I was a freshman in 1984-85, the year of pretty much nonstop anti-apartheid protests. Thousands and thousands of students in Sproul or oddly, Kroeber Plaza, what felt like every freaking day for a couple of months. It was a challenge to find ways onto campus to get to your classes some days. They were peaceful, and they were successful. UC divested from South African investments that year. We also lost Coke in the campus outlets. :( (but it was 1985 so there was plenty of the other kind of coke to be found all over campus)
Arrived at Cal in the early 70s, shortly after the peak of the 60s protests. Had a roommate who was Marine ROTC. We saw a crowd of maybe 100 people gathered around a speaker in Sproul Plaza who wanted to get ROTC off campus. Most of the crowd opposed him though.
I am kind of impressed that given some of the other chaotic stuff happening with Gaza protests on other campuses, Berkeley has remained reasonably calm! (Though I might be speaking too soon on that.)
There were tree sitters when I was a student at Cal. The Big Game in my senior year was supposed to be the last game ever at the then current Memorial Stadium, but we played 4 more seasons there.
See: People's Park, 1969. Not the earliest riot with Alameda County Sheriff's Dept. killing James Rector, but the subsequent occupation by the National Guard. My step- father took me and his son there to see what it looked like to be in an occupied city after Governor Ronnie Ray-gun ordered the California National Guard into Berkeley to "protect" People's Park. I heard the order to disperse announced through bullhorns.
Strangely, years later I came to understand that my future father-in-law was also there as an officer in the California National Guard at the same time.
Freshman year (97), there were some protestors who had used ropes and a platform like what window washers use to camp out on the side of the Campanile. I didn’t pay it much attn until we did our Bowles Hall naked run through Stern. We were pretty pumped up and kept running through campus. Without really thinking of where we were going we went to the Campanile. All of a sudden a bunch of floodlights went on and lit up our dumbass naked bodies. The cops were camped out there bc of the protestors. On a bullhorn the cops, in a weary and annoyed voice, said “Turn around, go home.” We complied, was pretty funny
Freshman year spring semester in 89 there were 2 riots going down telegraph. I lived at Unit 3 so we went down and were in the crowd. A car (police?) was set on fire at Dwight and Telegraph. We walked down Telegraph towards Dwight and every so often, we'd see people in front of us turn towards us and run so we turned and ran for maybe 10 seconds, then turned back around and walked towards Dwight. There was lots of looting and the shoe store on Telegraph got cleared out. The next morning, there were empty shoe boxes all around Unit 3.
For the life of me, I don't remember what was being protested. People's Park maybe?
It strikes me that in the past the bases for protest were pretty simple and clear cut. It’s really weird to me that now the protests are about an intractable and unreasonable conflict in the Middle East that has seemingly been going on forever in one iteration or the other. Meanwhile there is a cartoonishly evil dictator in Russia invading neighbors and posing the greatest threat to global security in 50 years and no one cares! Lol. I guess social media kind of flattens things and makes them seem simpler?
There's one concrete reason to protest the Gaza war specifically, as opposed to other global conflicts: to end American funding of it. We aren't funding Putin.
Unfortunately, many of the people who speak at these protests seem to lose that thread and talk about a whole bunch of other stuff.
True, though we are also funding Ukraine. Anyway, it’s just weird to me because the Israel-Hamas is such a cluster. Yes, the war has gone on way too long, killed too many, and should end obviously. But also 10/7 was terrible too, and why can’t Hamas just return the hostages as part of a ceasefire? It’s such a complicated shit storm, doesn’t seem to lend itself well to the simple narratives of protest movements. Also Western liberals aligning with Islamic extremism fighters is a little weird too given they have basically no shared values.
Sure, we are funding Ukraine to help them defend AGAINST Putin. I guess you could argue something similar for Israel in the wake of Oct 7, but at this point the war seems well beyond simple defense (or a protestor could make an argument for that anyway).
Maybe it was more a protest and minor riot. I think all the people with the burning car and the riots were not students. I would guess the majority of the people on Telegraph were students checking out the protest/riots.
