Study Ayn Rand’s Ideas
July 30, 2009 by · Leave a Comment
Study Ayn Rand’s Ideas
IRVINE, CA, July 30, 2009–The Objectivist Academic Center (OAC)–a four-year educational program offered by the Ayn Rand Institute–is accepting its final round of applications for the 2009-10 academic year. The OAC is designed for motivated students who want to study Ayn Rand’s ideas in a systematic fashion, under the guidance of ARI’s top intellectuals.
“Students of Ayn Rand’s philosophy, Objectivism, know that it is a rich, complex system that can take years to fully understand when studied on one’s own,” said Debi Ghate, vice president of Academic programs at ARI. “Those students who are seeking an in-depth understanding of that system come to the OAC, where they receive an unparalleled education in Objectivism and in the art of objective thinking and communication.”
The OAC is especially designed for full-time college students to supplement their university education, although others may apply. Visit http://www.objectivistacademiccenter.org/ to find more about the program, as well as an online application. There are a limited number of spots available, and the deadline to apply is July 31, 2009.
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Speaking Tour Celebrates Charles Darwin’s Anniversary
February 11, 2009 by Administrator · Leave a Comment
Washington, D.C.–In celebration of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, Keith Lockitch, resident fellow at the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights, will be speaking on Darwin and evolution at four college campuses this week.
The speaking tour includes the following appearances:
February 9: University of Texas, Austin.
February 10: University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa.
February 11: University of Georgia, Athens.
February 12: University of North Carolina, Charlotte.
According to Dr. Lockitch, “The theory of evolution is often disparaged by its opponents as being ‘just a theory’, a speculative hypothesis with little basis in hard, scientific facts. But this claim carries with it the implied accusation that Charles Darwin was ‘just a theorist’, an armchair scientist whose life’s work was nothing more than an exercise in arbitrary speculation. A look at Darwin’s pioneering discoveries, however, reveals the grave injustice of this accusation.” As Dr. Lockitch explains in his talk, “Darwin was not ‘just a theorist’ and evolution is not ‘just a theory.’”
In this speaking tour, which also celebrates the 150th anniversary of the publication of Darwin’s masterpiece On the Origin of Species, Dr. Lockitch explores Darwin’s life and work, focusing on the steps by which he came to discover and prove the theory of evolution by natural selection.
Fay’s floods still concern Brevard ranchers, farmers
October 24, 2008 by Administrator · Leave a Comment
By Kimberly C. Moore
Florida Today
Some of Brevard County’s most widely known farming and ranching families voiced their concerns to state and county water-management officials Thursday about flooding on their properties during and after Tropical Storm Fay in August.
Read more at Florida Today…
Updated: Palin starts two-day Florida tour; Biden will be in the Sunshine State Wednesday
October 6, 2008 by Administrator · Leave a Comment
CLEARWATER — Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, the state’s two top Republicans, have taken the stage to introduce Republican vice presidential nominee and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
With patriotic and nostalgic songs from a group of elementary schoolers, today’s rally began at Coachman Park in downtown Clearwater at around 7:30 a.m.
A Critique of Global Warming Science and Policy
September 13, 2008 by Administrator · Leave a Comment
PRESS ADVISORY
AYN RAND INSTITUTE
September 15, 2008
A Critique of Global Warming Science and Policy
A panel discussion at the University of California, Berkeley
What: A panel discussion challenging widely accepted views on global warming science and policy, followed by a Q&A
Who: Keith Lockitch, fellow of the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights, and Willie Soon, geoscientist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Where: 145 Dwinelle Hall, UCB campus, Berkeley 94720
When: Thursday, September 25, 2008, 6:30 pm
Description: It is now widely believed that man-made greenhouse gases are causing an unnatural warming of the earth that will have devastating consequences for human life. Environmentalists and politicians are pressing for severe restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions aimed at preventing global warming. But are these beliefs and policies justified? What does the scientific evidence actually support regarding the causes of climate variability and the role of anthropogenic greenhouse gases? Are the predictions of catastrophic changes supported by scientific fact? Is government economic intervention aimed at severely restricting greenhouse gases an appropriate policy response? Panelists will address these critical issues in a lively discussion.
Bios:
Keith Lockitch is a fellow of the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights, specializing in science and environmental policy. His writings have appeared in numerous newspapers and he has been a frequent guest on radio shows. He is also a contributing writer for The Objective Standard, a quarterly journal of culture and politics. Dr. Lockitch teaches a history of physics course for the Ayn Rand Institute’s Objectivist Academic Center. He holds a PhD in theoretical physics from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee and has conducted postdoctoral research in relativistic astrophysics at the University of Illinois and at Pennsylvania State University.
