Notice that all of the San Fernando Valley is covered except Studio City and Toluca Lake. Other parts of the city that fall into the hot zone are on the Eastside and South LA | Map via Dept. of Water & Power This map shows summer average daily temperatures for the microclimates of the City of Los Angeles and was performed by the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at UCLA. The two temperature zones were......

Photo of the now destroyed Mann National courtesy of Los Angeles Times photographic archive, UCLA Library. Copyright Regents of the University of California, UCLA Library. Is Westwood making a comeback? The LA Times thinks so, in today's article on the burgeoning real estate development in UCLA's backyard. But isn't this a story we've heard a million times before? It goes something like this: Westwood used to be a great pedestrian area, then it fell......

Photo by Jean-Pierre Stoop, courtesy of UCLA Live Having broken into the international dance scene in 1987, Belgian choreographer/director/filmmaker Wim Vandekeybus is bringing a quasi-retrospective of his work to UCLA Live and Royce Hall for two performances of Spiegel on Friday and Saturday, May 2-3. Translating the title as "Mirror," the ninety minute intermissionless work includes excerpts from his groundbreaking What The Body Does Not Remember (1987) and six of his twenty subsequent creations.......

Albert Hofmann, the Swiss chemist who discovered LSD, died at his home near Basel, Switzerland on Tuesday. Hofmann synthesized lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD-25) in 1938 and five years later became the first person to experience a full-blown acid trip. On April 16, 1943, Hofmann inadvertently absorbed a little LSD-25 compound in his fingertips at the Sandoz laboratory (now Novartis) where he worked. In a note to the lab director he described what happened next:“I was......

The LA Times Festival of Books offered something for everyone this weekend. The many panels, author interviews and signing booths were exciting for bookish nerds like us. If you weren't into the bookish side of the book festival, however, there was plenty to whet your appetite. Literally. The food court was full of smoked meats and organic treats and live music could be enjoyed from many open plazas on the UCLA campus. There was even......

Cowboys invade suburbia this weekend at the City of Santa Clarita's annual Cowboy Festival. / Photo by puck90 via LAist's flickr pool. PERFORMANCE The Pacific Resident Theatre remembers the life and works of author William Saroyan (Human Comedy, The Time of Your Life) through music, readings, and guest speakers in honor of Saroyan’s Centennial (1908-2008). This is a one-night only show. 8 pm // Pacific Resident Theatre // 703 Venice Blvd., Venice // $12.......

Photo by Ric Francis/AP It was a year ago today that a student gunned down 32 people in Blacksburg at Virginia Tech. The incident was the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history. Today at UCLA, college students, alumni and family members of gun violence victims participated in a lie-in on the campus in memory of the victims killed at the tradegy. Nationally similar events were held to remember the tragedy. School campuses have......

Photo by kpe II via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr GRAFFITI German graffiti artists, known as Herakut, takes over the walls of Carmichael Gallery starting tonight. The artists will be there celebrating their first show stateside. Open bar. 8 p.m. // Carmichael Gallery // 1257 N. La Brea Ave, West Hollywood // (323) 969-0600 // Free DRIVE-IN Hedwig and the Angry Inch is shown tonight on a giant wall while you sit......

Even Current TV caught the UCLA Undie Run bug a couple years ago. If you missed this last quarters action, here's the photo gallery.......

The paparazzi's extreme Britney coverage is costly to taxpayers | Photo by pointnshoot via Flickr Citing that there are already laws on the books, the LAPD opposed a proposal to make a "personal safety zone" paparazzi law to the Police Commission today. 3rd District Councilman Dennis Zine introduced the idea after the LAPD used $25,000 to transport Britney Spears to UCLA Medical a mere 6 or so miles in order to keep her safe......

It all started in the media with Britney Spears. Staff at UCLA Medical snuck an unauthorized look at her medical records which led to the hospital looking into firing thirteen employees, suspending six others and disciplining six physicians. And UCLA admitted to the LA Times this wasn't the first time staff had spied on Spears' records leading to sackings. It happened in 2005 when she gave birth to her son Sean Preston at Santa Monica-UCLA......

This week's classical pick takes us to the Westside (believe it or not) with the Seattle Symphony making their debut at Royce Hall. The Seattle Symphony is headed by Gerard Schwarz, who has turned this once struggling group into a top notch orchestra that is recognized internationally with the help of frequent recordings and its support of American composers. Although they are often known for their performances of later 20th century repertoire, the symphony......

American Idol eat your heart out. The men's NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament is down to its final four teams, and for the first time all four #1 seeds are in the Final Four since the Tournament started seeding in 1979. This should prove to be great ratings for CBS and a great watching experience for all of us. UCLA Bruins vs Memphis Tigers. Tigers coach John Calipari completely changed his offensive philosophy this......

Returning to Westwood after a five year absense, Montreal postmodern dance company La La La Human Steps brings its newest explosion of clasical technique, high speed dancing and punk attitude to Royce Hall this weekend through UCLA Live. Choreographed by Artistic Director Edouard Lock, "Amjad" re-fashions the romantic ballets that inspired it through the voracious dancing of nine extraordinary movers, film and original music composed and played live on stage by Bang on a Can's......

Dodgers defeats Giants 5-0. A 5-0 win to usher in the 50th anniversary in Los Angeles. The Dodgers looked like World Series contenders against a Giant's team many expect to lose more than 100 games. Jeff Kent hit his 18th opening day RBI with a two-run homer in the first inning, the most among active players. Brad Penny pitched 6 2/3 innings of shut out ball in which he admits he was subpar while......

