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An Extraordinary Dance of Science – “Dance Your Ph.D.” Performance at the AAAS Conference in Chicago |
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bridges vol. 21, April 2009 / Noteworthy Information
By Victoria Minnich
Amidst the usual "dance routines" of plenary speakers, panel sessions, and meetings at the American Association for the Advancement of
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Images from "Dance Your Ph.D."
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Science (AAAS) annual conference in Chicago, a nontraditional venue item "Dance Your Ph.D" made its second appearance on the evening of February 13. Embraced by the dimly lit, trinket-adorned vaults of Architectural Artifacts, this elegant, action-packed showcase of performances was the culmination of an unlikely collaboration between groovy scientists and the acclaimed dance company Pilobolus.
Performance of the scientists' winning entries in an international, YouTube-distributed "Dance Your Ph.D." contest was the brainchild of Gonzo Scientist John Bohannon. In the spirit of breaking down the stereotype of university researchers as secluded lab rats, Science Magazine's contributing correspondent Bohannon challenged the academic community to metaphorically translate their Ph.D. dissertations using their own bodies, and to communicate their discoveries through the less-constrained medium of dance. The four winning scientists, who were selected by a panel of Harvard professors and Pilobolus artistic directors, worked closely with the dance company for a week. The end result was an unforgettable spectacle of "This is Science," which engaged the audience in comparing the original choreographies with the wildly interpretive representations by Pilobolus. Although the professional dancers outperformed the scientists in the realms of agility and grace, the academics deserved credit for being more metaphorically attuned to
the nuances of their research.
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Dorkbot - Doing “Strange Things with Electricity” from New York to Linz |
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bridges vol. 21, April 2009 / Noteworthy Information
By Jonathan David Farley
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| Inventor Hansi Raber (above) presents his invention, "Ice Cube Tattoo" (below).
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The Danube is again blue at night, with the lights from Linz's famed Ars Electronica Center on the north bank and the sister lights of the Lentos Museum on the south. Sometimes the river is green, sometimes red. Tonight it was going to get redder.
I got off the tram at Hauptplatz, not far from Kepler's house - for years a wreck, but recently renovated for the science communication series "The Kepler Salon" - and wandered into the Altstadt. I was looking for a place called "Roter Krebs." As one would expect from an artists' enclave, there was in fact no sign. I saw what appeared to be a manikin on the first floor and figured this must be the place.
Inside, I went up the stairs and saw a group of people drinking. I looked for Tim Boykett, an Australian with an easygoing (an American might say "Californian") attitude who had gotten his Ph.D. where I now work, at Johannes Kepler Universität's Institut für Algebra, and stayed in Linz to do math and strange art. Strange electronic art.
While "Dorkbot" started in New York City in 2000, Tim's art group, Time's Up, started Dorkbot in Linz in 2003. After a long hiatus, it was time for another Dorkbot.
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Call for Proposals for the Euroscience Open Forum (ESOF2010) in Torino, July 2-7, 2010 |
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bridges vol. 20, April 2009 / Noteworthy Information
Hosted by Euroscience , ESOF is a European meeting dedicated to research and scientific innovation, which takes place every two years in a major European city.
ESOF2010 in Torino
The meeting being held in Torino in July 2010 will focus on important issues that Europe will have to face in the field of science and technology. In addition to a core Scientific Program offering conferences, workshops, and keynote lectures, it will feature four main programs: an outreach program aimed at the general public (Science in the City); and plenty of activities specifically geared to young researchers (Career Program), to potential entrepreneurs and investors in highly innovative business (Science to Business), and to science communicators (Science to Media).
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IWM Calls for Application |
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bridges vol. 21, April 2009 / Noteworthy Information
The Institute for Human Sciences (IWM Institut für die Wissenschaften vom Menschen) awards research fellowships to young scholars at the beginning of their academic career to pursue their individual projects while working "in residence" as members of the international, multidisciplinary scholarly community of the IWM, which consists of approximately 40 Visiting Fellows and Junior Visiting Fellows every year.
Conditions
Scholars working on projects related to the topics "United Europe - Divided Memory" or "Religion and Secularism" are invited to spend six months at the IWM. The Fellows will receive a stipend of €10,500 for Ph.D. candidates or €15,000 for postdocs to cover travel, accommodations in Vienna, health insurance, and incidentals. The IWM will provide the Fellows with an office and access to e-mail and Internet, in-house research facilities, and other relevant resources in Vienna.
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