NNEB-2014-09

Party on, our potent potable drinking people. September’s alliterative line-up brings a presentation from Oakland Public Librarian Sharon McKellar on picture books, Kelly Weinersmith‘s PowerPoint on zombifying parasites, and Matthew Lewin‘s proposal on how to cure poisonous snake bites. All with plenty of time for pleasureful potation of pivo.

Mana and Walter will be there from OPL to issue library cards and help you pursue a plentiful plethora of extra resources.

DJ Ion the Prize, Rick, and Rebecca will provide pluck and pizazz.

Be there and be square.

Monday 9/29
Doors at 7 pm, show at 8
The New Parkway, 474 24th St, Oakland
(less than half-a-mile from the 19th St BART)
$8
All Ages
Tickets
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CATS, KIDS AND CALDECOTT: A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE PICTURE BOOK by Sharon McKellar

Picture books aren’t always as simple as they appear. With equal importance of storytelling and visuals, the picture book should be taken seriously as a tool and an art form. Come see a brief history of this medium and also learn about the prestigious Caldecott Medal. How does a group of librarians decide the most distinguished picture book each year?

Sharon McKellar has been a librarian with the Oakland Public Library since 2003, serving as a children’s librarian, a branch manager, and currently as the Community Relations Librarian. She is a reader, a writer, an excited member of the 2015 Caldecott Selection Committee, and a giant nerd.

BRAIN-INFECTING PARASITES: WHAT CAN ZOMBIE-MAKERS TEACH US ABOUT THE BRAIN, IMMUNE SYSTEM, AND BEHAVIOR? by Kelly Weinersmith

Do you find parasites disgusting? If not, they may have already gotten to you. Some parasites are like little mad neuroscientists, forcing animals to bend to their wicked whims. Parasites can make ants into zombies, make fish beg to be eaten, and make humans get in car wrecks. In many animals, parasite manipulations are downright surgical. They manipulate behavior in ways that cannot yet be replicated in medicine.

Modern parasitology seeks to ask these little mad scientists to give up the secrets they’ve been developing over millions of years of evolutionary tinkering. I am one of those parasitologists, and I’ve already squeezed a secret or two out of this these tiny tinkerers. I’ll chat with you about some of my favorite examples of parasite manipulation, and what they may tell us about the brain, the immune system, and behavior.

Kelly Weinersmith is a PhD student at the University of California Davis, where she studies how parasites turn their hosts into zombies. Groups like the National Science Foundation and the American Association of University Women have funded Kelly to do crazy things like sample fish in quantities measured in dump trucks, induce and analyze fish puke, and infect fish with brain-infecting parasites to measure how these parasites change fish physiology and behavior. It’s impossible for Kelly to keep her mouth shut about science, so when she isn’t actively doing science you can find her podcasting over at Weekly Weinersmith or Science…Sort of. For Kelly’s next big adventure, she she’ll be joining Rice University as a Huxley Faculty Fellow. Follow Kelly on twitter @Fuschmu.

PANDEMIC: EXTREME MEDICINE AND THE QUEST FOR A UNIVERSAL ANTIDOTE TO SNAKEBITE by Matt Lewin

Snakebite is arguably the most neglected of neglected tropical diseases, affecting nearly 5 million people annually. Lewin, along with an international group of colleagues, made headlines recently for their pioneering approach to the treatment of venomous snakebites using a nasal spray of inexpensive anticholinesterases. This novel technique is the first step toward finding a universal antidote for snakebite. Hear about the treatment and about Lewin’s exciting tales from the field.

Throughout his career, Dr. Matt Lewin has treated patients and scientists in some of the world’s most remote locations and under the harshest conditions. Since 2008, he has been the California Academy of Sciences emergency medicine liaison to UCSF. Now Director of the Center for Exploration & Travel Health and Fellow of the Academy, he has played an active role in developing and testing protocols for the safe handling and first aid of Academy and Aquarium employees potentially exposed to venomous animals housed on Academy grounds and on display to the public.