New York Thought: Smart Things to Do in NYC This Weekend

A talk on time, the biology of political conflict, and a performance inspired by Rumi highlight our picks for the best smart things to do in NYC this weekend.

Friday, April 26

Singer Zila Khan’s repertoire ranges from Indian Classical to Indo-Jazz Fusion to traditional Ghazal and Sufi. She’ll lead an ensemble through India’s rich musical landscape, as informed by the philosophy of Rumi. Asia Society and Museum.

Pursue knowledge at this conference featuring exiled scholars, who will share how their home countries have attacked academic institutions and freedoms. The New School.

Saturday, April 27

Don’t worry, be hopeful as neuroscientist Tracy Dennis-Tiwary leads a workshop inspired by the interactive Rubin Museum of Art artwork A Monument for the Anxious and the Hopeful.

Chronobiologist and neuroscientist Orie Shafer leads the taste of science festival session Time After Time. Hop the Staten Island Ferry for an excursion to the fifth borough to learn about circadian rhythms and how the planet experiences time on a geologic scale.

Sunday, April 28

Discover the “world of tomorrow” at this event commemorating the 80th anniversary of the 1939 World’s Fair’s opening day on its former site.

Could the current division in our country have more to do with innate survival impulses than any battle of ideas? Curt Collier, National Youth Programs Director for Groundwork USA, looks at the ways we can re-channel our drives in a talk on the biology of political conflict. New York Society for Ethical Culture.

Legendary Nightline anchor Ted Koppel joins Jeff Greenfield at the 92nd Street Y for a conversation about his 50-plus years as an eyewitness to history, touching on the role of the press then and now.

Beyond things to do in NYC this weekend, keep up with all kinds of talks, lectures and activities in the big city. Sign up for Thought Gallery’s weekly Curriculum, the best of smart New York delivered right to your inbox.