![]() |
![]() |
||||
![]() |
|||||
|
Monday 7 September 09 café philosophique Can Technology Make Us Better Humans?Modern technology offers us various ways to improve our capacities beyond the level we would generally describe as normal or healthy. The use of such technology has been regarded by some as unethical, such as ‘smart drugs’ used by students revising for exams. Rebecca Roache, a philosopher from Oxford University, will consider the extent to which enhancement technologies differ from more familiar ways of improving ourselves, as well as some ethical concerns. Monday 21 September 09 café scientifique Darwin: Beyond the Origin of The SpeciesCelebrating the Darwin bicentenary, this event will go beyond an examination of the origin of the species, to consider whether Darwin achieved so much because of his privileged, well-connected background. Phil Gates, a biologist from Durham University, will consider how Alfred Russel Wallace, who was not privileged or very well-connected, also arrived at the same conclusions independently. We will look at what Darwin could have achieved if he hadn’ t been born into comfortable circumstances, exploring how schooling and access to university still resonates in the higher echelons of science today. Monday 5 October 09 café politique The North South Divide: Is the Gap Growing?What has the impact of the economic recession been on the North? Has the credit crunch led to a widening of the North South divide? Daniel Dorling, geographer at the University of Sheffield, who was awarded the Leverhulme Prize for his work, will reveal the answers from his mapping of changing social, medical and political geographies of Britain. He will consider the implications of rising housing market and wealth inequalities, and the polarisation of health and life chances. Monday 19 October 09 café scientifique Genesis Machines: Computing with the Code of LifeFrom his book, Genesis Machines, Martyn Amos, computer scientist from Manchester Metropolitan University, will explain how scientists are turning away from silicon chips and instead are using real, wet, squishy, perhaps even living biology to build machines that could change the world forever. He will explain how cells, gels and DNA strands are the ‘wetware’ of the 21st century. He says revolutionary applications may be widespread within 10 years and asks what breed of computer does the future hold?
New for 2009
Café Culture will be at this year's BBC Radio 3 Free Thinking Festival, a weekend festival of ideas at The Sage, Gateshead from 23 to 25 October. Artists, writers, scientists and thinkers will explore today's most exciting ideas. Join us for two special Café Culture events. 24 October 09 4pm Theory SlamDo you have a pet theory, neat explanation or call to action? The theory slam invites you to display your innovation and insight, be it philosophical, political, scientific or cultural. Please email your theory to info@cafeculturenortheast.org.uk by 1 September 2009 to take part. We will select a good crop of entertaining ideas in this fast paced, energetic event where theorists have three minutes to make their case. 24 October 09 6pm cafépolitique The Economic Downturn: Green Shoots or Gloom?Hugh Pym, BBC Chief Economics Correspondent, will reflect on the causes of the global recession from his book What Happened. He will give his views on what our economic future holds. To request a full brochure and programme of events, call the BBC Audience line on 03700 100 300 or visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/freethinking Monday 2 November 09 café culturel The Reading RevolutionJane Davis is the Director of The Reader, a Liverpool-based organisation which pioneers new approaches to reading across the community from children who don’ t attend school to older people with dementia. We know that reading fiction and poetry is good for us, but just how good? Can reading poetry help people with neurological dysfunctions, can reading Dickens cure depression? Jane has also developed innovative read-aloud and personal response models which are at the heart of these approaches. Monday 16 November 09 café scientifique Disability and Bioethics: Stand-off or Dialogue?Disability is a central topic in biomedicine, especially the new genetic and reproductive medical technologies, and so it is of major interest in bioethics as well. But relations between bioethics and disabled people, especially the disability movement, have been fraught. Bioethics is sometimes accused by disability activists of having a eugenic goal; in turn, disability activists are accused of being unrealistic and unrepresentative. In her book Disability Bioethics: Moral Bodies, Moral Difference, Jackie Leach Scully argues for a better dialogue between disability and bioethics, with greater recognition of the diversity of experience of disabled people. Monday 7 December 09 café philosophique The Age of ExtremesThe 20th century is often seen as an age of extremes, with the welding of a belief in human rationalism and a newtonian vision of an orderly universe amid the growing powers of the modern state. Robert Geyer, Professor of Politics at Lancaster University will argue that this order has manifested itself, despite being challenged, in an ordered framework for public policy focusing on audits and driven by targets. Has this vision recently been transformed by physical, chemical and biological discoveries which break out of this orderly mould? Monday 4 January 10 café culture Theory SlamCome along to our New Year theory slam to share your theory. Do you have a neat explanation or a sinister conspiracy you would like to share? Can you persuade, challenge and entertain an audience of sceptics? We welcome theories of any mould, whether they be politics, science, culture or philosophy – or a combination! We invite you to give your three-minute burst of brilliance, as the audience listens and then votes for the winner. Prizes awarded for the best theory. To participate send an email to info@cafeculturenortheast.org.uk by 1 December 2009. Monday 18 January 10 café culturel The OptimistWhen the financial world fell to its knees, Laurence Shorter believed things had become as bad as they could get. ‘The word optimism seemed exhausted, misunderstood, fallen on hard times, associated with all the wrong things – Americans and Tony Blair.’ Following this revelation, Laurence spent three years talking to genuinely optimistic people for his book, The Optimist. If listening to the Today programme makes you want to stay in bed it may be time for you to join the counter-revolution and sign up for Shorter’s Manifesto for Optimism. Monday 1 February 10 café politique Is Formal Education Enough?Does our education system set us up for what life throws at us? Tony Jeffs teaches community and youth work at Durham University. He argues that informal education is just as important as our schooling and that as a society we should consider taking more responsibility for the future of our young people. Jeffs believes that instead of harbouring negative attitudes towards young people, if we took a lead from our European counterparts, including raising the school starting age and improving youth provision for young people, we would reap enormous benefits for society as a whole. Monday 15 February 10 café scientifique From Stem Cells to Sperm CellsKarim Nayernia trained in Germany as a molecular biologist, working on germ cells and cancer cells, moving to Newcastle University in 2006 as Professor of Stem Cell Biology. Karim will talk about how it is possible to use stem cells to create sperm in the laboratory, with the aim of understanding the biology of male infertility. Monday 1 March 10 café culturel
Are Poets Still the
|
|||||