Wednesday, October 08, 2014

Cambridge Festival of Ideas - Science and Literature events

This year's Cambridge Festival of Ideas will be held from 20th October to 2nd November, and includes many events of interest to members of the Science and Literature Reading Group.

In particular:

The Science of Fiction

Wednesday 22 October: 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Cambridge Science Centre, 18 Jesus Lane, CB5 8BQ

In 1735 Jonathan Swift described for the first time that Mars had two moons, 142 years before they were discovered. In 1914 HG Wells predicted the atomic bomb, 31 years before it shook the world. Hosts Andrew Holding (BBC/Guardian) and Will Thompson return with a stellar panel of scientists, authors and researchers to ask what can our stories tell us about the future? Alastair Reynolds (award-winning author and former research astronomer with the European Space Agency) will join us to describe where he finds his inspiration when writing about the future, and how the process builds on his past experiences as a scientist. Design Scientist and Futurist Melissa Sterry will explain how she believes that science and technology can make the world a better place, while astrobiologist and author Lewis Dartnell will share with us what he learnt writing his latest book 'The Knowledge: How to Rebuild our World from Scratch', just in case it all goes wrong. Finally we'll turn back the clock with Melanie Keene (Cambridge University) whose research for her upcoming book 'Science in Wonderland' will let us see what Victorian Britain had expected life to be like today. For other sites: Join us for 'The Science of Fiction: Future' Doors: 7pm for 7:30pm on 22nd October at the Cambridge Science Centre. The event is supported by a recommended donation of £3, collected on the night. For further details, and to book a place, see here.


Reading the Anthropocene
Thursday 30 October: 5:30pm - 7:00pm
GR06/07, Faculty of English, Faculty of English, 9 West Road, CB3 9DP

In the 2000s, scientists suggested that with the escalation of mankind’s influence on the planet, we have we now entered a new geological era, that of the Anthropocene. Whilst scientists are continuing to debate when this era began, if it has done at all, literary critics, theorists and environmental philosophers have already adopted the term in order to think about the challenges ahead of us, and the changes needed to meet them. BBC New Generation Thinker and Cambridge Lecturer in Literature and Film, Dr Sarah Dillon, joins Quaternary geologist Professor Phil Gibbard and writer and environmentalist Tony Juniper, to discuss the significance of the idea of the Anthropocene across disciplines and culture. For further details, and to book a place, see here.



Other events of interest include (click titles for links):

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