My girlfriend work at a clothing boutique on Telegraph. I remember having to constantly go over to her work, help shutter up the place, and escort her back due to the dozen or so riots that happened during my time there. The worst one was the Rodney King riots. I lived on Durant right across from Top Dog. Mobs have no brain and I remember watching as a mob went from being a loud protest to an anti-white/Asian mob in seconds - with Johnson's Market next to the Asian Ghetto getting focused on due to the animosity between the local homeless and the Korean-American owners. Luckily I had my parent's dog with me and her barking/snapping allowed me to retreat into my apartment. From my third floor window, I could watch the crowds go surging past in packs. Lots of bottles thrown.
i remember distinctly when i was sophomore in HS, the anti-apartheid protests were happening at Berkeley. given that we only lived 20 min away there was much talk of skipping school and joining the protests.
i didnt have the courage as a 10th grader to skip school and join the protests, or at least go see the situation for myself. many upperclassmen did and new quite a few of them since i was taking a class that had all the grades 10-12 mixed together for the first time. in fact our teacher was somewhat encouraging of it ...
my experience while i was at Cal was relatively tame (88-92). there was some underlying pent up tension it seemed because some students came for the protest experience but nothing real happened. some random rallies in Sproul Plaza for less weighty matters.
I am having minor surgery next Tuesday. You should feel free to seed the DBD with topics on that Tuesday - and any day for that matter. And the week after that, feel free to seed topics because I'll be busy moving my kid out of the dorms and revisiting Cape Cod - essentially repeating what I said was a bad idea of paying to work in a vacation rental.
i rather like the idea of "paying to work in a vacation rental" even though it is not all that cost effective. i find that it allows me to travel a lot more than when you had to take vacation days off every time you want to go somewhere.
this summer, we are planning to work remotely, a week in SF and a week in Seattle. working during the days and able to have time to see friends and family in the evenings and weekends. plus nice drinks and dinners out most nights makes for a nice change of pace from home.
that leaves us time to do a 10-day vacation to Italy as well and take advantage of no-kids-in-the-house for 7 wks while they are away at camp.
keep an eye out for DBD Happy Hour one of these days in Jul ...
I've got trips to booked to multiple places this year for far more days than I have vacation - so I know that I'll have to work on some of those days. I'll have to figure out which days/places that I'll be fully unplugging.
BERKELEY – Three members of the California beach volleyball team earned a handful of postseason awards Wednesday ahead of the NCAA Championship.
Sierra Caffo was named to the All-Pac-12 first team, Alexandria Young-Gomez was named to the second team, and Emma Donley was named to the second team and the all-freshman team. Caffo and Young-Gomez were also named AVCA Second Team All-Americans.
BERKELEY – The 10th-seeded and 10th-ranked California women's tennis team hosts No. 17 Auburn, No. 42 BYU and Big Sky champion Sacramento State in an NCAA first- and second-round regional this week at the Hellman Tennis Complex, where the Bears have a 7-2 record in 2024. In Friday's first round, BYU and Auburn are set to play at 11 a.m. PT while Cal faces Sacramento State at 2 p.m. Friday's winners play each other at noon in Saturday's second round for the right to advance to the NCAA Super Regional round.
BERKELEY – Tatum Anzaldo drove in a pair of runs and recorded two hits as the No. 19 California softball team beat Nevada, 5-1, on Wednesday afternoon at Levine-Fricke Field to close out its midweek slate unbeaten.
BERKELEY – The California baseball team wraps up its season-long seven-game road trip this weekend when it travels to Southern California for a three-game series against USC. All three games will be played at Great Park in Irvine, and will be live streamed.
Cal (26-16, 12-12 Pac-12) wrapped up an impressive April with an overall record of 11-6, including a 7-5 mark in conference play. The Golden Bears are 2-2 in their current road trip after defeating Stanford 7-4 in the series finale last Sunday on the Farm.
BERKELEY – The seventh-seeded California beach volleyball team is set to make its third straight NCAA Championship appearance this weekend in Gulf Shores, Alabama, where it will face No. 10 Long Beach State in a first-round rematch from last year on Friday at noon PT.
BERKELEY – California women's gymnast Mya Lauzon and the Golden Bears' coaching were honored at the national level Wednesday following a 2024 season that saw them finish as NCAA runner-up in April.
BERKELEY – California will make its second consecutive NCAA Men's Golf Regional appearance and 25th in program history as it earned an at-large bid to the 2024 Rancho Santa Fe Regional on Wednesday. The 22nd-ranked Golden Bears will be the fourth seed in the 14-team, 54-hole regional, hosted by the University of San Diego at The Farms Golf Club on May 13-15.
