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Science and Ideas Group - How We Domesticated Fire, and Fire Domesticated Us
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About this event
RSVP: Joseph Evinger (jdevinger@comcast.net)
When: Every 2nd Thursday of the month, 3:00-4:30 pm
Where: Zoom (click "Zoom" to join event)
Meeting ID: 848 0146 1083
Passcode: science
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+1 669 900 9128
Meeting ID: 848 0146 1083
Open to: All
Science and Ideas:
How We Domesticated Fire,
and Fire Domesticated Us
Presenter: Jim Gasperini, historian
Description: How did we, alone among the animals, come to control fire? Every human culture has at least one explanation, ranging from accounts of simple accidents to fantastic stories of trips on gossamer balloons to steal fire from the Moon People. Why do so many of these stories, such as the Greek myth of Prometheus, require that fire be stolen? Why do so many involve sexual symbolism, including a myth proposed by Sigmund Freud?
After reviewing this mythology, this presentation will outline current scientific thinking about our early encounters with fire. The process of domesticating fire required the development of advanced cognitive and social skills and the invention of rituals to keep the fire burning. Our ancient partnership with fire shaped our bodies, developed our brains, and made human culture possible.
Bio: Jim Gasperini recently completed a cultural history of fire, “Fire in the Imagination: From the Burning Bush to Burning Man.” He is Vice-President of the Institute for Historical Study, an association of independent scholars. A Williams College graduate, during an eclectic career his creative work has focused on the entertaining presentation of complex information to general audiences using various media. He designed award-winning educational computer games, including Hidden Agenda, a simulation of Central American politics, and SimCity 3000, the third version of the bestselling urban planning simulation. Longtime participation in the Burning Man festival and fascination with the use of fire as a spiritual practice inspired his passion for the subject.
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