Institute of Ideas

The Battle of Ideas website has been relaunched at its new home - www.battleofideas.org.uk. There you can see some of the products of our work over the past few of months, including all sessions, speakers and recommended readings.

Meanwhile, over at Culture Wars you can read the excellent collected reviews of Verso's Radical Thinkers II series, probing what being 'radical' really means today.

And in the lead-up to the Battle of Ideas, we're organising several satellite events over the course of October. So buy your tickets, or better still, join the IoI as an associate and benefit from reduced ticket prices for IoI events.

IoI MANCHESTER SALON
Thursday 6 September
Following on from the initial book discussion, new dates have been set for the Manchester Salon. At the next meeting on Thursday 6 September, Helen Birtwistle, Institute of Ideas & Pfizer Debating Matters Competition press officer, will introduce a discussion on friendship and social networking. For further information, please email Hilary Salt at manchestersalon@instituteofideas.com.

BATTLE OF IDEAS **SATELLITE EVENTS**
Design in Denial?
Monday 1 October, 7.15-8.30pm @ Design Museum, London
Design is seldom discussed in its own terms, with many designers increasingly defending design by doing stuff-other-than-design. Does this simply capture the cultural ‘zeitgeist’ or is design in denial?

Information and speakers

What Good Is E-Learning?
Friday 5 October, 6.30-9pm @ london knowledge lab
What is the best way of thinking about the innovatory potential of new technologies in education? How can we make the most of what these can offer while keeping the best of what a teacher-led, subject-based curriculum has provided in the past?

Information and speakers

SCIENCE EDUCATION PROJECT

A new report has been published detailing the conclusions and recommendations made by the National Science Learning Centre conference on the new Key Stage 3 curriculum: Now Science Works: A new approach to Key Stage 3 Sciences.

David Perks, physics teacher and lead author of What is Science Education For? (Institute of Ideas, 2006) has written a critical response to this report and the continued shift away from academic science education it reflects. Read his response at the Science Education Project.

THE SHOCK DOCTRINE: THE RISE OF DISASTER CAPITALISM
Thursday 13 September, 7.30pm @ Queen Elizabeth Hall, London
Author of the million-selling No Logo, Naomi Klein discusses her new book The Shock Doctrine in this world launch event.

Special offer to Institute of Ideas: 30% discount when purchasing a full price ticket.
Offer not available online. To book call 0871 663 2500 and quote 'Institute of Ideas'.

More Information

INTERN AT THE INSTITUTE OF IDEAS!
The IoI is looking for interns. If you have an interest in politics, the arts or science, or just want to help out organising the Battle of Ideas, contact geoffkidder@instituteofideas.com.

POSTGRADUATE FORUM
A new series of the Postgraduate Forum will begin in October. Contact postgrad@instituteofideas.com

Claire Fox will be speaking at two events at the Liberal Democrat conference fringe in Brighton on 18 September:

- Local Government Association Question Time - 'Towards a Devolutionary Future', Renaissance South, Thistle Hotel, 1-2pm

- Smith Institute meeting - 'Higher Education: A Public Service', Belgrave Hotel, 6-7.30pm

Claire Fox will be speaking at three events at the Labour Party conference fringe in Bournemouth on 25 September:

- Social Market Foundation meeting - 'Prohibition for Protection? Should government force people to choose healthier lifestyles?', Bourne Hall Hotel, 8-9am

- Dr Foster Intelligence - 'This house believes it is role of the state to guarantee the nation's health and wellbeing' (opposing Ben Bradshaw MP), Marquee 3, 12.30-2pm

- Smith Institute meeting - 'Higher Education: A Public Service', Royal Bath Hotel, 5.45-7.30pm

Claire Fox will be giving a guest lecture on academic freedom and the right to be offensive to the University of Hertfordshire Humanities Department induction week on 26 September, 1pm

Tiffany Jenkins will be speaking on Contesting Dead Bodies: The emerging cultural meanings of human remains in museum collections at the 8th International Conference on the Social Context of Death, Dying and Disposal on 12-15 September at the University of Bath.

