The Veritas Forum

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Can Robots Become Human? | Rosalind Picard & Michael Littman Dec 16, 2017

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The line between science fiction and reality grows increasingly thin as artificial intelligence (AI) becomes more prominent. While some fear an impending robot apocalypse, others wonder what this new technology means for everyday life. At a recent Veritas Forum at Brown University, Rosalind Picard (MIT) and Michael Littman (Brown) discussed the implications of AI for our understanding of what it means to be human.
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The Language of God | Francis Collins Dec 10, 2017

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Dr. Francis Collins, world-renowned geneticist, physician, and Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is uniquely positioned at the intersection of science and faith. Formerly an atheist, his New York Times best-selling book, The Language of God, chronicles his conversion to Christianity and its impact on his scientific practice. In this talk, given at a Veritas Forum at Caltech, Collins explores the evidence that now informs his worldview.
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You Are What You Love | James K.A. Smith Dec 02, 2017

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What do you want? Our answer to this question, argues author and philosopher James K.A. Smith (Calvin), reveals the habits that shape our lives. Yet we often remain unaware of those habits and how they motivate us. In this talk, from a recent Veritas Forum at the University of Michigan, Smith helps us to recognize the structure of desire and reorient its place within the human person.
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Is There Truth Beyond Science? | John Lennox & Larry Shapiro Nov 18, 2017

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This October, over 1,000 students and community members packed out Shannon Hall at the University of Wisconsin in Madison to hear John Lennox (Oxford) and Larry Shapiro (UW-Madison) discuss, "Is There Truth Beyond Science?” In a conversation that featured as much humor as sincerity, Lennox and Shapiro fostered a unique space for honest dialogue and reflection, even in places of disagreement.
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God, Math, and the Multiverse | Satyan Devadoss Nov 11, 2017

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In 2011, The Veritas Forum at Caltech hosted Satyan Devadoss, who, at the time, was an associate professor of math at Williams College. Devadoss talks about String Theory the way most people talk about their favorite piece of art. In the numbers and symbols of mathematical equations, he experiences beauty, unity, and wonder. In our post-Enlightenment world, we forget that the beauty in Michelangelo's sculptures draws from the same well as the beauty on display in quantum mechanics. When we learn to reunite these often divided realms, we may regain our vision of the Wellspring. Devadoss helps us bring these together in this wonderful Forum event.
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Live the Questions | N.T. Wright & Heidi Maibom Nov 04, 2017

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Earlier this year, we hosted New Testament theologian N.T. Wright in dialogue with professor of philosophy Heidi Lene Maibom at the Veritas Forum at the University of Cincinnati.
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Unlike many Forums, where dialogue focuses on a singular topic or question, this Forum widened the purview. In the vein of a ‘greatest hits’ album, we asked these scholars the most fundamental human questions: Who are we? How do we know what we know? What is the meaning of life? While each of these questions could occupy an entire Forum, the scope of this conversation allowed for a meaningful survey of two different worldviews, while cultivating a space for further discussion.

Searching for Truth Through Fantasy | Madeleine L'Engle Oct 28, 2017

Show notes

Madeleine L'Engle, award-winning author of A Wrinkle in Time, defines "fantasy" as that which "pushes us, opens us, makes us aware of who we are and who the other is.” In this recording from 1998 at a Veritas Forum at UC Santa Barbara, L’Engle draws from her experiences in school, church, and life to explore the relationship between fantasy and truth.
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Can a Scientist Believe in Miracles? | Ian Hutchinson & Robert Lue Oct 14, 2017

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Last Spring, Ian Hutchinson (MIT) and Robert Lue (Harvard) sat down at Harvard’s Science Center with Anne Harrington (Harvard) to discuss miracles. Do they happen? Does scientific thinking undermine belief in them? What does the existence (or non-existence) of miracles mean for the larger discussion on science and faith?
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Overcoming Echo Chambers | Robert George & Hamza Yusuf Oct 07, 2017

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Can Christians and Muslims get along in America? That’s the question we asked Christian intellectual and Princeton law professor Robert George and Islamic scholar and Zaytuna College president Shaykh Hamza Yusuf at the San Francisco Jazz Center this Spring. George and Yusef, who are good friends, believe that unity across religious backgrounds is not only possible but also necessary, and their friendship serves as an embodiment of that belief. Over the course of their conversation, moderated by Trae Stephens, principal at Founders Fund, they discuss unresolved tensions, the role of religion in civic life, and a potential path forward.
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Designing Your Life Worth Living | Dave Evans & Bill Burnett Oct 02, 2017

Show notes

Bill Burnett and Dave Evans teach the most popular class at Stanford, "Designing Your Life." It helps students reframe the question, "How do I live a meaningful life?" Burnett, an atheist, and Evans, a Christian, believe the key to a joyful and fulfilling life starts with thinking like a designer. At a recent Veritas Forum, Burnett and Evans, co-authors of a New York Times Best Seller, sat down with Berkeley professor Amani Nuru-Jeter to discuss how to design a worthwhile life and how they do it themselves from their respective worldviews.
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