News and events

Thank you for your interest in these local Philadelphia events for November - December, 2008. I hope you are able to take advantage of the exceptional learning and cultural opportunities in Philadelphia’s area. The events are divided by The Teaching Company professionals into subject categories. Click on the subject title below to go to events related to that subject, or simply browse all of the events, which are listed chronologically within each subject.

If you would like more information on a specific activity, click on the event title. A new web page will open where you can learn more and, when appropriate, make reservations or order tickets.

If you would like to enrich your background in a topic before attending an event, I strongly recommend that you will click on the link related to the Teaching Company courses at the end of each notice. The link will take you directly to a course description on The Teaching Company website, where you can learn more about the course.

I hope you will enjoy!

*Events are subject to change without notice. Please contact the host organization for latest information.

Book Release: Essays of the Young Emerson: Voice for an Optimistic America
Now Available — Purchase online
Ashton Nichols, Ph.D., The Teaching Company professor for the course Emerson, Thoreau, and the Transcendentalist Movement, has written the foreword for a recently published collection of essays by Emerson. This collection is published by GW Zouck Publishing as part of the Optimistic America Series. The Optimistic America Series is about reprinting books from the 19th century and giving proceeds to causes matching the intent or ambitions of the original writer. The publisher's view is that books in the public domain that provide an important social message should continue to function on behalf of current issues, not to be relegated as novelty items for boutique book sections of mass commercial bookstores. Books in the series include works from such writers as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Frederick Douglass, Mary Shelley, Nathanial Hawthorne, and Walt Whitman, among others. Please purchase online.

If you are interested in this event, you may enjoy the following:
Emerson, Thoreau, and the Transcendentalist Movement >
American Mind >

Book Release: Anselm
Available beginning November 19 — Local Bookstores
Thomas Williams, Ph.D., The Teaching Company professor for the course Reason & Faith: Philosophy in the Middle Ages will release his new book Anselm, coauthored by Sandra Visser, as part of the Great Medieval Thinkers series from Oxford University Press. Book description: Sandra Visser and Thomas Williams offer a brief, accessible introduction to the life and thought of St. Anselm (c. 1033–1109). Anselm, who was Archbishop of Canterbury for the last 16 years of his life, is unquestionably one of the foremost philosopher-theologians of the Middle Ages. Indeed he may have been the greatest Christian thinker in the 800 years between Augustine and Aquinas. His keen and rigorous thinking earned him the title "The Father of Scholasticism." The influence of his contributions to ethics and philosophical theology is clearly discernible in figures as various as Thomas Aquinas, John Duns Scotus, the voluntarists of the late 13th and 14th centuries, and the Protestant Reformers. The prevalence of self-identified Anselmians—and anti-Anselmians—in contemporary philosophy of religion attests to the enduring importance of his approach to the divine nature. —Oxford University Press, publisher

If you are interested in this event, you may enjoy the following:
Reason & Faith: Philosophy in the Middle Ages >
Philosophy of Religion >

Book Release: An Introduction to Medieval Philosophy
Available in December — Local Bookstores
Father Joseph Koterski, S.J., The Teaching Company professor for the courses Natural Law and Human Nature and The Ethics of Aristotle, will release his new book. Book description: By exploring the philosophical character of some of the greatest medieval thinkers, An Introduction to Medieval Philosophy provides a rich overview of philosophy in the world of Latin Christianity. This book explores the deeply philosophical character of such medieval thinkers as Augustine, Boethius, Eriugena, Anselm, Aquinas, Bonaventure, Scotus, and Ockham; reviews the central features of the epistemological and metaphysical problem of universals; shows how medieval authors adapted philosophical ideas from antiquity to apply to their religious commitments; and takes a broad philosophical approach of the medieval era by taking account of classical metaphysics, general culture, and religious themes.—Blackwell Publishing, publisher

If you are interested in this event, you may enjoy the following:
Ethics of Aristotle >
Natural Law and Human Nature >
Reason & Faith: Philosophy in the Middle Ages >

