Tag: free

William James – What Makes a Life Significant?

From the announcement about this public event:

What Makes a Life Significant? A panel discussion in memory of William James
Monday, April 26th, 2010; reception at 5 pm, discussion 6 – 7:30 pm
CGIS South Concourse and Tsai Auditorium

A little over a century ago, the Harvard psychologist and philosopher William James gave a public lecture entitled “What Makes a Life Significant?” In honor of the hundredth anniversary of his death and to celebrate his enduring influence, we have invited a panel of distinguished scholars to revisit the question posed in that lecture from a range of historical and contemporary starting points. What do we, in the 21st century, think “makes a life significant”? What can the academy contribute to an exploration of that question?

James Kloppenberg (Charles Warren Professor of American History) will introduce and moderate a star-studded panel that includes philosopher Sissela Bok (Senior Visiting Fellow, Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies), Louis Menand (Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Professor of English), and Cornel West (Class of 1943 University Professor at Princeton).

The panel will begin at 6:00 pm, but we invite you to join us at 5:00 pm for an “afternoon tea” reception and an opportunity to view an exhibition of rare materials from Harvard’s Houghton Library and Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments.

Venue: Harvard’s Center for Government and International Studies (CGIS) South Building, lower level (1730 Cambridge St, Cambridge MA); the reception will be held in the Concourse, and the panel discussion will take place in the Tsai Auditorium.

This has some promise to be an interesting and lively panel discussion. It is an unusual but neat way to highlight the century mark of William James ‘ passing.

Origins of Agriculture Talk – Harvard Feb 18, 2010

Where our Food Comes From: The Origins of Agriculture

Bruce Smith (Smithsonian) and Michele Holbrook (Harvard)

RESCHEDULED  – now will be held Thursday Feb. 18 –  6:00 PM – Geo Lecture Hall, Harvard University

Free public lecture.

The transition from hunting and gathering to food production  represents a seismic shift in human history.  With it, we transformed the world. But how and when did this happen, and why is this important to understanding our current human condition?   Dr. Bruce Smith, Curator of North American Archaeology at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, will discuss his current research on agricultural origins – and how the story is more complicated than you’d expect.    Followed by a discussion moderated by Noel Michele Holbrook, Professor of Biology and Charles Bullard Professor of Forestry at Harvard.

Reception to follow in the HMNH galleries.

This lecture is the second in the “Food for Thought”  lecture series that explores the past, present, and future of our relationship to food and food production. The third and final program will be held on Feb. 23, “From Cooking Food to Cooking the Planet:  Growing Constraints to Food Production” with Samuel Myers.

Presented by Harvard Museum of Natural History
26 Oxford Street
Cambridge MA 02139
617-495-2773

http://www.hmnh.harvard.edu

Middlesex Fells Wildflowers Walk

There will be a nature walk in the Middlesex Fells on September 21, from 9:15 to 11:30. The focus will be the fall flowers that can be found around the Bellevue Pond area. The walk will be lead by the every interesting and full of information Boot Boutwell.
The walk is free. Meet at the Bellevue Pond Parking lot off of South Border Road in Medford.
In the case of heavy rain the walk will be cancelled.