22 – Sunday

7p Channing Club is a wide-ranging discussion group which has been meeting, in one form or another, for over half a century. There are no assigned topics; we discuss whatever is on participants’ minds. Our meetings are currently on Zoom. Join the Zoom meeting: us02web.zoom.us/j/6912937135?pwd=WvlpMEs1SCs0c1FoZk5seUhoREVaZz09. Meeting ID: 691 293 7135. Password: berkeley. Hosted by Kevin Langdon, kevinlangdon86/a/t/yahoo.com. PC (RSE 4 Su)

25 — Wednesday

Trivia Night is canceled for December. We’ll be back in January 2025. PC, NC, NS, NMPCW (RSE 4 W)

26 – Thursday

11:45a South Bay Lunch. See December 12. (RSE 2,4 Th)

27 – Friday

5:30p Virtual Happy Hour. Mix up your favorite beverage. Bring out some happy-hour munchies and join us for a virtual relaxing time. RSVP on Meetup for the Zoom Link. Hosted by Judy Unger, junger2040/a/t/gmail.com. PC (RSE 4 F)

January 4 – Saturday

6p Start the Month Right is continuing at its new location at Karl Heuer’s home in San Jose. Come celebrate the 44th year and longest running monthly social event in all of American Mensa (formerly at Elna Tymes’ home from 1981 to 2024!). We’ll have a potluck dinner, unstructured socialization, games, and talk. Host will provide the main dish; you bring salad, bread, or dessert to share and YOB. $1 donation requested. RSVP encouraged; use Meetup (preferred) or e-mail stmr/a/t/sfmensa.org or phone (650) 648-3594. Masks optional. PC, NMPCW, WBC, NS, WCD, LCR (RSE 1 Sa)

5 – Sunday

4p Albany Hill Hike. Join us for a one-hour scenic and historic hike up and around Albany Hill. The trail is steep in spots, but the views are expansive. Special bonus: We have scheduled the Sather Tower Solar Beacon to shine directly upon us as we arrive at the top of the hill. Meet under Pacific East Mall Jumbotron just behind the bus stop on the east side of Pierce St. between Central Ave. in El Cerrito and Washington Ave. in Albany. Free parking is available in the mall lot, which is seven tenths of a mile from the El Cerrito Plaza BART station. Please contact Roberta Maguire to make sure she is in town at robertamaguire/a/t/hotmail.com or (510) 292-6370. PC, ACW, NMPCW, NS, WCI, NXM (RSE 1 Su)

7 – Tuesday

5p Tuesday Tipplers will meet at San Rafael Joe’s, 931 4th St., San Rafael 94901, at 5p for drinks in the bar and then move on to dinner in the dining room after an hour. Park on the street or in the city garage behind the restaurant. If you have questions e-mail Ed Sabrack at edsabrack/a/t/comcast.net or call (415) 472-3725. PC (RSE 1 Tu)

Intelligencer Deadline. Deadline for calendar events, advertising, members’ free ads, and all other content. See above for information on submitting events. PC (RSE Tu after 1 Sa)

8 – Wednesday

6p The Case for Christ Discussion. We will be reading The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus by Lee Strobel, 20 to 40 pages per week (or however the chapters fall). Join us for one, a few, or all chapters. This week we’re reading Chapter 1, The Eyewitness Evidence. This is a Zoom event. The login details are listed on Meetup. Hosted by Pia Smith. PC (RSE W)

9 – Thursday

11:45a South Bay Lunch. Meet at Scrambl’z, 5055 Almaden Expressway, San Jose 95118 (near Hwys. 85 & 87), (408) 269-2900. Voted one of the best breakfast restaurants around. Extensive menu online at scramblz-sj.com/. Sandra Anderson, (408) 997-3187. Vaccinated only, please. PC, NMPCW, WCE (RSE 2,4 Th)

11 – Saturday

4p Big Ideas Reading Group: Determined: A Science of Life without Free Will by Robert M. Sapolsky. On Zoom. Determined offers a marvelous synthesis of what we know about how consciousness works – the tight weave between reason and emotion and between stimulus and response in the moment and over a life. One by one, Sapolsky tackles all the major arguments for free will and takes them out, cutting a path through the thickets of chaos and complexity, science and quantum physics, as well as touching ground on some of the wilder shores of philosophy. For February 8 on Zoom: A Brief History of Intelligence: Evolution, AI, and the Five Breakthroughs That Made Our Brains by Max Bennett. We have a list of books read at www.bigideasreadinggroup.com/BIRG2.html. For questions and invitations to our Zoom meetings please contact Chris Boyd at snoboyd/a/t/sbcglobal.net. PC, NMPCW, NXM (RSE 2 Sa)

