Science & the Arts events are free and open to the public.
Events that require registration are marked. To make a reservation, click the e-VENT online reservation icon or call 212-817-8215. (Unclaimed reservations will be available to a standby line at the event on a first-come, first-served basis).
For all other events, seating will be first-come, first-served, beginning one hour before each event. No pre-registration.
Science & the Arts
The Graduate Center, CUNY
365 Fifth Avenue
(at 34th Street)
Science & the
Arts Series
Past Events
- by season:
- Fall 2008
- Spring - Summer 2008
- Fall 2007
- Spring 2007
- Fall 2006
- Spring - Summer 2006
- Fall 2005
- Spring 2005
- Einstein Lecture Series
- Fall 2004
- Spring 2004
- Fall 2003
- Spring 2003
- Fall 2002
- Spring 2002: Science & Theater
- Fall 2001
Fall 2008 Events
- Picturing the Bomb – an exhibition >
- October 6 - ongoing
The History, Science and Scientists of the Bomb >- Saturday, October 11, 1:00 PM
- The Making of the Opera Doctor Atomic
- Saturday, October 11, 4:30 PM
- J. Robert Oppenheimer: The Man, the Manager, the Physicist
- Tuesday, Oct. 14, 6:30 PM
- The Manhattan Project: Places, People and Power
- Friday, Oct. 17, 3:00 PM
- Wartime Decisions and the Atomic Age
- Friday, Oct. 17, 6:30 PM
- Their Day in the Sun: Women of the Manhattan Project
- Monday, October 20, 6:30 PM
Los Alamos - a novel >- Tuesday, October 21, 6:30 PM
- Imagine Science Film Festival
- Thursday, October 23, 7:00 PM
- Remembering the Manhattan Project
- Saturday, November 8, 2008 - C 198, 10:15 am
- Uranium + Peaches – a play reading
- Monday, November 10, 6:30 PM
International Polar Year Celebration- Monday, December 8, 6:30 PM
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This season, Science & the Arts has focused primarily on the Manhattan Project, the program to develop nuclear weapons during World War II. Our events were presented in collaboration with the Metropolitan Opera, which presented John Adams' new opera Doctor Atomic this fall. In addition to a remarkable slate of speakers -- including Nobel Laureates and Pulitzer Prize winners -- we had over 10 octogenarian and nonagenarian scientists who were active participants in the Manhattan Project, making this an event of historic importance. Picturing the Bomb - an exhibition | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Photographers Rachel Fermi (granddaughter of the physicist Enrico Fermi) and Esther Samra curate an exhibition of photographs from the secret world of the Manhattan Project. Included are images of scientific experiments and their consequences, as well official portraits and casual snapshots. October 6 - ongoing |
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The History, Science and Scientists of the Bomb |
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-Richard Rhodes, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Saturday, October 11, 1:00 PM |
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The Making of the Opera Doctor Atomic |
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-Peter Gelb, General Manager of the Metropolitan Opera Saturday, October 11, 4:30 PM |
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J. Robert Oppenheimer: The Man, the Manager, the Physicist |
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-David Cassidy, historian, Hofstra University Tuesday, Oct. 14, 6:30 PM |
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The Manhattan Project: Places, People and Power |
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-Rachel Fermi and Esther Samra, Photographers Friday, Oct. 17, 3:00 PM |
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Wartime Decisions and the Atomic Age |
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-Martin J. Sherwin, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, George Mason University Friday, Oct. 17, 6:30 PM |
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Their Day in the Sun: Women of the Manhattan Project |
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Ruth Howes, Physics, Marquette University Monday, October 20, 6:30 PM |
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Los Alamos - a novel |
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Joseph Kanon, Novelist, New York Tuesday, October 21, 6:30 PM  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Imagine Science Film Festival |
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Join us for the NY premier of BLAST!, a new feature film by Paul Devlin. Journey from Sweden to Antarctica following physicists who attempt to look back in time and take a snap shot of the universe's beginnings by launching a Balloon-borne, Large Aperture, Sub-millimeter Telescope (BLAST) into the atmosphere. Working with NASA, the crew members encounter problems which stand to render the entire multi-million dollar project dead in the water. BLAST! will take you to new heights while tiptoeing on the rim of disaster in the pursuit of scientific achievement. Imagine Science Film Festival Thursday, October 23, 7:00 PM |
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Remembering the Manhattan Project |
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Cynthia Kelly, President, Atomic Heritage Foundation Saturday, November 8, 2008 - C 198, 10:15 am |
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Uranium + Peaches - a play reading |
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A Play in One Act by Peter Cook & William Lanouette Monday, November 10, 6:30 PM |
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International Polar Year Celebration |
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Sound and video from new media artist Andrea Polli (you heard her on NPR’s Studio 360) and a preview of Terra Nova: Sinfonia Antarctica by Paul D. Miller aka DJ Spooky That Subliminal Kid. Both artists had residencies in Antarctica. Featuring Dr. Karen St.Germain, NOAA’s Division Chief for the next generation of polar-orbiting environmental satellites, which will monitor the earth's weather, atmosphere, oceans, land, and near-space environment. Monday, December 8, 6:30 PM |
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Galileo's Muse | |
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Galileo's Muse celebrates the surprising relationship between one of history's greatest scientists and the spirited music of late Renaissance Italy. Who would have thought the lute (a close cousin of the guitar) held the key to one of Galileo's most important breakthroughs? This concert shows how -- with lively music, engaging explanations, and a reenactment of the experiment that led Galileo to formulate the Law of Falling Bodies. Co-sponsored by the Doctoral Program in Music Performance. #7564 - Wednesday, January 30, 8:00 PM (note later time) |
BrainwavE: The NeuroScience of the Groove | |
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What is the explanation for our love of music, rhythm and dance? In this evening of erudition and performance, Columbia University neuroscientists Dave Sulzer (a.k.a. composer Dave Soldier) and John Krakauer will discuss the brain activity that makes us groove to the beat of music. Krakauer co-directs the Motor Performance Laboratory and Soldier investigates synaptic connections that underlie memory, learning and behavior. Featuring the premiere of Soldier’s "Trio for percussion and brain waves," a live performance/experiment with drummers and electroencephalographs. #7533 - Monday, March 24, 6:30 PM |
Bubbles in Beijing: Architecture, Physics, and |
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The Olympic aquatics pavilion in Beijing resembles a box of bubbles. This extraordinary structure and the feat of engineering required to build it will be discussed by Denis Weaire, physics professor at Trinity College Dublin, who first observed the efficiency of bubble structures. He'll be joined by Daniel Brodkin, a principal in the New York office of the engineering firm Arup, famous for their design contributions to some of the greatest buildings of our times.
