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First the Herbst Theatre, Joe's Barbershop, the Make-Out Room, the Beat Museum and Broadway Studios. And now the Mechanics Institute Library and Chess Room. I've discovered the secret: Litquake is a chameleon. No scene is alien, no setting off limits.
Tonight's event was entitled Where the Mind Meets the Brain. Ransom Stephens put this one together to solve a personal problem; he is using you, Litquake (and I know you like it). He asked this question of his own fictional characters: What came first: matter or consciousness? Since his characters could not provide a satisfactory answer Ransom gathered a philosopher, a neurologist, a psychologist, and a noetic scientist to sort it out for him. No offense to Ransom, but I can't help but think Litquake had something to do with these specialists' participation. I wish I had a literary festival to help me with my problems. Who needs a shrink? Show me a festival!
The philosopher: Alva Noe | UC Berkeley. Author of Out of Our Heads: Why You Are Not Your Brain and Other Lessons from the Biology of Consciousness.
The neurologist: Robert Burton | Chief of Neurology at Mount Zion UCSF Hospital. Author of On Being Certain and the novels Doc-In-A-Box and Cellmates and the neuroscience + popular culture "Mind Reader" column at Salon.com.
The psychologist: Paul Ekman | UCSF Professor Emeritus of Psychology. Author of Emotional Awareness (Co-authored with the Dalai Lama), Emotions Revealed, Telling Lies, and scientific adviser to the FOXTV program Lie to Me, based on his research.
The noetic scientist: Marilyn Mandala Schlitz | Ph.D. President + CEO of the Institute of Noetic Sciences. Clinical research scientist, medical anthropologist, prolific writer, transformational speaker and integral thought leader. Her books include Consciousness and Healing and Living Deeply.
The moderator: Joe Quirk | Bestselling novelist, science writer, and popular public speaker. Author of It's Not You, It's Biology: The Science of Love, Sex and Relationships and the novel Exult.
Celebration Through Philosophy and Science
Here are examples of some of the things we heard tonight:
- How can the subatomic particles in my brain give rise to sentience?
- To find the center of consciousness you have to look outside the confines of your skull.
- It is the very nature of our emotions to keep consciousness out.
- I am at this moment allowing part of my consciousness to be devoted to monitoring what I am saying to you. That's why I'm spea k i n g s o s l o w l y. I'm considering my words as I say them. And I rarely do that.
- Your puzzle of consciousness is an artifact of your insistence on a certain kind of inner/outer separation.
- We are co-participants in the conscious unfolding of nature.
- Is all my rationality rationalizing my instincts?
- Do we even need to understand consciousness in order to transform it?
Assembly To Expand Consciousness
I took those quotes chronologically so you can either connect the dots yourself, if you're feeling adventurous, or watch the videos below. These authors are all very knowledgable and personable. I would be overjoyed to have a conversation with any one of them - to have them all at the same time was a treat supreme.
So Litquake got all philosophical on us today. The room was full and so engrossed in the panel that it went over its allotted hour and no one said a thing. You just don't tell some people to stop talking. Because of this I was pretty late to Dreaming Awake: How James Joyce Invented Experimental Cinema and Disguised it as a Book and decided it was probably best not to barge into a film screening half an hour late. Still, I didn't feel like I missed out too much (although I'm sure the Joyce workshop was quite satisfying); the forum at Mechanics Institute Library was enough quakeage to keep me smiling, and tomorrow should be another good one.
Litquake’s third annual Barbary Coast Award for contribution to the Bay Area literary community is presented to Amy Tan, international bestselling author of The Joy Luck Club and The Bonesetter’s Daughter, and member of the all-author band Rock Bottom Remainders. Join us for this highly entertaining tribute-roast with special guests Rabih Alameddine, Sam Barry, mezzo-soprano Zheng Cao, Ben Fong-Torres, Kathi Kamen Goldmark, Andrew Sean Greer, Michael Krasny, Armistead Maupin, Roger McGuinn, Elaine Petrocelli and of course, Amy Tan. Music by Los Train Wreck. Book sales and signing to follow.
This is definitely one of the highlights for Litquake so if you've got an open night tonight you should come party with Amy and all of her famous hilarious friends.
Where: Herbst Theatre | 401 Van Ness Ave (at McAllister) | 415 392 4400
When: 8 PM, Wednesday, October 14
Tickets: $25 General, $75 includes post-reception | buy now
If you can't afford the ticket to Tan, check out one of three FREE Litquake events:
John Besh, Kathleen Kent, or Linda Gordon. Click here for more information.
The Mechanics Institute is in a very nice building and seems to keep a full calendar of authors and events Check in here for more info.
Wish my articles were organized by topic in a handy table with feature pictures? They are!
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