Cal Athletics is fortunate to have amazing supporters who consistently embody the spirit of community, leadership, and excellence that defines the University of California, Berkeley. One of those individuals is C. Bryan Cameron, who established the Cameron Institute in 2019, has once again demonstrated his support with a matching gift challenge. His $3M matching endowment gift to the Cameron Institute will directly support the incredible staff that impacts the holistic experience for our student-athletes and will build upon the legacy he has helped create.
Cowboys decline Trey Lance's fifth year option. The 49ers burn 3 first round picks and $13m to see him throw 102 passes in 8 games, the Cowboys burn $2m and some cap space. Trey Lance gets to hold a clipboard this year and then hit free agency and a quick slide toward being a trivia answer. Sad.
The San Francisco Giants lost once again to the Boston Red Sox today, 6-2.
First of all, I’d like to apologize for incorrectly stating that this was a short series in my last two posts. Unfortunately I was mis-remembering the schedule. And also unfortunately, the Giants will be doing this again tomorrow.
Three road series. Three series wins. The Dodgers opened up a big early lead and, behind yet another strong start from Yoshinobu Yamamoto, blanked the Diamondbacks 8-0 on Wednesday night at Chase Field.
The trajectory of the game was such that the Dodgers didn’t even need to get any high-leverage arms warming up, thus securing a very fresh bullpen for the upcoming homestand.
Abraham Toro and Tyler Nevin both went deep to help the A’s to their fourth straight victory in front of another sparse crowd of 4,679 at the Coliseum.
The Oakland Athletics wrapped up a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates this afternoon at the Oakland Coliseum. The teams started the day with identical records; 14-17. Manager Mark Kotsay sent winless 34-year-old righty Ross Stripling to the mound for this matchup against Quinn Priester for the Bucs.
Haven't watched this movie (I heard it's not so great), but I've liked Sweeney on Euphoria and White Lotus. Not saying she's the greatest actress ever, but she's not bad on those shows.
People’s Park.
Tear gas wafted all the way to north side.
OUR CRUMBLING DEMOCRACY
Wyoming purges over a quarter of its registered voters
https://wyofile.com/wyoming-voids-28-of-its-voter-registrations-in-mandatory-purge/
Trump" Three year ago, we were a great nation"
https://twitter.com/Acyn/status/1785807570218729893
Less redacting document gives more indication of Trump and his stooge's callousness in stealing, hiding, and keeping classified documents.
https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/prosecutors-release-new-batch-of-files-in-trump-mar-a-lago-case-that-details-the-long-journey-of-one-belatedly-discovered-box-containing-more-personal-materials/
Protests at Berkeley
I was a freshman in 1984-85, the year of pretty much nonstop anti-apartheid protests. Thousands and thousands of students in Sproul or oddly, Kroeber Plaza, what felt like every freaking day for a couple of months. It was a challenge to find ways onto campus to get to your classes some days. They were peaceful, and they were successful. UC divested from South African investments that year. We also lost Coke in the campus outlets. :( (but it was 1985 so there was plenty of the other kind of coke to be found all over campus)
Arrived at Cal in the early 70s, shortly after the peak of the 60s protests. Had a roommate who was Marine ROTC. We saw a crowd of maybe 100 people gathered around a speaker in Sproul Plaza who wanted to get ROTC off campus. Most of the crowd opposed him though.
I am kind of impressed that given some of the other chaotic stuff happening with Gaza protests on other campuses, Berkeley has remained reasonably calm! (Though I might be speaking too soon on that.)
There were tree sitters when I was a student at Cal. The Big Game in my senior year was supposed to be the last game ever at the then current Memorial Stadium, but we played 4 more seasons there.
See: People's Park, 1969. Not the earliest riot with Alameda County Sheriff's Dept. killing James Rector, but the subsequent occupation by the National Guard. My step- father took me and his son there to see what it looked like to be in an occupied city after Governor Ronnie Ray-gun ordered the California National Guard into Berkeley to "protect" People's Park. I heard the order to disperse announced through bullhorns.
Strangely, years later I came to understand that my future father-in-law was also there as an officer in the California National Guard at the same time.
