At various points of uncertainty in our lives, many of us have heard the common encouragement to "Fake it 'til you make it". This week, we wanted to dissect its meaning, intentions and how much wisdom actually lies in these words. Do the pronouns here refer to knowledge, skills, feelings? Perhaps something else is implied? Does false behavior prevent genuine understanding or relationship to one's environment?
Episode 206: For Non-Gamers — eSports
Since time immemorial, competition and contest have been a cornerstone of recreation, identity and society. Alongside cultural and technological development, sports have also evolved over time. With the rise of the Internet and video games, gaming now offers its own, highly competitive and lucrative arena in eSports. This week, we discuss their perception in the mainstream and how they shine a light on the way we define and interact with traditional sports. Can the definition of a sport expand with a society? What function(s) do sports serve that eSports might also satisfy? How do sports influence players and spectators differently?
Further Reading:
CNN, "Seven-figure salaries, sold-out stadiums: Is pro video gaming a sport?"
The Week, "Sorry, nerds: Video games are not a sport"
The New York Times, "Should Video Games Be Considered a Sport?"
CNN, "Should pro gamers be considered athletes?"
The Huffington Post, "The Controversial Dichotomy Between Sports and eSports"
Episode 205: Canbeam
Language has a clear impact not only on how others perceive and react to us, but on how we treat and see ourselves. What are our internal narratives of who we are and how we live? How do linguistic distinctions affect these perceptions? This week, we welcome Dan Farina to explore one such verbal line: the difference between using "can be" and "am". How do these and associated terms represent a spectrum of being? Where does language fail to capture the nuances and potential within lived experience?
Episode 204: Silent or Spoken Retrospective
Philosophy and introspection present us with numerous questions, concepts and theories, some of which are far more applicable than others. One such practical question asks "Which is better: To say something and wish you hadn't or say nothing and wish you had?" How do we judge worth in the subjective spaces of conversation and silence? How do social factors judge our speech as we might not? How do different spaces and circumstances treat silence differently?
Episode 203: Why We Study Art History
Many of us approach the realm of art history with degrees of apprehension, uncertainty and intellectual dread. We treat its topics as pedantic and its concepts as cumbersome, but why? This week, we welcome Tamar Avishai to discuss the study of art history and how it might inform the world beyond the field. What can the subject teach us about storytelling or the detachments of the ivory tower? How do we make art history and other topics unnecessarily distant because of our perceptions?
