A Dialogue about the Brain and Religious Belief
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Monday, May 22 AT 6:30 PM CT / 5:30 Pm ET / 4:30 PM PT
A virtual discussion exploring the work and potential implications of the Cognitive Neuroscience of Religious Cognition project, along with other related questions. Bill Newsome (Neuroscience | Stanford) and Jordan Grafman (Cognitive Neuroscience | Shirley Ryan Ability Lab & Northwestern) will open the conversation.
What is the Faculty Roundtable?
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Faculty Roundtables began in 2002 and have since hosted thousands of faculty members at Harvard, MIT, Yale, Brown, and other universities. The Faculty Roundtable at Northwestern launched in July 2020 with presentations given by Dartmouth’s Marcelo Gleiser (Physics & Astronomy) and MIT's Cullen Buie (Mechanical Engineering).
The goal of a Roundtable is to foster cross-disciplinary community and dialogue among faculty that explores the intersection of current scholarship with various ethical, worldview, and religious or non-religious perspectives. The former Dean of Harvard College, Harry Lewis, commented that Roundtables are “the kind of night that should be the norm in academia — serious conversation among smart people about contested issues, with pretty much everyone who spoke and counter-spoke both witty and civil.” Hopefully, these interactions will spark innovative new approaches to a diverse set of academic and personal questions. Ideally, conversations begun at Faculty Roundtable dinners will continue in classrooms, seminars, discussion groups, coffee shops, and in every corner of Evanston and beyond.
Roundtables are typically in-person events at a university faculty club or analogous venue. The event includes dinner, wine, dessert, and discussion after brief remarks from our presenters. At the close of our evening, we include time for questions and comments directed to each other and to our presenters.
Faculty Roundtables are made possible by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation, a philanthropic catalyst for discoveries related to the big questions of human purpose and ultimate reality. Additional funding has been provided by generous scholars and donors invested in the intersection of science and faith.
The Faculty Roundtable at Northwestern is co-chaired by:
Richard Lueptow, Mechanical Engineering | Senior Associate Dean of McCormick School of Engineering
Daniel Rodriguez, Law | Former Dean of Pritzker Law School
Ken Shull, Material Science & Engineering
Keith Tyo, Chemical & Biological Engineering
Sean Ebels-Duggan, Philosophy
Alex Lee, Law
Tahera Ahmad, Associate University Chaplain | Director of Interfaith Engagement
Mickey Sanchez, Director, Faculty Roundtable at Northwestern
If you have ideas or suggestions and would like to help shape the content and speakers of Faculty Roundtables at Northwestern, please let us know as we’re looking for input on how to best utilize The John Templeton Foundation grant for future Roundtables at Northwestern.
Though the event is by invitation only, we are more than glad to work with you to welcome your colleagues to participate. Please contact us for more information or requests.
Reviews from past Roundtables
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Reviews from past Roundtables at other Universities
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The Faculty Roundtable at Northwestern is Coordinated by:
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Mickey Sanchez, Campus Staff Minister, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship: Graduate & Faculty Ministries
Chris Vaaga, Postdoc, Department of Neurobiology