebration program calendar of events, and a list of participating organizations, please visit www.shanghaicelebration.com.”
Check the lengthy, lengthy sked, after the jump.
(more…)
Tags: 2010, American Jewish Committee, Anchee Min, angel island, Angela Au, architect, Architecture and Survival, art, Art Deco, Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, Art Speak, Arts Commission, Arts of Pacific Asia, AsiaAlive, asian art museum, Assignment Shanghai, Ballet, Better City, Better Life, Birth of Jazz in Asia, botanical garden, building, Building Green in China, celebration, Chamber Music Concert, China, chinese, Chinese Jews of Kaifeng, city club, City Club Roundtable, comics, concert, Congregation Emanu-El, Conservatories, Contemporary Figurative Painting, Cultural Encounters, Dany Chan, de Young, Decorative Arts, documentary, dr., Drunken Dishes, East Meets West, Economica, Ellen Lou, Embroidery, Exhibition Opening, Eye of the Tiger, Fabric of Everyday life, Fall Antiques Show, Fall Antiques Show Preview Party Benefit, First Free Sunday, First Thursday Lecture Series, Forbidden City, Friday Nights, gala, Gavin, Golden Age of Chinese Nightclubs, High-rise Architecture, Historically Sensitive Development in Shanghai, immigration, Immigration Station, jay xu, Jeff Heller, jennifer, Jews in Modern China, joan chen, Later Jewish Communities of Shanghai, Lehrhaus Judaica, Li Xiaofei, library, life, Lisa Claypool, lounge, Lunar New Year, Lunar New Year Flower Market, Lynn Marie Kirby, matcha, Mayor, Mint, Moderne and Modernity, Music at Meyer, Music Festival, Newsom, O Perspective, old, Old Mint Building, Open Books, Opening NIght Gala, Oregon Reed College, Past/Present/Future, Personal Stories and Reminiscences, Photographs on the Eve of Revolution, piano, Preview, professor, Propaganda Poster Art, public, reception, Recital, Remaking of China’s Gateway to the World, Renee Chow, SAA, San Francisco, san francisco ballet, San Francisco Botanical Garden Society, San Francisco Museum and Historical Society, Sandra Lee Gallery, shanghai, Shanghai 2010, shanghai celebration, Shanghai Connection, Shanghai Dress, Shanghai Film Series, Shanghai Jazz, Shanghai Painting, Shanghai’s Jews, Shuang Stella Zhang, siebel, sister city, Sisters, Society, society for asian art, spur, SPUR Urban Center, Station, stories, String Quartet, swan lake, Swinging Chinatown, target, Target First Free Sunday, U.S. Immigration Station, UC, uc berkeley, UC Berkeley Art Museum, urban center, Visual Narratives of Inter-War Shanghai, Women & the Global Economy, Xian Rui 2010, Yuan Yuan Tan
Posted in art, events | No Comments »
Thursday, December 3rd, 2009
A crowd of a hundred-something showed up on the steps of City Hall yesterday to protest against the Stupak Pitts proposal (aka the Stupak–Ellsworth–Pitts–Kaptur–Dahlkemper–Lipinski–Smith Amendment, srsly) regarding health plans covering abortions.
Moms and daughters were there…
…plus San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera and Supervisor Bevan Dufty
And here’s a shot from the ACLU of Northern California of UCSF med students for choice:
Are we heading for a filibuster?
All the deets here.
Tags: abortion, Amendment, anti, bevan dufty, bill, choice, City Attorney Dennis Herrera, City Hall, civic center, health care, life, pitts, pro, Reform, rights, San Francisco, stupak, Supervisor
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Sunday, January 25th, 2009
Well, as expected, the March for Life West Coast went off yesterday with a whole bunch of people involved. That’s tens of thousands minimum, but the SFPD saw fit to block access to a vantage point on a pedestrian bridge this year. So, that’s as good an estimate as you’re going to get here – tens of thousands.
You can see what it looked like with a lot of photos here but also and here and here and here, or even here, from The Deacon 4 Life or from the IndyBay.org here and here. This event was international news, but it was ignored by most of the denizens of San Francisco. Some merchants welcomed the visitors with open arms, anyway.
