Aquarium Sets Beach Cleanup

Local residents will be able to “Adopt-a-Beach” as part of the nationwide observance of COASTWEEKS from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium in San Pedro.

Volunteers will learn about the local marine and coastal environments while assisting in the cleanup of Cabrillo Beach and local tide pools in this annual event. Families with children are welcome. Call (310) 548-7563.

HEALTH/MEDICINE

* Neurobiologist William McClure, an expert in the neurochemical aspects of schizophrenia, will speak on “Butterflies of the Soul: A Chemist’s View of Mental Illness,” at 1 p.m. Friday at USC, Grace Ford Salvatori Hall, Room 106. Call (213) 740-4710.

ORNITHOLOGY

* Bird watcher Robert Flippin will lead participants on an evening owl watch at the Soka University campus in Calabasas from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Friday. Binoculars are recommended. Call (818) 880-6400, Ext. 3500.

MARINE SCIENCE

* Cabrillo Marine Aquarium will have a “Deepwater Plankton Trawl” from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday to collect plankton specimens and other marine life for study and display. Participants will meet at the aquarium and join marine biologists aboard the Yellowfin research vessel. Space is limited and reservations are required. Call (310) 548-7563.

ENVIRONMENT

* David Morris of the Sierra Club will discuss the American environmental movement in a lecture sponsored by the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History and the Santa Barbara Chapter of the Sierra Club at 7:30 p.m. tonight in the museum’s Farrand Hall. Call (805) 682-4711.

SCIENCE FOR KIDS

* Children 5 and older will learn all about kelp, where it comes from and how it is used in everyday life in workshops offered by Kidspace Museum at 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Call (818) 449-9144.