The Conway Memorial Lecture 2016. Lawrence Krauss - Hidden Realities: The Greatest Story Ever Told.. So Far

When Vincent Van Gogh painted starry night, he saw a very different world than you and I. But in turn we all experience the world in a way that is shielded from the deeper realities hidden underlying everyday phenomena. If we lived in a ice crystal on a window during a winter morning, the direction along the spine of the crystal would seem special. The forces we would feel in every other direction would be different. We might even make up some mythical stories about why this was so, but seen from the outside we know that apparent special direction is merely circumstantial, not fundamental. We might also not anticipate our fate when the afternoon sun might later shine on the window.

Could the world we experience be eerily similar?

The story of science’s effort to uncover these hidden realities involves the greatest intellectual journey ever taken by humans, from Plato through Einstein and beyond. A tale ripe with drama and surprise, it has implications for our our understanding of space and time, our origins, and our future, and ultimately addresses that fundamental question: Why are we here?

Lawrence Krauss is a prolific and popular writer and an indefatigable fighter for science and critical thinking. At Arizona State University, he is Foundation Professor in the School of Earth and Space Exploration and Physics Departments, Associate Director of the Beyond Center, and Co-Director of the Cosmology Initiative. He is also Director of the exciting new Origins Initiative, which explores questions ranging from the origin of the Universe to the origins of human culture and cognition. He has studied and explained matters from the microscopic to astronomical. In performing with the Cleveland Orchestra, judging at the Sundance Film Festival, and his Grammy nominated notes for Telarc Records, Krauss has also bridged the chasm between science and popular culture.

Chair:

A. C. Grayling is an English philosopher who founded and became the first Master of New College of the Humanities, an independent undergraduate college in London. Grayling is a former Professor of Philosophy at Birkbeck, University of London, where he taught from 1991. He is also a supernumerary fellow of St Anne's College, Oxford.

Grayling is the author of about 30 books on philosophy, including The Refutation of Scepticism(1985), The Future of Moral Values (1997), The Meaning of Things (2001), and The Good Book (2011). He is a Trustee of the London Library, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He is also a director of and contributor to Prospect Magazine.

FAQs

Are there ID requirements or an age limit to enter the event?

We will have a bar on the night. You will only need to bring ID for purchasing alcohol on the premises.

What are my transport/parking options getting to the event?

You can find how to get here on our website: Visiting Us

What can/can't I bring to the event?

We don't have any restrictions, but please remember we do not have an attended cloakroom, so please only bring what you need which will fit neatly under your seats.

Where can I contact the organiser with any questions?

Please use the contact button at the bottom of this page or email us from the contact page on our website: Ethical Society Events.

Is my registration/ticket transferrable?

Yes. But you can also ask for the ticket to be cancelled and released by us by using the contact form below.

Do I have to bring my printed ticket to the event?

No. We will be accepting electronic entry from a device, or failing that, we'll have a list of names on the door to check you and your party in.

What is the refund policy?

All the tickets are free, but we expect the demand for this event to be high. If you cannot attend please contact us at least 48 hours before the day of the event, as it will be difficult to re-allocate tickets to our waiting list at short notice.

The name on the registration/ticket doesn't match the attendee. Is that okay?

As long as you know the name of the person who registered the tickets, or you bring your ticket in physical or electronic form to the event, that should suffice.