Join artist Sonja Baeumel and biologist Tom Oliver for a discussion of how we can think about ourselves in the Anthropocene – no longer as consumer individuals, but as interwebbed and interdependent processes in touch with the rest of life. Facilitated by UNFIX director Paul Michael Henry.
Tom Oliver is a professor in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Reading. He is a prominent systems thinker, advising both the UK government and the European Environment Agency. He has published more than eighty scientific papers in world-leading interdisciplinary journals and won two first-place prizes for essays communicating science to a broader audience. His writing has appeared in theGuardian, Independent and BBC Science Focus and he is author of the critically acclaimed book The Self Delusion: The Surprising Science of Our Connection to Each Other and the Natural World
About the book:
Most of our 37 trillion cells have such a short lifespan that we are essentially made anew every few weeks. The molecules forming our bodies have been component parts of countless other organisms, from ancient plants to dinosaurs. The bacteria, fungi and viruses that make up our bodies influence our moods and even manipulate our behaviour. Every word and every touch we receive from other people transforms the neural networks in our brain and changes our sense of self. The Self Delusion is an explosive, powerful and inspiring book bringing together overwhelming evidence to prove our existence as independent beings is an illusion – and why understanding our many connections is the key to a better future.