This was the rally at 11:00 AM near Justin Herman Plaza. Click to expand:
Interestingly, the March for Life rally employed help from Michael S. Hensley PARTY Rental & Sales Co. (650) 583-0337. Boy oh boy[cott], that’s brave.
Anyway, this was the bulk of the crowd of pro-choice counter protesters at the start of the noontime march. There were hundreds on the pro-choice side, or several hundreds if you prefer.
From the Ferry Building area all the way up Embarcadero on their way to Fishermans Wharf and beyond.
A closer look at the vanguard reveals that fashion (Channel funglasses, hoop earrings, French manicures and high heeled suede boots) was the order of the day. These are the people the organizers handpicked to represent the face of yesterday’s parade.
For a while there, both sides were in formation heading up Herb Caen Way and the Embarc.
The SFPD was out in force, as per usual. Here, the bicycle corps keeps ‘em separated
A home-made sign, one of many. A few referenced Barack Obama.
The sole svástika of the day.
On the other side, some people just stood on the sidewalk and stared at the oncoming parade.
Instead of “I’m with Stupid,” we have “I’m With Fascists”
And on no side in particular, Frank Chu (the “Galaxy Guy” per one SFPD officer).
A Mount Rushmore of sanctimonious iPodded teens…
…walking past this fellow handing out free condoms. That pretty much sums things up.
Guess what? Even more photos after the jump
(more…)
Tags: 2009, 24th, 5th, abortion, annual, anti, baby, bacorr, barcadero, choice, church, Darren, doe, e, Embarcadero, fetus, fishermans wharf, indybay, january, justin herman, life, march, march for life, march for life west coast, music concourse, Norma McCorvey, plaza, police department, protest, roe, San Francisco, SFPD, Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, wade, walk for life, west coast
Posted in protests | 6 Comments »
Saturday, January 24th, 2009
Of course any group of protesters naturally wants to believe they are great in number. So when turnout is hard to determine, people tend to get a little optimistic. Now let’s take a look at what the San Francisco Chronicle’s C. W. Nevius has to say about last year’s March for Life West Coast:
“They claim huge numbers for this walk – their estimate last year was 25,000 walkers, although The Chronicle story had the total at 10,000.”
Actually, The Chronicle story had the total for 2008 at “at least 10,000.” To wit:
“At least 10,000 abortion opponents were bused into the city from all over California, and from outside the state, for a morning rally in Justin Herman Plaza.”
Now, it’s not exactly clear what the reporters actually think in this case – it could be they just punted the issue and focussed on other matters. So it’s fairly weak support for an allegation of excessive International A.N.S.W.E.R-style overcounting.
This was the vanguard today – it took 40-something minutes for them to all pass through. Click to expand
More photos here.
The people at March for Life West Coast appear to be generally more realistic than the average protest group, anyway. For 2009, they’re claiming more than 30,000, and one booster is saying precisely 32,200.
This number isn’t impossible, but that’s not the point. The point is that C.W. Nevius could have made his point about ignoring this large event without being devius.
Carry on.
Tags: 2009, 5th, abortion, annual, anti, c. w., C.W., C.W. Nevius, choice, chronicle, crowd, devious, devius, Embarcadero, estimate, fifth, life, march, march for life, Nevius, pro, protest, San Francisco, sfgate, size, thousands, west coast
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Thursday, January 22nd, 2009
It’s coming this rainy Saturday, January 24, 2009 starting at 11:00 AM in Justin Herman Plaza near the Ferry Building – the 5th Annual Walk for Life West Coast. Will you be among the tens of thousands expected? (Dress for rain.) It will look a little something like this.
[UPDATE: Rain threatened by didn't really show up at the beginning. Tens of thousands of people were on hand for 2009, a bunch of photos here.]
These Life Walkers are now using the Twitter to keep their minions informed, thusly:
“Reality check – in the last five minutes more than 500 babies were killed world wide. about 4 hours ago from web”
So that’ll be a new wrinkle this year. Otherwise, it should be the same old thing, with speeches in Mandarin, Cantonese and Spanish, chartered buses from all over the place, your Feminists For Life, San Francisco Archdiocese Auxiliary Bishop William Justice, counterprotesters, etc.