#7534 - Tuesday, April 1, 6:30 PM |
FEROCIOUS BEAUTY: DANCE AND GENETICS |
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Liz Lerman, choreographer, believes in the power of art to enhance civic dialogue. Her new dance/theater piece, Ferocious Beauty: Genome, investigates the implications of genetic research. Among her collaborators in creating the work was Bonnie Bassler, renowned Princeton University microbiologist, who will join her in a dialogue. The talk will be illustrated with video segments, providing a preview of the dance piece before its first performance in the New York area. #7535 - Monday, April 7, 6:30 PM |
Manhattan / Farm Hall |
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A play reading about the moral dilemmas surrounding the building of The Bomb, written by French actor Olivier Treiner and his father, physicist Jacques Treiner, who will be present at the performance. How did American scientists wrestle with their concerns about the use of atomic weaponry? How did German scientists react to the bomb that leveled Hiroshima? The play, based in part on actual transcripts of conversations, delves into these complex issues. Reading by Break A Leg Productions. #7567 - Thursday, April 24, 6:30 PM |
Hollywood science EVENT CANCELLED |
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From space travel and genetic engineering to global warming, science is portrayed on movie screens with fact and fantasy, and scientists are heroes, nerds, and villains. Sidney Perkowitz, Charles Howard Candler Professor of Physics at Emory University and author of the new book Hollywood Science, discusses the portrayal of science in films, from science fiction to scientific biographies and documentaries, and screens some examples. #7536 - Tuesday, April 29, 6:30 PM |
Oxygen |
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Who deserves the Nobel Prize for the discovery of oxygen? Three scientists -- Lavoisier, Priestley, and Scheele -- lay claim to the prize in this play, written by two renowned chemists, Carl Djerassi and Roald Hoffmann. The play, which takes place in both 1777 and 2001, examines the nature of discovery and the desire for recognition that motivated scientists then as now. Reading by Break A Leg Productions. This event is FIRST COME, FIRST SEATED. #7568 - Thursday, May 29, 6:30 PM
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Einstein's Dreams |
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May 29, 30, 31 The young Einstein dreams... Berne, Switzerland, 1905: Einstein is a modest patent clerk in a new marriage, struggling to make ends meet while in the back of his mind re-conceiving time!
General admission $20. Purchase Tickets: Lightman's novel Einstein's Dreams was an international bestseller and has been translated into thirty languages. Both a distinguished physicist and an accomplished novelist, Lightman was the first professor at MIT to receive a joint appointment in the sciences and the humanities. AND Walter Isaacson - post-performance discussion Isaacson is President of the Aspen Institute. He has been Chairman of CNN and the editor of Time Magazine. He is the author of Einstein: His Life and Universe. Friday, May 30, 8:00 PM Alan Lightman - post-performance discussion INovelist Lightman returns for a second discussion.
Co-author of Einstein as Myth and Muse, published by Cambridge University Press. For 22 years Dr. Friedman served as Director of the New York Hall of Science, New York City's public science-technology center. |
ICSI and Taboos |
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The plays ICSI and Taboos dramatize -- with wit -- the social transformations and contested viewpoints created by advances in reproductive science. Readings from the plays will be performed by the theater company Break a Leg Productions. Playwright Carl Djerassi is "the father of The Pill" (he was awarded the National Medal of Science for the first synthesis of an oral contraceptive) and has had a prolific additional career as a writer of fiction and plays about science. Produced by Redshift Productions in collaboration with Science & the Arts. Thursday, July 31, 7:00 PM |
Fall 2007 Events
- Illuminating Coney Island >
- #7427 - Tuesday, September 25, 6:30 PM
- Synagogues in Germany: A Virtual Reconstruction >
- #7428 - Monday, October 29, 6:30 PM
- SCIENCE AS A CREATIVE ADVENTURE OF THE MIND >
- #7455 - Tuesday, November 6, 6:30 PM
- A Scientist Goes to the Movies: The Matrix >
- Thursday, November 8, 6:30 PM
- Background >
- #7457 - Tuesday, November 20, 6:30 PM
Illuminating Coney Island | |
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Thirty-seven years have passed since the closing of Coney Island's world-renowned Parachute Jump ride. In 2006 the 277-foot structure was illuminated by Leni Schwendinger and her firm, Light Projects. Colored light transforms the filigreed steel Parachute Jump framework into a shimmering icon for Coney Island and all of Brooklyn. With designer Leni Schwendinger, Martin Maher, Brooklyn Chief of Staff, NYC Department of Parks & Recreation, and Peter Jacobson, Lighting Specialist, Con Edison. #7427 - Tuesday, September 25, 6:30 PM |
Synagogues in Germany: A Virtual Reconstruction |
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During the Nazi era, over 1,400 synagogues were destroyed. Through a student initiative at the Darmstadt University of Technology, Germany, several synagogues have been virtually recreated using computer aided design, revealing a rich and diverse architectural history. Manfred Koob and Marc Grellert (Darmstadt University of Technology) and Carol Herselle Krinsky (New York University) will show the re-creations and provide historical and contemporary context. Co-sponsored by the Center for Jewish Studies, Science & the Arts, and the Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations (ifa).
#7428 - Monday, October 29, 6:30 PM |
SCIENCE AS A CREATIVE ADVENTURE OF THE MIND |
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The Pari Center for New Learning, located in a quiet hilltop village in Italy, fosters an interdisciplinary approach linking science, the arts, ethics and spirituality. David Peat, author, physicist and philosopher, directs the Center and will speak on the relationship between language, reality and physics. He will ask if science is about what we know about the world, or what we can say about the world. He will also explore the way science and the arts can stimulate and cross fertilize each other. With stand-up comedy from Jena Axelrod. #7455 - Tuesday, November 6, 6:30 PM |
A Scientist Goes to the Movies: The Matrix |
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The 1999 science fiction action film, The Matrix, describes a future in which the world we know is actually the Matrix, a simulated reality created by sentient machines in order to subdue and make use of the human population as an energy source. Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson (American Museum of Natural History) and Corey Powell, Executive Editor at Discover Magazine, will show selected scenes and discuss the science onscreen. Thursday, November 8, 6:30 PM |
Background | |
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Reading of a play by Lauren Gunderson. In 1948, as a young doctoral student, Ralph Alpher wrote the first mathematical model for the creation of the universe and predicted the discovery of cosmic background radiation that proves the Big Bang theory. He was ahead of his time. Decades later, two radio astronomers tuning their equipment stumbled on proof of Alpher's background radiation. They got the credit-and the Nobel Prize. Presented by Break A Leg Productions. Following the play will be a question & answer period with the playwright |
Spring 2007 Events
- A Meeting of the Athanasius Kircher Society >
- Tuesday, January 16, 2007 7:00 PM
- Robot Dance Competition >
- Thursday, February 1, 2007 2:00 PM
- The Physics of the Buffyverse >
- Thursday, February 1, 2007 6:00 & 8:00 PM
- "Flight," a play by Arthur Giron >
- Play-reading by Break A Leg Productions
- Tuesday, February 27, 2007 6:30 PM
- Ben Franklin's Glass Armonica >
- Wednesday, March 21, 2007 6:30 PM
- Yuri's Night: A Celebration of Space Exploration >
- Thursday, April 12, 2007 6:30 PM
- Geometry and Art: From Escher to Animation >
- Wednesday, May 2, 2007 6:30 PM
- String Theory for Dummies >
- Tuesday, May 22, 2007 6:30 PM
A Meeting of the Athanasius Kircher Society | |
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The popular website, the "Proceedings of the Athanasius Kircher Society," named after a 17th-century polymath, inspired this evening of the wondrous and the arcane. Featuring ancient automata, extinct languages, curious inventions, and one notable savant. Tuesday, January 16, 2007 7 PM |
Robot Dance Competition |
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Robo Cup Junior is an international robot design competition organized in elementary through high schools. Witness the crazy, colorful dance moves of the 'bots, designed by the New York City-area teams.
