Events

with Nico Spadafora, Paleontologist, Founder of The Fossil Team

Image credit: artist Hodari Nundu

Please note this event takes place on Wednesday due to Election Night.

We’ve all heard the phrase, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Turns out, nature seems to agree! From the fossil record to the animals living around us today, evolution has a funny habit of coming up with the same solutions again and again. Different animals can end up looking remarkably alike and sometimes even behaving alike despite evolving completely independently. This fascinating phenomenon is called convergent evolution.

In this fun and fascinating pub talk, paleontologist Nico Spadafora will take you on a journey through the weird, wonderful, and oddly repetitive world of convergent evolution. We’ll explore how it happens, why evolution keeps repeating itself, and what these evolutionary “reruns” can tell us about the incredible diversity of life on Earth.

Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun venues across the region, recommended for ages 10 and over.

Zoom Option
If you are unable to join us in person, you can watch on Zoom. You must register in advance. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Nico Spadafora is the founder of The Fossil Team, an education company and traveling museum dedicated to bringing the wonders of natural history to life. He has spent more than two decades studying paleontology, zoology, and the natural sciences, diving headfirst into the scientific literature and developing a deep knowledge of both living and extinct animals. In his teens, Nico earned an internship at the Oregon Zoo where he studied the anatomy, behavior, and traits of elephants, lions, rhinos, and many other animals. He later took his knowledge into the wild as a professional tracker and wilderness educator with Trackers Earth, following the trails and sign of bears, cougars, elk, and other wild animals. Today, Nico specializes in dinosaurs and prehistoric mammals and loves sharing the strange, spectacular, and sometimes downright bizarre stories hidden in the natural world. When he’s not studying, tracking, or obsessing over animals in the wild, he enjoys movies and games cuddled up with his house panthers Puma and Rufus.

Join us for our next Forest Pub focused on Mushrooms as the Architect of the Forest: Fungi and their Hidden Ecological Roles, an evening of storytelling, science, and community exploration in partnership with the Oregon Mycological Society. This special edition of Forest Pub dives into the fascinating world of fungi and their essential role in forest ecosystems—from decomposition and soil health to the hidden underground networks that connect trees and support forest resilience.

Guests will hear from local mycology expert, Tim Glassman, to learn how mushrooms shape forest ecology and climate health, and discover how fungi support both natural systems and human understanding of the forest. As always, Forest Pub blends science with storytelling in a relaxed, social setting designed to spark curiosity and conversation over a shared love of forests.

Speaker: Tim Glassman is currently the Chair of the Education Committee of the Oregon Mycological Society (OMS). He has been teaching Beginner’s ID and Toxicology to members and is currently creating a new Fungal Ecology class. Tim grew up in Buffalo, New York where he foraged around town riding his bicycle. Since then, he earned a Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry from MIT and worked as a Semiconductor Process Engineer at Intel for 21 years. After retiring in 2018 he joined OMS to learn about the diversity of mushrooms in the Pacific Northwest.

We've all heard the phrase, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Turns out, nature seems to agree! From the fossil record to the animals living around us today, evolution has a funny habit of coming up with the same solutions again and again. Different animals can end up looking remarkably alike and sometimes even behaving alike despite evolving completely independently. This fascinating phenomenon is called convergent evolution.

In this fun and fascinating pub talk, paleontologist Nico Spadafora will take you on a journey through the weird, wonderful, and oddly repetitive world of convergent evolution. We'll explore how it happens, why evolution keeps repeating itself, and what these evolutionary "reruns" can tell us about the incredible diversity of life on Earth.

Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun venues across the region, recommended for ages 10 and over.

Science Pub Mission Theater is a monthly event that is open to anyone and everyone. No scientific background required. Just bring your curiosity, sense of humor, and appetite for food, drinks and knowledge! For more information or to sign up for our mailing list, email: [email protected].

You've all heard the phrase, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Turns out, nature seems to agree. From the fossil record to the animals living today, evolution has a funny habit of coming up with the same solutions again and again. Different animals can end up looking remarkably alike and sometimes even behaving alike despite evolving completely independently. This fascinating phenomenon is called convergent evolution. In this fun and fascinating pub talk, paleontologist Nico Spadafora will take you on a journey through the weird, wonderful, and oddly repetitive world of convergent evolution. Explore how it happens, why evolution keeps repeating itself, and what these evolutionary “reruns” say about the incredible diversity of life on Earth.

Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun venues across the region, recommended for ages 10 and over.

Nico Spadafora is the founder of The Fossil Team, an education company and traveling museum dedicated to bringing the wonders of natural history to life. He has spent more than two decades studying paleontology, zoology, and the natural sciences, diving headfirst into the scientific literature and developing a deep knowledge of both living and extinct animals. In his teens, Nico earned an internship at the Oregon Zoo, where he studied the anatomy, behavior, and traits of elephants, lions, rhinos, and many other animals. He later took his knowledge into the wild as a professional tracker and wilderness educator with Trackers Earth, following the trails and signs of bears, cougars, elk, and other wild animals. Today, Nico specializes in dinosaurs and prehistoric mammals and loves sharing the strange, spectacular, and sometimes downright bizarre stories hidden in the natural world. When he’s not studying, tracking, or obsessing over animals in the wild, he enjoys movies and games, cuddled up with his house panthers, Puma and Rufus.