Willie Soon is both an astrophysicist and a geoscientist at the Solar, Stellar, and Planetary Sciences Division of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. Dr. Soon is the receiving editor in the area of solar and stellar physics for the journal New Astronomy. He is also the chief science adviser of the Science and Public Policy Institute. He writes and lectures both professionally and publicly on important issues related to the Sun, other stars, the Earth as well as general science topics in astronomy and physics. He is the author of The Maunder Minimum and the Variable Sun-Earth Connection.
For more information on this talk, please e-mail media@aynrandcenter.org
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Dr. Keith Lockitch is available for interviews now and after his panel discussion.
Contact: Larry Benson
E-mail: media@aynrandcenter.org
Phone: (949) 222-6550, ext. 213
For more information on Objectivism’s unique point of view, go to ARI’s Web site. The Ayn Rand Institute promotes the philosophy of Ayn Rand, author of “Atlas Shrugged” and “The Fountainhead.”
Please note: The above event is organized, hosted and sponsored by an individual campus club. Although ARI provides financial support, educational materials and speakers for eligible student clubs, campus clubs are organizations independent of ARI. ARI does not necessarily endorse the content of the lectures and sessions offered.
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Vatican Doesn’t Deserve a Statue of Galileo
September 8, 2008 by Administrator · Leave a Comment
Washington, D.C. – According to news reports, the Vatican plans to commission a statue of Galileo, the father of modern science, with support from an anonymous benefactor. Before the story leaked to the Italian press, church officials had tried to keep news of the project quiet for fear of scaring off the donor should the plan generate too much controversy.
“This plan ought to generate controversy,” said Dr. Keith Lockitch, Fellow of the Ayn Rand Center. “It is outrageous for the church to try to pretend to honor a scientist famous for being a victim of its own tyranny.”
“Galileo has always been the most eloquent symbol of the clash between science and religion. He was persecuted by the Inquisition simply for defending ideas that ran counter to church dogma.
“What was Galileo’s ‘crime’? He wrote and spoke out publicly in defense of the scientific fact that the earth orbits the sun and revolves on its own axis. But because this was contrary to scripture, the church convicted him of ‘vehement suspicion of heresy,’ forced him to recant publicly under threat of torture, banned his writings, and sentenced him to house arrest.
“Many today would argue that faith and reason are perfectly compatible. But Galileo’s trial and conviction is a reminder of the evils that can be perpetrated by those who are completely committed to faith, when they are challenged in their blind beliefs by the facts and logic of a determined proponent of reason.
“And this is not just something that happened 400 years ago with no relevance to the present; it is a battle that continues to rage to this day. While few would now declare the Earth the motionless center of the universe, as Galileo’s persecutors did, it is not difficult to find those who claim it to be 6,000 years old and deny the long, slow evolution of its species. If today they are relatively restrained in their war on reason, it is only for lack of political power.
“A statue honoring Galileo, a paragon of reason, would be totally incompatible with the church’s essence as an institution of faith. It would be an honor that the church can never deserve.”
Dr. Lockitch has a PhD in Physics from the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee and is a Fellow at the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights. His writings have appeared in publications such as the Orange County Register and the San Francisco Chronicle.
Dr. Keith Lockitch is available for interviews. To book him for your show, please contact Larry Benson:
E-mail: media@AynRandCenter.org
Phone: (949) 222-6550, ext. 213
For more information on Objectivism’s unique point of view, go to ARC’s Web site. The Ayn Rand Center promotes the philosophy of Ayn Rand, author of “Atlas Shrugged” and “The Fountainhead.”
Animal Rights Activists Are Not Pro-Animal, They Are Anti-Human
August 7, 2008 by Administrator · Leave a Comment
Dr. Keith Lockitch
Irvine, CA – Last Saturday, animal rights activists used firebombs to attack two UC Santa Cruz biologists–exploding the car of one scientist, who was not present, while bombing the townhouse of another, who sustained minor injuries while fleeing with his wife and two small children.
“This sort of attack is shocking and reprehensible, but unfortunately it is not surprising,” said Dr. Keith Lockitch, resident fellow of the Ayn Rand Institute. “It is not surprising when supporters of animal ‘rights’ use violence and intimidation, because their cause is fundamentally anti-human.”
“Animal activists claim that their goal is to stop gratuitous torture inflicted for no reason. But that is a smokescreen. They fight against such benign practices as keeping animals in circuses and zoos, or even as pets–no matter how well-loved and well-cared-for they are. Worst of all, they oppose the use of animals in research, no matter how humanely they are treated and no matter how many lives could be saved from the medical advances this makes possible.
“All of this is based on the false notion that animals have ‘rights.’ But the concept of ‘rights’ properly only applies to rational beings, who can recognize and respect the rights of others. In the name of the imagined ‘rights’ of animals, they have no hesitation about assaulting the actual rights of individual people.
“It is a mistake to regard these criminals as ‘extremists’ who are hijacking an otherwise valid cause. It is the cause of animal ‘rights,’ itself, that is vicious and anti-human.”