7321 - Thursday, February 1, 2007 2 PM |
The Physics of the Buffyverse |
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Author Jennifer Ouellette's The Physics of the Buffyverse uses the characters, concepts and plot lines of the popular television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer to illustrate a wide range of fundamental concepts in the physical sciences: everything from sound, electricity, materials science, and thermodynamics, to concepts of time (and time travel), wormholes, black holes, and string theory. The evening will include demonstrations of the martial art of ju-jitsu.
Two performances on one evening: |
"Flight," a play by Arthur Giron |
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A comedic drama about the family life of the young Wright Brothers. "...[A] witty, touching flashback to the Wright brothers' boyhood and the events that led to those momentous first flights in Kitty Hawk." (NY Times). A play reading by Break A Leg Productions 7324 - Tuesday, February 27, 2007 6:30 PM |
Ben Franklin's Glass Armonica | |
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The glass armonica's celestial sound is created by placing moistened fingers on the edges of revolving crystal bowls of different sizes. Learn the history of Franklin's invention and hear a performance by Cecilia Brauer including Mozart's composition for the instrument. Composer Peter Kirn will discuss the physics behind the sound and how he has re-imagined the instrument in digital sound with visual effects. |
Yuri's Night: A Celebration of Space Exploration |
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In 1961 Yuri Gagarin, a Russian cosmonaut, became the first human being to leave Earth's atmosphere. On April 12, revelers on all seven continents celebrate Yuri's Night, the anniversary of his unprecedented voyage as well as the launch of the first Space Shuttle exactly 20 years later. This year New Yorkers will join them. The astronomy-themed festivities will include:
7277 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 6:30 PM |
Geometry and Art: From Escher to Animation |
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Geometry is a mathematical language of nature and art. It inspires sculptors and painters. Computer animators rely on it. Learn about mathematician Donald Coxeter and the work of contemporary artists who utilize geometry. With Siobhan Roberts, author of King of Infinite Space: Donald Coxeter, The Man Who Saved Geometry and Emmy Award-winning animator Mark Neumann.
7278 - Wednesday, May 2, 2007 6:30 PM |
String Theory for Dummies |
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An entertaining and informative discussion explaining string theory for a general audience. Many scientists feel string theory explains and unifies all of physics. Others feel it is a mathematical exercise that cannot be proven by experiment. All sides of this issue will be revealed. 7279 - Tuesday, May 22, 2007 6:30 PM
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Fall 2006 Events
- Benjamin Franklin’s Arcs and Sparks
- Monday, October 16, 7:00 PM
- Being Beakman
- Tuesday, October 24, 7:00 PM
- Theatre of Science
- Thursday, November 9 through Sunday, November 12
- A Scientist Goes to the Movies
- Friday, November 10, 6:30 PM
- Verse and Universe
- Friday and Saturday, November 10 and 11
- Tesla's Letters
- Monday, December 11, 6pm
| Science + Art Festival 2006
A city-wide celebration of science. Click for the full schedule of events.
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Spring - Summer 2006 Events
- Science Valentine
- Tuesday, February 14, 6pm Free
- Soft Science: Experimental films on science
- Wednesday, March 1, 7pm Free
- An Experiment with an Air Pump
- Tuesday, March 28, 6pm Free
- Robot Dance Competition
- Friday, March 31, 2-3pm Free
- The Violin: De-Coding Perfection
- Wednesday, April 5, 6pm Free
- Nanotech: When Things Get Small
- Wednesday, April 26, 6:30 pm Free
- Some Fantastic Realities, Friday
- April 28, 3:30pm Free
- Big Bang: Premiere of a new musical work inspired by astrophysics
- Monday, May 15, 6pm Free
- “Intelligent Design” under the Microscope
- Monday, May 22, 6:30pm* Free
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Science Valentine
Celebrate with a vaudeville evening featuring Lynda Williams, the “Physics Chanteuse”(Santa Rosa Junior College), and Bob Friedhoffer, magician and educator.
6982 - Tuesday, February 14, 2006 6pm Free
Soft Science
Experimental films on science
Soft Science is a collection of videos created by artists and scientists, curated by Rachel Mayeri. This unique program includes digital movies by biologists alongside contemporary video art. Rachel Mayeri is a filmmaker and Assistant Professor of Media Studies at Harvey Mudd College, Claremont, CA.6954 - Wednesday, March 1 2006
An Experiment with an Air Pump
Furtive romance, farce, science and buried secrets.
Reading of a play by Shelagh Stephenson about ethical choices made in the pursuit of scientific progress. The play flashes between 1799 and 1999, both years of extraordinary medical breakthroughs.
Presented by Break A Leg Productions
6955 Tuesday, March 28 2006 FREE
Robot Dance Competition
RoboCup Junior is an international robot design competition organized in elementary through high schools. Witness the crazy, colorful dance moves of the 'bots, designed by the NYC-area teams.
6956 - Friday, March 31 2006
The Violin: De-Coding Perfection
Learn the history of the famous Stradivarius violins from Toby Faber, author of Stradivari’s Genius: Five Violins, One Cello and Three Centuries of Enduring Perfection. Then learn about the new approaches to the craft employed by a renowned contemporary instrument maker, Sam Zygmuntowicz , who makes faithful copies of classic instruments as well as fresh interpretations in the classic style. Co-sponsored by the Ph.D./D.M.A. Programs in Music.
6957 - Wednesday, April 5 2006
Nanotech: When Things Get Small
What could a stadium-sized bowl of peanuts, a magic tennis ball, shrinking elephants, and a crazed hockey player possibly teach us about nanoscience? Not Too Serious Labs’ production “When Things Get Small” - a departure from your typical science-for-television fare - uses these and other comic inventions to take viewers on a comically corny romp into the real-life quest to create the smallest magnet ever known. View the half-hour film and hear from renowned physicist Ivan Schuller on making physics fun on film. First showing in NYC.