13 – Monday

4p San Francisco Pub Get-Together. Stop by after work or, if you don’t work downtown, just come anyway. All Mensans and their guests are welcome, provided that they are at least 21, at Patriot House in 2 Embarcadero Center (Sacramento St. between Front St. and Davis St.), SF 94111. Take the inside escalator to the 2nd floor, turn right twice, and then follow the sign to the stairs to the 3rd floor. The restaurant’s entrance is near the top of those stairs on the 3rd floor. Look for the Mensa logo on our table or ask one of the waitresses to find us. Starting at 4p, but arrive when you can and leave when you’re ready. We will be there for several hours. They have a Happy Hour from 4p until 6p, with the kitchen closing at 9p and the bar closing at 10p. RSVP preferred on Mensa’s Meetup site at www.meetup.com/SFMensa, less preferred by e-mail to Barry Krasner at bwkbwk/a/t/pacbell.net. If you find that you can’t come after RSVPing “Yes”, please change your RSVP to “No” before the event takes place. PC, NC, NS, NMPCW (RSE 2 M)

6p Online Board Games. Come explore some board games that can be played on the Web. If you’re new, please create a (free) account at boardgamearena.com and follow the setup instructions. We’ll meet online with Zoom to establish voice contact, and then we’ll decide on a game to try out. RSVP on the Meetup calendar if possible, otherwise contact Karl Heuer at puzzles/a/t/sfmensa.org or (650) 648-3594. PC, NMPCW, ACW

14 – Tuesday

5:30p Apt To In Aptos Mensa Bar Group is held at Sevy’s Bar + Kitchen at Seacliff Inn, 7500 Old Dominion Court, Aptos 95003, www.seacliffinn.com/santa-cruz-restaurants on the second Tuesday of the month, running until about 7:30p. Come join Central Coast Mensans: Forget last month’s feces and anticipate this month’s blindsides. T(R)oast past friends, find new ones, and introduce current ones, all while contemplating how it all defaults to QM scaled. Courtesy e-mail to host Stew Gibson at LooseId/a/t/ix.netcom.com with subject “Sevy” for restaurant head count is appreciated, but not required. Tip 20% on the bill, with separate checks. PC, NMPCW (RSE 2 Tu)

5:50p Dinner, Drinks, and Life’s Information. Join us for drinks, dinner, and another great science-based Wonderfest presentation at the HopMonk Tavern, 224 Vintage Way, Novato 94945. We meet for drinks and dinner at 5:50p. At 6:50p we’ll move to the session room for the talk, “Life’s Information” with Dr. Terrence Deacon, Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at UC Berkeley. All known life forms rely on the same molecular mechanism to translate information carried by DNA and RNA into proteins. This translation is accomplished by an incredibly complex system involving many dozens of very large and precisely interacting molecules. All viruses, bacteria, plants, and animals ultimately inherited this common molecular machinery from our Last Universal Common Ancestor (LUCA). But all of this – and much more – had to evolve prior to LUCA. Without this translation machinery, the “genetic code” isn’t information about anything! So, origins-of-life theories can’t just assume that DNA and RNA intrinsically have information. Even the most widely accepted “RNA-World” origin-of-life theory raises the question: What is the origin of life’s information? Deacon is the author of two particularly influential books: The Symbolic Species: The Co-evolution of Language and the Brain and Incomplete Nature: How Mind Emerged from Matter. Complete details of this free event are at wonderfest.org/category/event/coming-events/. More information on HopMonk’s menu, etc. is here: www.hopmonk.com/novato. RSVP on the SFRM Meetup (preferred) or e-mail Valerie Taylor (northbay/a/t/sfmensa.org). PC, NMPCW, WCE, NS, NC, NXM

6:45p Puzzled Pint. Who likes PUZZLES? The kind where part of the game is to figure out what you need to be doing in the first place? Want to do it as part of a team, so you can bounce ideas off each other, and let someone else do the parts that you find uninteresting? This is a monthly event held in the bay area (and simultaneously elsewhere in the world), at a convenient pub where we might order food and drink before or during the game. RSVP to Karl Heuer at puzzles/a/t/sfmensa.org or (650) 648-3594 (voice or text) to reserve your spot and learn the address. If Game Control has arranged a pub, it’s probably on Shoreline Blvd. in Mountain View, or downtown San Jose. Otherwise, the event host will select a non-pub location in Milpitas or the Berryessa area of San Jose. PC, NMPCW, NS, NXM (RSE 2 Tu)

