Monday:
The Discovery of Planets around Other Stars
More than 500 planets have now been discovered around other stars. Find out which one is most likely to become humankind’s new home once our environmental karma catches up with us. Hopefully the Virgin Galactic flights of the future won’t feel like today’s Virgin Air dance clubs on wings.
Tuesday:
Dat Phan
After living out of his car and even being robbed at gunpoint, Dat Phan kept pursuing his dream of making it big in L.A. He auditioned for an experimental, comedy-based show on NBC, landed the job, and became the first winner of Last Comic Standing. Dat Phan headlines “Laugh Sing Dance Care,” a fundraiser for the Ira Greene PACE Clinic for AIDS Care and Education, on Tuesday at the San Jose Improv. Bay Area comedians Marty Grimes and Jon Talbert open the show along with a Vegas-esque drag performance by The Divas from A Tinkers Damn Night Club.
Wednesday:
Race, Gender and Sexual Identity in Contemporary Photography
The free lunchtime lecture series at the San Jose Museum of Art presents Ron Herman, chair of the photography department at Foothill College. Herman has traveled with his camera to 22 countries across four continents. He’ll discuss some of the photography currently on view at the museum in relation to the omnipresent issues of race, gender, and sexual identity.
Thursday:
Marc Hershon and Jonathan Littman
One of the reasons The Office has been such a huge hit in pop culture is because of its stereotypical portrayals of all the common personalities found in today’s modern workplaces. In their book, “I Hate People!: Kick Loose from the Overbearing and Underhanded Jerks at Work and Get What You Want Out of Your Job,” comedian Marc Hershon and writer Jonathan Littman identify the ten most troublesome types of people to work with. If the success of their Sausalito-based consulting company—where they helped develop the names for such ubiquitous products as the BlackBerry and the Swiffer—is any indication, their strategies and techniques for dealing with difficult people ought to be required reading for any Silicon Valley go-getter.
Friday:
South Bay Guitar Society 25th Anniversary
It’s hard to believe the South Bay Guitar Society turns a quarter-century this year. The small non-profit has brought some of the world’s finest classical guitarists to the San Jose area and they’re celebrating their silver anniversary with a gala evening at Le Petit Trianon Theatre. Citizen-songwriter Bruce Davis and physicist/musician Dr. Brian Holmes will perform and discuss everything from the history and physics of guitars to the craft of songwriting.