More at http://www.ucsd.tv/getsmall/7060 - Wednesday, April 26 2006
Some Fantastic Realities
A talk by Frank Wilczek, Nobel Prize in Physics in 2004 and Herman Feshbach Professor of Physics, MIT, to celebrate the publication of his new book Fantastic Realities: 49 Mind Journeys and a Trip to Stockholm.
More at http://www.worldscibooks.com/physics/6019.htmlFriday, April 28, 2006 3:30PM
Big Bang
Premiere of a new work of concert theater inspired by astrophysics. Music by composer Patrick Grant, who combines live performance with cutting edge technology. Narration by Dr. Charles Liu, astronomer on the faculty of College of Staten Island, CUNY.
6959 - Monday, May 15 2006
“Intelligent Design” under the Microscope
An evening of presentations on the controversial movement. What is the history of the movement? What are its scientific claims? What impact will it have on our schools? Hear speakers from the fields of science, journalism, theology, and law. Co-organized by Science & the Arts and the Center for Inquiry. Supported in part by the Albert and Lin Bildner Foundation.
Speakers include:
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James E. Darnell, molecular biologist, who'll address the scientific strength of the theory of evolution.
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Steve Harvey, co-lead counsel for the plaintiffs in the case of Kitzmiller vs Dover, the Pennsylvania legal case against teaching creationism in science classrooms
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Linda Froschauer, Middle school science teacher and President-elect of the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA).
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Chris Mooney, author of the best-selling book “The Republican War on Science.”
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Moderator: Austin Dacey, The Center for Inquiry.
6958- Monday, May 22 2006
Street Fair Science
Why does popcorn pop and cotton candy spin? Savor science demonstrations while enjoying the fun of your neighborhood street fair! See science magic tricks. Have your photo taken with “Albert Einstein.” Enjoy hands-on experiments.
Saturday, June 17, 11 am-6 pm - Third Avenue between 12th and 13th St.Sunday, June 18, 11 am-6 pm - Lexington Avenue between 37th and 38th St.Participants include:-
Science & the Arts at The Graduate Center of CUNY
- The New York Hall of Science
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The New York City Zoos and Aquarium
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Robot Village
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The Liberty Science Center
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The New York Public Library
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The Rutgers University Physics Department
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The American Physical Society
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The Amateur Astronomers Association
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The Center for Inquiry
- Bob Friedhoffer
More Information -- Click for pictures of the Street Fair!
Copenhagen
Readings of excerpts from Michael Frayn’s renowned play Copenhagen, performed by Break A Leg Productions. The play reenacts the 1941 visit of Werner Heisenberg, who was then in charge of the Nazi nuclear power program, to Niels Bohr, his mentor and collaborator in creating quantum mechanics. The play won the 2000 Tony award for Best Play.
Monday, June 26, 2006 5:00 PM
Big Bang
Performance of a new work in progress -- concert theater inspired by astrophysics. Music by composer Patrick Grant, who combines live performance with cutting edge technology. Narration by Dr. Charles Liu, astronomer on the faculty of College of Staten Island, CUNY.
Tuesday, June 27, 2006 5:00 PM
Lovesong of the Electric Bear, by Snoo Wilson
A reading of a new play on the life and times of Alan Turing, code breaker and father of artificial intelligence. British writer and fantasist Snoo Wilson explores Turing's chaotic and creative life through the eyes of his teddy bear, Porgy.
Directed by Cheryl Faraone, Middlebury College
"A humorous, smart and moving piece of theatre." The Washington Post, July 2005.Wednesday, July 26, 2006 7:00 PM
Fall 2005 Events
Crocheting the Hyperbolic Plane
A Talk by Daina Taimina and David Henderson
The surface of an orange is a sphere—what is the opposite of a sphere? The answer is a hyperbolic surface. Confused? Mathematicians Daina Tamina and David Henderson will explain the concept and share their exciting discovery that crocheting is an excellent means of modeling and understanding hyperbolic surfaces, and for exploring the ruffles of lettuce leaves and sea slugs, exponential growth, and potential shapes of the physical universe.
David Henderson and Daina Taimina, mathematicians, Cornell University
Authors of Experiencing Geometry: Euclidean and Non-Euclidean With History (Prentice-Hall, 2005)
http://www.math.cornell.edu/~henderson/ExpGeom/Co-sponsored by Science & the Arts and the Institute For Figuring http://www.theiff.org
6375 - Thursday, September 22, 2005
6366 - Thursday, September 22Flyer
Staged reading of a play by Kate Aspengren. Should women be astronauts? The play leapfrogs through time and includes testimony from Congressional hearings on the subject in 1962. Presented by Break A Leg Productions.
6367 - Monday, October 17, 2005 6pm Free
Albert Einstein and Religion
A talk by Corey S. Powell.
Corey S. Powell, Senior Editor, Discover magazine; author, God in the Equation: How Einstein Became the Prophet of the New Religious Era.
6368 - Monday, October 24, 2005, 6pm Free
Voodoo Science in the Age of Intelligent Design
A talk by Robert L. Park.
Robert L. Park, Professor of Physics, University of Maryland; author, Voodoo Science: The Road from Foolishness to Fraud.
6369 - Monday, October 31, 2005, 6pm Free
Visual Art & the Brain: At the Interface of Art and Science
Registration and further event information at www.nyas.org/brainandart
This conference will explore the nature of the science-art interface, the inspiration this interface provides to scientists and artists alike, and the impact of such interactions in areas of research and other human endeavors. The morning session will explore scientific perspectives: what is vision? How do we perceive art and why do we respond to it emotionally? The afternoon session will feature discussions with artists and scientists on communicating the beauty and power of science as well as its social and ethical implications. This event is suitable for scientists interested in art and artists interested in science.
Participants:
Margaret Livingstone - Professor of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School; author, Vision and Art: The Biology of Seeing.
V.S. Ramachandran - Director, the Center for Brain and Cognition, UC-San Diego; author, A Brief Tour of Human Consciousness: From Impostor Poodles to Purple Numbers.
David Freedberg - Professor of Art History; Director, Italian Academy, Columbia Univ.; author, The Power of Images: Studies in the History and Theory of Respons.e
Felice Frankel - Director, Envisioning Science Project, MIT; author, Envisioning Science Project: The Design and Craft of the Science Image.
Barbara Tversky - Professor of Psychology, Stanford University.
Eric Heller - Professor of Physics and Chemistry, Harvard University.
Suzanne Anker - Chair, Department of Fine Arts, School of Visual Arts; co-author, The Molecular Gaze: Art in the Genetic Age
Devorah Sperber - Visual Artist.
Torsten Wiesel - President Emeritus, Rockefeller University and Nobel Laureate.
Nell Breyer – Visual Artist, Center for Advanced Visual Studies, MIT
Co-organized by Science & the Arts and the New York Academy of Sciences. Supported in part by the David Schwarz Family and the National Science Foundation.
