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By Jill Yesko, University Relations
Contact (336) 334-3890
Posted:10-5-07
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Imagine a life raft that can hold only one person. Now image three academics competing for that space.
The winner among the competition for the raft will be decided during a debate sponsored by the Lloyd International Honors College.
The debate, which pits representatives from each of three branches of academia: arts and humanities, social sciences and natural sciences, will be held on Friday, Oct. 26, at 4 p.m. in the auditorium of the Weatherspoon Art Museum.
“The Raft Debate gives students and faculty the chance to hone their persuasion skills and have a lot of fun along the way,” said Dr. Dennis Leyden, director of the Lloyd International Honors College and associate professor of economics.
The debate tests which area of academia can best argue their case for securing the coveted spot in the life raft.
This year’s competitors are: Dr. Olav Rueppell, biology; Dr. George Michel, psychology and Dr. Ben Ramsey, religious studies. Dr. Cheryl Logan, psychology, will be the devil’s advocate.
The raft debate was begun by Dr. Bruce Caldwell, a former UNCG Honors Program director who is the Joe Rosenthal Excellence Professor in the Department of Economics at the Bryan School of Business and Economics.
Debaters are allotted 10 minutes each to state their arguments and then given five minutes to rebut the arguments of others. At the conclusion of the rebuttals, the devil’s advocate is given 15 minutes to offer up his/her opinion of the arguments. Audience members then vote for who should survive.
For further information, contact the Lloyd International Honors College at (336) 334-5538, or visit www.uncg.edu/hss. The event is free and open to the public.
University Relations
Location: 500 Forest Street
Mailing Address: PO Box 26170, Greensboro, NC 27402-6170
Telephone:336.334.3783
Fax:336.334.4602