Michaela C and Renee P at St Ignatius College, Riverview

On 19 May, I travelled with Michaela to St Ignatius College, Riverview, for a student conference with speakers Julie Arliss and Jeffrey Hodges. Students from numerous other Sydney high schools attended as well. The central theme for the talks was Civilisation, with topics such as ‘Thinking about thinking,’ ‘The death of individuality,’ ‘The Oxbridge interview question,’ and ‘Sexual ethics and Civilisation.’ At the end, Julie and Jeffrey debated that ‘without Science society would disintegrate into barbarism.’ The conference made me think philosophically and scientifically, showed me how we can control and change our thoughts, and how social traditions and codes of gender are changing in response to the modern world. I was introduced to the realm of social physics and its relation to science and society. I thoroughly enjoyed this conference, and I would definitely go again if given the chance.