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Creativity from every angle

Published April 19, 2004; Category: EVENTS

Artists, athletes and scientists to discuss their creative struggles in panel discussions

Creativity is not solely the province of the arts, as two upcoming panel discussions on creativity by artists, scientists and athletes will show.

The panelists will discuss the ways in which they cope with successes and failures in their creative work. Carol Folt, Professor of Biology, will moderate the panel on Thursday, April 29, called "Creative Perseverance," and David Ehrlich, Professor of Film Studies, will moderate the panel on Thursday, May 6, called "Resilience and New Beginnings."

"Perseverance and resilience, we felt, were really important," Ehrlich said. "Each of these people on the panel has had some experience in their lives that speaks beautifully to what it means to persevere through obstacles and come back after both failure and success."

Success, Ehrlich said, can be just as difficult as failure. Ed Koren, a cartoonist who has appeared at the luncheons in past years, will talk during the May 6 panel about the struggles that came as a result of his success at The New Yorker.

Other panelists include James Yorke, a physicist who helped pioneer chaos theory; Emeritus Professor of Geography at Dartmouth George Demko, whose work with the State Department brought him close to National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice and former National Security Council counterterrorism chief Richard Clarke; and Josie Harper, the first woman to direct the Dartmouth Department of Athletics and Recreation, an office she now holds.

"Most of the panelists seem to have as much fun if not more than the audience. They just like the cross-fertilization of different artistic and scientific genres," Ehrlich said.

The panel discussions are in their sixth year. Free pizza will be served at each one, both of which will be held in the Tindle Lounge of Thayer Dining Hall from 12:15 p.m. to 1:45 p.m.

By MATT LEWIS '05

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