this is secret... shhhhh

this is secret... shhhhh

The What If...? Conference logo

In 02013, around 200 people participated in our first two-day event. The first day we did group problem solving focused on education. The second was a day of presentations, installations, and performances.

Photos

Videos(More to come)

What If We Used Edison's Midnight Lunches?

Sarah Caldicott // WI?02014

Looking to her great grand uncle, Sarah Caldicott explains some of the thinking processes Thomas Edison used that could help us think more creatively. Part of this, is how Edison brought his teams tog... more.

What If Green Nanotechnology From Your Kitchen Is A Panacea For Cancers?

Dr. Kattesh V. Katti // WI?02014

By using things found in many kitchens, Dr. Katti creates nanoparticals on stage.... more.

What If Space Were The Playground Of The Americans?

Shane Kincaid // WI?02014

Each day, decisions are made that change the course of human events. Some few of these decisions have made us an Earthbound species for far longer than we could have been. In this stimulating retrospe... more.

What If Humanity's Greatest Trait Can Be Found Within Our Artists And Children?

Sloane Scott // WI?02014

To probe humanity's greatest trait, we must first turn to the most creative of us all- the writers and musicians and children whose thoughts race too fast for their forming mouths. This What If...? po... more.

What If Every College Student Took A Course In Entrepreneurship?

Sara Cochran // WI?02014

What would happen if every collage student took a course in entrepreneurship? Would we have more business people? Would less-traditionally "business people" step into a new way of being? What are the ... more.

What If Men Had Periods?

Sam Albrecht // WI?02014

Our gender boundaries also create mental boundaries. How could we mix that up? What would happen if we thought more about, and through, gender?... more.

What If The US Had Less Privacy Than The USSR?

Dr. Richard Stallman // WI?02014

Thanks to digital technology, companies and the government have an ever growing reach into our privacy and software freedoms. Free software means freedom. Stallman talks about the four essential freed... more.

What If More People Were Happy?

Nancy H. Tilton // WI?02014

Nancy loves learning and doing things. She never stays still and throws herself into projects that she loves. Along the way, she makes many friends that bring her even more energy. She loves people, a... more.

What If Using Genetic Technology We Created Real Life Pokemon?

Sarah Grant // WI?02014

What if using current genetic technology, scientists created Pokemon? Is it ethical? Does the science exist/ could the science ever exist? Would the complete integration of animals into our technology... more.

What If Why Is As Important As What?

Ayush Manandhar // WI?02014

... more.

What If There Are Real Barriers To Asking What If...??

Michael Applegate // WI?02014

Does your language shape your thought? Michael brings a new perspective to research on linguistic cognitive barriers.... more.

What If You Woke Up Somewhere Else?

Justin Cave // WI?02014

Through a reading, Justin and Michael explore a witty scenario.... more.

What If Buildings Could Function As Medicine?

Josh Van Zak // WI?02014

Our brains and bodies change in response to the environment, which, in turn, is changed by us. Medicine attempts to manipulate our brains and bodies in very specific ways, usually over a short period ... more.

What If NYC Resources Were Brought to Rural America?

Jennifer Shaw // WI?02014

What originally started as a forum for women who were active and passionate about technology and it's powers to change our lives, and the world, quickly became so much more. Since December 2011, NYTec... more.

What If We Could Quantify Wasted Human Capital And Turn It Into A Resource?

Collin Bunch // WI?02014

Organisms are complex living organisms made up of people. By re-aligning that reality, we can unlock our hidden potential.... more.

What If The Next Major Evolutionary Event Happens This Century?

Alex Altomare // WI?02014

... more.

What If We Changed The Way Content Is Shared?

Audrey Bellis // WI?02014

... more.

What If We Were All Family Generation Changers?

Tara Stone // WI?02014

The life you have doesn't mean it's the life you've been given. Sometimes we can make the biggest impact on the world by starting with our family. What if we were all family generation changers define... more.

What If We All Had Superpowers?