15 – Wednesday

5:30p Re-BORG. Berkeley-Oakland Restaurant Group is reborn and revived in honor of the incomparable Cathy Roha, who initiated this event and hosted it for many years. Assimilate delicious food and interesting conversation at a good restaurant somewhere in the central East Bay. Bring cash, your vaccination card, and a mask. Limited seating. E-mail or call ahead for location up to a week ahead. RSVP by 3p on Tuesday, January 14. Roberta Maguire, robertamaguire/a/t/hotmail.com, (510) 292-6370. PC, NS, NMPCW, ACW (RSE 3 W)

6p The Case for Christ Discussion. We will be reading The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus by Lee Strobel, 20 to 40 pages per week (or however the chapters fall). Join us for one, a few, or all chapters. This week we’re reading Chapter 2, Testing the Eyewitness Evidence. This is a Zoom event. The login details are listed on Meetup. Hosted by Pia Smith. PC (RSE W)

6:30p Ethnic Explorers, a dinner group. Each month we gastronomize at a top-rated ethnic restaurant in Marin County. This month we visit Emma’s Chinese restaurant (formerly Ping’s), 817 Francisco Blvd. W, San Rafael 94901, (415) 492-1638. Marin Magazine rated it as one of the best in Marin: “If you’re looking for a modern twist on traditional Chinese dishes, Emma’s Restaurant provides an array of delicious creations for everyone to enjoy. Chef-owner Wing Pak designed a menu featuring Mongolian beef, orange chicken, and crispy rainbow steak. Mu shu, a selection of soups, plenty of seafood, and hearty dishes all make this joint a darling in San Rafael.” RSVP by January 10 to Geri at . PC (RSE 3 W)

16 – Thursday

12n Thursday Munchers, rising up from the old Ethnic Dinner, a lunch group in Marin dedicated to trying different restaurants. This month we will visit Celia’s, 1 Vivian St., San Rafael 94901, (415) 456-8190, celiasrestaurants.com. RSVP by Sunday, January 12, to Elizabeth Calaway at (415) 456-9220 or elizterrycalaway/a/t/aol.com. PC (RSE Th after 2 Tu)

18 – Saturday

7p Teton Tea. Teton Tea Parties are folk-singing parties going back to the 1950s. We welcome both traditional folk singing and singer/songwriters. Our 3rd Saturday meetings are currently on Zoom. Join the Zoom meeting: us02web.zoom.us/j/6912937135?pwd=WvlpMEs1SCs0c1FoZk5seUhoREVaZz09. Meeting ID: 691 293 7135. Password: berkeley. Hosted by Kevin Langdon, kevinlangdon86/a/t/yahoo.com. PC (RSE 3 Sa) 

19 – Sunday

2:30p Speaker Series: Exploding Stars and Their Impact on Life on Earth with Dr. Brian Thomas, Professor of Physics at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas. On Zoom. Scientists have long speculated that the history of life on Earth may have been influenced by cosmic explosions such as supernovae. In recent decades the combination of astrophysical data and computational models have allowed detailed study of the potential effects of nearby stellar explosions on Earth’s atmosphere and biosphere. Impacts range from destruction of stratospheric ozone, exposing life to extreme levels of solar UV, to direct damage to organisms by high-energy neutrons and muons. Dr. Thomas will summarize what we know today and discuss connections to mass extinctions and the evolution of life over the last few hundred million years. Please register at livepresentation.link/jan and Zoom will send you the link that you will need to join. Hosted by Judy Unger. PC

22 – Wednesday

5:30p Trivia Night at the Patriot House gastropub in San Francisco. The contest is free, starts at 6p, and lasts about 2 hours, but please arrive about 5:30p, so that we don’t lose the table that I’ve reserved. If you’re a member of our SFRM Meetup group, RSVP on Meetup if you’re planning on coming, so that I can be sure to reserve a large enough table. If you’re not a member of our SFRM Meetup group, RSVP by e-mailing host Barry Krasner at bwkbwk/a/t/pacbell.net. Guests are allowed, so be sure to include the number of guests that you’re bringing when you RSVP. If you RSVP “Yes” and then find that you can’t attend after all, it’s very important that you change your RSVP to “No” as far in advance as possible. The Patriot House is located in Embarcadero Center #2, on the 3rd (top) floor. Enter from Sacramento St. between Front St. and Davis St. Take the inside escalator to the 2nd floor, then turn right twice and follow the sign to the stairs to the 3rd floor. The restaurant is near the top of those stairs. You’ll recognize our group by the Mensa logo that I will have on top of our table. If in doubt, ask the wait staff for “The Mensa Group”. PC, NC, NS, NMPCW (RSE 4 W)