6370 - Saturday, November 5, 2005 10am-6pm. Registration and further event information at www.nyas.org/brainandart
Magic and Comedy about Science
Idea Café – Crossing Disciplines
Do you have an idea that you have been thinking about, something that you really want to share with others? Here is your chance to have your ideas engaged with others. Or just come to hear what others are thinking. In the tradition of great intellectual programming at The Graduate Center, CUNY, we invite you to join faculty and students in our Idea Café. Each week will have a theme. You will have a chance to sign up for your short presentation and then be joined by all others in dialogue. Beverages and light food will be available for purchase from the Café.
-- We welcome people from outside CUNY, but we will give first priority to CUNY-associated speakers.
-- We welcome any kind of presentation on that evening’s topic, limited to 5 minutes.
Do you wish to speak? Please download the form here. Fill out the form and return it to continuinged@gc.cuny.edu
6371 - Monday, November 7, 2005 7PM FREE
Big Bang: The Origins of the Universe
A talk by Simon Singh
Singh, the Cambridge-educated physicist and author of the international best-seller Fermat's Enigma, has an uncommon talent for explaining difficult science to the layman. In his new book Big Bang he leads readers on a journey back into history and out into the cosmos as he explains how scientists arrived at the remarkable theory of the universe and why it is almost certainly correct.
6583 - Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2005 7PM FREE
Perpetual Motion: Revolutions in 17th Century Science and Music
Dava Sobel and Galileo's Daughters
A performance featuring award-winning science writer Dava Sobel and the early music ensemble, Galileo's Daughters (Sarah Pillow, soprano; Mary Anne Ballard, viola da gamba). With Ronn McFarlane, lute (as Vincenzo Galilei). Dava Sobel will weave stories of science history with the music of the period.
Dava Sobel, author, Longitude, Galileo's Daughter, and The Planets.6373 - Monday, November 28, 2005 6PM FREE
Spring 2005 Events
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- Science to a Samba Beat
- Monday, January 31, 6 PM
- Einstein Simplified: Cartoons on Science
- Monday, February 28, 6 PM
- Celebrate Einstein's Birthday
- Monday, March 14
- Two of Einstein's Associates Reminisce
- 4:00 PM
- Einstein's Greatest Blunder: A Cosmic Mystery Story
- 6:00 PM
- I Spy Walter Wick
- Saturday, March 12, 3:00 PM,
- The Magic of Science
- Monday, March 28, 6 PM
- Two Plays about Einstein, Mass, and The Day Einstein Died
- Monday, April 18, 6 PM
- A Celebration of the American Physicist Richard Feynman: The Best Mind Since Einstein
- Panel Discussion
Monday, May 2, 4:30 PM- 5:30 PM
Staged reading of the full length play Moving Bodies
Monday, May 2,6PM - An Overview of the Life of Einstein and his Impact
- Monday, February 14, 6:00 PM
- Einstein and Freud: A Discourse Concerning Two New Sciences
- Monday, March 7, 6:00 PM
- How to Think Like Einstein
- Monday, March 28, 6:00 PM
- Einstein, Surveillance and Social Activism
- Monday, April 11, 6:00 PM
- Einstein's Vision of Space, Time and Parallel Universes
- Monday, May 9, 6:00 PM
Einstein Lecture Series
Science to a Samba Beat |
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Nobel Laureate chemist Roald Hoffmann and the dancers and drummers of Samba New York! celebrate Carnaval in Rio. 6373 - Monday, November 28, 2005 6PM FREE |
Einstein Simplified: Cartoons on Science |
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Illustrated lecture by Sidney Harris |
Celebrate Einstein's Birthday |
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Two of His Associates
Reminisce |
Einstein's Greatest Blunder: A Cosmic Mystery Story |
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Lecture by Lawrence M Krauss, Chair, Department of Physics,
Case Western Reserve University |
I Spy Walter Wick |
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Walter Wick, co-author of the best-selling I Spy and author of Can You See What I See?, has been entertaining and engaging children for years with his photographs and books. In this interactive slide show, he will offer a behind-the scenes look at the games, puzzles, science, and illusions that have made his books such a phenomenal success. |
| Monday, March 28,
2005 6 PM,
Room 4102. Free and appropriate for families. The Magic of Science Magic tricks that teach science, with Bob Friedhoffer |
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J. B. Edwards |
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Creating the New World Monday, April 18, 2005 |
 
J. B. Edwards |
Monday, April 18,
2005
6 PM; Elebash Recital Hall. Free Two Plays about Einstein Mass, by playwright Lauren Gunderson; Performed by Break A Leg Productions The Day Einstein Died, by playwright J. B. Edwards; Performed by Third Avenue Productions More information |
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Monday,
May 2, 2005
A Celebration of the American Physicist Richard Feynman: The Best Mind Since Einstein 4:30 PM- 5:30 PM, Elebash Recital Hall. Free Panel Discussion: Views of Richard Feynman Moderator: Dorian Devins Panelists: Freeman Dyson, Arthur Giron, Phil Platzman, Corey S. Powell |
| 6PM,
Elebash Recital Hall. Free Moving Bodies by Arthur Giron. A staged reading of the full length play. More Information |
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 National Archives and Records Administration, courtesy AIP Emilio Segrè Visual Archives |
The year 2005 will mark the 100th anniversary of Albert Einstein's Annus Mirabilis (Miracle Year) of 1905 in which he published three seminal papers which changed the nature of 20th century physics: the Special Theory of Relativity; the Theory of Brownian Motion; and the Theory of the Photoelectric Effect. (Note that Einstein received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921 "for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect.")
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Monday, February 14, 2005 6:00 PM An Overview of the Life of Einstein and his Impact. Lecture by David Cassidy, Professor of the Natural Sciences, Hofstra University, NY Author of Einstein and Our World (Prometheus Books). |
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Monday, March 7, 2005 6:00 PM Einstein and Freud: A Discourse Concerning Two New Sciences Lecture by Richard Panek, author and columnist for Natural History Magazine Author of The Invisible Century: Einstein, Freud and the Search for Hidden Variables (Viking Books). |
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Tuesday, April 5,
2005
6:00 PM (please note
new date) How to Think Like Einstein Lecture by Joe L. Kincheloe, Professor of Education, The Graduate Center Co-author with Shirley R. Steinberg and Deborah J. Tippins of The Stigma of Genius: Einstein, Consciousness, and Education (Peter Lang Publishing). |
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Monday, April 11, 2005 6:00 PM Einstein, Surveillance and Social Activism Lecture by Fred Jerome, Consultant, Gene Media Forum and founder, Media Resource Center Author of The Einstein File: J. Edgar Hoover's Secret War Against the World's Most Famous Scientist (St. Martin's Press) and Einstein On Race And Racism (Rutgers University Press). |
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Monday, May 9, 2005 6:00 PM Einstein's Vision of Space, Time and Parallel Universes Lecture by Michio Kaku, Semat Professor of Theoretical Physics, City College of New York Author of Einstein's Cosmos: How Albert Einstein's Vision Transformed Our Understanding of Space and Time (W. W. Norton & Co) and Hyperspace : A Scientific Odyssey Through Parallel Universes, Time Warps, and the 10th Dimension (Anchor Press). |
Image courtesy of
The Goethe-Institut
Mexiko
ART
The Water City: A Public Art Project in Mexico City
Wednesday, January 21, 2004 4pm
Illustrated lecture by Bernd Scherer.
