Exhibit Dispels Some Batty Myths

Bats are a mystery to most people, the objects of myth and superstition. A new exhibit, opening Saturday at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County/Burbank, attempts to dispel some of the misconceptions about these storied mammals.

“Masters of the Night: The True Story of Bats” uses special effects, interactive displays and lifelike settings--including a rain forest and bat cave--to give visitors an appreciation of the bats’ world.

Roosting habits, hibernation and other behaviors are depicted in a re-created bat cave, while a rain forest setting shows the creatures in the wild at dusk, and a visit to a bat nursery shows how mothers care for their young.

Bats are the most important natural enemies of night-flying--and often crop-destroying--insects. But nearly 40% of American bat species are threatened or endangered, according to the museum. The exhibit runs through Jan. 16. Call (818) 557-3562.

PHYSICS

* Professor Werner Israel of the University of Alberta will discuss “Black Holes: The Inside Story,” at the Caltech physics research conference on Thursday at 4 p.m. in 201 E. Bridge on campus. Call (818) 395-4652.

HEALTH/MEDICINE

* The UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute and Hospital will sponsor a community awareness program on the signs, symptoms and treatments of depression, along with depression screenings, on Thursday from 9:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the 300 UCLA Medical Plaza building. Reservations are required; call (310) 825-0481.

* St. John’s Hospital and Health Center in Santa Monica will host community forums on breast cancer as part of Breast Health Awareness Month on three consecutive Wednesdays in the seventh-floor auditorium. The first forum, focusing in part on familial factors in breast cancer, will be held Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Reservations are required; call (310) 829-8453.

SCIENCE FOR FAMILIES

* The Los Angeles Zoo will sponsor a family program, “Fly by Night,” exploring the world of bats on Saturday from 3 to 7 p.m. Reservations are required; telephone (213) 664-1100, Ext. 3.

* Children 5 and older will learn how the sun, stars and other natural elements can help in finding their way in “Navigate With Nature” workshops on Saturday and Sunday at 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. at the Kidspace Museum in Pasadena. Call (818) 449-9144.

* The Cabrillo Marine Aquarium will host “Morning on the Mud,” a workshop for families to explore the natural world of the Salinas de San Pedro salt marsh on Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon. Call (310) 548-7563.

SCIENCE POLICY

* Nobel prize-winning physicist Leon Lederman will discuss “An Ethical Model for Scientific Pursuit,” at Soka University’s human rights lecture series on Thursday at 7 p.m. at the university’s Calabasas campus. Call (818) 880-8630.

* “Genesis and Cosmogenesis: Scriptural and Scientific Paradigms,” will be discussed by Robert Russell, director of the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences at UC Berkeley, on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. at Occidental College’s Morrison Lounge. Call (213) 259-2621.

ENVIRONMENT

* Environmental activist Lou Gold will discuss the significance of Oregon’s Siskiyou National Forest in a lecture sponsored by the Pasadena chapter of the Sierra Club on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at the Eaton Canyon Nature Center. Call (818) 440-1955.

ASTRONOMY

* The Pomona College Department of Physics and Astronomy will present a fall sky lecture and viewing tonight at 8 in the Millikan Planetarium. Call (909) 621-8724.

* Caltech astrophysicist Kip Thorne will discuss wormholes, gravity waves and the Big Bang as the speaker at the Orange County Astronomers annual fall banquet on Sunday at 6 p.m. at the Orange County Mining Co. restaurant in Santa Ana. Call (818) 566-9677.