Sunday, September 16, 4 p.m., Orcas Center
— from Michael Riordan for Orcas Currents —
Two hundred years ago, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley created one of the most famous novels ever written, Frankenstein — a remarkable book with a remarkable backstory that physicist and author Sidney Perkowitz will recount in an Orcas Currents lecture on Sunday, September 16, in Orcas Center, beginning at 4 pm.
Shelley was only 18 when she began a harrowing tale that has inspired a multitude of books and films. Her portrayal of a tormented being created by the scientist Victor Frankenstein remains relevant in today’s world, as science advances ever more rapidly and we face the possibility of humans modifying and perhaps even creating life.
In this talk, based on his recent book Frankenstein: How a Monster Became an Icon, Perkowitz will introduce Mary and her literary circle, including her famous husband, the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. He will explain how she came to write the novel and present book excerpts and clips from Frankenstein films to illustrate how the story has evolved over two centuries. In closing, he will suggest how the story still serves as a guide to and warning about the role of science in modern society.
Sidney Perkowitz attended Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute and earned his Ph.D. in physics at the University of Pennsylvania. As the Candler Professor of Physics at Emory University, he published over 100 research papers and books on topics in atomic, molecular and condensed-matter physics.
As Professor Emeritus, he now presents science for general readers in his books such as Empire of Light, Universal Foam, Digital People, Hollywood Science, Slow Light, Hollywood Chemistry and Frankenstein. He has appeared on the BBC, CBC, CNN, NPR and many other outlets, discussing topics ranging from the science of food to science in the media. He is a distinguished Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and was given a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society for Literature, Science and the Arts.
This Orcas Currents event is cosponsored by Janet Alderton and the Orcas Island Public Library. Admission is free but donations are welcome at the door.
Thank you for posting this article. I neglected to mention that Sidney Perkowitz will sign copies of his book “Frankenstein” after the lecture and the Q&A session that follows it. They can be purchased there from Darvill’s Bookstore.
Anticipation of this Orcas Currents presentation makes me think of diverse issues such as artificial intelligence, automation, and biological research to address such critical issues as food supply. I am just reading in the journal Nature about progress in the breeding and selection of cereal grains that require much less nitrogen than the dwarfed cereal grains that brought about the “Green Revolution”. One can find both hope and despair in the aspirations and actions of our species.