Vroman's: Alvy Ray Smith discusses A Biography of the Pixel
2021-08-06 18:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | CA
This is a virtual event and will take place on Crowdcast. Register for FREE ahead of time to save your spot and get an email reminder! Scroll down to purchase your copy of the book from Vroman’s.
EVENT LINK: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/9fio0ay8
The Great Digital Convergence of all media types into one universal digital medium occurred, with little fanfare, at the recent turn of the millennium. The bit became the universal medium, and the pixel–a particular packaging of bits–conquered the world. Henceforward, nearly every picture in the world would be composed of pixels–cell phone pictures, app interfaces, Mars Rover transmissions, book illustrations, videogames. In A Biography of the Pixel, Pixar cofounder Alvy Ray Smith argues that the pixel is the organizing principle of most modern media, and he presents a few simple but profound ideas that unify the dazzling varieties of digital image making.
Smith’s story of the pixel’s development begins with Fourier waves, proceeds through Turing machines, and ends with the first digital movies from Pixar, DreamWorks, and Blue Sky. Today, almost all the pictures we encounter are digital–mediated by the pixel and irretrievably separated from their media; museums and kindergartens are two of the last outposts of the analog. Smith explains, engagingly and accessibly, how pictures composed of invisible stuff become visible–that is, how digital pixels convert to analog display elements. Taking the special case of digital movies to represent all of Digital Light (his term for pictures constructed of pixels), and drawing on his decades of work in the field, Smith approaches his subject from multiple angles–art, technology, entertainment, business, and history. A Biography of the Pixel is essential reading for anyone who has watched a video on a cell phone, played a videogame, or seen a movie. (MIT Press)

Boston Court Pasadena: Playwrights' Group: Unrivaled
2021-08-07 10:00 | CA
B/C PLAYWRIGHTS’ GROUP
New voices. New plays.
Boston Court has a passion for new play development and we kicked off the first B/C Playwrights’ Group in 2021. After a year of collaborative dramaturgical exploration, each play will be presented with a public virtual reading. #MakingScriptsHappen
Save-the-date for more upcoming virtual readings!
Sept 18: Lions
Oct 9: Too Grey Too Loud
Oct 23: Strawberry
Nov 13: The Resurrectionist

11th century ladies-in-waiting Murasaki Shikibu and Sei Shonagon are, to this day, two of Japan’s most beloved writers.
… They also kind of hated each other.
Unrivaled is a new play about friendship, heartbreak, and what it means to be a female artist. Perhaps most of all, it’s about how no matter how much things change, the more they stay the same… even after a thousand years.

SCCM: Saturday Sing-Along
2021-08-07 10:30, 2021-08-07 15:00, 2021-08-14 10:30, 2021-08-14 15:00, 2021-08-21 10:30, 2021-08-21 15:00 | Southern California Children’s Museum, 459 E. Colorado Blvd, Pasadena, CA, 91011, United States
SATURDAYS AT 10:30AM AND 3:00PM
Kiddos of all ages get to explore various musical instruments while singing their favorite songs! From shakers to drums, we are ready to make some noise!

SCCM: Story and Craft
2021-08-09 10:30, 2021-08-09 15:00, 2021-08-10 10:30, 2021-08-16 10:30, 2021-08-16 15:00, 2021-08-23 10:30, 2021-08-23 15:00, 2021-08-24 10:30 | Southern California Children’s Museum, 459 E. Colorado Blvd, Pasadena, CA, 91011, United States
Join Southern California Children’s Museum for a read-aloud, and then bring the story to life through arts and crafts! From a Trailblazer who made their mark in history or an influential illustrator who brings stories to life, you will not want to miss out on this one!

