Symposium Schedule

The Higginbotham Legacy Fellows Employer Visit is taking place from 8:30 A.M. - 3:30 P.M.  There are two stops scheduled - Boston Med Flight, in Bedford, MA – a great opportunity for those with interests in healthcare and emergency medicine and Hendrickson Publishing Group in Peabody, MA, a division of Tyndale Press Publishers (one of the largest independent Christian publishers in the world).   

We will have a chance to see each company's operation and facility, meet with a company leader, learn more about what they do and how professionals prepare for roles within their company and gather advice for internships and hiring.    

Restore Creation:

Andres Butler & Abbie Zorrilla

This yearly event is a Symposium tradition and one of the staples of Restore creation. This small event is looking for God’s creation throughout nature and listening to the sounds of nature. 

Our plan is to present the life and work of Alan Turing and its implications in our modern context. Turing was a pioneer in the realm of computing and his work produced profound innovations that are still as applicable today as they were in the former half of the 20th century when he first birthed them. As part of our presentation on Turing, we discuss some things that are more technical, such as Turing machines, the Turing test, and how both might be applied to our modern systems of computing. However, we also discuss matters that are more philosophical, such as the ethics of applying Turing’s principles and the power they offer those who wield them. Finally, we will highlight some individuals who devoted their life to applying Turing’s computing principles to kingdom purposes (some of which resulted in a Turing award). Our goals in this presentation are to educate listeners about one of the computation’s greatest pioneers, to challenge listeners to apply technical principles for kingdom advancement, and to showcase the magnificent beauty of computation. 

Mariah Brecheisen, Josh Peters, Jonathan Senning, & Russ Tuck

Moderated by Baraka Kamau

There can be little doubt that new technologies are rapidly shaping the way we live, interact, work, play, and even worship. Recognizing technology’s power to shape and reshape creation, and even our very selves, how do Christians find the wisdom we need to envision, design, and use it well?  In this Symposium Keynote Panel, join four students and faculty members as they probe these vital questions. 

This presentation will investigate, from a linguistic perspective, how TikTok users reference and describe “the algorithm,” the recommendation system used by the app to determine which videos a user sees. Informed by their experience of it, users construct an anthropomorphized agent from a black-box system and ascribe various qualities to it. This analysis asks questions about how users perceive artificial intelligence, even when they don’t directly interface with it. 

Clarendon Honors Program: Senior Cohort of 2023:

Elizabeth Barnes, Mariah Brecheisen, Sharliz Bonifacio, Seth Larson, Jason Lopez, Yamilla Mateo, Nina Cheyenne Roberts, Emanuela Silva, Daniela Sintuj, & TeddyMax Talanoa

The senior cohort of the Clarendon Honors Program is presenting its final thesis project to complete their service to their academic community of the last four years.  

Our desire as urban leaders is to promote the value and dignity that comes with community development in neighborhoods like those in which we were raised. In this symposium event, we are intertwining the learning from our academic fields with the professional development we gained in the Clarendon program. Through the simulation of organizing a city-wide event, our cohort will create workshops that teach life skills to the fictional population we have created. With the implementation of faith and technology, each cohort member will describe how their major of interest would tangibly serve the needs of others. From CPR instruction to cybersecurity tools, spiritual formation to bilingualism, this symposium will showcase the senior’s expertise as we sharpen the iron that we see all across our fictional community. 

JAF Cohort:

Maeve Barclay, Joseph Barbee, Ivyanna Carr, Anna Fenton, Lukas Karagiorgos, Chara Larson, Melissa Mercedes, Marco Nachtigall, Erin Richardson, Lily Rodrigues, Perk Steele, Hannah Spangler, Lori Yoder.

Join us for a post-debate discussion of the 19th annual JAF debate on the resolution: “Pacifism is the most faithful political ethic for Christians.” Hear from the JAF participants about their debate experience and get a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the JAF debate process in this Q&A discussion of the topic and arguments.  

This event is a photo contest where students will post the pictures they took relating to this year’s symposiums theme “Bytes and Beliefs.” The top pictures will be shown around with a small blurb about the ideas behind the pictures and what they mean to the photographer who took them. 

A dozen raconteurs seek a lively audience for a podcast recording of audio essays (à la Tig Notaro), live confessions (à la Mike Birbiglia), radio mini-docs (à la Ira Glass) and uncategorizable's (à la Improv Everywhere) - all circling the theme of faith & technology (broadly defined) large and small. Featuring in-the-flesh, interpretative piano by Graeme Bird, and other musical insinuations. 

Students will present four Computer Science Senior Projects dedicated to helping people, by making it easier to share scripture in their language, easier to train and organize workers stopping human trafficking, easier to find a Christian book to read, and easier to exercise and build relationships. The customers for these projects are Wycliffe’s SIL, Love Justice International, Christian Book, and Gordon’s RecIM program. These year-long projects are nearing completion. 

Linguistics Senior Seminar Class:

Abigail Dost, Thomas Friedrich, Sarah Kang, Ellyana Norton, Jonathan Scholes, Libby Trudeau, Trenae Waller & Graeme Bird

Have you ever wanted to learn how to read Egyptian hieroglyphics? Do you want to see what your name would look like written in them? Come join the Linguistics Senior Seminar class for an introduction to this amazing writing system! From looking at how writing systems are a form of technology to decoding celebrities’ names in hieroglyphics to learning how to write your own, we will dive into the ancient Egyptian world and the wonders their writing holds.

