All galleries open.

MIT Open Space at Against the Run Clock

Birding 101
5:00pm, 5:30pm, 6:00pm, and 6:30pm
Learn how to look and listen for wildlife using binoculars, then go on a short walk around the MIT Open Space in search of local birds. First come, first served. Groups depart from the clock on the half hour.

SECOND FLOOR

Essential MIT
Local drinks from Lamplighter
Delicious Dumplings from Mei Mei
Sets by DJ Joseph Ntaimo

Lee Family Exchange

Fantastic Feathers: Water Repellency with Lorna Gibson
6:45pm
Discover how the water repellency of feathers arises from their microscopic structure and how engineers use this understanding to design water repellent materials.

Phalaropes: Bills for Capturing Plankton with Lorna Gibson
7:45pm
Phalaropes spin around in the water, creating a vortex that draws plankton close to them. This talk reveals how they get water droplets containing plankton into their mouths — not easy, since they have no lips and can't suck.

Bird Beak Bonanza
6:00 - 9:00pm
Compete in a fast-paced game simulating natural selection with different shaped bird "beaks."

Heide Maker Hub

Take Flight: Bird-Inspired Gel Printmaking
6:00 - 9:00 pm
Create your own vibrant bird-inspired art using gelli plates and artist-quality printmaking supplies. Guided by Sean Kent from The Nest - Mass Audubon's Art Studio and Maker Space in Canton, MA, this hands-on experience will let your creativity soar — no art skills or wings required!

Weave like an Oriole
6:00 - 9:00pm
Welcome the orioles back to Boston by weaving collaborative sculptures, inspired by their looped and knotted nests.

Learning Lab 1

Museum Specimens and the Secrets of Migration
6:00 - 9:00pm
Learn from researchers from the Harvard Museum of Comparative Zoology how scientists study fascinating avian traits like migration using both traditional natural history museum specimens and modern technologies.

Learning Lab 2

From Analog to AI
6:00 - 9:00pm
Let the representatives from MIT's Beery and Broderick Labs to take you on a journey exploring the evolution of tools that help field biologists categorize and make sense of their data.

Sharp Room

Bird Games
6:00 - 9:00pm
Enjoy a selection of bird themed games that allow players to do as the birds do: honk, flirt, collect shiny things, and be jerks! Curated by Rik Eberhardt of the MIT Game Lab.

Mezzanine

The Birding Dictionary
6:30 - 8:00pm
Meet acclaimed science communicator and cartoonist Rosemary Mosco and snag a signed copy of her hilarious new book, The Birding Dictionary. Book sales provided by the MIT Press Bookstore.

Collections Workshop

Pop-up Exhibition: Avians as Art
7:00 - 9:00pm
From Charley Harper to David Sibley, artists have been inspired by avian creatures since the earliest visual art was painted on cave walls. Come and see some of the incredible works of art from the Museum of American Bird Art (MABA) at Mass Audubon's collection, learn more about the museum, and create some bird art of your own to take home.