VIDEO / AUDIO

Visit the IoI Media Archive for audio recordings of forums and events.

Claire Fox’s speech on the topic, ‘In praise of elitism’, originally given at the CIS Big Ideas Forum in Australia on 10 August, was broadcast on ABC Radio National on 26 August and again on 1 September. You can listen again here.

Claire Fox will be on the Anita Anand show on BBC Radio FiveLive on 6 September from 10pm to 1am.

Claire Fox will be on the new series of the Moral Maze, beginning Wednesday 26 September.

Tony Gilland appeared on Channel 4 News on Friday 24 August to critique the contemporary obsession with individual behaviour and ‘ethical’ lifestyles. Watch it here.

Dolan Cummings will be on Up Front on 18 Doughty Street on 7 September.

Claire Fox News will next be on internet TV channel 18 Doughty Street on 3 September with a special student edition. The following Claire Fox News will be on 17 September and will feature Alec Turner and Dr Kathryn Ecclestone discussing further education. The previous Claire Fox News was on 6 August with an edition on transport and mobility.

IN THE PRESS

Edited extract of speech given to Big Ideas Forum:
Strike up the band for elitism, Claire Fox, The Australian, 18 August 2007

Death to freedom of expression!, Dolan Cummings, Printed Project, Issue 8, October 2007

Ossifying the Enlightenment, Dolan Cummings, spiked review of books, August 2007

'Confessions of a justified Rangers supporter', Dolan Cummings, in It's Rangers for me? (Fort Publishing, 2007)

Shirley Dent writes regularly for the Guardian Arts & Entertainment Blog. Read her most recent article, Vending verse is worse, 20 August.
Shirley’s Guardian blogs are archived here.

Who’s afraid of… gambling adverts?, Alex Hochuli, spiked, 21 August 2007

This month's highlights:

Theatre reviews from this year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and, in books, a package of reviews and features on Verso's Radical Thinkers series. Coming soon: the Forward poetry prize, and further book reviews related to the Battle of Ideas.

Preparation for the start of next year's Institute of Ideas and Pfizer competition are well underway, with 32 qualifying rounds taking place across the country from mid-October to early December. There are a limited number of spaces to be taken up in some areas, so if you are a teacher and interested in putting a team forward for the 2007/08 competition then please contact Justine Brian by emailing justinebrian@instituteofideas.com or calling 020 7269 9233.

Teams participating in the Debating Matters competition can now take away tips from some of the competition’s top teams by watching debates that took place at this years’ National Final. Semi-final debates on the motions ‘Happiness should be a key goal of government policy’ and ‘Western museums should agree to requests to repatriate cultural artefacts’ are now available to view at Fora TV.

As ever debates for the qualifying rounds will take up some pressing real-world issues. Topics for the qualifying rounds have now been confirmed and will be available for download on the website shortly. Teams will be told which debates they have been allocated following the 1 September deadline. Motions for the qualifying rounds are listed below:

Science and Society

‘Attempts to extend radically the human lifespan should be welcomed and not feared’

‘Household recycling is a waste of time’

‘Scientific research on embryonic stem cells is a good thing’

Politics and Policy

‘Patients are entitled to healthcare whatever their lifestyle choices’

‘Protecting the public from terrorism should come before civil liberties’

‘CCTV is a threat to our freedom’

Arts and Culture

‘Celebrities should keep out of politics’

‘The media are responsible for lowering the level of public debate’

‘Tourism benefits the world’

The Debating Matters team are keen to involve new judges to take part in this year's competition. If you are interested in judging at this year’s Qualifying Rounds or would like more information about the competition, please call the team on 0207 269 9232 or email helenbirtwistle@instituteofideas.com.

Finally, the Debating Matters team are delighted to welcome the Economic and Social Research Council as (ESRC) our new regional sponsors in the North West and Central Regions and to thank all of our existing sponsors for their continued support- our headline sponsor Pfizer, our primary funder, the Wellcome Trust and our regional sponsors- Canterbury Christ Church University, the Medical Research Council (MRC), the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and the University of Newcastle.