Science takes center stage in New York City: Mayor Michael Bloomberg opens the World Science Festival at the inaugural World Science Summit held at Columbia University Festival co-founders Brian Greene and Tracy Day with actor Alan Alda at the inaugural World Science Summit Philanthropist Fred Kavli (center) with two of the inaugural Kavli Prize winners announced at the World Science Summit: chemist and nanoscience pioneer Luis E. Brus (left) and neuroscientist Thomas Jessell (right) "Radical Science for a Warming Planet": vertical farm pioneer Dickson Despommier, Assistant Secretaryat the U.S. Department of Energy Alexander Karsner, and Aspen Institute president Walter Isaacson at the World Science Summit Nobel Laureate Harold Varmus develops his vision of science as the new foreign policy at the World Science Summit Party under the whale: celebrating the launch of the inaugural World Science Festival in the American Museum of Natural History's Milstein Hall of Ocean Life. The Abbyssinian Baptist Church Choir performs at the World Science Festival's opening party New York Senator Charles Schumer greeting physicist Jim Gates at the World Science Festival's opening party at the American Museum of Natural History MTV's SuChin Pak with Nobel Laureate Leon Lederman and three New York City high school students at "Pioneers in Science," presented in partnership with CUNY and supported by ABC Channel 7 Nobel Prize-winning physicist Leon Lederman at "Pioneers in Science," presented in partnership with CUNY and supported by ABC Channel 7 Groundbreaking robot designer Cynthia Breazeal (second from right) with the New York City high school students who interviewed her at the Festival event "Pioneers in Science," presented in partnership with CUNY and supported by ABC Channel 7 Are our brains unique? V.S. Ramachandran explores the origin of human abilities at "Ramachandran/Kurzweil: Humanity Now/Humanity Next," presented in partnership with the Rubin Museum of Art What will happen when (if?) artificial intelligence surpasses our own? Inventor and futurist Ray Kurzweil at "Ramachandran/Kurzweil: Humanity Now/Humanity Next," presented in partnership with the Rubin Museum of Art Parallel worlds: Indie rock artist Mark Oliver Everett ("eels") explores his father's contribution to physics with cosmologist Max Tegmark, theoretical physicist Michio Kaku and physicist/moderator Brian Cox in "Parallel Worlds, Parallel Lives" Indie rock artist Mark Oliver Everett ("eels") and theoretical physicist Michio Kaku at "Parallel Worlds, Parallel Lives" "You and Your Irrational Brain": co-hosts Jad Abumrad (far left) and Robert Krulwich (far right) flanking science writer Jonah Lehrer (left) and behavioral economist Dan Ariely (right) in a special presentation of WNYC's popular show Radio Lab Physicists Lawrence Krauss and Paul Steinhardt discuss the fundamental questions and most recent advances of cosmology at "Echoes from the Beginning: A Journey through Space and Time," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Science historian Helge Kragh (left) and moderator Ira Flatow listen as astrophysicist Lyman Page explains radio-wave echoes of the big bang in "Echoes from the Beginning," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Journalist/writer Lucy Hawking and cosmologist Michael Turner waiting for the curtain to rise on "Toil and Trouble... Stories of Experiments Gone Wrong," presented in partnership with New York's unique story-telling collective, The Moth Actor/writer Sam Shepard on a film stunt gone wrong in "Toil and Trouble... Stories of Experiments Gone Wrong," presented in partnership with The Moth Physicist Jim Gates at "Toil and Trouble... Stories of Experiments Gone Wrong," presented in partnership with The Moth Author Nathan Englander takes the stage with his own story of "Toil and Trouble... Stories of Experiments Gone Wrong," presented in partnership with The Moth Einstein biographer Walter Isaacson and physicist/author Alan Lightman in the discussion following a performance "Einstein's Dreams," based on Lightman's book of the same title, presented by Science & the Arts at CUNY's Graduate Center Cognitive scientist Laurie Santos, who studies monkeys' capacity for learning, answers the questions of budding scientists after the event "Cool Jobs" Oliver Sacks (right) in conversation with Robert Krulwich, exploring relationship between vision and the brain in "The Mind's Eye," co-produced with the Metropolitan Museum of Art Amnesia, fact and fiction: psychiatrist/neurologist Giulio Tononi, film director/producer Doug Liman and screenwriter/producer James Schamus in "The Brain and Bourne: Neuroscience in the Bourne Trilogy," presented in partnership with MoMA Introducing the wonderful weirdness of the quantum world: Brian Greene in "Invisible Reality," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Just as events in the quantum worlds are governed by chance, so is this dance performance. Sandra Kaufmann's troupe at "Invisible Reality," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Discussing the quantum world: moderator Alan Alda, cosmologist Max Tegmark, physics Nobel Laureate Bill Phillips, physicist-turned-philospher David Albert, and string theorist Brian Greene in "Invisible Reality," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Moderator Alan Alda in conversation with cosmologist Max Tegmark and physics Nobel Laureate Bill Phillips at "Invisible Reality," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Architect