Yeah Debates @ Jurassic Lounge - Is De-extinction wrong?

On the 27th of November, The Yeah Sessions took part in the final season of Jurassic Lounge, held at the Australian Museum. We held two 'speed debates', the first of which was on the topic "Anyone can be a photographer, but to be a filmmaker requires real skill". The second topic was as follows:

'Jurassic Park's Dr Ian Malcom was correct when he said “Dinosaurs had their shot, and nature selected them for extinction”. It’s wrong to bring back an extinct species.'

Have a peek a video below for the full debate:

Here's the speaker listing: 

Affirmative
- Paul Oscar
- Tim Dean
- Ari  Mattes

Negative
- Ketan Joshi

- Rebecca Johnston 

- Ryan Mitchell Wittingslow

We're working through our backlog at the moment, but stay tuned, we'll be uploading many more videos over the coming weeks, and organising more sessions!

Yeah Debates @ Jurassic Lounge - Filmmaking Vs Photography

On the 10th of October, The Yeah Sessions took part in the final season of Jurassic Lounge, held at the Australian Museum. We held two 'speed debates', the first of which was on the topic "Anyone can be a photographer, but to be a filmmaker requires real skill", during Jurassic Lounge's Film and Photography night. Have a peek at the video below:

On the affirmative:

Daniel Wittingslow

Chris Myers

Ari Mattes

On the negative:

Diana Shahinyan

Bruce Isaacs

Adam Geczy

Photo via the Jurassic Lounge Facebook page

Each speaker had strictly three minutes to make their case, and the winner was decided by the audience yelling incoherently at the end. We'll be uploading the second speed debate, on extinction and ethics, very soon!

The Final Jurassic Lounge

This coming Tuesday the 5th of November, the final night of 'Jurassic Lounge' will be held at the Australian Museum, near Hyde Park in Sydney.

Jurassic Lounge has been a Sydney insitution, opening up the doors of the Australian Museum to a demographic that might otherwise not consider skipping through its elegant halls. It's sad to see it go, and the Yeah Sessions are extremely proud to be part of its ultimate night.

We're hosting a 'Speed Debate' - six speakers, three on each side, with three minutes each, and an extremely strict timekeeper - it's funny, fast and often, accidentally insightful.

Check out the Facebook event page here, the official Jurassic Lounge page here, and buy your tickets here - in fact, do that soon, because we think this one's going to sell out rather fast.

Here's our topic:

'Jurassic Park's Dr Ian Malcom was correct when he said “Dinosaurs had their shot, and nature selected them for extinction”. It’s wrong to bring back an extinct species.'

And, here's our line up of speakers:

Affirmative
- Paul Oscar
- Ari  Mattes

- Tim Dean

Negative
- Ryan Mitchell Wittingslow

- Rebecca Johnston

- Ketan Joshi

See you there! 

Yeah Politics - 07/08/2013 - The Politics of Eurovision

On the 7th of August, we dove briefly into the tepid pond of politics.

Our fifth and final speaker was Elyse Zaccai, Yeah Sessions alumni and self-described Eurovision Overlord. Elyse discussed the various  vagaries of the politics of Eurovision, including the various under-explored chunks of context that explain why the countries vote the way they do.

Click here to view the video on Youtube, or cast your eyes to the embedded video below:

Elyse is a Eurovision enthusiast and has spoken for the Yeah Sessions before, on potions and black magic, here!

Yeah Politics - 07/08/2013 - Vaccination, Policy and Media

On August the 7th, before the election, we delved bravely into the world of politics and policy.

Our fourth speaker was Yeah Sessions co-founder and co-curator Ketan Joshi, talking about vaccination - a topic that is frequently blended with politics and media. In this talk, we explore the occasional but problematic involvement of politicians in health policy, and the recent case of an Australian media outlet deciding to campaign for new laws on the access of un-vaccinated children to childcare centres.

Click here to watch the video on youtube, or cast your eyes to the embedded video below..

Ketan Joshi is co-founder and co-curator of The Yeah Sessions, and works in research and communications at a renewable energy company. 

To view the Daily Telegraph's article on 'No Jab, No Play', click here, and to read Leask and Willaby's article on the legislation, click here.

Yeah Politics - 07/08/2013 - The Social Determinants of Health

On the 7th of August this year, we casually strolled into the dark woods of politics.

Our third speaker was Alice Gentle, who spoke at the very first Yeah Session (Yeah Science), on the demonstrable irrationality of Slime Mould. At Yeah Politics, Alice spoke on the Social Determinants of Health - going beyond the 'absence of disease' and trying to formulate a way of defining health that incorporates factors like 'walkability', physical well-being and mental health.

Click here to view the video on youtube, or cast your eyes to the embedded video below..

Alice Gentle works in public health in NSW, and is passionate about innovation in health.

If you'd like to view the 2013 interactive budget tool, click here. For more information on the Health Impact Project in the US, click here. And click here for information on AARP's 'Sidewalks and Streets Survey'.

Yeah Politics - 07/08/2013 - Political Psychology

On the 7th of August, The Yeah Sessions dipped nervously into the muddy pond of politics.

Our second speaker was Tim Dean, speaking on the genuinely fascinating patterns we find when we look at political viewpoints from a psychological perspective, and some of the ways that our political views might be more predictable than we think.

Click here to have a squiz at the video on youtube, or cast your eyes to the embedded vid below:

Tim Dean is an established science journalist, and editor of the Australian Life Scientist Magazine. He is completing a PhD in philosophy at UNSW, researching the evolution of morality. Check out his blog here, and read his fantastic articles on ABC's The Drum, here.

Tim is also editor-in-chief of Wonder - an excellent website dedicated to rational appreciation of the natural world, and most definitely well worth checking out.

More videos coming very soon, people!