More information from the Bildner Center at the Graduate Center of CUNY.
RADIO
Science Friday
Friday, January 23, 2004 2-4pm
A nationally broadcast radio show, live from our stage. Hosted by award-winning science journalist Ira Flatow.
Science
Friday home.
Hour
One: Science on Stage
Hour
Two: New York City in 2050
FUN FOR ALL
Science Vaudeville
Monday, March 1, 2004 6pm
Juggling, music, conjuring and more, with a science subtext.
GRAPHICS
Women and the Machine
Monday, March 15, 2004 5pm
Illustrated lecture by Dr. Julie Wosk.
THEATER
The Doctor's Dilemma
Tuesday, March 30, 2004 6pm
Scenes from the play by George Bernard Shaw and a panel discussion on medical ethics.
Commentary on the play.
Review
from the NY Academy of Sciences
Image courtesy of the American Institute of
Physics
THEATER
The Physicists
Monday, April 19, 2004 6pm
'Einstein' meets 'Newton' in an asylum in this comedy. A staged reading by Break A Leg Productions.
Commentary on the play
1995 review of the play.
THEATER
Partition
Monday, May 17, 2004 6 pm
Reading of a drama about math genius S. Ramanujan.
Review from Notices of the AMS.
Fall 2004 Events
- The History of Science and Magic
- symposium, Monday, September 27, 7pm
- Music
and Media, Three Evenings – conversations:
- Humboldt Festival
events:
Wide World - theatre premiere, Thursday, October 14, 6:45 pm
- Wilkommen!
- choral and orchestral music, Sunday, October 17, 3 pm
- Possible Worlds
- conversation, Monday, October 18, 6pm.
- Zyklon
- science opera, Monday, December 13, 6pm
Michel Gondry & Ed Halter, Thursday, September 30, 7 pm
Brian Eno & Todd Haynes, Thursday, October 7, 7 pm
MAGIC
The History of Science and Magic: A Golden Age Symposium
Monday, September 27, 2004 7pm
Historical perspectives on science, magic and theatre in New
York City.
MULTIMEDIA
Music and Media:
Three Evenings
Media innovators present and discuss their work.
Thursday, September 23, 2004 7pm
Laurie Anderson & Greil Marcus
Thursday, September 30, 2004 7 pm
Michel Gondry & Ed Halter
Thursday, October 7, 2004 7 pm
Brian Eno & Todd Haynes
THEATRE
Wide World
Thursday, October 14, 2004 6:45pm
Play about the meeting of Thomas Jefferson and Alexander von Humboldt.
MUSIC
Wilkommen!
Sunday, October 17, 2004 3pm
Choral and instrumental music inspired by Humboldt.
MATH &
THEATRE
Possible Worlds: mathematics, physics and playwriting
Monday, October 18, 2004 6pm
Conversation between John Mighton,
mathematician and playwright and Brian Greene, physicist/mathematician.
Moderated by ABCNews correspondent Robert Krulwich.
Co-sponsored by The Canadian Consulate General, New York.
OPERA
Zyklon
Monday, December 13, 2004 6pm
Opera about the astonishing life of chemist Fritz Haber.
Spring 2004 Events
- The Water-City: A Public Art Project in Mexico City
- Illustrated
lecture
Wednesday, January 21, 4pm - Science Friday
- live radio broadcast
Friday, January 23, 2-4pm - Science Vaudeville
- fun for all
Monday, March 1, 6pm. - Women and the Machine
- illustrated lecture
Monday, March 15, 5pm - The Doctor's Dilemma
- science theater and discussion
Tuesday, March 30, 6pm - The Physicists
- science theater
Monday, April 19, 6pm - Partition
-
science theater
Monday, May 17, 6 pm
| Image courtesy of The Goethe-Institut Mexiko |
ART
Illustrated lecture by Bernd Scherer. More information from the Bildner Center at the Graduate Center of CUNY. |
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RADIO
A nationally broadcast radio show, live from our stage. Hosted by award-winning science journalist Ira Flatow. Science
Friday home. |
| |
FUN FOR ALL
Juggling, music, conjuring and more, with a science subtext. |
| |
GRAPHICS
Illustrated lecture by Dr. Julie Wosk. |
| |
THEATER
Scenes from the play by George Bernard Shaw and a panel discussion on medical ethics.
|
| Image courtesy of the American Institute of Physics |
THEATER 'Einstein' meets 'Newton' in an asylum in this comedy. A staged reading by Break A Leg Productions.
Commentary on the play |
| |
THEATER
Reading of a drama about math genius S. Ramanujan. Review from Notices of the AMS. |
Fall 2003 Events
- Galileo: The Emotional Life of a Spacecraft
- rock concert
Wednesday, September 17, 6 and 8 pm - Science as Theater - Theater as Science
- lecture
Monday, October 20, 6 pm - Feynman Lives!
