The Hearst Memorial Mining building (HMM) on the UC Berkeley campus is a memorial to George Hearst, former California miner, Senator, and husband of Phoebe Apperson Hearst In 1899 Berkeley was still a young university when Phoebe Apperson Hearst, George’s widow and a new regent, sponsored a global competition for an architectural master plan for...Read More

Last week I was fortunate enough to visit Facebook headquarters in Menlo Park. This was not my first time at Facebook. I’ve circled the Facebook campus many times, and I’ve taken my share of pictures at their “Like” sign. This time I was permitted to go inside. I was working for a group from Canada...Read More

Brisbane is a small town 9 miles south of San Francisco, nestled in the Guadalupe Valley on San Bruno Mountain. Although it is located on Highway 101, Brisbane is easy to miss because it is separated from 101 by a man-made lagoon. Shellmounds on San Bruno Mountain indicate that this area was once inhabited by...Read More

Yesterday I hiked the 1 ½ mile San Andreas Earthquake Trail in the Los Trancos Open Space Preserve. To reach the Preserve from Highway 280, you must drive 7 miles up a long and winding road, a drive of about 30 minutes. The Preserve is located on Montebello Ridge 2,000 feet above Palo Alto in...Read More

Last week I visited Moffett Field and its Museum. Located in Mountain View beside the Bay, the airfield has served as a military presence in Silicon Valley since the 1930’s. Moffett Field began as a Naval Air Station in 1931, became an army base (1935-42), the headquarters for early space research (NACA in 1939 and...Read More