What do we talk about when we talk about nature? Nature encompasses all that is, from the tiniest microbe on a fingertip to a vast galaxy millions of light-years away. But that is not enough for us: sometimes we talk as if nature were the repository of all that should be, of prescriptions for how to conduct human affairs in addition to descriptions of the furniture of the universe. Why do we humans continue to seek norms from nature, despite philosophical warnings to the contrary?

Lorraine Daston is Director emerita of the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin, Permanent Fellow of the Wissenschaftskolleg Berlin, and regular visiting professor in the Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago. Her work focuses on the history of rationality, especially scientific rationality. Her reflections on the moral authority of nature follow extensive work on wonder, objectivity, and observation. Her work has been recognized by the Pfizer Award of the History of Science Society, the Dan David Prize in the history of science, the Gerda Henkel Prize, and the Heineken Prize for History.

Featuring a musical performance by Izak Nuri (cello).

Presented in English. Admission is free, registration is required.