OK. I’ve gone over the IdeaFestival lineup in great detail and have chosen the stuff I’m most excited about and most hopeful I get to see. Here goes:

Thursday September 25
Another Day in the Frontal Lobe: Katrina Firlik is part of a small select group of
females in the high-pressure field of neurosurgery and was the first
woman to be admitted to the neurosurgery residency program at the
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Firlik, also an accomplished
author, will share her insights on the human brain…and first-hand
experiences; including the highs, lows and often complex ethical issues
surrounding her work.


Puzzled: Will Shortz…is the puzzle editor for the New York Times,
puzzle master for NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday, best-selling author and
the only person to hold a degree in Enigmatology…the study of puzzles
(OK…we didn’t know what this meant at first either). Join Shortz for
a rollicking journey into the world of puzzles and the minds that
design and solve them.

The Rise and Fall of Hyperpowers: Amy Chua, gifted author and professor at Yale Law
School, explores the dynamics and rise and fall of that select group of
global superpowers that, according to her book, have included “…those
few societies that amassed such extraordinary military and economic
might that they essentially dominated the world.” From the Persians,
Romans and Chinese to the Mongol Empire, the British and modern times,
Chua reveals the history, tracks the success and decline of these
powers and the implications for all of us in the 21st Century.

Friday September 26
Studio Arne Quinze: Belgian artist and designer Arne Quinze had been
described as “a nomad in body and soul”. Quinze in his work….from
furniture to urban design…. succeeds in blending opposites such as past
and future, and constantly generates crossovers between the most
diverse disciplines, as if in a maelstrom.



Recent public installations include “Uchronia” (2006), a gigantic
sculpture exclusively built with wooden slats and nails in the Black
Rock Desert, Nevada, as part of the 2006 Burning Man Festival and
“Cityscape” (2007), an equally impressive sculpture, conceived as a
frozen movement meant to revive a problematic neighborhood in the
Belgian capital.



At the 2008 Idea Festival, Quinze will present a fascinating overview
of his work in art, design, and interventions in the contemporary urban
landscape. For Quinze, the future is today, and the seemingly
impossible is what he pursues as the inevitable. His presentation will
offer a truly innovative vision of how and where we live, and will
include a proposal for a transformative project on Louisville’s
waterfront.

The Science and Wonder of Magic:
There is no shortage of mystery and amazement in the
world.  So why do we need magic tricks?  Why does every kid go through
a magic phase?  And why do we cheerfully go into a theater to have
someone abuse our cognitive skills?  Magic:  what good is it?



Teller is an internationally renowned illusionist, writer and
comedian…. perhaps best known as the silent half (yes…he will speak
at IF) of the comedy magic duo Penn & Teller. He is a noted author,
authority on the history of magic and has appeared in a wide range of
films and television shows. Teller takes the stage at the 2008 IF for a
fascinating glimpse into the science behind magic, the great illusions
and sleights of hand.

Proust Was a Neuroscientist: Jonah Lehrer at age twenty-six is editor at large
for Seed Magazine, an author, a graduate of Columbia University and a
Rhodes Scholar. At IF Lehrer will expand on his perspective that
science is not the sole route to knowledge and understanding. In fact,
he notes that art has often paved the way to many breakthroughs. And in
particular, as he writes in his recent book on the subject “…when it
comes to understanding the brain, art got there first”.

IF After Dark – Vova’s World: Join international juggling prodigy Vova Galchenko
for a unique multimedia event featuring both his amazing juggling
abilities as well as a fascinating discussion on a number of topics
ranging from the “art” of juggling and the connection between skill and
success to what it’s like to leave your family to come to America and
become what Time Magazine has called “the best juggler there has ever
been”.

Saturday September 27
Serious Play: Top game designer and future forecaster Jane
McGonigal is very serious about play. She is an award winning digital
game designer exploring and writing about the immense power of games,
virtual worlds and related immersive experiences to solve real-world
problems, change reality and shape the future. Known as the “queen bee
of alternative reality games” Jane will discuss her ideas, work and
cutting-edge “…massively-collaborative computer games that use play to
create global collective intelligences”.

The World in Your Pocket: The war over the three screens is over. Mobile won
in a rout. But how does mobile stack up against television and PC as a
marketing medium? Marketing pundits have proclaimed each January as the
start of “the year that mobile breaks out”. However, January 2008 felt
different given Apple’s iPhone phenomenon, Google’s attempt to buy
radio spectrum and the realization by the marketing industry that over
a billion new middle class consumers world-wide will be using the
mobile phone as their primary interactive screen over the next 6-8
years. This IF event, with international mobile marketing expert John
Gauntt, will highlight where the money and the action is with mobile
marketing; not only in the US but across the globe…now and in the
future.

Who Helps Who…and Why? The Nature of Goodness: Understanding the nature of goodness is at the heart
of understanding what it means to be human. And goodness is also not
unique to humans…scientists have seen it in everything from slime
molds and ground squirrels to chimpanzees. But why? Lee Dugatkin
explores the intriguing history behind this question, taking
participants on a surprising ride through 100 years of
science…including exploring how politics, philosophy, religion,
kinship and even mental illness enter the fray; complicating, for close
to a century, attempts to find scientific answers to these questions.

What sessions are you going to?