Freshman year (97), there were some protestors who had used ropes and a platform like what window washers use to camp out on the side of the Campanile. I didn’t pay it much attn until we did our Bowles Hall naked run through Stern. We were pretty pumped up and kept running through campus. Without really thinking of where we were going we went to the Campanile. All of a sudden a bunch of floodlights went on and lit up our dumbass naked bodies. The cops were camped out there bc of the protestors. On a bullhorn the cops, in a weary and annoyed voice, said “Turn around, go home.” We complied, was pretty funny
Freshman year spring semester in 89 there were 2 riots going down telegraph. I lived at Unit 3 so we went down and were in the crowd. A car (police?) was set on fire at Dwight and Telegraph. We walked down Telegraph towards Dwight and every so often, we'd see people in front of us turn towards us and run so we turned and ran for maybe 10 seconds, then turned back around and walked towards Dwight. There was lots of looting and the shoe store on Telegraph got cleared out. The next morning, there were empty shoe boxes all around Unit 3.
For the life of me, I don't remember what was being protested. People's Park maybe?
there was some People's Park protests as i recall. they were threatening to change something at the time
Always something re People’s Park!
It strikes me that in the past the bases for protest were pretty simple and clear cut. It’s really weird to me that now the protests are about an intractable and unreasonable conflict in the Middle East that has seemingly been going on forever in one iteration or the other. Meanwhile there is a cartoonishly evil dictator in Russia invading neighbors and posing the greatest threat to global security in 50 years and no one cares! Lol. I guess social media kind of flattens things and makes them seem simpler?
There's one concrete reason to protest the Gaza war specifically, as opposed to other global conflicts: to end American funding of it. We aren't funding Putin.
Unfortunately, many of the people who speak at these protests seem to lose that thread and talk about a whole bunch of other stuff.
True, though we are also funding Ukraine. Anyway, it’s just weird to me because the Israel-Hamas is such a cluster. Yes, the war has gone on way too long, killed too many, and should end obviously. But also 10/7 was terrible too, and why can’t Hamas just return the hostages as part of a ceasefire? It’s such a complicated shit storm, doesn’t seem to lend itself well to the simple narratives of protest movements. Also Western liberals aligning with Islamic extremism fighters is a little weird too given they have basically no shared values.
Sure, we are funding Ukraine to help them defend AGAINST Putin. I guess you could argue something similar for Israel in the wake of Oct 7, but at this point the war seems well beyond simple defense (or a protestor could make an argument for that anyway).
Maybe it was more a protest and minor riot. I think all the people with the burning car and the riots were not students. I would guess the majority of the people on Telegraph were students checking out the protest/riots.
My girlfriend work at a clothing boutique on Telegraph. I remember having to constantly go over to her work, help shutter up the place, and escort her back due to the dozen or so riots that happened during my time there. The worst one was the Rodney King riots. I lived on Durant right across from Top Dog. Mobs have no brain and I remember watching as a mob went from being a loud protest to an anti-white/Asian mob in seconds - with Johnson's Market next to the Asian Ghetto getting focused on due to the animosity between the local homeless and the Korean-American owners. Luckily I had my parent's dog with me and her barking/snapping allowed me to retreat into my apartment. From my third floor window, I could watch the crowds go surging past in packs. Lots of bottles thrown.
that was our senior year and somehow i have no recollection of this. i remember watching a lot of coverage of the LA riots though
i remember distinctly when i was sophomore in HS, the anti-apartheid protests were happening at Berkeley. given that we only lived 20 min away there was much talk of skipping school and joining the protests.
i didnt have the courage as a 10th grader to skip school and join the protests, or at least go see the situation for myself. many upperclassmen did and new quite a few of them since i was taking a class that had all the grades 10-12 mixed together for the first time. in fact our teacher was somewhat encouraging of it ...
my experience while i was at Cal was relatively tame (88-92). there was some underlying pent up tension it seemed because some students came for the protest experience but nothing real happened. some random rallies in Sproul Plaza for less weighty matters.