Counterdemonstrators at the first Walk for Life West Coast, back in 2005, click to expand:
But probably there won’t be all that many counterdemonstrators, if last year’s event is any guide. Some groups in San Francisco appear to ignore this annual event, saving their energy for other battles.
So there you have it. More info here, and after the jump:
5th Annual Walk for Life West Coast, Saturday, January 24, 2009 at 11 a.m. – Justin Herman Plaza at Market Street and the Ferry Building, San Francisco
More than 25,000 pro-life women, men and children are expected to rally in San Francisco at the foot of Market Street on Saturday, January 24th, and then walk nearly 2 miles across the city, through Fisherman’s Wharf ending at Marina Green in sight of the Golden Gate Bridge.
This is the fifth annual Walk for Life West Coast, organized by a group of San Francisco residents and attracting participants from throughout California and the rest of the West. The Walk for Life West Coast’s motto is “Abortion Hurts Women,” and the speakers will address the cost of abortion for women and ways to help women and protect life from conception to natural death.
Schedule of events:
Rally with speakers at Justin Herman Plaza: 11:00 am
Walk begins: 12 noon
Speakers include:
– Frank Lee, coordinator of Asian Americans Against Abortion
– Diana Nagy, singer crisis pregnancy at 15 ended in adoption
– Mother Agnes Mary, Sisters of Life
– Karen Shablin, Feminists for Life, places her abortion within the context of feminism
– Rev. Clenard Childress Jr., founder of BlackGenocide.org, addresses
the civil rights implications of abortion
After the Walk at Marina Green: 2 – 4 p.m.
– Info Faire and a Silent No More
(http://www.silentnomoreawareness.org/) gathering for women and men to
share stories of abortion featuring Georgette Forney from Silent No
More and Fr. Frank Pavone from Priests for Life
(http://www.priestsforlife.org/)
Sat Jan 17 2009 (Updated 01/18/09) Anti-Woman, Anti-Gay “Walk for Life” to Descend on San Francisco
On January 24th, an anti-women’s rights and anti-gay march will take place in San Francisco. The Bay Area Coalition for Reproduction Rights (BACORR) is calling on human rights supporters to protest the so-called “Walk for Life” led by religious conservatives.In recent years the Catholic Church has helped push through two discriminatory acts, the “Conscience Rule” and Proposition 8. The “Conscience Rule” allows health care providers to refuse to fill a birth control prescription for “moral” reasons. BACORR co-chair Gemma Mirkinson responded to the institution of the Conscience Rule asking, “What’s next: refusing service to people with AIDS, or immigrants or transgender folks? This is nothing but bigotry sanctioned by the highest office of the land and applauded by the people who will trek through our city January 24.”
BAACORE and its allies have played a major rolein the past in combating anti-abortion forces and fighting for human rights. This year the group has also called attention to the ICE raids against immigrant communities. Anita O’Shea, BAACORE spokesperson writes “The ‘Walk for Life’ is part of a multi-pronged rightwing movement that includes bigots in suits as well as armed, vigilante Minutemen, clinic bombers, and gay bashers…..We must stop the blame game against women, immigrants and queers before the ultra-right gains momentum.”
BAACORE is calling on all people who oppose this climate of hate to come out on January 24 to the “Unite to Fight the Right Wing” event. The event will begin with a rally at San Francisco’s Music Concourse (Embarcadero and Market Sts.) at 10:30am.
Tags: 5th, abortion, annual, anti, baby, bacorr, choice, Embarcadero, fetus, indybay, justin herman, life, march, muisic concourse, plaza, protest, San Francisco, walk for life, west coast
Posted in protests | 1 Comment »
Friday, December 5th, 2008
People witnessing this scene in San Francisco knew that a protest was going on, but they didn’t know why.
So give these folks points for civility, if not effectiveness.
Tags: life, protest, San Francisco, silent, vida
Posted in protests | 3 Comments »