Photo by Try Hank via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr The "severely decomposed" body of an infant has been found in Santa Ana. An area resident saw a dog playing with something unusual, which turned out to be the baby, whose body has been taken to the Orange County coroner's office for an autopsy. Police may now be ruling yesterday's 101 freeway death a suicide, reports the Daily News. Initial reports intimated......

Via GOOD Magazine's blog, we find Andy Bower's video report for Slate.com on the "stupidest bike lane in America," which happens to be in the same neighborhood as one of the most respected schools in the nation -- UCLA. The 275 ft. class II bike lane runs on Gayley between Levering and Weyburn Avenues (interactive map below, lane marked in orange, try finding it!) If you've got a stupider bike lane, he welcomes you......

When you read something you like on LAist, we love it when you hit the "recommend" button, and we love it even more if you put your two cents' worth in the comments. Getting a dialog going with our readers and making sure we're giving you content you can use are top priorities for us. So here's this week's top posts, as endorsed by you via the recommend feature, or as indicated by the level......

At UCLA, spring break officially begins today after exams, but as tradition states, on the Wednesday of finals week, students must undress and run like there's no tomorrow (it's rumored that former President Bill Clinton will join in on the next Undie Run before he addresses graduates at the main commencement ceremony in June). As usual, here's some of the craziness that took place, beginning at the Strathmore tunnel.........

Rockets 104, Lakers 92 - Pau Gasol is out indefinitely with a sprained ankle, but losing your big man is no excuse if you ask Houston. The Rockets have won 22 in a row and 10 straight since Yao Ming went down. Los Angeles is now looking up at Houston, who owns the West's best record at 46-20 -- one game ahead of the Lakers. Kobe Bryant had 24 points, but most impressively held Tracy......

Besides crowning a champion for Pac-10 men's basketball, this weekend's Pacific Life Pac-10 Tournament also provided a unique opportunity to evaluate the talent on the baseline. In a surprising upset, UCLA has officially been crowned LAist's Pac-10 Cheerleader Champions for the 2007-2008 basketball season. Can we get an 8-clap? Or a phone number? While Oregon led in the hearts and (filthy) minds of most Pac-10 creepazoids observers this year, in person they just weren't......

I'm actually a little hesitant to tell you about Junot Díaz's reading, scheduled for Monday, March 17th at the Hammer Museum -- I mean, yeah, "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" was one of the best books of 2007, he's been nominated for a Los Angeles Times Book Prize for fiction, and he's a fantastic speaker and reader. But then half of Los Angeles will show up to hear the Dominican-born, Jersey-raised professor......

It's iPod night at Saints and Sinners -- if you dare. / Photo by Sundogg via LAist's featured photo pool. FILM Hank and Mike is billed as a dark comedy about two blue-collar Easter bunnies, who don’t have a lot going for them – except for their friendship. Cast and crew members will be on hand to discuss the film and answer questions after the sneak preview at UCLA. But best of all there’s......

There were two major controversies surrounding yesterday's Bruin win over Cal. 1. With 7.1 seconds left to go, Cal's Ryan Anderson turned the ball over under full-court pressure from UCLA's Russell Westbrook and Josh Shipp. No foul call. Cal fans claim that a foul should have been called because Westbrook apparently pushed Anderson to the floor, and on top of that he "hacked him in a downward motion" to get at the ball as ESPN's......

Bikes and graffiti are on tap for today. / Photo by Lush.i.ous via LAist's flickr pool. GRAFFITI ART Ghettogloss presents the graffiti art of Jersey Joe in Silverlake. The exhibit runs until March 20, but the opening reception is tonight from 7-midnight. 7 pm // Ghettogloss // 2380 Glendale Blvd #C, Los Angeles // Free. RIDE & TALK * RIDE-Arc monthly ride -- themed "Trolly" -- happens tonight. The group rides along for awhile......

The UCLA Bruins were gifted their third consecutive Pac-10 title by the referees in their game against the #7 Stanford Cardinal. With less than two seconds to go at the end of regulation Darren Collison drove to the basket and pulled up for a five-footer. Lawrence Hill went up and blocked the shot. Replays clearly showed that Hill got all ball and absolutely no body contact. So of course Hill got called for the......

#3 UCLA 77, #7 Stanford 67, OT - The Bruins clinched their third consecutive Pac-10 hoops crown with their victory over the Farm. It looked bleak for awhile, but they managed to come from behind. More from Jimmy later this morning. USC 93, Cal 89, OT - This game was tough for fans to watch. That's because it wasn't televised. And because USC blew a huge lead. It worked out OK in the end. We're......

A puppet show without Kermit: Concrete Folk Variations at The Manual Archives / Photo by Susan Simpson MEET THE PO-PO The public’s invited to meet the police and talk about safety issues at a neighborhood meeting between the Atwater Village Neighborhood Council, the Glassell Park Safety Committee and LAPD. Senior Lead Officer for Atwater Village Gina Chovan, gang detectives and City Attorney Donna Wong will be in attendance. 4 pm // Glassell Park Community......

Clippers 116, Kings 109, 2OT - Down by 17 points, it looked like Los Angeles was about to give Sacramento their first win this year against a Pacific rival. Anybody seen Sam Cassell. Two overtimes later, the Clips pulled off a wild victory and send the Kings to 0-9 in the division. LA led the entire second overtime. Al Thornton led the game with 27, Chris Kaman had 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Dan......

The Hackensaw Boys | Photo via their MySpace Our brain is going to explode with all the great choices tonight. From friggin' amazing jazz (see, we're not swearing) at UCLA to folk-punk sensibilities of The Hackensaw Boys at Tangier in Los Feliz (video after the jump), tonight is a bounty of gold. Also, Jim Bianco will be at Amoeba and it's the first night for Wednesday night March residencies. Howlin' Rain @ Spaceland Jim......