Officials shut down Pacifica Pier after a huge structural crack appeared in June. For anglers, whale watchers, and Pacifica residents, the loss is about more than the pier itself.
Annalee Newitz is an award-winning Bay Area science journalist who also writes science fiction. They are the author of several books, including 'Automatic Noodle,' 'The Terraformers,' and 'Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age.'
