Experimental film

A multimedia piece, "Spark of Being," will show Feb. 4 at 7:30 p.m., Willard Straight Theatre. The piece was created by experimental filmmaker Bill Morrison in collaboration with two-time Grammy-nominated jazz musician Dave Douglas. The score is performed live by Douglas' electric band, Keystone. Information and tickets, Ithaca Guitar Works and Cornell Cinema Office, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

Museum weekend

Art-Full Family Day, Feb. 5, 10 a.m.-noon at the Johnson Museum, features Ithaca educator Lisa Tsetse as she leads families through a morning of art, dance and movement. First-come, first-served. Free for Johnson Museum members/$5 per family for nonmembers.

The first event in a three-part series on art and food will be held Feb. 6, 3-4 p.m. Educator Hannah Ryan will explore objects in the museum's collection related to first courses, appetizers and drinks. Related foods will be served. Free and open to the public.

Sketching in the greenhouse

Beginning Feb. 5, 1-5:30 p.m. at the Cornell Plantations Plant Production Facility, Forest Home Drive, and continuing for four more Saturdays (Feb. 12, 19, 26 and March 12), local artist Camille Doucet will hold a drawing class in Cornell's greenhouses. Register for all five sessions at http://www.cornellplantations.org/event/sketching or call (607) 254-7430 or e-mail km274@cornell.edu to register for individual sessions. $210 ($175 members/students) for all 5 sessions; individual sessions are $45 each ($40 members/students).

Darwin, dogs and birds

The sixth annual Ithaca Darwin Days will be held Feb. 6-13, focused on the theme of Darwin and domestication. The celebration begins with a wine tasting and talk at the Museum of the Earth, "Ancient Wines to Modern Vines: the Story of Grape Domestication," by Cornell adjunct assistant professor Christopher Owens, Feb. 6, 4-6 p.m. Panel discussions and lectures on crops, pests and pollinators; Darwin, birds and perceptions about evolution; crop and barnyard animal domestication; and fossil horses will occur throughout the week on the Cornell campus, followed by the Darwin birthday reception and talk on the discussion on the domestication of dogs by Howard Evans, professor emeritus of anatomy, Vet College, Feb. 11, 6-8 p.m., Museum of the Earth.

Ornithology series begins

Mike Webster, director of Cornell's Macaulay Library, Laboratory of Ornithology, will kick off the annual Monday Night Seminar series with "Darwin, Birds and Public Misperceptions About Evolution," Feb. 7 at 7:30 p.m., Lab of Ornithology. Free and open to the public. For information Monday Night Seminars: http://www.birds.cornell.edu/netcommunity/page.aspx?pid=1579.

Harlem Globetrotters

The Harlem Globetrotters will play at Newman Arena, Bartels Hall, Feb. 8 at 7 p.m. The Department of Athletics and Physical Education has offered Cornell employees a group discount through the Division of Human Resources. General admission bleacher seating is $18 (normally $23); children age 2 years and younger seated on a lap do not need tickets. Contact Cheryl McGraw, crm54@cornell.edu or 255-7565 by Feb. 4.

Showcasing the baroque organ

David Yearsley, university organist and professor of music, will showcase the sounds of the new baroque organ in Anabel Taylor Chapel, Feb. 9 at 12:30 p.m. He will perform Bach's Trio Sonatas I, the first of three concerts on the new organ to be performed for the Midday Music for Organ series this spring.

Sweet benefit

The second annual Sweet Tooth Soirée, a benefit for the Ithaca Youth Council, will be held Feb. 9, 7-9 p.m., Weill Hall. This "black-tie optional" event, open to the public, will highlight decadent desserts by local chefs alongside a backdrop of hors d'oeuvres, live entertainment and a silent auction.

The Ithaca Youth Council is a collaborative effort between the Ithaca Youth Bureau, the Greater Ithaca Activities Center and the Southside Community Center. Funds will be used to develop future leaders. Tickets: $20. http://www.ithacayouthcouncil.org/IYC/Ticket_Information.html.

Religion and democracy

Named one of the 100 top global thinkers of 2010 by Foreign Policy magazine, Ian Buruma, professor at Bard College, will hold a booksigning of his work, "Taming the Gods: Religion and Democracy on Three Continents," Feb. 10 at 2:30 p.m. at the Cornell Store. The signing will be followed by a lecture, "Enemies of Democracy," at 4:30 p.m., Kaufmann Auditorium in Goldwin Smith Hall. Buruma is a regular contributor to such publications as The New York Times Magazine, The New Republic and The New Yorker. In 2008 he was awarded the Erasmus Prize, given to those who make important contributions to culture, society or social science in Europe.

Gender pay gap

Has discrimination against women declined? Does it still exist? Francine Blau, the Frances Perkins Professor of Industrial and Labor Relations and Labor Economics, will address these questions in her talk, "The Gender Gap: Going, Going … But Not Gone," Feb. 10 at 10 a.m., Tompkins County Public Library. Sponsored by the Cornell Campus Club, American Association of University Women and the Tompkins County Public Library.

Africa and China

World Bank economist Xiao Ye, Chief Economist's Office for the Africa Region, will speak about China's engagement in Africa, Feb. 10 at 2:30 p.m., G08 Uris Hall. One of the main contributors to "Africa's Silk Road: China and India's New Economic Frontier," published by the World Bank in 2007, Ye recently presented a paper on the Africa-China trade and investment relationship at the annual African Economic Conference at Tunis. Information: http://www.einaudi.cornell.edu/africa/.

Feeding your pet

Former Cornell Provost Malden Nesheim and Marion Nestle will discuss "Feed Your Pet Right -- The Authoritative Guide to Feeding Your Dog and Cat," Feb. 10 at 4 p.m., 160 Mann Library. Information: http://www.mannlib.cornell.edu/events-exhibits.

Zora Neale Hurston documentary

A number of Cornell programs have joined with local social services to present the film documentary, "Zora Neale Hurston: Jump at the Sun," and a question-and-answer session with the documentary's producer, Kristy Andersen '06, Feb. 10 in two venues: downtown at 4 p.m. at the Greater Ithaca Activities Center (GIAC), 301 W. Court St., and at 7:30 p.m. at Cornell's Robert Purcell Community Center Auditorium. The Cornell presentation will also include an introduction and facilitation by professors Carole Boyce Davies and Ken McClane. Information: http://www.studio620.org/620/e_jutsaboznh.php. Free and open to the public.

'The Author's Voice'

For three consecutive evenings, Richard Greenberg's play, "The Author's Voice," will be performed by students and directed by Michael Kaplan, resident professional teaching associate, Department of Theatre, Film and Dance, at the Black Box Theatre, Schwartz Center for Performing Arts.

The play recounts the story of a handsome, but vacuous, author who relies on a captive misshapen man to do his work, and a powerful woman from the publishing world who sets them at odds.

Acting workshop performances are works in progress, focused entirely on the actors' craft. Performances are Feb. 11 at 4:30 p.m., Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. and Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. Free and open to the public.

Talk on early African-American vet students

In a seminar to recognize Black History Month, Jennifer Morrissey, D.V.M. '13, will present the history of early Cornell's African-American veterinary students, Feb. 10 at 12:30 p.m., Lecture Hall III in the Veterinary Education Center. Her research on seven students who graduated between 1910 and 1920 is part of the Veterinary Legacy Project, showing that Cornell was a leading educator of African-American veterinarians prior to the establishment of Tuskegee University's D.V.M. program in 1945. Free and open to the public. Information: e-mail Donald F. Smith, dfs6@cornell.edu, or visit online.