
Origins: The Big Questions, Disagreements and Laughter Amongst Scientists, and Hangin' with Frank Wilczek
By Alaina G. Levine
While the nation is embroiled in economic woe and stimulus skepticism, famed physicist and author Lawrence Krauss launched a new type of stimulus plan in the desert of Arizona last weekend that has guaranteed results. The currency here was not money, but rather something some might argue provides much more wealth than any lucre: scientific knowledge, thought and discussion on the origins of everything.
How did the Universe Begin? How did life arise? How

Organized by Krauss, who until 2008 was a professor of cosmology at Case Western Reserve University, the symposium served as the kick-off event of Arizona State University’s (ASU) Origins Initiative, for which Krauss now serves as Director. The Symposium, which brought scholars (including Nobel Laureates) together from such diverse disciplines as physics, linguistics, planetary science, physical anthropology, and evolutionary biology, was organized with the most basic question in mind: Where do we come from?
For three days scientists gave lectures and led discussions and arguments on the fundamental questions of our origins, from the dawn of the universe to the genesis of social networks. While much of the Symposium was limited to the scientists themselves, the entire experience was webcast live and will be archived on the Origins (origins.asu.edu) website for anyone to view in the future.

Pre-symposium activities included a panel discussion for ASU students with significant science writers and editors from such publications as The New York Times, Scientific American, and The Washington Post. Claudia Dreifus, a Contributing Writer with the New York Times Science Times, commenced the panel by declaring "Lawrence Krauss has managed to assemble the largest amount of intellectual and argumentative people in the desert since Moses.
Tomorrow: Hangin' with Mr. Wilczek
(images courtesy of Origins-Edge)
Comments
Post a Comment