Blaine Brownell presents revolutionary eco-materials: "Future Cities," supported by Con Edison and NYSERDA Adventurer, photographer and sailor David Thoreson recounts his 2007 voyage through the Northwest Passage at "The Sixth Extinction" Choreographer Bill T. Jones performs at "Illuminating Genius: Unlocking Creativty," supported by the Dana Foundation Neuroscientist Nancy C. Andreasen re-traces her explorations of artistic creativity and innovation at "Illuminating Genius," supported by the Dana Foundation Brain in hand: Painter/sculptor/digital artist Matthew Ritchie and neuroscientist V. S. Ramachandran at "Illuminating Genius," supported by the Dana Foundation Presenting musical creativity: [XYZ] performing at "Illuminating Genius," supported by the Dana Foundation Shakespeare and science: actor/author Michael York and moderator John Hockenberry at "Illuminating Genius," supported by the Dana Foundation Geneticist Jim Evans and Human Genome Project Director Francis Collins present the lighter side of genomics in "Your Biological Biography: Genes and Identity" Sociologist Nikolas Rose on the wider implications of genomics at "Your Biological Biography: Genes and Identity" Moderator Bill Blakemore (ABC News), Monsignor Lorenzo Albacete, psychologists Nina Azari and Paul Bloom, and physics Nobel Laureate William Phillips exploring "Faith and Science," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Disney Imagineer Rick Taylor simulates a roller-coaster ride at "The Science of Disney Imagineering" The science behind special effects: Disney Imagineers Scott Trowbridge and Asa Kalama blow a giant smoke ring at "The Science of Disney Imagineering" This is how you fireworks get their brilliant colors: Ben Schwegler, Chief Scientist at Walt Disney Imagineering, and Scott Trowbridge create colorful flames at "The Science of Disney Imagineering" Instantly frozen banana - just add liquid nitrogen! Nobel Prize-winning physicist Bill Phillips at "Einstein, Time & Cool Stuff" Basketball 3, Science 1: Leilani Mitchell and Lisa Willis (both New York Liberty, WNBA), Brevin Knight (then Los Angeles Clippers, now Utah Jazz, NBA), and Tom Crawford, former Director of Coaching for the United States Olympic Committee, at "Science of Sports" Applied chemistry: children manufacturing their own super-bouncy superballs at the Mad Science booth at the WSF Street Fair Are you smarter than a fifth-grader? As they fold origami and solve puzzles, these attendees of the WSF Street Fair are about to find out Intense concentration: Mathemagician Arthur Benjamin multiplying two five-digit numbers in his head at the WSF Street Fair Dinosaurs in Washington Square Park? Disney's animatronic dinosaur Lucky at the WSF Street Fair Whoosh! The Franklin's Traveling Science Show creates a small dust explosion at the WSF Street Fair Mary Lou Jepsen ("One Laptop Per Child") makes a point at the event "Greengenuity", as innovative entrepreneurs Eben Bayer and Gavin McIntyre (left) and moderator Josh Dorfman (right) look on An audience of more than 150 fills NYU's lecture hall as the panel of "Greengenuity" explores the ever-growing spectrum of choices available to would-be green consumers How to supply the whole planet with clean, renewable energy? Moderator Andrew Revkin (New York Times), chemistry Nobel Laureate F. Sherwood Rowland and physicist David Keith at "Powering the Planet," supported by Con Edison and NYSERDA "Music and the Brain," with Oliver Sacks, fills the Abyssinian Baptist Church. The event was supported by The Rockefeller Foundation Oliver Sacks addressing an audience of more than 1400 inside the Abyssinian Baptist Church at "Music and the Brain," supported by The Rockefeller Foundation Physicists Jim Gates, Janna Levin and Leonard Susskind, science historian Peter Galison, and moderator (and Nobel Laureate) Paul Nurse discuss the search for the ultimate explanation at "Beyond Einstein," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Science historian Peter Galison looks on as Paul Nurse talks about complexity in "Beyond Einstein: In Search of the Ultimate Explanation," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Moderator John Hockenberry addressing the panel at "Looking for the Laws of Life": synthetic biologist Steven Benner (left), astrobiologist Maggie Turnbull, and physicist/astrobiologist Paul Davies One more day to go: Festival co-founders Brian Greene and Tracy Day PBS talk show hose Charlie Rose introduces the Festival's high-powered panel discussion on one of the great questions: "What It Means to Be Human," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Full house: Paul Nurse, Marvin Minsky, Ian Tattersall, Renee Reijo Pera, Daniel Dennett, Harold Varmus, Francis Collins, Jim Gates, Nikolas Rose, Patricia Churchland, Antonio Damasio, and Charlie Rose at "What It Means to Be Human," supported by the John Templeton Foundation Left to right: Kate Burton as Mileva Maric, Anthony LaPaglia as Albert Einstein, and Mia Barron as the narrator in Alan Alda's reading for the stage, "Dear Albert," supported by The Rockefeller Foundation Award-winning jazz singer Marilyn Maye performs at "90 is the new 50: The Science of Longevity" Pathologist and aging specialist David Sinclair listens to the statements of jazz singer Marilyn Maye at "90 is the new 50: The Science of Longevity" Pulitzer-winning gerontologist and psychiatrist, Robert Butler, at "90 is the new 50: The Science of Longevity"