Category: Future

This page lists scheduled future forums in reverse chronological order. Scroll down to the bottom of the list for details about our next forum.

Saving Democracy

Andrew Yang

11 a.m., July 28, 2024

Among the things we hope democracy provides are: a government that is open and not corrupt, a legislative body that represents the views of the voters, and verifiable elections. Today we will watch and discuss four videos that address these issues.

In Can Democracy Exist Without Trust? (13:47 minutes, https://www.ted.com/talks/ivan_krastev_can_democracy_exist_without_trust), Ivan Krastev describes why distrust is so common among voters and openness is such a problem.

In Why US Politics Is Broken – and How to Fix It (10:39 minutes, https://www.ted.com/talks/andrew_yang_why_us_politics_is_broken_and_how_to_fix_it), Andrew Yang describes a voting instituted in Alaska that promises better representation.

In We the People and the Republic We Must Reclaim (18 minutes, https://www.ted.com/talks/lawrence_lessig_we_the_people_and_the_republic_we_must_reclaim), Lawrence Lessig talks about the corrupting influence of money.

Finally, in E-voting without Fraud (6:45 minutes, https://www.ted.com/talks/david_bismark_e_voting_without_fraud), David Bismark presents an approach that allows one to check that a vote is correctly counted while preserving voter anonymity.

We have not been able to arrange a room to meet this week. We hope to see you in person next Sunday, because on the first and third Sunday of each month, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists at the Mountain View Senior Center, 266 Escuela Ave., Mountain View, CA 94040.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

You can also call any of the following phone numbers and then enter the above Meeting ID and the Passcode in order to join the meeting by phone.
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
You can find international phone numbers to call here.

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
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Add this event to your Google calendar:

Like us on Facebook:
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Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2024-07-28/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/302441354/

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1816706349004419472

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

How to Win the Presidential Election

Michael Abramson

11 a.m., July 14, 2024

As the presidential election is getting close, we increasingly worry about its outcomes. The first Presidential debates could add more fuel to this anxiety. What can we expect now? How likely is it that Trump will lose the election? Do Democrats still have a path to victory?

Maybe: but this could require a different kind of campaign (if not a different candidate).

At the July 14th Sunday Forum we will explore this very issue: How to Win the Presidential Election.

Bio
Michael’s area of expertise is system modeling and simulation. Most of his work was related to technical and engineering applications, ranging from electromagnetics and radiation transfer to air traffic control systems. He also published a few works on modeling social and political dynamics, more closely related to the current topic.

Michael currently works as a contractor for NASA and lives in Mountain View with his wife and close to their children’s families.

7/14/2024 Michael Abramson from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

This Sunday, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists in the Orchard Room at the Los Altos Library, 13 S. San Antonio Road, Los Altos, CA 94022. (On the first and third Sunday of the month, you can continue to attend our forum at the Mountain View Senior Center.)

Since we can’t bring food into the library, let’s plan on meeting at the small park with picnic tables just adjacent to the library. We did this last time, and it worked out fine.

We could either bring our sandwiches or other lunch edibles or take orders and have folks order their own sandwiches or other edibles and send someone out to pick them up. This would allow us to meet right after the meeting, stay for a bit and connect.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. COVID protocols will be followed. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

You can also call any of the following phone numbers and then enter the above Meeting ID and the Passcode in order to join the meeting by phone.
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
You can find international phone numbers to call here.

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
webcal://p162-caldav.icloud.com/published/2/Mjk3Nzk1MTgyMjk3Nzk1MRBa7aU6zKSIJMfDjhqBP8r3muvKK3GLLCRnZoCneHpXv08CyGJAJRVI5yyh-SVWxGJE9xHfdUs72pmiBNlOBpY

Add this event to your Google calendar:

Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/humanistcommsv/

Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2024-07-14/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/302013496/

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1811622621135667700

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

Into the Solar System

Nagin Cox

11 a.m., June 30, 2024

This Sunday we will take a look at some of the problems and inconveniences of our present and future exploration of the Solar system.

In a 14-minute, 2016 video, What Time is it on Mars?, Nagin Cox will discuss the adjustments she and her coworkers had to make to manage the United States rovers on Mars, where a Martian day is 40 minutes longer than on Earth. The rovers are powered by solar panels so their schedule is set by sunrise and sunset on Mars.

Then, in a 13-minute, 2015 video, How Humans Could Evolve to Survive in Space, Lisa Nip describes how we can use synthetic biology to allow us to explore space.

You can pre-watch these videos at https://www.ted.com/talks/nagin_cox_what_time_is_it_on_mars, and at
https://www.ted.com/talks/lisa_nip_how_humans_could_evolve_to_survive_in_space.

No Place to Attend in Person This Week:

For the first time in years, we were not able to find a location to meet in person. (On the first and third Sunday of the month, you can continue to attend our forum at the Mountain View Senior Center.)

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

You can also call any of the following phone numbers and then enter the above Meeting ID and the Passcode in order to join the meeting by phone.
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
You can find international phone numbers to call here.

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
webcal://p162-caldav.icloud.com/published/2/Mjk3Nzk1MTgyMjk3Nzk1MRBa7aU6zKSIJMfDjhqBP8r3muvKK3GLLCRnZoCneHpXv08CyGJAJRVI5yyh-SVWxGJE9xHfdUs72pmiBNlOBpY

Add this event to your Google calendar:

Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/humanistcommsv/

Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2024-06-30/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/301914267/

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1806541718667575617

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

Next Gen Nonreligion: Exploring Changing American Nonreligious Generations

Elizabeth Drescher

11 a.m., June 2, 2024

Join Santa Clara University professor Elizabeth Drescher in person OR online. Prof. Drescher will share insights from research on the religiously unaffiliated in the U.S., and her experience teaching Nonreligion in America with SCU undergraduates for nearly a decade. She will document the changing proportion of U.S. adults who identify with no religion, and show us how the percent of “Nones” differs by generation.

Professor Drescher teaches religious studies at Santa Clara University, where she also directs the Living Religion Collaborative, a place-based center for student and faculty engagement with local religious and nonreligious communities. A scholar of non/religion as it is experienced by ordinary people in everyday life, she is the author of Choosing Our Religion: The Spiritual Lives of American Nones (Oxford 2016) and numerous other books and articles on lived religious and nonreligious experience.

The Atheist Community of San Jose joins with the Humanist Community to co-host this event.

6/2/2024 Elizabeth Drescher from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

———-

On the first and third Sunday of the month, such as this Sunday, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists at the Mountain View Senior Center, 266 Escuela Ave., Mountain View, CA 94040. Lunch will be served after the forum. We request a $10 donation for lunch.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. COVID protocols will be followed. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

You can also call any of the following phone numbers and then enter the above Meeting ID and the Passcode in order to join the meeting by phone.
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
You can find international phone numbers to call here.

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
webcal://p162-caldav.icloud.com/published/2/Mjk3Nzk1MTgyMjk3Nzk1MRBa7aU6zKSIJMfDjhqBP8r3muvKK3GLLCRnZoCneHpXv08CyGJAJRVI5yyh-SVWxGJE9xHfdUs72pmiBNlOBpY

Add this event to your Google calendar:

Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/humanistcommsv/

Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2024-06-02/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/301031766/

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1790638351319732325

 

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508