It may seem unlikely, but bars in San Francisco are sites for academic lectures, part of a new program called Big Brain SF.
“People are there for the knowledge, but they’re also there for the adventure and the experience,” says Emily Giverts, Big Brain SF founder.
Established by Giverts in March, the series pairs intellectual topics and casual spaces. Tackling varied topics, most of the series’ speakers have doctorates or are working toward them.
“Welcome to the nerd club,” is the invitation on the Big Brain SF Instagram page, which has over 13,000 followers.
Free talks are on weeknights, usually from 7 to 9 p.m. Locales include Wave Collective, Madrone Art Bar and The San Francisco Athletic Club (which closed Aug. 3) playing host to dozens.
“It’s about the taking in of information, but it’s also about the people—their energy, and really fun interactions and conversations about the topics,” says Giverts.
Topics have included “Anesthesia Dreams: The Future of Mental Health?” with Pilleriin Sikka and “Beauty Ideals Through Time: From Canvases to Algorithms” with Bea Asavajaru, both Stanford University scholars; “Maximizing Your Social Value” with Juliana Schroeder of the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley; and “Survival of the Smartest: Evolutionary AI for Social Good” with data scientist Daniel Young.
The inaugural lecture featuring Eric Neumann, a Stanford psychology scholar speaking on “Building Lasting Relationships in a Lonely World: Can AI Help?” was at The Sycamore in the Mission.
“They were the only ones that were super excited about what I was doing in the beginning,” says Giverts of Sycamore owners Liz and Tim Ryan.
Proprietors of other San Francisco spots have since offered their spaces and use of their equipment, mostly television screens.
Giverts, 24, has long had a passion for lecture-based learning and an interest in community outreach and engagement. She was also inspired by her parents, who are small business owners.
“I always felt like I wanted to start something myself versus being in a corporate environment,” she says.
Giverts, who resigned from a corporate job about a month ago, now focuses fully on Big Brain SF. The series already has expanded.
Giverts hired an event host to oversee logistics. With less on her plate the night of the event, she has more of a presence among attendees.
“I love chatting with people,” says Giverts. “I’m now able to enjoy the lecture and also meet everyone. When I was running around, doing a million things, it was a lot harder [to do that].”
The number of events per month also has grown. There are seven in August. On Aug. 6 at Wave Collective, Chris Mathy, a postdoc in the Steinmetz Lab at Stanford, presented “More Than a Powerhouse: Mitochondria Driving Evolution, Aging, and Synthetic Biology.”
Upcoming, at 7 p.m. unless noted otherwise, are Tamri Matiashvili on “How Women Reshaped the Workforce” on Aug. 12 at Mr. Mahjong’s; Kevin Smokler with “The Art of Finding Good Movies” on Aug. 19 at The Sycamore; Erica Bailey on “Authenticity in ‘Real’ Life: Three Myths and a Few Truths About Being Yourself” at 6:45 p.m. Aug. 20, at The Faight Collective; Stephanie Cowan on “The Art of Giving a Good Hug (and Other Tools for Connection)” on Aug. 21 at SF Athletic Club; Dan McCalley with “Can We Zap Addiction Out of the Brain?” on Aug. 25 at The Faight Collective; and Favour Nerrise with “Health in My Hands: The Future of Wearable AI” on Aug. 28 at Wave Collective.
People love the series’ concept and the diversity, Giverts has found, and have expressed interest in learning more on particular topics such as women’s health and politics and policy.
There are also repeat Big Brainers — about 10 folks who attended all of the lectures.
“Those are the people that kind of love everything,” she says. “And if you don’t love everything, then there’s something for everyone.”
To join the Big Brain SF email list, go here.
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