BIRCH AQUARIUM’S SEADRAGONS & SEAHORSES OPENING DATE REVEALED

On Friday, May 17, Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego will open Seadragons & Seahorses, a new permanent exhibition that celebrates the care and conservation of these unique creatures. 

Seadragons & Seahorses is the largest indoor aquarium addition since the aquarium’s opening in 1992 and will be home to Weedy and Leafy Seadragons, as well as several species of seahorses and pipefish. The centerpiece of the exhibition will be one of the largest seadragon habitats in the world. The 18-foot-wide, 9-foot-tall exhibit will hold 5,375 gallons of water — that’s equivalent to 70 bathtubs! More than being a stunning display, the habitat has been designed to create an ideal environment to breed seadragons. Birch Aquarium hopes to be the first aquarium to successfully breed Leafy Seadragons in captivity.  

Construction has already begun on Seadragons & Seahorses, which replaces the Infinity Cube installation. Once open, the exhibition will be included in the cost of Birch Aquarium admission, which is $19.50 for adults, $15 for children (3-17). Annual memberships are also available. For more information, visit acuario.ucsd.edu. 

OCEAN BEACH COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION NEEDS APPLICANTS TO SERVE ON BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Ocean Beach Community Development Corporation is looking for people to serve on its board of directors. Applicants must live, work, own a business, or property in Ocean Beach. There is no fixed deadline to apply, as qualified individuals can be appointed at any time.

The OBCDC is a non-profit entity. It focuses on longer-term projects, often involving physical improvements to the Ocean Beach community.

If interested, contact the OBCDC at [email protected], or come to one of their monthly meetings and check them out.

PARKINSON’S ASSOCIATION OF SAN DIEGO HOLDING “STEP BY STEP 5K WALK” AT LIBERTY STATION

The Parkinson’s Association of San Diego (PASD) is holding its annual Step by Step 5K Walk on April 7 at Liberty Station. CBS News 8 Anchor Carlo Cecchetto will emcee the event that will feature speakers from the Michael J. Fox Foundation and the Davis Phinney Foundation. An expo and entertainment are part of the festivities, and the walk is dog-friendly.

Proceeds from the 5K enable the Parkinson’s Association of San Diego to make available critical resources to the estimated 60,000 individuals in San Diego County who have or are affected by Parkinson’s disease. All funds raised from the event will stay within San Diego County.

The walk commences at 9 a.m. with check-in starting at 7:30 a.m. The fee is $50, which includes a Step by Step 5K Walk t-shirt. Donations are tax-deductible per IRS guidelines.

PASD is offering free rides to and from the 5K walk for those requiring assistance. Rides are provided through FACT (Facilitating Access to Coordinated Transportation, www.factsd.org) with whom PASD holds a contract. To request a ride, call 888-924-3228 no later than Wednesday, April 3. One companion may travel with the rider at no cost. Rides are subject to availability on a first come, first served basis.

For Step by Step 5K registration, fundraising and sponsorship opportunities, please visit: www.parkinsonsassociation.org or call 858-200-7277. 

OCEAN BEACH HISTORICAL SOCIETY TO MEET AT HISTORICAL JENNINGS’ HOUSE CAFÉ

The historic Jennings’ House in Point Loma, built in 1886, will be the topic and the setting for the Ocean Beach Historical Society meeting on March 21, 1018 Rosecrans St. It is the one-time residence of Frank Jennings, early San Diego County Sheriff (1895-1902), and is the oldest house built on Point Loma. In recent years, it has found new life as the Jennings House Café (previously the Living Room), and is co-owned by our March guest speaker, Cathy Gallagher.

In researching the history of the house, Cathy came up with many fascinating facts about Frank Jennings, his brother Fred (who also served as San Diego County Sheriff from 1907 to 1914), their families, and their descendants. She will provide a detailed account of Frank and Inez Jennings, their entrepreneurial and philanthropic commitment to San Diego, and their role in the development of Point Loma in particular.

Join us as we travel a few miles from our usual Ocean Beach meeting place, to “the other side of the hill,” for a fascinating slice of local history. You may even learn about a connection between the Jennings family and the world-famous San Diego Zoo. This event is free.

