GREAT VISUALS: Sea squirts, crabs and squishy sponges share the shoreline with musicians, artisans and science exhibits for this once-a-year celebration of the sea and glimpse behind the scenes of San Francisco Bay’s only marine research facility

WHAT:
"Discovery Day by the Bay," the annual open house of San Francisco State University’s Romberg Tiburon Center for Environmental Studies

The Tiburon Volunteer Fire Department will be stoking the BBQ flames and tunes by the San Francisco State University Jazz Band will fill the air while children and adults take part in hands-on exhibits and games about oceanographic science, marine life and coastal environments.

WHO:
An estimated 500-800 children and families from throughout the Bay area stop by to get a FREE behind-the-scenes look at this active research and preservation outpost. Scientists and science students from San Francisco State University are on hand to answer questions and present projects that highlight the Center's contributions to understanding and caring for the San Francisco Bay environment and beyond. Also, interactive booths and exhibits by: Aquarium of the Bay, Bay Model Association, California Academy of Sciences, Center for Ecosystem Survival, Cetacean Society, Bay Area Discovery Museum, Headlands Institute, Marine Mammal Center, Point Reyes Bird Observatory and the U.S. Geological Survey.

WHEN:
11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday Oct. 5, 2003