Johnly Cummings // WI?02013

What if we had superpowers? defines what a feasible superpower is, how a superpower could be applied practically, and what 'superpowers' would mean for our species. Combining a look into the physics o... more.

What If We Lost Our Love For Books?

Andrew Robertson // WI?02013

Some of the most celebrated dystopian novels of the twentieth century toyed with the idea of a post-literary world in which books, and institutions of learning, were censored or outlawed entirely. Per... more.

What If Young Problem Solvers Increased Creative Thinking?

Project: CREATE // WI?02013

Can young students provide unique perspective into education? This group thinks so. Kids have to live in what adults create, but we can change that by asking the right questions. (And, by including ev... more.

What If Hip-Hop Were A Positive Force?

Noah Lennon // WI?02013

How can hip-hop change lives? Starting with a rap, Noah Lennon answers.... more.

What If We Could Use Outdoor Classrooms As A Way To Resolve Conflicts?

Chris Givan // WI?02013

Could strategically placing classrooms outside help resolve long-standing conflicts in liberal societies? In this presentation, explore the philosophical aspects of architecture and how classrooms are... more.

What If Westminster Were Suddenly Forced To Be Self-Sufficient?

Shane Kincaid // WI?02013

The world may be more peaceful than it has ever been, but it is still full of existential dangers, from nuclear warfare to climate change to antibiotic-resistant plagues. In the sorry event of catastr... more.

What If Time Moves In A Circle?

Tyler William Haulotte // WI?02013

To ask the question: What If Time Moved In A Circle? is to be incredibly deceptive. The idea of time - in pop culture - operating cyclically normally means that a series of events will continue. This ... more.

What If Life Didn't Suck?

Bjorn Cooley // WI?02013

Woven through history is a contest between two forms of society: networks, and institutions. For the first 95% of human history, all human societies were structured in informal networks, held together... more.

What If The Olympics Were Used As An Alternative To War?

Dr. Selcen Phelps // WI?02013

As a way to avoid collateral damage, minimize environmental impact, glorify human capacities besides violence, and, yes, boost the ratings of sports channels, I propose that we replace wars with the O... more.

What If McCarthyism And The Red Scare Never Happened?

Jefferson Grant Spears // WI?02013

There are few words in American social and political culture that carry as heavy a stigma as communism and socialism. This is true now, and was especially true during an ideological era known as the S... more.

What If Technology Has Killed Privacy?

Dr. Tobias Gibson // WI?02013

As technology progresses, intrusions of privacy by governments, corporations and private persons and groups have become common place and insidious. This is a discussion about the erosion of our privac... more.

What If There Had Been No Religion?

Dr. Cliff Chalmers Cain // WI?02013

Historically, religion has been a tremendous force for good, and a terrible impetus for evil. Religion is a world-wide phenomenon that has stimulated good, healthy, moral behavior. And it is simulta... more.

What If I'm Wrong?

Ethan Porter // WI?02013

We all exist in and interact with the same universe. This universe is constant and does not change from one individual to the next; yet, despite this fact, there is always disagreement amongst its inh... more.

What If You're Wearing Big, Ugly Glasses?

Nathan Swan // WI?02013

When you look at someone you've never spoken to, you make assumptions based on their appearance. You generalize how that individual may act according to how you've seen people with similar characteris... more.

What If We Were All Poets?

Caroline Slavin // WI?02013

What makes a poet? The definition is broad, no argument, but there are certain characteristics that are found in all poets. What are these characteristics and what would it mean for the world if every... more.

What If Women Were In Charge?

Dr. Cinnamon Brown // WI?02013

A quick Google search of the question "What if Women were in charge?" renders many funny pictures of pink Swiss army knives complete with tubes of lipstick and automobile consoles adorned wi... more.

What If We Brought Back Extant Species?

Josh Kling // WI?02013

The ecosystems we see around us used to be filled with species such as lions, elephants, cheetahs, and camels. These were all normal residents of North America at one time. To scientists, they are ref... more.

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