Join us for an in-depth conversation around The Gift and its potential applications across fields such as palliative care, public health, and community wellness spaces. This conversation will include a preview of the experience beginning at 12pm. NO REGISTRATION REQUIRED FOR THE GIFT: IN CONVERSATION.
Feel free to rejoin us for the The Gift experience in Commons beginning at 6pm, registration required.
Presented in multiple languages, The Gift is a therapeutic storytelling experience that connects astrophysical research to universal human experiences of loss, transformation, and renewal. The Gift tells the story of two stars that are so close to one another yet so far from us that they appear as a single point of light in the sky. Participants of all ages will gather in Commons, where they will encounter an enveloping musical score and an illustrated book—based on the astrophysics research of observational astrophysicist Natalie Gosnell, PhD—and embark on an immersive reading experience that invites both tactile and emotional responses. Readers are invited to engage at their own pace, connecting this cosmic story to their own human experiences of loss and transformation. It is presented in English, French, Spanish, Chinese, and Korean, and will include new Yale Schwarzman Center translation commissions in Arabic and a tactile experience with audio descriptions. This tender story and playful experience heeds the call of anthropologist Emily Martin, to “wake the sleeping metaphors of science.” The Gift is a collaborative project between Janani Balasubramanian, Gosnell, and Andrew Kircher, PhD. The book features artwork by Amy Myers and design by Katie Hodge. The original sound score is by Tina-Hanaé Miller with arrangement by Solomon Hoffman.