Play: Picasso at the Lapin Agile
December 3–21, Times Vary — Delaware Theatre Company, 200 Water St., Wilmington
In a legendary bar in 1904 Paris, a chance encounter between the young Einstein and Picasso sets sparks and stars flying. What does the world look like to a genius on the verge of transforming it? Their views on sex, fame, and the future collide amidst an eccentric constellation of characters. Steve Martin's first full-length comedy for the stage delights and surprises in an evening of magical realism, quick wit, and contagious laughter. See website for performance schedule. Tickets may be purchased online or by calling 302-594-1100.

If you are interested in this event, you may enjoy the following:
European Thought and Culture in the 20th Century >
Albert Einstein: Physicist, Philosopher, Humanitarian >

Free Special Event: Public Star Party
November 8, 7:00 pm — Model Airplane Field, Valley Forge National Historical Park, Valley Forge
The Delaware Valley Amateur Astronomers is a group of enthusiastic hobbyists who live in and around Philadelphia. All star parties are on Saturday evenings, and run from sunset until 11:00 pm, weather permitting. At a star party, one can look through many different types and sizes of telescopes, and see astronomical wonders most people have never seen. We often look at far away galaxies, star clusters, and nebulae, as well as things closer to home such as the moon and planets. The telescopes and equipment belong to DVAA members. Star Parties are a public service of the DVAA and are free. Star parties are cancelled if the weather is cloudy or rainy. For more information, email DVAA Observing Chair Al Lamperti at al@dvaa.org.

If you are interested in this event, you may enjoy the following:
My Favorite Universe >
Understanding the Universe: An Introduction to Astronomy, 2nd Edition >
New Frontiers: Modern Perspectives on Our Solar System >

Seminar: An Evening on Climate Change
November 12, 5:00 pm — University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 3260 South St., Philadelphia
Penn Museum and Penn Humanities Forum offer related programming, making for a free, thought-provoking evening focused on one of the most urgent issues in the world today. The Museum Café offers light supper fare from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., when guests can refuel for the second program. Make it a night! At 5:00 pm, Dale Jamieson, Professor of Environmental Studies and Philosophy, New York University, talks about the challenges facing humanists who try to address the topic of global climate change. This program is part of the 2008–2009 Penn Humanities Forum on Change. To preregister for this first program, call 215-573-8280. At 7:30 pm there will be a summary of an intensive two-day scholarly meeting with more than a dozen active investigators, to consider geologic, archaeological, and historical archives that can shed light on the impact of past climate change on human civilization. Speakers will summarize the main points of agreement and disagreement, and offer an opportunity for questions and discussion. To preregister for this portion of the program, please call 215-898-2680. Both programs are free.

If you are interested in this event, you may enjoy the following:
Earth's Changing Climate >
Nature of Earth: An Introduction to Geology >
How the Earth Works >

Free Lecture: "The Many Lives of Charles Darwin"
November 20, 6:00 pm — University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 3260 South St., Philadelphia
Janet Browne, Aramont Professor in the History of Science at Harvard University, is author of the critically acclaimed two volume Charles Darwin biography, Charles Darwin: Voyaging (1995), about the naturalist's youth and years on the Beagle, and Charles Darwin: The Power of Place (2002), covering his post-Beagle years through the publication of his theory of evolution and beyond. In this program, Dr. Browne shares what she believes is most important about the life and work of Charles Darwin—and why his influence continues to resound 150 years after the printing of his seminal work, On the Origin of Species. The program is cosponsored by Penn Museum, the University of Pennsylvania's School of Arts and Sciences, School of Medicine, School of Engineering, and the Provost's Office. The program is free, but reservations are suggested. Please call 215-898-2680 to reserve your place.

