Tuesday 12 May | We’re Stuck in a Science Fiction Novel

Sci-fi author Kim Stanley Robinson suggests we’re all stuck in a science-fiction novel.

The drastic changes to society, the draconian measures taken by some governments, the sense of being in a historic period, and the speed in which it has all happened seem more typical for fiction than for reality. Even as Wuhan was paralyzed in January and February, most of us didn’t imagine what the corona virus would do to us at home. But now, says Robinson, “The virus is rewriting our imaginations.”

Characters in science fiction often deal with massive changes to their reality. Aliens, terminators, time machines, etc. Reading about how they deal with those changes can, according to Robinson, make us better equipped to deal with our own uncertain future. It shows us how to rethink reality, how to turn on a dime when the situation demands it.

If you look at it this way, the corona pandemic (our current “sci-fi” reality) could be a major lesson in dealing with global crises. A warm-up for the next sci-fi script that we’ll find ourselves in. What do you think? Has our experience of reality shifted? Will we be better equipped to imagine a world after the climate crisis? And finally, what do you do when you find out you’re a character in a novel?

Studium Generale created a Corona Care Package to make #StayingIn as pleasant as possible. In the following weeks we will share videos, blogs, articles and podcasts within four focus areas: Mental Health, The World After Corona, Arts & Culture and other online events.

Monday 11 May | Universal Basic Income & Mental Health

In these times of economic uncertainty, there is once again talk of a universal basic income, which has the potential to save many from poverty. The potential economic benefits are becoming increasingly clear, but one factor that so far has not received as much attention is how a guaranteed income might improve our mental health.

If you had a guaranteed basic income, what would you do? Would you still study? Perhaps study harder, or pursue other extracurricular activities like attending our events perhaps? Would it make you worry less and improve your outlook on life? Read this article on The Conversation on how universal basic income could have far wider implications than just keeping our economy running.

If you want to learn more about the basics of basic income, watch the TED talk by Rutger Bregman below. Dutch speakers can watch Rutger in action in his talk at Studium Generale Delft on Universal Basic Income and five other Big Ideas to Change the World.

Studium Generale created a Corona Care Package to make #StayingIn as pleasant as possible. In the following weeks we will share videos, blogs, articles and podcasts within four focus areas: Mental Health, The World After Corona, Arts & Culture and other online events.

Friday 8 May | Why you should make useless things by Simone Giertz

At @TUDelft we are all about ‘Impact for a better society’. That implies creating technology that is useful and has a clear purpose. Well, not necessarily…

In this joyful, heartfelt talk featuring demos of her wonderfully wacky creations, @SimoneGiertz shares her craft: making useless robots. Her inventions — designed to chop vegetables, cut hair, apply lipstick and more — rarely (if ever) succeed, and that’s the point. “The true beauty of making useless things [is] this acknowledgment that you don’t always know what the best answer is,” Giertz says. “It turns off that voice in your head that tells you that you know exactly how the world works. Maybe a toothbrush helmet isn’t the answer, but at least you’re asking the question.”

Which of your own (real or imaginary) inventions are you most proud of?

Studium Generale created a Corona Care Package to make #StayingIn as pleasant as possible. In the following weeks we will share videos, blogs, articles and podcasts within four focus areas: Mental Health, The World After Corona, Arts & Culture and other online events.

Thursday 7 May | Two live events today: Health Webinar & Movie Night!

Do you want to stay healthy and build new habits during the pandemic? Or rather just sit back with a Netflix series and discussion? Why not both!

Interactive Webinar Staying Healthy at Home (2pm)

Today at 2pm, Studium Generale and the Health Coach Programme offer a live webinar Staying Healthy at Home. This interactive webinar will give you insights in healthy patterns and how to form new, sustainable habits to improve on your lifestyle.

Zoom link (open from 13.45 hrs): https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84201877641?pwd=Z0wyR0hhSHpIL0xCZGRKOVlyR2xzUT09

Movie Night & Discussion: Daughters of Destiny (7pm)

This evening at 7pm, VOX Delft and the TU Delft Debating Club are jointly offering a movie night & discussion on the documentary ‘Daughters of Destiny’ about a fully funded school for children from the lowest caste in India. After watching the first episode on Netflix Party, the discussion continues on Zoom.

Zoom link: https://tudelft.zoom.us/j/91884395107

Studium Generale created a Corona Care Package to make #StayingIn as pleasant as possible. In the following weeks we will share videos, blogs, articles and podcasts within four focus areas: Mental Health, The World After Corona, Arts & Culture and other online events.

Wednesday 6 May | Virtual reality exhibition Design for the end of life

The corona pandemic confronts us with all sorts of issues we usually don’t really (want to) think about. Death is one of them. Yet, the amount of people that have died from corona and questions on what to do with the deceased was all over the news the last couple of weeks.

Thinking of death, ranging from practical decisions to the more philosophical questions, became inevitable these days. February 2020 the TU Delft Library, Studium Generale, design museum Cube, film theatre Lumen, Theater de Veste and many more partners, organised a multidisciplinary programme around these matters. A programme that is very relevant, now more than ever.

The exhibition ‘(Re)design Death’ in Cube shows how #designers interpret the needs that people confronted with death may have, now and in the future. With contributions from TU Delft students and researchers. Since visiting the museum is off limits now, you can visit this worthwhile 360 degree exhibition via virtual reality here.

Studium Generale created a Corona Care Package to make #StayingIn as pleasant as possible. In the following weeks we will share videos, blogs, articles and podcasts within four focus areas: Mental Health, The World After Corona, Arts & Culture and other online events.

