STRAY

the COURSE

1 p.m. Sunday, March 30, Osterhout Concert Theater

fish jumping out of the water
Ben Eisenkop

Ben "Unidan" Eisenkop

Alternative Futures of Science Funding

As funding for science projects in the forms of government grants becomes more competitive and scarce, many are beginning to turn to alternative sources of funding for answering their scientific queries. Is it possible to apply the same ideals of the prototype-development website Kickstarter to the scientific process? What implications does this have on the types and quality of science able to be performed? We will explore the possibility for developing alternative methods for funding science and what this means for the scientific community ranging from everyday citizens to the very scientists conducting the research.

Full Biography

Hannah Fry

Hannah Fry

The Mathematics of Love

Mathematician and Complexity Scientist

A number of impressive mathematics communicators have done a pretty good recently job of changing the image of their subject – bringing it alive from the boring lessons on a dusty blackboard that we all suffered at school and showing us the beauty of prime numbers, of platonic solids and Fibonacci sequences. But I believe that the beauty of mathematics doesn't just need to be constrained to the abstract; that the power of its application extends way beyond the classroom. In this talk then, I want to convince you that Mathematics has the potential to offer a fresh perspective and new insights on almost any topic you can think of − even something as mysterious as love.

Full Biography

Jeff Garzik

Jeff Garzik

Bitcoin, the organism

Engineer, blogger, futurist and entrepreneur

There are many answers to the question "What is bitcoin?" Bitcoin is a currency, a commodity, a payment network, a computing service − but ultimately much more. Bitcoin core developer Jeff Garzik presents a unique engineering system described by one Chicago Federal Reserve economist as an "automaton." Find out why Silicon Valley thinks bitcoin will revolutionize finance and accounting the way the Internet revolutionized global communication.

Full Biography

Anna Holmes

Anna Holmes

The birth of Jezebel

Editor, columnist, website founder

Jezebel.com – the popular website for women filled with contributions on feminism, pop culture, fashion, sex, politics and more – is a perfect example of how pop culture can be used as an entry point into gender politics for young women. I will talk about why I think this is effective and important.

Editor, columnist and founder of the popular Jezebel.com website, whose Twitter account was named one of the top 140 Twitter feeds by Time.

Full Biography

Ruben Santiago-Hudson

Ruben Santiago-Hudson

Stray the Path...The Story of My Life

Actor, writer and director

The theme of my talk is about how you take note of the rules for achievement − the "instruction booklet for success" − but still be who you are and follow what speaks to you as well. Never ignore your instinct as long as it keeps you in the direction of your goals. Of course, I will use my career as an actor/writer/director and my experiences as the example. As you can see, I never let this business box me into one title or another!

Full Biography

gabriel sayegh

gabriel sayegh

Drugs, "Thugs," and other Things We're Taught to Fear: Racism, the War on Drugs, and the Fight to End Mass Incarceration in America

New York State Director of the Drug Policy Alliance

Launched over 40 years ago, the war on drugs is America's longest armed conflict and is increasingly viewed as a failure: the nation has spent $1 Trillion, made 40 million arrests, become the leading jailer in the world and institutionalized racial disparities into a system many refer to as the New Jim Crow. Yet drugs and addiction remain an ever-present fact of life in communities across the nation. Now, there is increasing debate about reforming our drug laws. Where do we go from here? What is the future of drug policy in the U.S.?

Full Biography

Sebastian Walker

Sebastian Walker

The Greatest Spectacle You've Never Seen

South-African born engineer, consultant, sportsman and entrepreneur

Though we know the title of this talk, we don’t have a description. You’ll have to come to TEDxBinghamtonUniversity to learn what it’s all about! It won’t take long once Sebastian begins speaking – though he wants to keep it a secret for now, you’ll be on board with him within the first 60 seconds!

Full Biography

Binghamton Crosbys

The Binghamton Crosbys

The Binghamton Crosbys, an all-male a cappella group most commonly referred to as, simply, The Crosbys, is the first independent music club recognized by the University and is the only all-male a cappella group at Binghamton University.