Hay Festival Querétaro 2023 – Science & Technology

Carlos Umaña (Costa Rica) won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017 together with the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) for calling attention “to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons” and for their “ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons”. He comes to Queretaro, in the country of the Tlatelolco Treaty, to talk about environmentalism, the need to eradicate nuclear arsenals from the world and what it is like to combine work as a scientist and an activist. In conversation with Elisa Guerra.

Carlos Umaña (Costa Rica) won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017 together with the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) for calling attention “to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons” and for their “ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons”. At this event in the country of the Tlatelolco Treaty, which bans nuclear arms in Latin America, Umaña will to talk about environmentalism, the need to eradicate nuclear arsenals from the world and his own work as a scientist and an activist. In conversation with Alexandra Haas.

Leontxo García (Spain) has been speaking and writing for 40 years about chess and its fascinating links with different fields of knowledge. At this event with Jan Martínez Ahrens, the author will share some views on this activity, which in recent years has enjoyed great success among Internet users. He will talk about its positive effects on the mental and emotional development of children, and its benefits in terms of the prevention of Alzheimer’s, and even the role that chess players have had in the struggles for power among the different geopolitical blocs over the course of history.

We talk about literature, literary production in non-traditional formats, and the intersections of art and writing, on how to narrate artistic experience through words, and also via cultural management projects. With Eva Piquer (Catalonia, Spain), the author of 13 books, former Literary Manager at the Thassalia publishing house and currently the Editor of the cultural magazine Catorze; and María Ptqk (Spain), cultural researcher and art curator with a doctorate in Artistic Research, who specialises in the ecological and the technoscientific, with a post-cultural perspective. In conversation with Cristina Fuentes La Roche, the festival director.

We are constantly handing over our data to companies, websites, via social media, thinking that this will help us in our everyday business… but will it really? Carissa Véliz, lecturer in Philosophy at the Institute for Ethics in AI, and a tutorial fellow at Hertford College, University of Oxford, is the author of the book Privacy is Power. Why and How You Should Take Back Control of Your Data. This is an essential text for understanding one of the most critical problems of the information age: the loss of privacy. In conversation with Eliezer Budasoff.

How has the role of light in understanding the universe changed, and how is it still changing? In 2012, Serge Haroche (France) was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics, together with David J. Wineland, for his innovative work in the field of quantum optics. Their discoveries make use of the properties of light particles to create new technologies, such as ultrafast quantum computers. With The Science of Light: From Galileo’s Telescope to Quantum Physics, this Nobel laureate offers a revealing narrative about what we now know about light, from relativity theory to quantum physics, about how we have learned it and how this knowledge has led to many inventions that have changed our lives. Coinciding with the celebration of a centenary of quantum physics, Haroche will talk to the BBC journalist Carlos Serrano about the history and current state of knowledge regarding one of physics’ most exciting and important phenomena: light.

Simultaneous interpretation from English to Spanish available

In recent years, we have seen how profound technological changes have had important political consequences, not always aligned with the values of democratic societies, something that might lead to the question of whether technology represents a threat rather than a force for good. Three experts will talk about matters linked to democratic security in the context of dizzying technological change: Ha-Joon Chang (South Korea), who lectures in Economics at Cambridge and writer of several books including the recent Economics: The User’s Guide; Thomas Porcher (France), economist and author of Traité d’économie hérétique; and Carissa Véliz (United Kingdom), lecturer in Philosophy at the Institute for Ethics in AI and author of the book Privacy is Power. In conversation with Eduardo Rabasa.

Simultaneous interpretation from English to Spanish available

The Spaniard Leontxo García works in educational chess and has experience in over 30 countries. He gives lectures on the educational, social and therapeutic applications of chess (particularly its power to combat aging of the brain and Alzheimer’s), as well as its history and famous champions (having met all of them since Botvínik). Principal Councillor for Educational Chess of the World Chess Federation (FIDE, 199 countries), he has also been a journalist since 1983. He offers us a fascinating lecture on the educational power of chess, especially for young children, establishing links with the most common school subjects.

Antonio Lazcano (Mexico) is a biologist, a Doctor of Science from UNAM, and expert in the origin and early evolution of life. He has lectured and been a visiting scientist at universities in the Americas and Europe and has received national and international awards. He also has three honorary doctorates and has been a member of the National College since 2014. He is the author of around 150 research papers and numerous books, including Tres ensayos darwinistas (2016), in which he invites the reader to meet one of the great scientists, focussing on three major topics: natural selection, inheritance and the origin of life. At this event, Lazcano will give a lecture about a true watershed in the history of medicine, science and human life: vaccinations.

How has the role of light in understanding the universe changed, and how is it still changing? In 2012, Serge Haroche (France) was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics, together with David J. Wineland, for his innovative work in the field of quantum optics. Their discoveries make use of the properties of light particles to create new technologies, such as ultrafast quantum computers. With The Science of Light: From Galileo’s Telescope to Quantum Physics, this Nobel laureate offers a revealing narrative about what we now know about light, from relativity theory to quantum physics, about how we have learned it and how this knowledge has led to many inventions that have changed our lives. Coinciding with the celebration of a centenary of quantum physics, Haroche will talk about the history and current state of knowledge regarding one of physics’ most exciting and important phenomena: light. He will talk to Alejandro Becerra.

Event in English