6p The Case for Christ Discussion. We will be reading The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus by Lee Strobel, 20 to 40 pages per week (or however the chapters fall). Join us for one, a few, or all chapters. This week we’re reading Chapter 3, The Documentary Evidence. This is a Zoom event. The login details are listed on Meetup. Hosted by Pia Smith. PC (RSE W)

23 – Thursday

11:45a South Bay Lunch. See January 9. (RSE 2,4 Th)

24 – Friday

5:30p Virtual Happy Hour. Mix up your favorite beverage. Bring out some happy-hour munchies and join us for a virtual relaxing time. RSVP on Meetup for the Zoom Link. Hosted by Judy Unger, junger2040/a/t/gmail.com. PC (RSE 4 F)

25 – Saturday

6p Online Board Games. See January 13.

26 – Sunday

7p Channing Club is a wide-ranging discussion group which has been meeting, in one form or another, for over half a century. There are no assigned topics; we discuss whatever is on participants’ minds. Our meetings are currently on Zoom. Join the Zoom meeting: us02web.zoom.us/j/6912937135?pwd=WvlpMEs1SCs0c1FoZk5seUhoREVaZz09. Meeting ID: 691 293 7135. Password: berkeley. Hosted by Kevin Langdon, kevinlangdon86/a/t/yahoo.com. PC (RSE 4 Su)

28 – Tuesday

5:50p Dinner, Drinks, and Sleep-Deprived Emotions. Join us for drinks, dinner, and another great science-based Wonderfest presentation at the HopMonk Tavern, 224 Vintage Way, Novato 94945. We meet for drinks and dinner at 5:50p. At 6:50p we’ll move to the session room for the talk, “Sleep-Deprived Emotions” with Dr. Eti Ben-Simon, Research Scientist at The Center for Human Sleep Science, UC Berkeley. Insufficient sleep dramatically changes how we feel and think, about ourselves and about others. Even a single night of sleep loss elevates levels of anxiety, depression, and asocial behavior in healthy adults. If sleep loss is chronic, this association can develop into a clinical mental disorder. Since 40% of adults in the US suffer from chronic insufficient sleep, researchers need – and are finding – a better understanding of the interaction between sleep and socio-emotional well-being. Complete details of this free event are at wonderfest.org/category/event/coming-events/. More information on HopMonk’s menu, etc. is here: www.hopmonk.com/novato. RSVP on the SFRM Meetup (preferred) or e-mail Valerie Taylor (northbay/a/t/sfmensa.org). PC, NMPCW, WCE, NS, NC, NXM

29 – Wednesday

6p The Case for Christ Discussion. We will be reading The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus by Lee Strobel, 20 to 40 pages per week (or however the chapters fall). Join us for one, a few, or all chapters. This week we’re reading Chapter 4, The Corroborating Evidence. This is a Zoom event. The login details are listed on Meetup. Hosted by Pia Smith. PC (RSE W)

31 – Friday

7p Near Palo Alto Dining. Join us this month for a Chinese New Year’s celebration (the Year of the Snake begins January 29). We will be revisiting Chef Chu’s, at 1067 N. San Antonio Rd., Los Altos 94022 (at El Camino Real). I have not yet selected the menu, so it is important to sign up early and state your preferences. Prices have risen, and the cost after tax and tip but not including fancy beverages may be $45ish (or maybe less). To reserve, contact Susan at (650) 714-4972 or Susan.Heimlich/a/t/gmail.com by January 24. Space is limited. Our table may be upstairs. Please bring cash, as we will not have separate bills. For last minute changes, call cell phone (650) 714-4972. PC, NMPCW

February 1 – Saturday

6p Start the Month Right. See January 4. (RSE 1 Sa)

2 – Sunday

4p Albany Hill Hike. See January 5. (RSE 1 Su)

4 – Tuesday

5p Tuesday Tipplers. See January 7. (RSE 1 Tu)

Intelligencer Deadline. See January 7. (RSE Tu after 1 Sa)

5 – Wednesday

6p The Case for Christ Discussion. We will be reading The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus by Lee Strobel, 20 to 40 pages per week (or however the chapters fall). Join us for one, a few, or all chapters. This week we’re reading Chapter 5, The Scientific Evidence. This is a Zoom event. The login details are listed on Meetup. Hosted by Pia Smith. PC (RSE W)

8 – Saturday

4p Big Ideas Reading Group. See January 11 (RSE 2 Sa)