Kepler Salon
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Press Conference
Friday, 09 January 2009, 9.30 a.m.
Kepler Salon Rathausgasse 5, 4020 Linz
Kepler Salon, Rathausgasse 5, 4020 Linz
Featured speakers: Linz Deputy Mayor Erich Watzl, Martin Heller (Linz09 artistic director), Ulrich Fuchs (Linz09 deputy artistic director and director of project development), Silvia Keller (director of the Kepler Salon project), Andreas Kupfer (director of IFAU—Institute for Applied Environmental Education) and Ernst Bamberger (Upper Austria director of the UNIQA Insurance Company).
During the Capital of Culture year, Johannes Kepler’s former residence located at Rathausgasse 5 will be a setting for scientists to engage in a dialog with members of the general public as well as visitors to Linz.
Astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler lived in Linz from 1612 to 1627. He, along with Galileo and Newton, was one of the founders and advocates of the natural sciences. The Kepler Salon is named for him and carries on the spirit of his work.
What in the world is mechatronics? Does a human being possess free will? How does a heart valve work? The Kepler Salon’s mission is to be a place of encounter and of information exchange. Here, educational institutions and facilities of theoretical and applied science will be imparting knowledge, and making research accessible and understandable in the context of a dialog with experts in many fields. The Kepler Salon will function as a showcase of the sciences. As an interchange at the nexus of scholarly research and everyday life, it will make a key contribution to enriching the quality of intellectual life in Linz.
The events to be held in the Kepler Salon are dedicated to the principle of the public understanding of knowledge, and are thus in sharp contrast to symposia for specialists in a particular field. There will be absolutely no effort to “dumb down” the content; nevertheless, the aim is to get across scientific research and work in a way that is accessible and enjoyable. The entire scholarly spectrum will be treated in the Kepler Salon: nature and technology, medicine, the humanities, cultural studies and the fine arts. The Kepler Salon is oriented on dialog. The point is to create an informal atmosphere that is conducive to audiences absorbing information and getting actively involved in a two-way exchange with experts.
The events to be held in the Kepler Salon are divided into six distinct program strands that will alternate over the course of a month. Our body will be considered within the context of sci-fi literature as well as in light of developments in genetics, bio-informatics and robotics. We will scrutinize the use of language, gestures, facial expressions and movements, and the sociopolitical setting in which communication takes place, as well as the question of whether truth exists and according to which standards it is to be measured. We want to track down visible and invisible phenomena, and engender a shift of perception that enables our thinking to get a new view of the world. We will assess the similarities and differences between art and science and where these two influence one another. And we’ll also establish an Open Space in which we can raise unanswered questions.
Kepler Salon has been guided by an Advisory Board, the members of which represent many different scientific disciplines: Peter Becker of Johannes Kepler University of Linz, contemporary history; Gerald Hanisch of HMH Engineering-Consulting Trading GmbH, recycling; Franz Harnoncourt of the Hospital of the Order of the Sisters of St. Elisabeth, medicine & surgery; Gabriele Kotsis of Johannes Kepler University of Linz, information processing; Claus Pias of the University of Vienna, epistemology and the philosophy of digital media; Constanze Wimmer of Anton Bruckner Private University, music pedagogy.
In the Salon of the Sly Foxes, kids age 7-12 get stimulating insights into the world of science and research. This series was conceived by KinderUniSteyr. Here, the accent isn’t on ambitious acquisition of knowledge, but rather on curiosity about the world and the joys of scientific thinking. The events will be held on 12 Saturday mornings in the Kepler Salon.
To attend, please register in advance at the website of the IFAU at www.schlauerfuchs.at.
Information and details about the individual Kepler Salon events: www.kepler-salon.at
