The Illinois Humanities Council presents the fourth program in their series: “Future Perfect: Conversations on the Meaning of the Genetics Revolution.”
CHICAGO – Popular movies such as Gattaca and The Boys From Brazil generally represent genetic science as harmful, rarely helpful. How accurately have popular movies, television, and books portrayed the science and ethics of genetics? How have they shaped our fears or our hopes? Our speakers will talk about how the culture, rhetoric, and ethics of science are transmitted via both popular science and media.
“What’s Popular About Genetics? Genetics and Popular Culture” will take place on Tuesday, January 30 from 6:00-8:00 P.M. at Film Row Cinema Columbia College Chicago (1104 S. Wabash Ave., Fl. 8). “What’s Popular About Genetics?” is presented in partnership with the American Medical Association and Columbia College Chicago.
The speakers for this program are Dr. Wayne Grody, Professor, Medical Genetics and Molecular Pathology, University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), School of Medicine and Priscilla Wald, Ph.D., Associate Professor of English, Duke University, Center for the Study of Medical Ethics and the Humanities; Center for Genome Ethics, Law and Policy. Dr. Grody has been active in the film and television industries for many years as technical advisor and sometime writer for a number of feature films, TV movies, and television series.
William Savage, Senior Lecturer in English and Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences Advisor, Northwestern University, will moderate this discussion.
This event is free and open to the public, but reservations are required. To make reservations or for more information, contact the IHC at 312.422.5580 or send an email to ihc@prairie.org. This event is wheelchair accessible.
“What’s Popular About Genetics?” is part of the Illinois Humanities Council’s year-long series, Future Perfect: Conversations on the Meaning of the Genetics Revolution. Programs are taking place around the state — in Carbondale, Chicago, Decatur, Jacksonville, Lewistown, Peoria, and Springfield — to increase public knowledge of genetics by engaging Illinoisans in conversations about the genetics revolution and its impact on the individual and on society. Programs feature scholars, scientists, ethicists, artists, medical professionals, and philosophers as guest speakers. For the most recent calendar of events or for more information, please visit www.prairie.org/genetics.
“Future Perfect” is funded in part by grants from the Motorola Foundation and The Boeing Company. Chicago Public Radio (WBEZ 91.5) and Illinois Channel are media sponsors for “Future Perfect.”
The Illinois Humanities Council is a nonprofit educational organization [501 (c) 3] dedicated to fostering a culture in which the humanities are a vital part of the lives of individuals and communities. Organized in 1973 as the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, the IHC creates programs and funds organizations that promote greater understanding of, appreciation for, and involvement in the humanities. The IHC is supported by state, federal, and private funds.
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