Few conservation behaviors have captured the public’s interest as much as recycling. But sorting your trash and placing it at the curb isn’t recycling . . . it’s just the start of a long and somewhat surprising journey for your empty milk cartons and back issues of Cat Fancy.

• Where do those materials go once in the bin?
• How do they get sorted out? And where do they go from there?
• What about those rumors that recycling trucks just deliver materials to the landfill, or dump them in the ocean?
• How can recycling even deliver environmental benefit, given all of the trucks and machinery involved?
• What’s the deal with plastic, anyway?

You have questions, and we have answers!

After pioneering recycling policy in the late 1980s, Oregon is now implementing the first “extended producer responsibility” law for packaging in the U.S. The Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act, adopted in 2021, was launched July 1, 2025 and is designed to provide residents and businesses a recycling system that can be trusted to deliver the environmental benefits that recycling has long promised. But even a fully modernized recycling system has limited potential to stem the tide of unsustainable levels of production and consumption.

Explore how recycling is simultaneously necessary and insufficient, how recycling needs to be improved, and what else Oregon could be doing to use materials sustainably.

David Allaway and Justin Gast work at the OR Department of Environmental Quality, and between them have over 57 years of experience with recycling systems. In addition to his time at DEQ, Justin has worked at the local and national levels for the likes of Resource Recycling magazine, the Washington County (OR) Solid Waste & Recycling Program and The Recycling Partnership. David has testified before Congress and co-chaired Oregon’s Recycling Steering Committee, and his work has been featured in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, the National Law Review, Time, Sierra and PBS Frontline.

Minors ok when accompanied by a parent or guardian

Join us for an evening of storytelling, science, and community exploration in partnership with the Oregon Mycological Society. This special edition of Forest Pub dives into the fascinating world of fungi and their essential role in forest ecosystems-from decomposition and soil health to the hidden underground networks that connect trees and support forest resilience. Guests will hear from local mycology experts, learn how mushrooms shape forest ecology and climate health, and discover how fungi support both natural systems and human understanding of the forest. As always, Forest Pub blends science with storytelling in a relaxed, social setting designed to spark curiosity and conversation over a shared love of forests.

Join us for a pint & learn about our forests!

Step into the world of our forests at Forest Pub, a monthly program brought to you in partnership with McMenamins History at the Mission Theater in NW Portland. Every second Monday, we bring in dynamic guest speakers to explore how forests touch every part of our lives - from the natural wonders we depend on to the creativity, culture, and cutting-edge solutions they inspire. Whether it's science, stories, or the latest breakthroughs in innovations, Forest Pub connects the dots between our forests and our world.

Why are some plant species rare, and what can be learned from them? These are two of the fundamental questions at the core of conservation biology. In an era of accelerated anthropogenic change, understanding how the past has shaped our biota and the distribution of species across our region is more important than ever before.

In this talk, evolutionary biologist Ash Gill will introduce some rare flowering plants of our region and discuss how their habitats have been affected by European colonization. She will go on to describe how data collected from rare species can be used to understand the evolutionary process. Lastly, she will share how citizen scientists can contribute to conservation by using tools at the Oregon Flora Project to learn about their local flora and document their observations.

With Ash Gill, Taxonomist at the Oregon Flora Project and Botanist/Wetland Scientist at SWCA Environmental Consultants

Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun venues across the region, recommended for ages 10 and over.

Why are some plant species rare, and what can we learn from them? These are two of the fundamental questions at the core of conservation biology. In an era of accelerated anthropogenic change, understanding how the past has shaped our biota and the distribution of species across our region is more important than ever before.

In this talk, evolutionary biologist Ash Gill will introduce some rare flowering plants of our region and the ways their habitats have been impacted following European colonization. She will go on to describe how data collected from rare species can be used to understand the evolutionary process. Lastly, she will share how citizen scientists can contribute to conservation by using tools at the Oregon Flora Project to learn about their local flora and document their observations.

Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun venues across the region, recommended for ages 10 and over.

Science Pub Kennedy School is a monthly event that is open to anyone and everyone. No RSVP or scientific background required. Just bring your curiosity, sense of humor, and appetite for food, drinks and knowledge! For more information or to sign up for our mailing list, email: [email protected].

Dinner and drinks will be available throughout the presentation. Please visit the McMenamins Kennedy School website for a dinner menu and venue information.

Suggested donation of $8 all goes to OMSI.

Tuesday, November 3 6pm doors, 7pm presentation All ages welcome at Mission Theater