2025-26 Annual Theme – Thought Experiments

“Thought experiments” reach back to ancient philosophy, when thinkers employed hypothetical reasoning to explore abstract ideas. These “devices of the imagination,” as they were sometimes described, became popular again in 19th century science. They have since been used in a range of imagined scenarios across disciplines that were created specifically to gain deeper insight into complex problems. In an era marked by multifaceted environmental, humanitarian, and geo-political crises, thought experiments provide an invaluable tool for conceptualizing innovative solutions by sparking creativity, deepening understanding, and facilitating effective models for collaboration.

Tuesday, February 17, 2026

Anita Tuvin Schlechter Auditorium, 7 p.m.

This event is in-person only. It will not be livestreamed nor recorded for future viewing.

Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Scholar Program

The Arts, Democracy, and Public Life

Shannon Jackson is the Cyrus and Michelle Hadidi Professor of the Arts & Humanities at UC Berkeley and the Chair of the History of Art Department

How do the arts activate public life? What is the role of the arts in sustaining democracy? In different eras and regions of the world, citizens have responded to these questions quite differently. As we mark the 250th anniversary of both the Phi Beta Kappa Society and of the United States of America, these questions have never been more resonant. The arts are key to advancing the rights of free assembly and of free expression. The arts contribute to social movements and to the formation of civic identity. This lecture alights upon a range of socially engaged art practices, investigating how the arts both shape and challenge our sense of community. Considering historic examples as well as those from our present moment, we will explore how public art can open us to new ideas of what democracy might mean.

This program Read more

Tuesday, October 14, 2025

Anita Tuvin Schlechter Auditorium, 7 p.m.

Mirages and Archived Landscapes

Sarah Nance, Assistant Professor of Integrated Practice (Binghamton University, SUNY)

Nance creates shrouds for “archived” landscapes—environments, such as former inland seas, that are now observable only through fossil records, artifacts, or recorded data. These shrouds vary from handworked textiles to experimental vocal performances and, when installed on site, become surface layers that point to complex records of deep time. In her most recent work, Nance focuses on the complex visual experience of shininess and its ability to disorient and obscure. She considers the mirage in particular, as a phenomenon that creates slippages in a landscape’s boundaries in time and space.

The program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and the Department of Art & Art History. The program is also part of the Clarke Forum annual theme, Thought Experiments.

This lecture complements an exhibition of Nance’s artwork on display from October 14 through November 12, 2025, at Dickinson’s Goodyear Gallery, Goodyear Building
(Cedar Street entrance), 595 West Louther Street. Gallery hours: Tues.-Fri. 3-5 p.m. and Sat. 2-5 p.m.

Topic overview written by Eli Scott-Joseph.

Biography (provided by the speaker)

Sarah Nance is an interdisciplinary artist Read more

Monday, September 29, 2025

Anita Tuvin Schlechter Auditorium, 7 p.m.

Music, Math, and Mind

David Sulzer, Columbia University

Dr. Sulzer will discuss how music is heard and understood in the nervous system by humans and other animals with a cortex. In this lecture, we’ll also explore other animals who can play music, especially the Thai Elephant Orchestra.

This program is presented by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the Pre-Health Program and the departments of biology, music, psychology and theater & dance. The Clarke Forum’s student project managers initiated this program. The program is also part of the Clarke Forum annual theme, Thought Experiments.

Topic overview written by Supasinee Siripun ’27

Biography (provided by the speaker)

Dave Soldier leads a double life as a musician and a neuroscientist. As composer, he cofounded (with conservationist Richard Lair) the Thai Elephant Orchestra, 14 elephants for whom he built giant instruments and who released 3 CDs, and projects with children, including rural Guatemala (Yol Ku: Mayan Mountain Music) and New York’s East Harlem (Da HipHop Raskalz). His Soldier String Quartet helped usher the use of hip-hop, R&B, and punk rock into classical music in the 1980s, and his long-running Memphis/New Read more