Newswise — New York University will host “Can Neuroscience Help Us Understand Art?”—a debate featuring NYU English Professor Gabrielle Starr and Alva Noe, a professor of philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley—on Thurs., Dec. 10, 6:30-8:30 p.m., at NYU’s Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò (24 West 12th Street [between 5th and 6th Avenues]).

The exchange between Starr and Noe will focus on whether understanding the neural underpinnings of aesthetic experience can reshape our conceptions of aesthetics and the arts.

Starr, Seryl Kushner Dean of the College of Arts and Science at NYU, is the author of Feeling Beauty: The Neuroscience of Aesthetic Experience and Noe, author of Strange Tools: Art and Human Nature, is a contributor to NPR's 13.7: Cosmos and Culture blog and the New York Times’ Opinionator blog.

The event, sponsored by the NYU Center for Mind, Brain, and Consciousness, is free and open to the public; admission is on a first-come, first-served basis. Reporters wishing to attend must RSVP to James Devitt, NYU’s Office of Public Affairs, at 212.998.6808 or [email protected].

Doors open at 6:15 p.m. For more information, please call 212.998.8320 or email [email protected]. Subways: 4, 5, 6, L, N, Q, R (Union Square).

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