Battle of Ideas 2012 20 & 21 October, London. Two days of high-level, thought-provoking, public debate organised by the Academy of Ideas at the Barbican.
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Great Battle of Ideas 2012 deal for school pupils

Read why the Battle of Ideas 2012 essay

Lloyds Scholars Programme: Student Champion 2012 tickets

UK and international Battle Satellites announced

Battle of Ideas 2012 programme released

Battle of Ideas 2012 at the Barbican

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Battle Blog

The Law’s cyber drug war. Is it time to hold peace talks with internet suppliers of ‘legal highs’?, Jonathan Hurlow

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Speakers include
Frank Furedi, sociologist and social commentator; author, What's Happened to the University?, Power of Reading: from Socrates to Twitter, On Tolerance and Authority: a sociological history

Stella Duffy, writer and theatre-maker; award-winning author of short stories, plays and novels

Mark Walport, director, Wellcome Trust; Government Chief Scientific Adviser (from April 2013)

John Haldane, professor of philosophy, University of St Andrews; chairman, Royal Institute of Philosophy; author, An Intelligent Person's Guide to Religion and Reasonable Faith

Raymond Tallis, fellow, Academy of Medical Sciences; author, philosopher, critic and poet; recent books include NHS SOS and Aping Mankind; chair, Healthcare Professionals for Assisted Dying

Mark Vernon, journalist; author, God: all that matters and The Big Questions: God

Wendy Kaminer, US-based writer on law, liberty, feminism, religion, and popular culture; author, Worst Instincts: cowardice, conformity and the ACLU

Timothy Garton Ash, professor of European studies, University of Oxford; commentator; director, Free Speech Debate

Zoe Williams, columnist, Guardian; author, What Not to Expect When You're Expecting

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Readings

Veep creator Armando Iannucci tells BBC to stop interfering with programme makers, Christopher Williams

Page Three Girls and porn-again feminists, Jennie Bristow

The Law’s cyber drug war. Is it time to hold peace talks with internet suppliers of ‘legal highs’?, Jonathan Hurlow

FreeSpeechDebate, University of Oxford

What happened to the caring professions?, Alka Sehgal Cuthbert

The Leveson Inquiry: There’s a bargain to be struck over media freedom and regulation, George Brock

Should the law try and correct society's prejudices?, Luke Gittos

The ‘Dark Ages’ were a lot brighter than we give them credit for, Richard Swan

Forget the Booker, the prize every author really wants is academic validation, Miguel Ceia

There's a new species of prohibitionism on the rise, Jason Smith

Scotland: the world’s most childish nation, Rob Lyons

Being Pro-Life Doesn't Make Me Any Less Of A Lefty, Mehdi Hasan

Vice Presidential Debate, ABC

And the Firewalls Came Tumbling Down, Evgeny Morozov

Am I the only fan of modern classical music?, Paul Kilbey

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The Battle of Ideas is produced by the
Academy of Ideas
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"The Battle of Ideas is a weekend like no other. I found the 2011 festival immensely stimulating. It gave me a great deal to think about, and a whole new list of books to read - from Virgil to Vygotsky. On to greater battles in 2012!"
Ken Macleod, award-winning science fiction writer; author, The Restoration Game and Intrusion

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