Science / Medicine : Technology Comes Down to Earth
Have you ever wondered what WD-40 stands for?
That ubiquitous household product is one of the earliest commercial spinoffs from the space program. WD-40, which stands for “water displacement, 40th formula,” was originally developed to solve a corrosion problem on the Atlas missile in 1955, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
More than 100 products that have resulted from space technology can be found in the exhibit “Space Spinoffs” at the California Museum of Science and Industry in Exposition Park.
Developed by the Ft. Worth Museum of Science and History, the exhibit includes some surprising items, from graphite tennis racquets and Gore-Tex jogging suits to cryogenic pipe valves and pacemaker batteries.
The exhibit runs through April 14. Call (213) 744-7400.
HEALTH / MEDICINE
The problems and issues of national health care and alternatives to the present system will be examined in a one-day seminar presented by the League of Women Voters of Los Angeles and the UCLA School of Public Health on April 6 at UCLA. Reservations are required by April 3. Call (213) 939-3535.
The Cedars-Sinai Stroke Club, for stroke survivors and their families and care givers, will discuss “Understanding Stroke and Brain Recovery” April 2 at 2 p.m. in the Thalians Auditorium. Call (213) 855-3184.
MATHEMATICS
George B. Dantzig will discuss the origins of linear programming April 3 at 4:15 p.m. in Harvey Mudd College’s Galileo-Pryne Hall. Call (714) 621-8023
SCIENCE FOR KIDS
Children and their families can explore the Earthside Nature Center in Pasadena and learn about the native plants found there from naturalist Elna Bakker and author Kevin Connelly on April 6, 7 and 8 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Call (818) 768-1802.
Germs, blood cells and tissue are some of the things youngsters will be able to see under a microscope in a workshop Saturday at noon at the Children’s Museum in La Habra. On April 6 at noon, children can learn about safety, friendship and hospitals from Choco-Bear, a puppet who falls from a tree and is taken to the hospital. Call (213) 905-9793.
Children ages 6 to 12 can explore the beach environment with biologist Jason Ho in a workshop presented by the Westside Arts Center at the Santa Monica Pier on April 8 at 10 a.m. Reservations are required. Call (213) 395-1443.
BOTANY
Common poisonous plants found around the home will be the subject of a class at the Los Angeles State and County Arboretum in Arcadia on April 6 at 9 a.m. Preregistration is recommended. Call (818) 821-3249.
ASTRONOMY
The Griffith Observatory lecture series on eclipses continues tonight on the topic of the role of ancient eclipses in modern astronomy. On April 1, tips on visual and photographic observation of solar eclipses will be discussed. Both lectures begin at 7:30 p.m. Call (213) 664-1191.
The constellations of the spring sky will be the topic of the Moorpark College Astronomy program April 7 at 8:30 p.m. at the Charles Temple Observatory. Call (805) 378-1408.
ENVIRONMENT
A geologist, ornithologist, herpetologist and botanist will be on hand to teach participants about desert ecology and how life adapts to a dry environment in the Sierra Club Natural Science Section’s Joshua Tree Field Ecology Workshop, April 5-7. Call (818) 787-2294.
