2015-16 Jepson Leadership Forum to focus on health, science and the future, programs free but registration required

September 8, 2015

A bioethicist hailed by many as “the world’s most influential living philosopher” and a New York Times bestselling author whose cutting-edge research “unpacks the mental strategies that lead to clearer thinking and deeper insights” are among speakers at the 2015-16 Jepson Leadership Forum lecture series at University of Richmond.

“The Fix: Health, Science, and the Future” is the theme of the event, which will explore the challenges of global health and poverty; genetics and individual decision making; and the media’s role in public health. 

Programs, which are all held in the Jepson Alumni Center unless noted, are free and open to the public, but registration is required and opens three weeks prior to each event. Audience members will have opportunities to interact with speakers during book signings and receptions.

Programs include:

  • Maria Konnikova, Sept. 22, 7 p.m. Konnikova is a psychologist, contributing writer for The New Yorker online and author of the bestselling book “Mastermind: How to Think like Sherlock Holmes.” Using analogies from the great logician Sherlock Holmes, Konnikova discusses how we can learn to analyze the weaknesses of our minds and, with practice, overcome them.
  • Daniel Lieberman, Oct. 29, 7 p.m. Lieberman is a paleoanthropologist at Harvard University whose research focuses on the look and function of the human body. He explains how evolutionary perspectives on exercise hold vital lessons to help more people get active again.
  • Peter Singer, Nov. 12, 7 p.m. Singer is a bioethicist at Princeton University and a utilitarian philosopher. His work on effective altruism rethinks philanthropy with the goal of making the world a radically better place. Please note, this lecture will be held in Cannon Memorial Chapel.
  • James Hamblin, Jan. 28, 7 p.m. Hamblin is a writer and senior editor at The Atlantic magazine and the host of the video series “If Our Bodies Could Talk.” He explores the dynamic landscape of news media as it relates to health and medicine.
  • Nina Munk, Feb. 24, 7 p.m. Munk is a contributing editor at Vanity Fair and author of “The Idealist: Jeffrey Sachs and the Quest to End Poverty,” in which she examines the complexities and pitfalls of economic development. Munk’s presentation is part of the James MacGregor Burns Lectureship in Leadership Studies and Biography, made possible by Bank of America.
  • Wendy Chung, April 7, 7 p.m. Chung is a clinical and molecular geneticist at Columbia University. She leads the Simons Variation in Individuals Project, which studies genetic causes of autism and performs clinical trials of new treatments.

The series is hosted by University of Richmond’s Jepson School of Leadership Studies.

To register or for more information, visit jepson.richmond.edu/forum or call Shannon Best, community programs manager, at 804-287-6522.  

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