In conjunction with the LSA fall 2010 theme semester “What Makes Life Worth Living?” this evening's conversation explores the human dimensions of new developments in the life sciences and health care. If we could live forever, would we want to?

Jonathan Weiner is author of The Beak of the Finch; Time, Live, Memory; and His Brother's Keeper: One Family's Journey to the Edge of Medicine. His books have won the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Critics Circle Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and many other honors. He teaches science writing at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism.

Liz Barry, J.D., is the managing director of the U-M Life Sciences Institute. She developed and co-teaches The Business of Biology, a graduate course at the Ross School of Business. She has authored papers and given recent presentations on scientific authorship, stem cell research policy, and the regulation of dual-use technology.