If you are interested in this event, you may enjoy the following:
Theory of Evolution: A History of Controversy >
History of Science: 1700–1900 >

Special Event: Joel N. Bloom Observatory Events
Various Dates, Various Times — Rooftop, The Franklin Institute, 222 N. 20th St., Philadelphia
The newly-refurbished Joel N. Bloom Observatory on the rooftop of The Franklin Institute is open to the public for a variety of sun and star-gazing opportunities. Weather permitting, solar observation hours are 10:00 am–3:30 pm daily. On the second Wednesday evening of each month, the observatory is open at 9:00 pm. The second Thursday evening of each month features Night Skies in the Observatory with Derrick Pitts, Chief Astronomer for The Franklin Institute Science Museum.

If you are interested in this event, you may enjoy the following:
My Favorite Universe >
Dark Matter, Dark Energy: The Dark Side of the Universe >
Understanding the Universe: An Introduction to Astronomy, 2nd Edition >

Exhibit: Surviving: The Body of Evidence
Through May 3, Museum Hours — University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 3260 South St., Philadelphia
Penn Museum takes an up close and personal look at the scientific study of evolution with this challenging new traveling exhibition that puts you—and your fellow humans—at the center of the inquiry, on a journey of self-discovery. The exhibit begins with the premise that you—and your fellow humans—are survivors. Your body holds the evidence. The process of evolution and its outcomes have had a profound impact on every aspect of your daily lives. And the process continues. From Fit for Life, a multimedia introduction to inherited human strengths and capabilities, to an examination of Our Place in the Natural World, the exhibition considers you, the human being, in a wider context. In Finding Your Human Ancestors, you'll be able to touch and examine more than 100 casts of fossil bones from the primate and human evolutionary record—evidence that scientists use to better understand our ancient past. In Witnessing Evolution, some of the world's most brilliant scientists and revolutionary thinkers put voice to their breakthrough theories in dramatic reenactments. Then, find out more about the particulars—why your back may ache, your son's wisdom teeth are impacted, or your sister had trouble giving birth. Take stock in the imperfect, but remarkable, human being that you are today, in We are not Perfect, but We are OK. Where do you, and your species, go from here? Geneticists, evolutionary biologists, nanotechnology engineers, even school children, share what they think in We Keep Evolving—and invite you to make a prediction about our shared evolutionary future.

If you are interested in this event, you may enjoy the following:
Theory of Evolution: A History of Controversy >
Biological Anthropology: An Evolutionary Perspective >

Free Lecture: "Breaking the Mind Barrier: The Archaeology and Evolution of Our Social Brain"
November 13, 6:00 pm — University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 3260 South St., Philadelphia
Professor Clive Gamble, Department of Geography, Royal Holloway College, University of London, argues that the time has come for archaeologists and other scholars to focus on the "bigger picture" of human evolution, investigating the minds and emotions of our earliest ancestors. Drawing upon a wide range of disciplines, he answers the question, "When did hominid brains become human minds?" The lecture is free. An optional reception to follow cost $25 per person with cash bar; free for Museum members at the Fellows level ($500) and above. For more information, call 215-898-4890.

If you are interested in this event, you may enjoy the following:
Roots of Human Behavior >
Theory of Evolution: A History of Controversy >
Biology and Human Behavior: The Neurological Origins of Individuality, 2nd Edition >

Over events

Nikola Tesla Inventors Club
December 21, 2008

Free Library of Philadelphia
1901 Vine St
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Skyline Room - 4th Floor
From 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM

This will be the first meeting and the topics to be discussed will be the life of Nikola Tesla and the missing documents surrounding Tesla's work. Presenting, will be Thomas Fetterman, a successful, independent inventor who lives in the Philadelphia area. Tom has a rare combination of a brilliant inventor's mind and a strong business sense. I met Tom through the American Society of Inventors, where he serves on the board. Everyone who wants to share any information about Tesla and who want to eventually be guest speakers should send us their information at nicklonchar@gmail.com or nikolatesla.inventorsclub@gmail.com. For more information about this event and future events organized by Nikola Tesla Inventors Club please visit www.nikolateslainventorsclub.com.