The Dwell Guide to Events in Your City

Wednesday, March 12

Professor Masami Kobayashi discusses land use and culture in Nihonbashi and Shimokitazawa, two neighborhoods outside Tokyo. 12-1 p.m.; 315A Wurster Hall; (510) 642-4942; www.arch.ced.berkeley.edu

The Berkeley Art Center opens the Held Rectangles Series, a photo-narrative by John C. Fernie and Lawrence Weiner from 1970. Through June 27. 130 California Hall, 2626 Bancroft Way; (510) 642-0808; www.bampfa.berkeley.edu

Thursday, March 13

The latest in Yerba Buena Center for the Arts “Dancing Downtown” series is Life as a House, whose highly architectural choreography is accompanied by the San Francisco Girls Chorus. Through March 30. 7 p.m.; Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 701 Mission St.; (415) 863-6606; www.odcdance.org

This year’s International Asian American Film Festival features a tribute to the late Taiwanese director, Edward Yang; a presentation by Wayne Wang on his newest films, The Princess of Nebraska and A Thousand Years of Good Prayers; and a screening of Hou Hsiao-hsien’s reinterpretation of The Red Balloon starring Bollywood star Shahrukh Khan. Through March 23. http://festival.asianamericanmedia.org

Robert Gottlieb discusses his latest book Reinventing Los Angeles: Nature and Community in the Global City, in which he traces LA's transformation into the cultural center we know today. 2-5 p.m.; 106 Wurster Hall; (510) 642-4942; www.arch.ced.berkeley.edu

Architect Leo Marmol discusses the process of designing green, modern prefabricated homes, his firm’s specialty. 6 p.m.; Design Within Reach Palo Alto, 447 University Ave.; (650) 328-2700; www.dwr.com/studios/paloalto

Friday, March 14

No matter how hard you’ve tried to block out high school math, you probably remember pi – the Euclidian constant that begins with 3.14 and unfolds ad infinitum. Celebrate this numerical miracle at the Exploratorium’s Pi day celebration, replete with pizza and apple pie. Exploratorium, 3601 Lyon St.; (415) 561-0360; www.exploratorium.edu/pr/documents/08-320th.html

Among Architect Steven Holl's many well-recognized projects are The Kiasma Contemporary Art Museum in Helsinki and Simmons Hall at M.I.T.  Tonight, he gives a talk titled Urbanism: Working with Doubt. 7-8:30 p.m.; 112 Wurster Hall; (510) 642-4942; www.arch.ced.berkeley.edu

Satuday, March 15:

Last Chance: If you like flowers, the de Young museum is the next best thing to a romp in the fields. Through today, more than 150 flower arrangements fill the galleries, each relating to the art on display. So grab a box of Claritin and go. de Young Museum, 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Dr.; (415) 750-3600; www.famsf.org

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