Beyond Belief conference

Overview

The Beyond Belief conference "is an annual meeting organized by The Science Network (TSN), which brings together a community of concerned scientists, philosophers, scholars from the humanities, and social commentators to explore the human quest for the Good Life. The Science Network shares Carl Sagan’s vision of science as a candle in the dark. TSN is committed to enlarging the constituency of reason by making programs about science. More programs, more candles, more light."

Beyond Belief #1

Took place in 2006; no other information at present

Beyond Belief: Enlightenment 2.0

Took place October 31 - November 1, 2007

• Wikipedia
• Issuepedia for ethical & political discussion
• speaker list

Videos

There may be additional sessions not yet found & catalogued.

2007-10-31 Wednesday

• Session 1 (2:48:08) (intro has an interesting quote from the 10th century)
  • 0:04:20 Darrin McMahon: is "Enlightenment 1.0" in need of an upgrade?
  • 0:25:38 Margaret Jacob: some historical background on the Enlightenment, focusing on the 1680s
  • 0:40:54 Edward Slingerland: more historical background –: the real Confucius...
    • 1:12:30 Paul Churchland makes a comment
  • 1:21:25 Don Rutherford
    • 1:24:26 David Brin makes a comment
  • 1:51:07 Daniel Dennett: responds to claims that the books by the "Four Horsemen" are insulting etc...
  • 2:19:16 David Sloan Wilson: "What Happened to the Enlightenment?" and other questions.
• Session 2 (4:14:18)
  • 0:00:30 Jonathan Haidt: Enlightenment 2.0 requires Morality 2.0... http://jonathanhaidt.com
  • 0:31:03 Michael Shermer
  • 0:53:40 Panel: Shermer, Wilson, Haidt, Dennett
  • 1:38:20 Gregory Clark: history of the world economy; The Malthusian Trap
  • 2:05:44 Deirdre McCloskey
  • 2:43:07 Stuart Kauffman
  • 3:24:48 Sean Carroll: eternity
  • 3:41:45 David Albert expresses a kind of megalomania on behalf of physics
  • 4:09:30 Sean responds

2007-11-01 Thursday

• Session 1 (4:04:02)
  • 0:04:30 Peter Atkins: "Science as Culture"; cosmology
  • 0:40:10 Sir Harold Kroto: Galileo is turning in his grave...
  • 1:20:18 Scott Atran: mainstream news follows a power-law distribution...
  • 2:00:15 break
  • 2:00:55 Lee Silver: defining religion; some examples of actual street-beliefs around the world...
  • 2:27:00 Greg M. Epstein: humanism as a progressive life-stance, as a necessary part of E2.0
  • 2:51:38 Ronald de Sousa: compares/contrasts religion and science...
  • 3:12:00 Patricia Churchland: neuroethics
• Session 2 (3:43:58)
  • 0:01:20 Rebecca Newberger Goldstein
  • 0:32:30 John Allen Paulos discusses why arguments for God "just don't add up"
  • 1:03:54 VS Ramachandran: C.P. Snow's "two cultures", and the human brain as an interface between the two; synesthesia...
  • 1:41:00 Adam Kolber: law and neurotechnology
  • 2:07:12 Jonathan Gottschall: "Literature, Science, and a New Humanities" (more on the "two cultures")
  • 2:35:42 David Brin
    • just David Brin video segment
  • 3:00:30 Robert Winter

2007-11-02 Friday

• Session 1 (4:03:24)
  • 0:02:40 Sam Harris: dislikes the term "atheism"...
  • 1:04:50 Daniel Lord Smail: apparently the public schools in NYC teach history as beginning in 4000 BC...
  • 1:49:42 Jeff Hawkins: a quick thought about entrepreneurs and getting things (specifically, E2.0) done
  • 1:56:18 PZ Myers speaks from the audience, in response to questions
    • 2:01:08 Sam Harris responds to one of Myers's points
  • 2:03:34 [ break in continuity ]
  • 2:09:15 moderator dialogue with Dennett
  • 3:31:29 moderator dialogue with Sir Harold Kroto (seems to cut off a bit prematurely)