‘SOUNDS & SWELLS’ COMES TO STONE BREWING 

Surf films and live classical music combine as one in this highly unique and creative performance at Stone Brewing Liberty Station on Monday, April 1 at 7 p.m. “Sounds & Swells” pairs a curated selection of surf footage with a live performance by the Hausmann Quartet, playing works by Philip Glass, Lou Harrison, Claude Debussy and more. This night of far-out collaboration is free of charge. Food and drink are available for purchase. Lawn chairs or blankets are recommended.
 
“Sounds & Swells” is a collaboration between Art of Élan, Eric Starr, and the Hausmann Quartet. Videography by William Zauscher including surf footage from California, Hawaii, Portugal, Tahiti, the Arctic, and Namibia. Cover image courtesy of Timo Londen.

REPUBLICAN WOMEN OF CALIFORNIA-POINT LOMA TO HOLD MONTHLY LUNCHEON AT POINT LOMA CAFE

On Wednesday, March 20, the Republican Women of California-Point Loma’s monthly luncheon meeting will be at 10 a.m. at Point Loma Cafe, 4865 Harbor Drive. The luncheon will include Jordan Gascon, executive director of the San Diego Republican Party, who will speak on the past election. Guests are welcome.

Call Marilyn at 619-222-9532 for additional information.

“THE SCIENCE OF CHRISTIANITY” TALK & DISCUSSION

WHAT: A free, one hour, public talk by Mary Alice Rose. Learn how a former physical scientist sees parallels between the study of a physical science and the study of a Christian science.

WHEN: Sunday, March 10, at 3 p.m.

WHERE: 4602 Fanuel Street, Pacific Beach, corner of Fanuel and Felspar.

For more information, contact Cathryn Rathsam via email at [email protected] or her cell, 714-926-0454.

BIG O TIRES PARTNERS WITH SAN DIEGO BLOOD BANK TO HOST BLOOD DRIVE IN PACIFIC BEACH

WHAT: Big O Tires is hosting a blood drive in partnership with the San Diego Blood Bank.

WHEN: Thursday, March 21 from 1:00 pm-6:30 pm.

WHERE: 1106 Garnet Ave, Pacific Beach, 92109 in the parking lot.

NOTES: Anyone 17 and older, who weighs at least 114 pounds, and is in good health, may be eligible to donate blood. A good meal and plenty of fluids are recommended prior to donation. All donors must show picture identification. Donors are encouraged to schedule an appointment to donate, but walk-ins are welcome.

To schedule an appointment or for more information, visit www.sandiegobloodbank.org or call 1-800-4MY-SDBB (1-800-469-7322).

RESEARCHERS DISCOVER NEW MECHANISM TO EVADE ANTIBIOTICS 

As bacteria continue to demonstrate powerful resilience to antibiotic treatments—posing a rising public health crisis involving a variety of infections—scientists continue to seek a better understanding of bacterial defenses against antibiotics in an effort to develop new treatments.
 
Now, researchers at the University of California San Diego have discovered an unexpected mechanism that allows bacteria to survive antibiotics.
 
As described in the March 7 early online release of the journal Cell, Dong-yeon Lee, Maja Bialecka-Fornal and Gürol Süel of UC San Diego’s Division of Biological Sciences, along with Leticia Galera-Laporta of the Universitat Pompeu Fabra (Spain), and colleagues discovered that bacteria defend themselves against antibiotics by controlling the uptake of alkaline metal ions. When under attack by antibiotics, bacteria were found to modulate magnesium ion uptake in order to stabilize their ribosomes—the fundamental molecular machines of life that translate genes into proteins—as a survival technique.
 
“We have found an unexpected new mechanism that actively growing bacteria utilize to become resilient against antibiotics,” said Süel, a professor of molecular biology. “With this discovery we can now explore new ways to combat infections that we couldn’t have thought of before.”
 
The new findings lay the scientific groundwork for new ways to counteract antibiotic resistance.
 
“Antibiotic resistance is a major public threat to our health,” said Süel. “The number of drugs coming onto the market is not keeping up with the ability of bacteria to cope with those drugs.”

MCALISTER INSTITUTE WELCOMES 3 NEW BOARD MEMBERS