For three days in March, April, and May, BAMcinématek presents the second edition of Science on Screen, a series that explores the surprising connections between Hollywood fantasy and real-life science. Back by popular demand after its first season at BAM last spring, this program features screenings paired with talks by notable experts in the fields of science and technology.

To kick off the series, BAMcinématek will take part in the first-ever national evening of Science on Screen on Monday, March 31 at 7:30pm. Seventeen independent theaters across the country will participate in this event for which BAMcinématek will screen Michel Gondry’s “deft, witty, and…brilliant brain twister” (J. Hoberman) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), about a couple (Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet) who hires a technology firm to scientifically erase the memory of their relationship and break-up. Neuroscientist Joseph LeDoux, director of the Emotional Brain Institute of NYU, will discuss the nature of memory and its connection to human emotions.

Also screening is Werner Herzog’s fascinating documentary Grizzly Man (2005—Apr 29 at 7:30pm), recounting the 13 summers that bear enthusiast Timothy Treadwell lived and ultimately perished among the bears of an Alaskan national park. Wildlife journalist and author Jon Mooallem (Wild Ones) will explore the delicate nature of human-animal interaction in a conversation following the screening.

The final installment of Science on Screen pairs George Romero’s zombie classic Night of the Living Dead (1968—May 19 at 7:30pm), “the first-ever subversive horror movie” (Elliott Stein, The Village Voice) with a discussion on epidemics and their effect on public conscience with investigative journalist Sonia Shah, the acclaimed author of The Fever: How Malaria Has Ruled Humankind for 500,000 Years.