Litquake: How We All Can Contribute to Science

Award-winning writer Mary Ellen Hannibal will discuss her new book Citizen Scientist, which combines original reporting, meticulous research, and memoir, and traces today’s tech-enabled citizen science movement to its roots: the centuries-long tradition of amateur observation by writers and naturalists.

“The idea that science is something for a caste of high priests to attend to is simply wrong: Science is all around us, and we each can revel in its pleasures and processes. This is a lovely, empowering narrative.”—Bill McKibben, author of Eaarth

Hannibal is an emerging voice in environmentalism and a sought-after speaker connecting the scientific community to the concerned public. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Esquire, and Elle, among many others. She is an Alicia Patterson Foundation Fellow and a recipient of the National Society of Science Writers’ Science and Society Award. She lives in San Francisco.

Amber Hasselbring will talk about wildlife on San Francisco’s Main Street. It’s remarkable how the Western Tiger Swallowtail butterfly has found home on San Francisco’s Market Street. And it’s not alone. While some of the wild plants and animals found in these urban canyons are rare, the vast majority are so common you can see them every day if you take the time to look.

Free admission.