-
solo performance
Monday, October 27, 6 pm - promises.com
- play by Israel Horovitz - Monday, November 3, 7 pm
- Look Up! "Chaos" Comes to New York
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new media and music
Monday, December 1, 6 pm - Pierre and Marie: Love and Chemistry
- comedy
Monday, December 8, 6 pm
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Galileo: The Emotional Life of a Spacecraft Wednesday, September 17, 2003 6pm and 8pm Two performances. Seating is limited. Please call for reservations: 212 817-8215 Martin E. Segal Theatre Free For fourteen years the Galileo spacecraft has been our eyes and ears in its travels through our solar system, unraveling the mystery of Jupiter and its many satellites. On September 21, 2003 the craft will fly directly into the planet and be destroyed. Join us for a concert of rock, folk, and funk music, provided by Redshift Productions, in celebration of the life and successes of the Galileo spacecraft. Cosponsored by the Science and the Arts series and by the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center |
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 Lustig |
Science as Theater
- Theater as Science Monday, October 20, 2003 6 pm Room 4102, The Science Center Free Dr. Harry Lustig is professor of physics emeritus and provost emeritus at the City College of the City University of New York, Treasurer Emeritus of the American Physical Society, and Adjunct Professor of Physics and Astronomy at the University of New Mexico. Cosponsored by the Science and the Arts series, the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center and the Ph.D. Program in Theatre. |
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 Feynman |
Feynman
Lives! Monday, October 27, 2003 6 pm Elebash Recital Hall Free Who won the Nobel Prize, kept people awake by playing bongo drums at Los Alamos and wrote a best-seller? No one but the brilliant and irrepressible physicist Richard Feynman. Film and television actor Norman Parker will perform a solo tribute, delivering Feynman's wit and wisdom in his own words. No Feynman evening is complete without bongos -- we also present Tom Rutishauser and Ralph Leighton. Mr. Rutishauser, a cellist, played bongos with Feynman and taught Alan Alda to play bongos for his role as Feynman in the play “QED.” Ralph Leighton (and Feynman) co-authored the bestseller “Surely You're Joking Mr. Feynman.” Cosponsored by the Science and the Arts series and by the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center |
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 Horovitz |
promises.com Monday, November 3, 2003 7 pm Elebash Recital Hall Free On the brink of a revolutionary discovery, a liberal biologist must choose between altruism and financial success. This staged reading of award-winning playwright Israel Horovitz's promises.com will star Bob Dishy, Novella Nelson, Douglas Simmons, and Mary McCormack, directed by Michael Morris. An audience talk-back with the author, director, and cast will immediately follow the reading. Please call for reservations: 212 817-8215 This production is presented courtesy of the Ensemble Studio Theatre and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Science and Technology Project. Cosponsored by the Science and the Arts series and by the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center More Information |
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Pierre and Marie:
Love and Chemistry Monday, December 8, 2003 6 pm Elebash Recital Hall Free In a small laboratory in Paris in the 1890s, Pierre and Marie Curie discover uranium, radium and love. Pierre and Marie, adapted by Ron Clark from the original French play by Jean-Noel Fenwick, is equal parts science, history and riotously charming comedy. Join us for a reading by Break A Leg Productions. Cosponsored by the Science and the Arts series and by the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center |
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Spring 2003 Events
- Genomic Issue(s): Art and Science
- exhibition
February 26 –April 5, 2003;
opening reception, February 25, 5 - 7 pm - Thread of Life
- a new play, Monday, March 10, 6 pm
- Graphic Science
- Frank Burnet, Tuesday, March 11, 5pm
- Artist Discussion: Genomic Issue(s),
- Friday, March 14, 6 pm
- Dance, Music and DNA
- an evening of performance, Friday, March 28, 6 pm
- Science and Theater:
- new one-act dramas,
Monday, May 19, 6pm - Einstein-related events, Spring 2003
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Celebration of the 50th Anniversary
of the Discovery of DNA , Spring, 2003 The Science and the Arts series will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the discovery of DNA by Francis Crick and James Watson. The celebration will include the opening of an exhibition of art related to DNA, in the Graduate Center's Art Gallery in late February 2003. There will be three additional public events featuring theater, art, dance and music. |
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Genomic
Issue(s): Art and Science February 26 –April 5, 2003 Tuesday – Saturday, 12 – 6 pm CUNY Graduate Center Art Gallery Free Growing
public awareness of genomic issues has been accompanied by fascination,
excitement, confusion, and skepticism.
Genomic Issue(s) features the works of artists who are
exploring the rapidly changing genetic landscape of the twenty-first
century. In an age of
increasing specialization and complexity, artists play an important role
in expanding public dialog by creating images that help to demystify and
interpret the language, images, business, and implications of genomic
science. The works on display
raise questions about the relationships between art, science and society,
and suggest a broad range of issues to be navigated – economic, legal,
ethical, intellectual, and spiritual – in the rapidly expanding field of
genomic research. Marvin Heiferman and Karen Sinsheimer, Curators Genomic Issue(s): Art and Science is based on the exhibition, photoGENEsis: Opus 20, curated by Karen Sinsheimer for the Santa Barbara Museum of Art in 2002-3. Genomic Issue(s): Art and Science is funded, in part, by a grant from JGS. Inc., a not-for-profit foundation. Click for more information and views of exhibition. |
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Thread
of Life Co-sponsored by the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center and the Science Center. |
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Graphic
Science: New Ways of Taking Science to the People Frank Burnet, University of West England, UK Tuesday, March 11, 2003, 5 pm The Science Center, Room 4102 Free Frank Burnet is the Director of Graphic Science, a portfolio of innovative projects designed to take science to targeted audiences. He has also played a leading role promoting the discussion of the key issues facing individuals and organizations that undertake Science Communication activities, both within the United Kingdom and internationally. |
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Artist
Discussion: Genomic Issue(s) Friday, March 14, 2003, 6 pm Elebash Recital Hall Free The Genomic Issue(s) exhibition addresses some of the most urgent questions of our times. Are engineered identities and medical therapies a threat or a hope? Join artists Helen Donis-Keller, Steve Miller, and Eva Sutton, and Adam Bly, Editor-in-Chief of Seed magazine, for a discussion of the artwork and a lively dialog with the audience. The panel will be moderated by Michael Rush, Director of the Palm Beach Institute of Contemporary Art. |
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Dance,
Music and DNA an evening of performance Friday, March 28, 2003, 6 pm Elebash Recital Hall Free Discover
DNA-inspired dance and music. Dancer/choreographer
John Pennington, Pomona College, CA,
will perform a piece he composed in collaboration with a
molecular biologist and an artist. The Patrick Grant Group will perform a
musical suite from GENOME: The Autobiography of a Species in Twenty-Three
Movements. Lori
Belilove & Company, resident troupe of The Isadora Duncan Dance
Foundation, will present a new work, commissioned for this event. Co-sponsored by the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center and the Science Center. |
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Science
and Theater: Remembering Miss Meitner and Background new one-act dramas Monday, May 19, 2003, 6pm Elebash Recital Hall Free Join us for a performance of two new one-act dramas about the pioneers of physics. Robert Marc Friedman's "Remembering Miss Meitner" takes as its subject the role of Lise Meitner in the splitting of the atomic nucleus. Lauren Gunderson's "Background" is a dramatization of the story of cosmologist Ralph Alpher and the origins of the universe. Both plays will be performed by Break-A-Leg Productions. Co-sponsored by the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center and the Science Center. |