Tuesday 5 May | Liberation Day: Reflecting on Fascism & corona

Today the Netherlands commemorates the end of WWII and, in a sense, the end of fascism in Europe.

In today’s SG Corona Care Package, anarchist writer Jay Fraser warns readers to consider the return of (what he sees as) a fascist sentiment in the wake of the corona crisis. “Eco-fascism,” as he calls it, revels in the end of (some of) the human species so as to make space for other lifeforms. Like the deer, wild boars, or pumas that are showing up downtown in locked-down cities across the globe.

“When somebody asks if humanity is the ‘real virus’,” Fraser writes, “they set up a system in which the Earth is a being and humanity a problem that needs to be solved.” Think back to your history lessons – do you agree that this is a fascist ideology? Or is it going too far? What place do you think wildlife will take in #TheWorldAfterCorona, and what about us humans?

Studium Generale created a Corona Care Package to make #StayingIn as pleasant as possible. In the following weeks we will share videos, blogs, articles and podcasts within four focus areas: Mental Health, The World After Corona, Arts & Culture and other online events.

Health Coach Program Webinar: Staying healthy at home during COVID-19

Thursday 7 May, 14.00 – 15.00 hrs, live via Zoom:

Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84201877641?pwd=Z0wyR0hhSHpIL0xCZGRKOVlyR2xzUT09
Meeting-Id: 842-0187-7641
Password: 428980

How do you work on your health during COVID-19 pandemic and support your immune function? The COVID-19 crisis is asking a lot of us. Being at home a lot can make it difficult for you to take care of your health. For example, it can be harder to stick to healthy nutrition, exercise and good sleep habits. In fact, we all have to find a way to build new habits that support our health, and thereby energy level, productivity and resilience. This webinar by Bas Gerritsen and Wouter van den Heuvel will give you insights in healthy patterns and how to form new, sustainable habits to improve on your lifestyle.

Bas Gerritsen (BSc, BEd)

“I have almost 10 years of experience with the Health Coach Program. Originally a background in sport; I studied sports academy and physiotherapy, and I was a top athlete (gymnastics). My expertise is not only in exercise and sport, but also in other areas related to vitality, nutrition, sleep, mental health and sustainable behavior. I like kitesurfing, sailing, ice hockey and producing music. ”

Wouter van den Heuvel (MSc)

“How do you keep working actively on your health, regardless of what life has in store for you? I have been working as a lifestyle coach for 5 years now, where I mainly look at how you can make yourself more resilient. More health also means more resilience, both physically and mentally. I have a background as a movement scientist, physiotherapist and trainer. I am also a fanatic athlete and photographer.”

Organised in collaboration with the Health Coach Program. More information about the Health Coach Program for TU Delft employees can be found on the intranet.

Friday May 1 | Albert Camus’ The Plague explained in ten minutes

“Pestilence is so common, there have been as many plagues as there have been wars, yet plagues and wars always find people equally unprepared”

Probably the most talked about book at the moment: The Plague by Albert Camus, a timeless novel on the confrontation with our mortality and the absurdity of our existence. Although we encourage you to read the book, you might be too busy quarantining at the moment 😉

Fortunately, The School of Life provided the opportunity to learn about Camus’ The Plague in just 10 minutes. Hopefully this just makes you want to read the book some more 🙂

Studium Generale created a Corona Care Package to make #StayingIn as pleasant as possible. In the following weeks we will share videos, blogs, articles and podcasts within four focus areas: Mental Health, The World After Corona, Arts & Culture and other online events.

Thursday April 30 | Who are those people hoarding toilet paper?

Stop hoarding and keep your social distance! That’s what we have been told over and over since the corona measures were announced. Yet the first couple of weeks, supermarkets were plundered nonetheless. But since the government put a fine on group gatherings, most people seem to take the social distance-rule seriously. Even during Kingsday we remained in the ranks.

So did we adopt new moral values and become leaders by example overnight? Were we total egocentric morons to start off with, and was a worldwide crisis necessary to make us good people?

‘Surprisingly, people who uphold moral values like prudency or charity can just as well be the ones that hoard and ignore social distance,’ says TPM researcher Caspar Chorus in this short video. He researches choice behavior, for example of people and how they act when facing a crisis like we do today. ‘There is little to no correlation between the moral values people uphold and their moral behavior.’

So that person hoarding could just as well be you. Sounds depressing? Hold on, we’re not entirely lost. Watch the video below.

Studium Generale created a Corona Care Package to make #StayingIn as pleasant as possible. In the following weeks we will share videos, blogs, articles and podcasts within four focus areas: Mental Health, The World After Corona, Arts & Culture and other online events.

Wednesday April 29 | Arts education from home

A few weeks in quarantine and we’re becoming more and more used to being hermits. Being locked down also gives the opportunity to express yourself. So this week it is time to find our inner creative voice!

Students of the Master in arts education in Amsterdam have put up this website with all sorts of projects to take on from home. For example the project cARTography. Take a stroll through Vermeer’s Milkmaid and discover hidden clues, talk to characters and use all of your senses. This text adventure will take you on a journey through a painting. As you interact with the text, you will uncover information bit by bit, building your own imagery around it. You can share any results via Twitter or Instagram. Go nuts!

Studium Generale created a Corona Care Package to make #StayingIn as pleasant as possible. In the following weeks we will share videos, blogs, articles and podcasts within four focus areas: Mental Health, The World After Corona, Arts & Culture and other online events.