Vroman's: Tracy Swinton Bailey discusses Forever Free: A True Story of Hope in the Fight for Child Literacy
2021-08-10 18:00 | CA
This is a virtual event and will take place on Crowdcast. Register for FREE ahead of time to save your spot and get an email reminder! Scroll down to purchase your copy of the book from Vroman’s.
EVENT LINK: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/1jj3dopq
At the root of every important problem we face, from mass incarceration to income inequality, is an education system influenced by our nation’s fraught history. Just as past generations fought to ensure that all Americans could enjoy the right to fully participate in our democracy, so must we rally tirelessly to advance an educational agenda that promotes equity and inclusion. With the gap between white academic achievement and that of students of color widening, now is the time to turn our attention to the basics, and few would argue with the fact that the single most essential aspect of a good education is literacy. Beyond reading and writing, literacy encompasses a whole host of skills that allow us to develop our potential and succeed in society, including critical thinking, self-discipline, curiosity, leadership, and motivation. Helping all our nation’s young people, especially those who live in low-income communities, improve their literacy skills should be a top priority.
Numerous programs are operating around the country to address the issue of underperformance in light of the shortcomings of our public school system. In Forever Free, Tracy Swinton Bailey charts the journey of one such program, her nonprofit Freedom Readers. From a childhood shaped by books to a career promoting the love of reading, she describes the hurdles and rewards of academia, teaching, mobilizing, and fundraising. Bailey outlines clearly and persuasively how Freedom Readers’ one-to-one tutoring model has worked in the rural South, and how it can work across the US. This book will inspire and empower readers, and should be placed in the hands of educators and organizers at every level. (Other Press)

Pasadena Presbyterian: Music at Noon
2021-08-11 12:00, 2021-08-18 12:00 | Pasadena Presbyterian Church, 585 East Colorado Boulevard, Pasadena , CA, 91101, United States
Friends of Music is delighted to announce that Music at Noon, our weekly half-hour concert is going online! Beginning Wednesday, November 25, your favorite Music at Noon artists will be heard and seen on YouTube and Facebook.
To see who is playing, visit ppcmusic.org.

SCCM: Bilingual Circle Time
2021-08-12 10:00, 2021-08-19 10:00 | Southern California Children’s Museum, 459 E. Colorado Blvd, Pasadena, CA, 91011, United States
THURSDAYS AT 10:00AM
Enjoy a fun interactive story time or sing a long in either Spanish or Vietnamese! This program is suitable for native speakers and those seeking exposure to a new language.

Vroman's: Dr. Leana Wen with Lisa See, discusses Lifelines: A Doctor's Journey in the Fight for Public Health
2021-08-12 18:00 | CA
This is a virtual event and will take place on Crowdcast. Register for FREE ahead of time to save your spot and get an email reminder! Scroll down to purchase your copy of the book from Vroman’s.
EVENT LINK: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/hxuqsw6k
Dr. Wen will be in conversation with Lisa See, author of Shanghai Girls, The Island of Sea Women, and other award-winning books.
“Public health saved your life today–you just don’t know it,” is a phrase that Dr. Leana Wen likes to use. You don’t know it because good public health is invisible. It becomes visible only in its absence, when it is underfunded and ignored, a bitter truth laid bare as never before by the devastation of COVID-19.
Leana Wen–emergency physician, former Baltimore health commissioner, CNN medical analyst, and Washington Post contributing columnist–has lived on the front lines of public health, leading the fight against the opioid epidemic, outbreaks of infectious disease, maternal and infant mortality, and COVID-19 disinformation. Here, in gripping detail, Wen lays bare the lifesaving work of public health and its innovative approach to social ills, treating gun violence as a contagious disease, for example, and racism as a threat to health.
Wen also tells her own uniquely American story: an immigrant from China, she and her family received food stamps and were at times homeless despite her parents working multiple jobs. That child went on to attend college at thirteen, become a Rhodes scholar, and turn to public health as the way to make a difference in the country that had offered her such possibilities.
Ultimately, she insists, it is public health that ensures citizens are not robbed of decades of life, and that where children live does not determine whether they live. (Metropolitan Books)

SCCM: Wild California Explorers
2021-08-13 11:00, 2021-08-20 11:00 | CA
Did you know that the Washingtonia filifera is the only species of palm trees indigenous to California? Learn more about our amazing state through games, scavenger hunts and craft projects!

