In Spring 2016, the USC Sidney Harman Academy for Polymathic Study is partnering with leading global and academic institutions and scholars, holding workshops and symposia to explore topics and issues from a polymathic perspctive. From a 3-day retreat to Catalina to Zygo, the Harman Academy is pleased to bring an exciting new series of panels, workshops, and special events to campus.
What will our world look like in ten, twenty, or fifty years? How can we imagine, prepare for, and influence future trajectories of our planet in terms of governance, sustainability, and co-existence? The spring 2016 Polymathic Pizza series brings together faculty and students from diverse disciplines and interests to speculate on the future and to explore how we might have a hand in shaping it.
The Academy for Polymathic Study guides its enquiries through four flexible pathways or Quadrants: (1) critical and integrative thinking; (2) study of the polymaths; (3) the tapestry of knowledge; and (4) communication. In order to explicate these Quadrants more fully, Edwin McCann, professor of philosophy and English, will conduct four conversational workshops over the fall and spring terms from a philosophical, historical, and practical point of view. Attendance at all four quadrants is required for Harman Fellow certification.
The Goethe Society, an undergraduate organization affiliated with the USC Sidney Harman Academy for Polymathic Study, will continue its enjoyment of the cultural resources of the USC campus and greater Los Angeles. Each session will be accompanied by an academic presentation and discussion keyed to a specific artistic or scholarly focused event enjoyed by members of the Society. This year as well – with the assistance of similar undergraduate cultural organizations at selected universities across the nation -- members of the Goethe Society will further develop the Society as a philosophic