HUMAN FLOURISHING AT MIT

A Virtual Summit for Members and Friends of the MIT Community to Explore a Christian Vision of the Common Good

October 10, 2020, 4:00-6:00 EDT

Presented by The Octet Collaborative and co-sponsored by The Veritas Forum

What does it mean to flourish? How can the resources of Christian faith and practice contribute to human flourishing at MIT, and to MIT’s contribution to human flourishing around the world?  On October 10,  faculty, staff, students, alumni, and friends of the MIT community will gather to share their perspectives and wisdom at the launch of The Octet Collaborative, a new Christian study center serving MIT.  

Over 250 have registered so far; we invite you to connect with your community and join the conversation!

Andy Crouch is partner for theology and culture at Praxis, an organization that works as a creative engine for redemptive entrepreneurship. His two most recent books—2017's The Tech-Wise Family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place and 2016's Strong and Weak: Embracing a Life of Love, Risk and True Flourishing—build on the vision of faith, culture, and the image of God laid out in his previous books Playing God: Redeeming the Gift of Power and Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling. Andy serves on the governing boards of Fuller Theological Seminary and the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities and is an advisor to The Repentance Project, The Pelican Project, and Revoice.

Rosalind Picard is founder and director of the Affective Computing Research Group at the MIT Media Laboratory, co-founder of Affectiva, which provides Emotion AI, and co-founder and chief scientist of Empatica, which provides the first FDA-cleared smartwatch to detect seizures. Picard is author of over three hundred peer-reviewed articles spanning AI, affective computing, and medicine. She is known internationally for writing the book, Affective Computing, which helped launch the field by that name, and she is a popular speaker, with a TED talk receiving ~1.9 million views. Picard is a fellow of the IEEE and the AAAC, and a member of the National Academy of Engineering. She holds a Bachelors in Electrical Engineering from Georgia Tech and a Masters and Doctorate, each in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, from MIT. Picard leads a team of researchers developing AI/machine learning and analytics to advance basic science as well as to improve human health and wellbeing, and has served as MIT's faculty chair of their MindHandHeart wellbeing initiative.

A Christian Vision of Human Flourishing

Andy Crouch — see above for bio.

Social Justice and Civil Discourse: The Role and Responsibilities of MIT

Cullen Buie is an Associate Professor in MIT’s Department of Mechanical Engineering. In 2017 Kytopen, a start-up Buie co-founded that offers a high throughput method of genetic engineering, was among the first start-ups to be backed by The Engine, a start-up ecosystem launched by MIT. Cullen lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts with his wife and three children.

Nurturing Mental Health at MIT

Ehi Nosakhare PhD ‘18 is a Data and Applied Scientist in the AI development and acceleration program at Microsoft. She designs, develops and leads the implementation of machine learning (ML) solutions in application projects across Microsoft’s products and services. Prior to Microsoft, she completed a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She is very passionate about using ML to solve real-world problems and studying the ethical implications of ML/AI. In her spare time, she enjoys reading and re-learning to play the cello.

The Relationship Between Faith and Science

Jack Collins ‘76, SM ‘78 is Professor of Old Testament at Covenant Seminary in St. Louis. He is the author of Did Adam and Eve Really Exist?: Who They Were and Why You Should Care; The God of Miracles: An Exegetical Examination of God’s Action in the World; and Science and Faith: Friends or Foes?;

Wisdom for Working in the Tech Industry

Ted Leung ‘88 graduated from MIT in 1988 in Course 18 with a heavy dose of Course 6.  During his career he has worked at Apple, Disney, IBM, and Sun Microsystems as both an individual contributor and engineering leader.  Ted and his wife reside on Bainbridge Island, WA and have three adult daughters.

Arts and the Imagination at MIT

Mia Chung-Yee has enjoyed great success internationally as a solo recitalist, concerto soloist and chamber musician. In 1993, she won first prize at the Concert Artists Guild Competition and in 1997, she received the Avery Fisher Career Grant, the highest recognition for young concert artists in the United States. She serves as Professor of Musical Studies at the Curtis Institute of Music. She has been a guest speaker and panelist at Veritas Forum events and was a fellow in the Veritas Riff program in 2014 and 2018.