DBD LOGISTICS
I am having minor surgery next Tuesday. You should feel free to seed the DBD with topics on that Tuesday - and any day for that matter. And the week after that, feel free to seed topics because I'll be busy moving my kid out of the dorms and revisiting Cape Cod - essentially repeating what I said was a bad idea of paying to work in a vacation rental.
i rather like the idea of "paying to work in a vacation rental" even though it is not all that cost effective. i find that it allows me to travel a lot more than when you had to take vacation days off every time you want to go somewhere.
this summer, we are planning to work remotely, a week in SF and a week in Seattle. working during the days and able to have time to see friends and family in the evenings and weekends. plus nice drinks and dinners out most nights makes for a nice change of pace from home.
that leaves us time to do a 10-day vacation to Italy as well and take advantage of no-kids-in-the-house for 7 wks while they are away at camp.
keep an eye out for DBD Happy Hour one of these days in Jul ...
I've got trips to booked to multiple places this year for far more days than I have vacation - so I know that I'll have to work on some of those days. I'll have to figure out which days/places that I'll be fully unplugging.
CAL
proud parenting moment. younger child is wearing their Top Dog shirt to school today
junior prom later tonight. not sure why it is on a Thu night.
How many kids call in sick tomorrow...
2024 Cal Spring Game. Watch it now before it gets a copyright strike against it and taken down
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vvG7mQvvOI
[BVB] Trio Of Bears Earn Postseason Awards
https://calbears.com/news/2024/5/1/beach-volleyball-trio-of-bears-earn-postseason-awards.aspx
BERKELEY – Three members of the California beach volleyball team earned a handful of postseason awards Wednesday ahead of the NCAA Championship.
Sierra Caffo was named to the All-Pac-12 first team, Alexandria Young-Gomez was named to the second team, and Emma Donley was named to the second team and the all-freshman team. Caffo and Young-Gomez were also named AVCA Second Team All-Americans.
[WTEN] No. 10 Cal Hosts Hornets In NCAA First Round
https://calbears.com/news/2024/5/1/womens-tennis-no-10-cal-hosts-hornets-in-ncaa-first-round.aspx
BERKELEY – The 10th-seeded and 10th-ranked California women's tennis team hosts No. 17 Auburn, No. 42 BYU and Big Sky champion Sacramento State in an NCAA first- and second-round regional this week at the Hellman Tennis Complex, where the Bears have a 7-2 record in 2024. In Friday's first round, BYU and Auburn are set to play at 11 a.m. PT while Cal faces Sacramento State at 2 p.m. Friday's winners play each other at noon in Saturday's second round for the right to advance to the NCAA Super Regional round.
[SB] No. 19 Bears Take Down Wolf Pack
https://calbears.com/news/2024/5/1/softball-no-19-bears-take-down-wolf-pack.aspx
BERKELEY – Tatum Anzaldo drove in a pair of runs and recorded two hits as the No. 19 California softball team beat Nevada, 5-1, on Wednesday afternoon at Levine-Fricke Field to close out its midweek slate unbeaten.
[BASE] Bears Wrap Up Road Trip At USC
https://calbears.com/news/2024/5/1/baseball-bears-wrap-up-road-trip-at-usc.aspx
BERKELEY – The California baseball team wraps up its season-long seven-game road trip this weekend when it travels to Southern California for a three-game series against USC. All three games will be played at Great Park in Irvine, and will be live streamed.
Cal (26-16, 12-12 Pac-12) wrapped up an impressive April with an overall record of 11-6, including a 7-5 mark in conference play. The Golden Bears are 2-2 in their current road trip after defeating Stanford 7-4 in the series finale last Sunday on the Farm.
[BVB] No. 7 Cal Set For NCAA Championships
https://calbears.com/news/2024/5/1/beach-volleyball-no-7-cal-set-for-ncaa-championships.aspx
BERKELEY – The seventh-seeded California beach volleyball team is set to make its third straight NCAA Championship appearance this weekend in Gulf Shores, Alabama, where it will face No. 10 Long Beach State in a first-round rematch from last year on Friday at noon PT.
[WGYM] Cal Earns Pair Of National Recognitions
https://calbears.com/news/2024/5/1/womens-gymnastics-cal-earns-pair-of-national-recognitions.aspx
BERKELEY – California women's gymnast Mya Lauzon and the Golden Bears' coaching were honored at the national level Wednesday following a 2024 season that saw them finish as NCAA runner-up in April.