For Symposium Day, A.L.A.N.A and Dear Neighbor will be collaborating to present a discussion on how technology has been a facilitator in social movements. The two clubs will have a presentation including speakers from diverse backgrounds discussing how they have utilized social media in their activism whether domestically or internationally. The presentation will be split into two sections including a TED Talk-style lecture from different students and an audience discussion. In tandem with the discussion portion, we will have an interactive activity that will teach the audience how to use their social media or technology as a form of activism. Technology has been a fundamental component of social movements whether it’s news or social media platforms. These technological facets have facilitated social injustice issues that would have seen slower progress or never have been brought to awareness. It is imperative that all age demographics and backgrounds comprehend how to utilize social media or other technological mechanisms to spread awareness about social injustices.

We all know that media narratives often present issues one-sidedly, but that does not necessarily mean a certain slant or angle is inaccurate. Ideas that appear to conflict can be true simultaneously. Join the Tartan as we explore some examples of media bias in the wider world, as well as the way Tartan staff has had to tackle complicated stories on campus. 

As part of the CFI’s mini-film series, CFI and the Multicultural Initiatives Office bring you a screening of Kogonoda’s After Yang (2021): “In a near future, a family reckons with questions of love, connection, and loss after their A.I. helper unexpectedly breaks down”. Panel discussion to follow, featuring Mario Aguirre, Misheel Bayarjargal and Dr. Ryan Daley from the Psychology Department.

Popcorn, candy, and beverages will be offered. 

Open sharing of data in biological sciences can allow different teams around the world to pursue innovative ideas. Christians should be active collaborators in this universal endeavor, participating in the accessibility of research. Did you know that public sites like Reactome allow anyone to access gene data from scientists who have made their research available? In “Probing Pathways and Promoting Participation: Gene Mining in Large Public Datasets”, participants will have the chance to explore the journey from disease diagnosis, to gene mining, to protein pathway discovery, and the various frustrations that come with the territory. Ultimately, sharing data makes life easier for everyone; what better way to learn than going on a gene quest yourself? 

This event shows how students came together using technology to bring sustainability forward at Gordon. These students have developed their senior project about sustainability through an online account named "Project Seed." This project is about being more sustainable and ways to help our green earth. 

Mariah Brecheisen & Elijah Opoku-Nyarko

Faculty Panelists: Dr. Barbara McDade & Dr. Russell Tuck

In today’s digital age, technology and the internet have become fundamental pillars of modern society, enabling seamless connectivity and providing access to information and resources at our fingertips. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the forefront the reality that not everyone has equal access to these essential tools. The “digital divide”, which is a term that describes the gap between those who have access to technology and those who do not, perpetuates the already existing inequalities and leaves vulnerable communities struggling to fully participate in society and express their human agency. As such, it is of utmost importance, especially as Christians, that we take action to address this issue and work towards bridging the digital divide as a way of loving our neighbor and seeking justice for the marginalized. This event will identify where the digital divide exists and explore how everyone can play a part in narrowing the gap. 

We live in a world where entertainment, distractions, and pleasure can be found at a moment’s notice. Concerns about the accessibility and content of media are often raised with topics connected to social media or pornography, but what about video games? If Christians ought to be good stewards of their time, is there any place for video games in our lives at all? How concerned should we be with the addictive element of video games? Is there a moral framework we should use to decide between “good” and “bad” video games? Come and join us as we discuss what video games look like in the life of a Christian.

We may think of technology as something new or modern, but people’s beliefs have been intertwined with ways of making things for most of human history. We will explore the Eastern Orthodox process of “writing” icons. Our Byzantine history class used traditional materials (egg tempera and gold leaf) and ancient methods to create our own icons, revealing images of faithful men and women that span centuries and cultures.

“A Friend in Me” Podcast:

Eden Bailey & Porter Sprigg

Pixar is home to some of the most technologically sophisticated artists in the world. Since its creation, Pixar has always been a place where science and beauty meet. Pixar is also home to some of the best storytellers of our time, producing films with characters who viewers can root for, resonate with, and learn from. In the Toy Story trilogy, Woody and Buzz wrestle with their identity as toys. What does it mean to be a good toy? As viewers see the journeys of these iconic characters, they can also reflect on their own existential questions like, “What does it mean to be human?” and “Who do I belong to?” This presentation stems from the alumni-created podcast “A Friend in Me,” a podcast created to connect film and theology, specifically focusing on Pixar films. I have hope to create a faith and film group on campus at some point as well and this would be a good opportunity to launch that initiative.

Catholic Student Fellowship:

Bridget Hadorn

Panelists: Dr. Dan Darko, ​​​​​​Rob Carlin (MA, ThM), Dr. Amy Hughes, & Fr. Paul Wargovich

Since 2020, many church communities have had to have new and challenging relationships with technology. One of the major ways this came into play with local churches is how to administer the sacraments from a distance. In both Protestant and Catholic churches, communion became a particular point of interest insofar as its interaction with the technological world. How might a church community celebrate the Lord's Supper outside of a physical meeting? This ecumenical dialogue in the form of a panel discussion will explore the ever-changing relationship between Sacramentalism and technology. Panelists Dr. Amy Hughes, Dr. Dan Darko, Fr. Paul Wargovich, and Rob Carlin (MA, ThM) will explore how technology has continued to affect the celebration of the Eucharist, and how Protestant and Catholic churches might continue to interact with changing digital landscapes as it considers the role of technology in the sacramental life of their communities. 

Through research and interviews, this study analyzes the governance of common pool resources with the support of cultural values and governance both internally and externally.