Things to Do, March 29-April 5

Simeon Coxe
Provided
Simeon Coxe of Silver Apples will perform and participate in a panel discussion March 30 as part of the DIY Electronics Symposium at the Schwartz Center.

Ashkin exhibition

Associate professor of art Michael Ashkin focuses on geometries of the built environment in the exhibition "Architecture is for Creeps," through April 12 in the Milstein Hall Gallery.

A reception for the exhibition will be held March 29 from 6-7:30 p.m. Info: aapgalleries@cornell.edu.

Circuit benders

A DIY Electronic Symposium, "Psychedelic Electronic Sound of a Generation," celebrates innovation in electronic media through performance and music, Saturday, March 30, from 2-11 p.m. at the Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts. Free and open to the Cornell community.

Simeon Coxe of Silver Apples and Malcolm Cecil of Tonto's Expanding Head Band will headline an 8 p.m. multimedia performance and participate in an afternoon panel led by science and technology studies professor Trevor Pinch.

Doctoral students lead a workshop on how to create instruments from parts (materials provided), with demonstrations of circuit hacking and homemade electronic instruments, including the largest synthesizer in the world. Performers also include The Original New Timbral Orchestra, Electric Golem and First Atomic Lunar; contributions encouraged to support the artists.

Information: http://cca.cornell.edu/diyelectronics/. Supporters include the Cornell Council for the Arts and the Cornell Electroacoustic Music Center.

Europe in the World

Peter Katzenstein, the Walter S. Carpenter Jr. Professor of International Studies in the Department of Government, will deliver the keynote address at a celebratory event for the Europe in the World project, April 1 at 4:30 p.m. in the Amir Bhatia '01 Libe Cafe, Olin Library.

"Europe in the World: Perspectives on Communities" is a spring 2013 competition, exhibition and event designed to stimulate, showcase and reward student scholarship and creative work that addresses European identities and communities within Europe and in relation to globalization.

Prizes will be awarded at the event to six winning students, and all entries will be displayed at the event and afterward in Olin Library. The project is funded by the Cornell Institute for European Studies and Cornell University Library. Information: http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu/europe2013.

Students go BOOM

Some of Cornell's brightest science and engineering students will unveil their work with cutting-edge technologies at BOOM (Bits On Our Minds) 2013, April 3, 4-6 p.m. in the Duffield Hall atrium.

Hosted by Computing and Information Science and the College of Engineering, the 16th annual student research showcase features projects ranging from a Wikipedia-based "6 Degrees of Bacon" game to software that reads human emotion with the goal of improving human/computer interaction.

Also demonstrated: A light bulb that emulates the changing intensity of the sun over the course of the day and year; robot planes, robot submarines and more pedestrian robots; smartphone apps to help you keep track of the time spent on tasks, or spontaneously invite all of your friends and contacts to an event; lots of games and grown-up toys. The showcase also offers computer programming innovations and engineering breakthroughs.

Free and open to the public. Information: http://boom.cornell.edu.

C.S. Lewis expert

Writer Michael Ward will give the 2013 Beimfohr Lecture on "C.S. Lewis on Reason and Imagination in Science and Religion," April 4 at 4:30 p.m. in Lewis Auditorium, Goldwin Smith Hall. Free and open to the public.

Ward, a senior research fellow at Blackfriars Hall, the University of Oxford, is a leading expert on Lewis and the author of "Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis" (2008) -- the subject of the 2009 BBC television documentary "The Narnia Code."

The Alan T. and Linda M. Beimfohr Lectures bring an intellectual to campus each semester to address issues related to faith in a pluralistic society. The lectures are sponsored by Chesterton House, the Christian studies center affiliated with Cornell United Religious Work.

Fracking debate

Journalists Tom Wilber and Seamus McGraw will discuss their ongoing coverage of Marcellus Shale natural gas development, April 4 from 5 to 7 p.m. in Milstein Auditorium.

The program, "Fracking and the Future of Global Energy: Golden Age or Dark Age?" is free and open to the public. Co-sponsored by the Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future and Cornell University Press.

Wilber, the author of "Under the Surface," and McGraw, the author of "End of Country," will offer their perspectives as writers tracking the issue at regional, national and international levels, and will consider the Twin Tiers of New York and Pennsylania in the context of our global energy future.

The discussion will be moderated by Wendy Wolford, the Polson Professor of Development Sociology, and introduced by Jeff Tester, the Croll Professor of Sustainable Energy Systems.

Poetry reading

Poet Lynn Emanuel will read from her work April 4 at 4:30 p.m. in Hollis E. Cornell Auditorium, Goldwin Smith Hall. Presented by the Creative Writing Reading Series. Free and open to the public.