[MGOLF] Bears Earn NCAA Regional At-Large Bid
https://calbears.com/news/2024/5/1/mens-golf-bears-earn-ncaa-regional-at-large-bid.aspx
BERKELEY – California will make its second consecutive NCAA Men's Golf Regional appearance and 25th in program history as it earned an at-large bid to the 2024 Rancho Santa Fe Regional on Wednesday. The 22nd-ranked Golden Bears will be the fourth seed in the 14-team, 54-hole regional, hosted by the University of San Diego at The Farms Golf Club on May 13-15.
[CAF] Cameron Institute Announces $3M Matching Endowment Gift Challenge
https://calbears.com/news/2024/5/1/cameron-institute-announces-3m-matching-endowment-gift-challenge.aspx
Cal Athletics is fortunate to have amazing supporters who consistently embody the spirit of community, leadership, and excellence that defines the University of California, Berkeley. One of those individuals is C. Bryan Cameron, who established the Cameron Institute in 2019, has once again demonstrated his support with a matching gift challenge. His $3M matching endowment gift to the Cameron Institute will directly support the incredible staff that impacts the holistic experience for our student-athletes and will build upon the legacy he has helped create.
PRO
Cowboys decline Trey Lance's fifth year option. The 49ers burn 3 first round picks and $13m to see him throw 102 passes in 8 games, the Cowboys burn $2m and some cap space. Trey Lance gets to hold a clipboard this year and then hit free agency and a quick slide toward being a trivia answer. Sad.
Giants lose to Red Sox again, 6-2
https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2024/5/1/24146886/mlb-2024-san-francisco-giants-boston-red-sox-final-score-recap
The San Francisco Giants lost once again to the Boston Red Sox today, 6-2.
First of all, I’d like to apologize for incorrectly stating that this was a short series in my last two posts. Unfortunately I was mis-remembering the schedule. And also unfortunately, the Giants will be doing this again tomorrow.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Dodgers shut out D-backs to cap stellar road trip
https://www.truebluela.com/2024/5/1/24146941/dodgers-diamondbacks-yoshinobu-yamamoto
Three road series. Three series wins. The Dodgers opened up a big early lead and, behind yet another strong start from Yoshinobu Yamamoto, blanked the Diamondbacks 8-0 on Wednesday night at Chase Field.
The trajectory of the game was such that the Dodgers didn’t even need to get any high-leverage arms warming up, thus securing a very fresh bullpen for the upcoming homestand.
A's win 4 straight .. hardly anyone to witness it. there were probably more A's fans at Yankee Stadium last week when they were in town
https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap/_/gameId/401568935
Abraham Toro and Tyler Nevin both went deep to help the A’s to their fourth straight victory in front of another sparse crowd of 4,679 at the Coliseum.
Athletics shut out Pirates 4-0 in Oakland
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2024/5/1/24146761/athletics-pirates-sweep-stripling-oakland
The Oakland Athletics wrapped up a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates this afternoon at the Oakland Coliseum. The teams started the day with identical records; 14-17. Manager Mark Kotsay sent winless 34-year-old righty Ross Stripling to the mound for this matchup against Quinn Priester for the Bucs.
Boston CRUSHES Miami to win series.
i turned on this game mid-2nd-quarter and saw a score like 55-25!
watched Jaylen Brown hit a 3 and literally walk past someone on the way to a layup and then went back to my regularly scheduled life ...
DBD AV CLUB
Anyone But You, Netflix. 2/19.
I’m as big of a Sydney Sweeney fan as anyone, though she really is not a very good actress. Denise Richards for this generation?
Haven't watched this movie (I heard it's not so great), but I've liked Sweeney on Euphoria and White Lotus. Not saying she's the greatest actress ever, but she's not bad on those shows.
Euphoria and White Lotus are not her two best pieces
Hey-oo!
She was solid in Voyeurs!
ELSEWHERE IN COLLEGE
Did you go to Michigan?
https://x.com/Nico2Dansby/status/1785657026355335504
WVU teases coal-themed alt uniforms. Perhaps we should lean into our past and have tie-dye or marijuana themed alts. Or maybe we go naked?
https://twitter.com/WVUfootball/status/1786048004744524217
I vote for nuclear physics. Cyclotrons, anyone?
i am a fan of physics themed uniforms.
or people could pick their favorite trans-uranium element, many of where were discovered at Cal
16 elements discovered at Cal! Even more than I'd been thinking. If you include the ones that are not transuranium.
https://www2.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Archive/new-elements-here.html