Who’s in town

Mountain climber Melissa Arnot, who broke the women’s world record for ascents of Mount Everest, speaks about her adventures and The Juniper Fund, the charity she co-founded for Nepalese mountain workers. [7 p.m., Jewish Community Center, 3200 California St., S.F.]

Lectures

Chasing ‘Mona Lisa’: Dianne Hales, author of “Mona Lisa: A Life Discovered,” explores the life of Leonardo Da Vinci’s most famous muse. [6 p.m., Commonwealth Club, 555 Post St., S.F.]

Horrible bosses: Helena Worthen offers helpful tips on labor-management disputes and how managers can provide workers with the information they need to do their jobs effectively. [7 p.m., Modern Times, 2919 24th St., S.F.]

Manchurian stories: Michael Meyer shares his travels through the mysterious Chinese region of Manchuria and his new book, “In Manchuria.” [7 p.m., Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera]

PTSD recovery: Journalist Mac McClelland, who has covered stories in Haiti, Uganda and more, discusses her difficult recovery from post-traumatic stress disorder in “Irritable Hearts: A PTSD Love Story.” [7:30 p.m., Books Inc., 1644 Haight St., S.F.]

Literary events

Tech thriller: Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Matt Richter tasks a computer genius with preventing World War III in his latest book, “The Doomsday Equation.” [7 p.m., BookShop West Portal, 80 West Portal, S.F.]

New fiction: Three mysterious sisters and an international quest are at the center of Pam Muñoz Ryan's latest book, “Echo.” [7 p.m., Kepler's Books, 1010 El Camino Real, Menlo Park]

At the public library

Early California: Learn about the late-18th-century Afro-Latino presences in California with a lecture by Naomi Torres, superintendent of the Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail. [7 p.m., Excelsior Branch, 4400 Mission St., S.F.]

At the colleges

Legal ethics: The two-day Professional Ethical Integrity Conference opens with panels about integrity in the legal profession, ethics in international law and more. [8:30 a.m.-6 p.m., Mary Kay Hall, UC Hastings College of the Law, 200 McAllister St., S.F.]

Native daughter: A concert honors the 75th birthday of San Francisco State University alumna Elinor Armer with performances of her piano and vocal works. [8 p.m., Knuth Hall, Creative Arts Building, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave., S.F.]

Local activities

Flavorful poetry: Poets share stories of their favorite — and most hated — foods in “In Defense of Food: A Spoken Word Affair.” [7 p.m., Museum of the African Diaspora, 685 Mission St., S.F.]

Stand-up comedy: Comedian Nikki Glaser has appeared on “Chelsea Lately” and MTV’s “Nikki & Sara Live!” [8 p.m., Punch Line Comedy Club, 444 Battery St., S.F.]

Classic blues: Grammy-winning bluesman Taj Mahal channels Caribbean influences in his music. [7:30 p.m., SFJAZZ Center, 201 Franklin St., S.F.; sold out]

Throwback Thursday: Shred Zeppelin, which pays hard-rock tribute to the music of Led Zeppelin, is sharing a bill with Fred Barchetta: A Tribute to Rush by Points North. [9 p.m., Slim's, 333 11th St., S.F.]

History lost and found: “Lost Stories, Found Images: Portraits of Jews in Wartime Amsterdam” features a trove of posed portraits from World War II and the stories of their subjects. [10 a.m.-6 p.m., Goethe-Institut San Francisco, 530 Bush St., S.F.]

Events

Rodin talk: Bernard Barryte, chief curator of Stanford University's Cantor Arts Center, discusses “Rodin: His Life, Art and Innovations.” [10 a.m., de Young Museum, 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive, S.F.]

NightLife: NightLife at the Academy celebrates the Lunar New Year with a lion dance workshop, a tea tasting and a Year of the Ram visit with a herd of goats (close enough). [6 p.m., California Academy of Sciences, 55 Music Concourse Drive, Golden Gate Park, S.F.]

Cold War film: Andrei Tarkovsky’s “The Sacrifice,” a 1986 film about an imminent nuclear holocaust, screens in a new 35 mm print. [8 p.m., Castro Theatre, 429 Castro St., S.F.]

Comedy show: Don McMillan, a Stanford University graduate, has appeared on “The Tonight Show” and A&E's “Evening at the Improv.” [8 p.m., Rooster T. Feathers Comedy Club, 157 W. El Camino Real, Sunnyvale]

'Sonic Cinema': The Oddball Films archive is hosting filmmaker David Michalak and his experimental-music group Reel Change for “Sonic Cinema,” a music talk and program of Michalak's films. [8 p.m., Oddball Films, 275 Capp St., S.F.]