The author of four books of poetry, Emanuel's work has been included in "The Pushcart Prize Anthology," "Best American Poetry" and "The Oxford Book of American Poetry." Information:http://english.arts.cornell.edu/creative/readings/2013/spring/.

Animated tour-de-force

Animator Chris Sullivan will introduce his film "Consuming Spirits," April 4 at 7:15 p.m. at Cornell Cinema.

Last presented here by Sullivan more than a decade ago as a work-in-progress, the now-completed film was 15 years in the making and opened to rave reviews in December at the Film Forum in New York.

With characters hand-drawn on layers of glass, "the film seamlessly combines cutout animation, pencil drawing, collage and stop-motion animation to create the haunting atmosphere of a self-contained world," the Huffington Post wrote.

Also at Cornell Cinema: Experimental filmmakers Michael Robinson (with "Circle in the Sand") March 29 and Phil Solomon (with "American Falls") April 1. Information: http://cinema.cornell.edu.

Jazz night

JazzSpacesIthaca presents the Nancy Kelly Quartet, April 4 at 8 p.m. at the Carriage House Café, 305 Stewart Ave.

The quartet is Kelly on vocals, guitarist Bob Sneider, organist Dino Losito and drummer Jimmy Johns. Admission is $15 general, $8 for students with valid ID.

JazzSpacesIthaca brings jazz performers to Ithaca on the first Thursday of each month during the academic year. The project, initiated by faculty in the Minority, Indigenous and Third World Studies Research Group, is co-sponsored by the Department of Music, Cornell Jazz Ensembles and the Department of English.

Information: http://jazzspacesithaca.arts.cornell.edu.

Silver's 'Big Data'

Statistician Nate Silver, known for his innovative analyses of political polling, will present "Big Data: Powerful Predictions Through Data Analytics," Friday, April 5, 1:30-3 p.m. in Statler Auditorium. Free and open to the public.

Silver first gained national attention during the 2008 presidential election, when he correctly predicted the results of the primaries and the presidential winner in 49 states. He also built an innovative system for predicting baseball performance, predicted the 2012 election and became a national sensation as a blogger, all by the time he was 30.

He publishes a running forecast of current elections and hot-button issues on his award--winning New York Times political blog, FiveThirtyEight (http://fivethirtyeight.blogs.nytimes.com). His new book, "The Signal and The Noise: Why Most Predictions Fail - But Some Don't," is a tour of modern prediction science, uncovering the connections among humility, uncertainty and good results.

Silver's talk is presented by the Survey Research Institute Speaker Series. Information:http://sri.cornell.edu.

Anonymous 4

The female vocal ensemble Anonymous 4 will bring medieval music to the Cornell Concert Series, April 5 at 8 p.m. in Sage Chapel.

Vocalists Ruth Cunningham, Marsha Genensky, Susan Hellauer and Jacqueline Horner-Kwiatek will perform "Marie-Marion," a program of motets and chansons from 13th-century France.

General admission open seating is $10 for Cornell students and $23 for faculty and staff, available online at http://BaileyTickets.com; $12 for other students, $25 for adults. Information: 607-255-5144,http://concertseries.cornell.eduhttp://www.anonymous4.com.

On the border

The play "Mother of Exiles (Madre de Migrantes)," April 5-13 at the Schwartz Center, explores immigration, violence and civil rights issues with interactive audience participation and elements of the U.S. border patrol experience.

Written by Elaine Romero and directed by Melanie Dreyer-Lude, assistant professor of acting and directing, the play tells the story of Ivy League-educated teacher Madga Andrews and her troubled classroom on the Arizona-Mexico border. Armed by the state, Andrews uses a gun to teach her students about American civics. An installation by "City of Ethnos" artist Alma Hoffman will be displayed in the Schwartz Center lobby.

Performances are April 5-6 and April 12-13 at 7:30 p.m., with a matinee April 13 at 2 p.m. Half-price tickets good April 5 or 6 are available through Friday, March 29, with the coupon code "mother." Tickets athttp://www.schwartztickets.com, the Schwartz Center box office at 430 College Ave., or 607-254-ARTS.

Crisis in India

The South Asia Program hosts a conference April 5-6, "Agrarian Crisis in India?" examining the high rate of suicides among Indian farmers.

The annual conference of the Cornell-Syracuse Title VI South Asia Consortium will be held in G08 Uris Hall and 401 Physical Sciences. The schedule includes a screening and discussion of the film "Bitter Seeds" and a panel discussion on the incidence and causes of farmer suicides, both on April 5; and roundtables and panels with scholars focusing on water, technology, policy and other related issues.

Registration is required; contact nsj1@cornell.edu or call 607-255-8493. Information:http://sap.einaudi.cornell.edu/node/8371.

Media Contact

Joe Schwartz