Two cultures

If you live in or near New York City, or if you're looking for an excuse to visit in early May

We live in a time when more scientists are being trained than ever before, with nearly 30,000 science PhDs awarded in 2006. Yet scientists find themselves frustrated by inaccurate media coverage, poor science education, public science illiteracy, a resurgence of anti-evolutionism, and challenges to scientific expertise on issues like climate change.

In his seminal lecture, "The Two Cultures," delivered on May 7, 1959, the British novelist, physicist, and government science adviser C.P. Snow decried a "gulf of mutual incomprehension between science and the humanities." For Snow, this rift was "a sheer loss to us all."

On May 9, 2009 visionaries, scientists, authors, and the media will join together to explore the persistence of the "two cultures" gap and how it can be overcome.

Don't miss this unique and important event, featuring keynote addresses by Pulitzer Prize winner E.O. Wilson, former Congressman John Porter, and Segway inventor and entrepreneur Dean Kamen.

For more information visit http://www.nyas.org/snc/twocultures/index.asp.