Who decides what you get to think? Libraries play an important role in protecting knowledge and your rights to unfettered access to information.

This is a panel featuring representations of data science-focused companies who have successfully raised funding since last year. Learn about their experiences, struggles, and sage wisdom for others looking to raise money. This panel is part of Startup Week.

Love a good story? Come to the scene of the crime, the edge of adventure and timeless realms of wonder. Sit back, relax and escape from the everyday as we bring you gripping short stories expertly read -- and well-calculated to keep you in suspense!This week's story is "The Ebony Frame," by Edith Nesbit. One look at the antique paintings in the attic and he was transfixed, for one was of him, and the other would forever be his love.

Global climate change is resulting in more extreme weather events, from Hurricane Harvey to damaging storms right here in the Northwest. Seattle experienced record rainfall last winter that resulted in significant damage to water treatment facilities and environmental impacts to Puget Sound. Learn from international experts how homeowners, new development and local government all play a role in improving Seattle's climate resilience.Moderated by KUOW's Joshua McNicholsPanelists:• Mooyoung Han - Professor, Seoul National University• Herbert Dreiseitl - Director, Liveable Cities Lab, Ramböll• Gail Vittori and Pliny Fisk - Co-Directors, Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems• Jessica Finn Coven - Director, Seattle Office of Sustainability and Environment

Takuichi Fujii (1891-1964) left Japan in 1906 to make his home in Seattle, where he established a business, started a family, and began his artistic practice. When war broke out between the United States and Japan, he and his family were incarcerated along with the more than 100,000 ethnic Japanese located on the West Coast. Sent to detention camps at Puyallup, Washington, and then Minidoka in Idaho, Fujii documented his daily experiences in words and art. "The Hope of Another Spring" reveals the rare find of a large and heretofore unknown collection of art produced during World War II. The centerpiece of the collection is Fujii's illustrated diary that historian Roger Daniels has called the most remarkable document created by a Japanese American prisoner during the wartime incarceration. Barbara Johns presents Takuichi Fujii's life story and his artistic achievements within the social and political context of the time. Sandy Kita, the artist's grandson, provides translations and an introduction to the diary. This is a significant contribution to Asian American studies, American and regional history, and art history. Barbara Johns, Ph.D., is a Seattle-based art historian and curator. She is the author of Signs of Home: The Paintings and Wartime Diary of Kamekichi Tokita.Tom Ikeda is the founding Executive Director of Densho. He is a Sansei (third generation Japanese American) who was born and raised in Seattle. Tom's parents and grandparents were incarcerated during World War II at Minidoka, Idaho. In addition to leading Densho for the past 20 years, Tom has conducted over 220 video-recorded, oral history interviews with Japanese Americans. He has received numerous awards for his historical contributions, including the Microsoft Alumni Foundation Integral Fellows Award and the Humanities Washington Award for outstanding achievement in the public humanities.This event is supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, author series sponsor Gary Kunis, and media sponsor The Seattle Times and presented in partnership with Elliott Bay Book Company. Books will be available for purchase and signing.

George and Lizzie have radically different understandings of what love and marriage should be. George grew up in a warm and loving family—his father an orthodontist, his mother a stay-at-home mom—while Lizzie grew up as the only child of two famous psychologists, who viewed her more as an in-house experiment than a child to love.Over the course of their marriage, nothing has changed—George is happy; Lizzie remains…unfulfilled. When a shameful secret from Lizzie's past resurfaces, she'll need to face her fears in order to accept the true nature of the relationship she and George have built over a decade together.With pitch-perfect prose and compassion and humor to spare, George and Lizzie is an intimate story of new and past loves, the scars of childhood, and an imperfect marriage at its defining moments.Nancy Pearl is known as "America’s Librarian." She speaks about the pleasures of reading at library conferences, to literacy organizations and community groups throughout the world and comments on books regularly on KUOW FM in Seattle, as well as KWGS in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Wisconsin Public Radio. Born and raised in Detroit, she received her master's degree in library science in 1967 from the University of Michigan. She also received an MA in history from Oklahoma State University in 1977. Among her many honors and awards are the 2011 Librarian of the Year Award from Library Journal; and the 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association. She also hosts a monthly television show, "Book Lust with Nancy Pearl."This event is supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, author series sponsor Gary Kunis, and media sponsor The Seattle Times and presented in partnership with University Book Store. Books will be available for purchase and signing.

How can we find common ground together as our nation weathers challenging times? Race, gender, migration and displacement, along with religion, have long shaped the American project in difficult and fascinating ways. This evening includes speakers who share compelling and unifying perspectives on what it means for all who live in America—everybody not just citizens—to be able to have a more shared world view.

NyRee Ausler is a novelist, born in San Bernardino, California but was raised and resides in Seattle, WA. NyRee is an ambitious self-published author with her first two releases, 'Retribution, What Goes Around' and 'Retribution, Comes Around' in the urban fiction genre. When she is not writing, she is enjoying her children, husband and family life. NyRee also works as a Human Resources and Payroll Manager for a local Seattle private school.Zackery 'Shuja De'Peace' Driver is the Author of 'Number 344317' which details a heretical history of drug addiction, all types of abuse, violence, poverty, incarceration and various sorts of discouraging statistics.Born and raised in Seattle, WA Jeffrey L. Cheatham II's passion for storytelling was evident from his days as a student at Seattle's John Muir Elementary School, where every written assignment he submitted was in the form of a story or comic. From that point on, he has been a passionate and ardent supporter of all things literary. This passion drove the creation of his first kid's book "The Family Jones and The Eggs of Rex" which nabbed him the honor of being named "11 black authors you should know" list hosted by blacksmomsblog.com. Jeffrey followed this up by releasing his second book, "Why is Jane so Mad?" that landed on the "Top 29 Pan-African children's book" by Tajimag.com. In 2016, Jeffrey created the Seattle Urban Book Expo. The Seattle Urban Book Expo is a forum for authors to showcase their work, connect with fellow writers, and introduce their works to audiences who otherwise might not have been exposed to their work. Seattle Escribe's mission is to join the largest group of people interested in developing and promoting creative writing in Spanish. "The Writers' Group" in Spanish, Seattle Escribe originated from the literary creation workshops in Spanish promoted by The Seattle Public Library in 2014. The authors who collaborate in this group are fierce defenders of our Spanish language and passionate promoters of the Hispanic culture. The vision of the group is to provide a platform for creative writing in Spanish in and around Seattle.This event is supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, author series sponsor Gary Kunis, and media sponsor The Seattle Times.