Phillip Ball to discuss 'The Music Instinct' at Keswick Literature Festival

08 March 2010

Keswick's Theatre by the Lake is holding its annual literature festival 'words by the water', bringing writers and book lovers together to discuss new books and ideas. The setting, literally a short hop, skip and jump away from the Derwentwater steam boat launch site where you can travel across the Lake to Borrowdale, is a perfect haven of tranquillity in which to enjoy the array of writers an orators describing the themes and ideas in their literary creations. On Tuesday 9th March, Phillip Ball will talk with John Simpson about his fascinating book 'The Music Instinct', where he will discuss the possibility of an evolutionary explanation to the universality of music and the reasons why as human beings we can't live without music. He illustrates, through his understanding of neuroscience, that music is ' the minds gymnasium', where it uses its logical processing for pattern matching.

Phillip Ball is a prize winner free lance science writer, who has a Chemistry degree and a doctorate in physics. He has written many books including:  'Branches, Natures Patterns: A tapestry in three parts, 2009'; 'Flow, Nature's patterns: a tapestry in three parts, 2009'; and Critical Mass: How one thing leads to another, which won the Aventis prize in 2005. Phillip Ball is interested in combining neuroscience with mathematics, sociology and philosophy. He will appear at Keswick tomorrow alongside a line up of impressive authors including:

Mark Vernon and Denise Inge discussing 'the pursuit of happiness;

Nick Page – Jesus Christ's Final Days: A week that changed the world;

Eric Lonergan discussing with Mark Vernon, Money: Does it make the world go round;

Dinah Birch – The Lake District: an inspiration;

Tristram Stuart – Waste! Uncovering the Global Food Scandal;

Charles Emmerson, (Associate Director of the World Economic Forum) The Past, Present and Future of the Arctic.

The Words on Water literature festival runs until March 14, 2010, and tickets are still available by calling the box office on: Tel: 017687 74411