A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…plans were underway for the invasion.
St. Thomas University students’ union will be hosting its first Geek Forum this Saturday, Nov. 19. The forum will include speakers on many areas of geekdom, and provide an opportunity for students to meet people with similar interests.
Natasha Glover, this year’s students’ union activities coordinator, takes credit for the idea. She said it was born out of the geekiness of her own mind.
“It’s going to be a place where students can come together and talk about geeky things in an academic environment.”
Professors Christine Cornell and Andrew Titus will both be speaking at the forum, providing their insights into vampire and zombie literature as well as Lord of the Rings and Star Wars.
Cornell plans to present her initial take on a paper she will be presenting next year at the World Science Fiction Convention in Chicago. The paper is about the concept of the uncanny valley.
“The closer we come to mimicking human beings in our creations, the more disturbing they become,” Cornell said.
The uncanny valley has not yet been applied to zombies and vampires. Cornell said they’re both potentially like us and not like us at the same time. She’s interested in why our culture today is so preoccupied with zombies and vampires.
“I want to propose some reasons why that preoccupation seems so prevalent right now. One possible answer is partly our preoccupation with health. It’s interesting now how often zombies and vampires are traced back to viruses in storylines.”
Conventions feature merchandise stands alongside the speakers and discussions. Local businesses like Strange Adventures, Geek Chic and Gamezilla have all been invited to the STU’s Geek Forum, and Glover said she hopes they will come.
“It’s like a mini-convention,” Glover said. “We’re not calling it a convention for the fear that people will be disappointed that it’s not at the same level as a real one.”
Campus clubs like the Magic: The Gathering society will be present to facilitate a discussion on the popular trading card game.
Discussions on the Harry Potter universe, retro gaming and comic books will also be run by groups of enthusiastic students.
The Geek Forum will be held on the bottom floor of James Dunn Hall. Registration for discussions and lectures begins at 9 a.m. and will be ongoing throughout the day.
Lectures will begin at 10 a.m. and run in one-hour blocks. The forum is free for anyone who wishes to attend.
Participants are encouraged to dress up as their favourite characters and get their geek on.
Glover said she hopes that the forum will be a chance for students to make some new connections.
“You’re going to go meet a bunch of different people that you never knew before that like the same thing you do, and hopefully have a great friendship-making experience.”