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Science and the Arts-Theater EINSTEIN'S DREAMS: SOLD OUT Monday, October 7, 2002, 6 PM
Elebash Recital Hall, The Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Avenue The ground-breaking writing and composing team of Joanne Sydney Lessner and Joshua Rosenblum have created an original musical adaptation of Alan Lightman's captivating and enchanting novel Einstein's Dreams. Lightman's novel caused a literary sensation when it was published in 1994, with one critic calling it "a brilliant novel of time in its marvelous flight. . . gorgeous in its writing, spellbinding and profound in its effects." Lessner and Rosenblum, the authors of the cult hit musical Fermat's Last Tango, weave Lightman's ingenious fantasy vignettes about the nature of time into an infectious musical tapestry that revolves around Einstein himself and a compelling, elusive, beautiful woman who haunts his dreams. This provocative but lighthearted new work of musical theater is guaranteed to stimulate, move and entertain. No physics background required.. |
Fall 2002 Events
- ArtSci2002
- Science & Arts Symposium, Fri - Sun, December 6-8
- The Science, History and Music of the Concertina
- Monday, Nov 4, 6 pm
- Einstein's Dreams
- World Premiere of a Staged Reading, Monday, Oct 7, 6pm
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Science and the Arts-Theater EINSTEIN'S DREAMS: SOLD OUT Monday, October 7, 2002, 6 PM
Elebash Recital Hall, The Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Avenue The ground-breaking writing and composing team of Joanne Sydney Lessner and Joshua Rosenblum have created an original musical adaptation of Alan Lightman's captivating and enchanting novel Einstein's Dreams. Lightman's novel caused a literary sensation when it was published in 1994, with one critic calling it "a brilliant novel of time in its marvelous flight. . . gorgeous in its writing, spellbinding and profound in its effects." Lessner and Rosenblum, the authors of the cult hit musical Fermat's Last Tango, weave Lightman's ingenious fantasy vignettes about the nature of time into an infectious musical tapestry that revolves around Einstein himself and a compelling, elusive, beautiful woman who haunts his dreams. This provocative but lighthearted new work of musical theater is guaranteed to stimulate, move and entertain. No physics background required.. |
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Science and the Arts-Music The Science, History and Music of the Concertina Monday, November 4, 2002, 6 PM Elebash Recital Hall, The Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Avenue Performers: Allan Atlas, The Graduate Center/CUNY Alla Borzova, The Graduate Center/CUNY David Cannata, Temple University Wim Wakker, Schumann Academy of Music, Netherlands FREE, First Come First Served This year is the 200th anniversary of the birth of the inventor of the concertina, the English physicist, Sir Charles Wheatstone, known widely for the "Wheatstone Bridge" (a device for measuring electrical properties). The speaker-musicians will discuss how the instrument works, the science and acoustics of the concertina as a "free reed" instrument, and its history and changing social status. In addition to the science, the presentation also includes a complementary program of music for the concertina from Victorian England, present-day chamber music, the early twentieth-century music hall, and the English Country Dance tradition. Sponsored by the Science Center and the CUNY Graduate Center's Ph.D. Program in Music. |
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ArtSci2002: New Dimensions in Collaborations Art & Science Collaborations, Inc. (ASCI) in partnership with the American Museum of Natural History and Continuing Education & Public Programs at the Graduate Center Friday- Sunday, December 6 - 8, 2002
In this 4th international art-sci symposium, organized by ASCI, we will continue to highlight exemplary models of
art-sci collaboration while providing an open forum for dialogue about current artscience practice and interdisciplinary collaboration in general. We anticipate there will be projects about art-in-space or even particle physics, as well as those that explore the body's inner workings via
MRI, scanning electron microscopy, and other imaging devices. We also hope to showcase new models of interdisciplinary
art-sci curriculum.
Registration required, see
http://www.asci.org/artsci2002/intro.html, for more information.
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Spring 2002 Events: Science & Theater
- Science Vaudville
- An original science revue, Monday, March 4, 6 pm
- Schr¬ödinger's Girlfriend
- A staged reading, Monday, April 22, 6 pm
- Oxygen
- A staged reading, Break-A-Leg Productions Monday, May 20, 6 pm
- Feynman F(Ph)ysics Festivaland the play QED
- March 16
- Why Einstein Would Love Spaghetti in Fundamental Physics
- April 4
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Science Vaudeville An Original Science Revue Monday, March 4, 2002, 6-7:30pm Elebash Recital Hall Free NEW: Photos of the Show! All too often science is viewed as a serious subject with little humor and fun and reserved for the laboratory and the nerds. In this original production, a group of scientists and performers present an original vaudeville flavored evening of science, song, humor, legerdemain and entertainment. The cast includes The Physics Chanteuse (Lynda Williams), the science comedian (Brian Mallow), the philosopher magician (Bob Friedhoffer) and the Techno-tainer (Joe Gizmo). Directed by Kurt Tarroff and produced by Brian Schwartz. |
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SCHRÖDINGER'S GIRLFRIEND
A Staged Reading Written by Matthew Wells Monday, April 22, 2002, 6-7:30pm Elebash Recital Hall Free Schrödinger's Girlfriend is best described as "Einstein meets 'The Blue Angel." Peppered with cabaret songs, vaudevillian comedy, and stirring moments of passion and epiphany, Schrödinger's Girlfriend is an Orton-esque romantic comedy about love, sex, and quantum physics. In 1926 the physicist Erwin Schrödinger proposed the famous non-relativistic Schrödinger equation and recognized soon thereafter that it was equivalent to Heisenberg's matrix mechanics formulation for what is now known as quantum mechanics. The play follows the odd, erotic, symbiotic relationship between Erwin Schrödinger, a physicist, and Hansi Haas, a cabaret star whose thirst for knowledge is insatiable. |
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OXYGEN A Staged Reading by Break-A-Leg Productions Monday, May 20, 2002, 6-7:30 pm Elebash Recital Hall Free At the beginning of the 21st century, the Nobel Committee for Chemistry is meeting to discuss the awarding of the first "retro" Nobel Prize as a way of marking the centenary of the first Nobel Prize in 1901. After some discussion, the committee decides to investigate the claims of three chemists, Joseph Priestley, Antoine Lavoisier, and Carl Wilhelm Scheele associated with the discovery of Oxygen. Oxygen has a relatively simple plot. The play shifts between the 18th-century characters, their process of science, politics and ambitions, and the Nobel committee's 21st century sensibilities as they argue about which of these men should be awarded the first "retro" Nobel Prize for chemistry. Oxygen is the fruit of a unique collaboration between two world-renowned chemists who are also prolific authors, Nobel laureate Roald Hoffmann and Carl Djerassi, developer of the oral contraceptive pill. |
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Delmos Jones Lecture Why Einstein Would Love Spaghetti in Fundamental Physics Sylvester James Gates, Jr. John S. Toll Professor of Physics University of Maryland Thursday, April 4, 2002, 6 PM Elebash Recital Hall Free
Professor Gates is a prominent scholar in theoretical physics, an educator and an entrepreneurial leader. His important research is in an area called string or superstring theory, also known as the Theory of Everything. This theory uses complex mathematical descriptions to explain how gravity and other natural forces are connected and it may one day allow scientists to understand a unified theory of all forces.
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Fall 2001 Events
- Science and Dance: The Physics of Ballet
- Monday October 1
- Science and the Art of Fractals
- Monday, November 5
- Science and Theater: Fermat's Last Tango
- Monday, December 3
- The Resilient Horseshoe Crab: Exhibition & Discussion
- Tuesday, December 4
Supported in part by the National Science Foundation, the Richard Lounsbery Foundation, and Con Edison.
Science & the Arts |
The Graduate Center of the City University of New York |
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