SCCM: Wild California Explorers
2021-08-13 15:00, 2021-08-20 15:00 | Southern California Children’s Museum, 459 E. Colorado Blvd, Pasadena, CA, 91011, United States

USC PAM: Workshop@PAM - Mended Together: Reimagining Personal Jewelry
2021-08-14 10:00 - 11:00 | CA
Workshop@PAM – Mended Together: Reimagining Personal Jewelry
Saturday, August 14th, 2021 at 11:00 am
USC Pacific Asia Museum

Join Barnsdall Arts educator, Quan Trang, in creating unique art to wear inspired by artist Nick Dong’s Mendsmith Project. Learn to connect items, such as old brooches, broken earrings, beads, or small objects, using wire manipulation techniques. This is an intergenerational workshop open to all skill levels. Recommended for ages 8+ with adult supervision. Supply kit included with purchase.

This workshop is inspired by the Mendsmith Project, which is part of Divine Immersion: The Experiential Art of Nick Dong.

Supply kits are available for pickup at the museum between August 9 and August 13. If you wish to visit the galleries when you pick up your kit, please make a reservation here. You will get complimentary admission when showing your Eventbrite confirmation at Visitor Services.

Supply kits include (3) three basic wire jewelry tools, pin backs, tacky glue, assorted beads, fabric scraps, and more. For those participating with kids, kits will include kid friendly supplies at no additional charge. Please email Cristina Hernandez-Guerrero at ch45852@usc.edu to request supplies for kids or if you have any questions.

Vroman's: Romina Garber discusses Cazadora
2021-08-19 18:00 | CA
This is a virtual event and will take place on Crowdcast. Register for FREE ahead of time to save your spot and get an email reminder! Scroll down to purchase your copy of the book from Vroman’s.
EVENT LINK: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/jefm1m2y
Werewolves. Witches. Romance. Resistance.
Enter a world straight out of Argentine folklore…
Following the events of Lobizona, Manu and her friends cross the mystical border into Kerana–a cursed realm in Argentina–searching for allies and a hiding place. As they chase down leads about the Coven–a mythical resistance manada that might not even exist–the Cazadores chase down leads about Manu, setting up traps to capture and arrest her.
Just as it seems the Cazadores have Manu and her friends cornered, the Coven answers their call for help. As Manu catches her breath among these non-conforming Septimus, she discovers they need a revolution as much as she does.
But is she the right one to lead them? After all, hybrids aren’t just outlawed. They’re feared and reviled. What happens when the Coven learns of Manu’s dual heritage? Will they still protect her? Or will they betray her?
And after running this far, for this long–how much farther can Manu go before her feet get tired, and she stops to take a stand? (Wednesday Books)

Vroman's: Tom Nichols discusses Our Own Worst Enemy: The Assault from Within on Modern Democracy
2021-08-24 18:00 | CA
This is a virtual event and will take place on Crowdcast. Register for FREE ahead of time to save your spot and get an email reminder! Scroll down to purchase your copy of the book from Vroman’s.
EVENT LINK: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/w96oq60q
Over the past three decades, citizens of democracies who claim to value freedom, tolerance, and the rule of law have increasingly embraced illiberal politicians and platforms. Democracy is in trouble–but who is really to blame?
In Our Own Worst Enemy, Tom Nichols challenges the current depictions of the rise of illiberal and anti-democratic movements in the United States and elsewhere as the result of the deprivations of globalization or the malign decisions of elites. Rather, he places the blame for the rise of
illiberalism on the people themselves. Nichols traces the illiberalism of the 21st century to the growth of unchecked narcissism, rising standards of living, global peace, and a resistance to change. Ordinary citizens, laden with grievances, have joined forces with political entrepreneurs who thrive
on the creation of rage rather than on the encouragement of civic virtue and democratic cooperation. While it will be difficult, Nichols argues that we need to defend democracy by resurrecting the virtues of altruism, compromise, stoicism, and cooperation–and by recognizing how good we’ve actually
had it in the modern world.
Trenchant, contrarian, and highly engaging, Our Own Worst Enemy reframes the debate about how democracies have ended up in this dire state of affairs and what to do about it. (Oxford University Press)
