School of Curiosity

School of Curiosity

School of Curiosity

Explore. Dream. Discover.

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Last four tickets

October 16, 2013

That’s right! There are just four tickets left for The School of Curiosity ‘End of Summer School’ Villefranche-sur-Mer 23-25 October. You can find lots of stuff about it on this site, but the only real way is to experience it for yourself.

Here’s the link to the booking page. You’re going to be soooooo annoyed at yourself if you miss it.

Have a curious day!

Parlez-vous petanque?

October 11, 2013

We were going to say “It’s not all fun and games at The School of Curiosity ‘End of Summer School’”. But thinking about it every session looks like it will be fun and enthralling, so we’ve had to think hard how we can make our evening social events fit the bill.

Maria, who runs The Villefranche Petanque and Social Club (a bit like The Buena Vista Social Club but with boules instead of musical instruments) has invited us over one night. She’s putting on sangria and the Nicoise specialty of Pissaladiere. We’ll have an international petanque tournament in between drinks.

The great thing about petanque is that it takes moments to learn, it’s a team game and everyone somehow seems to be capable of producing a world class shot at least once. By the end of the night, you have a social club full of friends.

There are just ten tickets left. There wont be for long. Download the prospectus here. Or just go directly to the booking page here.

It doesn’t matter what language you speak, petanque is so simple we know you’ll love to parlez-vous petanque.

Have a curious day!

Do the Pecha Kucha

October 10, 2013

 

Our first night at The School of Curiosity ‘End of Summer School’ will be a Pecha Kucha night at our L’X Common Room & Art Studio (Also our drinking hole).

Pecha Kucha started in a disused factory in Japan where young designers came to showcase their new ideas. They always ran out of time, so they made a rule. You can show 20 images and speak for only 20 seconds about each image. It’s become a world wide craze and some competitive events attract over 1000 people. The winner is the person adjudged to have entertained and informed with great imagery. It’s great fun, nobody speaks for more than six minutes and their goal is to enthral and captivate you. Oh and the rules say there has to be a ‘beer break’ half way through…which we think is a jolly good rule.

We are having six ‘competitors’. There’s still time to step forward with your subject…the more curious, the better. Though first, make sure that you have booked your ticket - Only ten tickets left! 23-25 October, Villefranche-sur-Mer.

You can download the full prospectus here. But whilst you are doing that somebody could be taking your ticket, so the booking page is here.

Don’t dither when you can Pecha Kucha.

Have a curious day!

A tale of twelve tickets

October 9, 2013

Just in case you haven’t noticed there are only twelve tickets left for The School of Curiosity ‘End of Summer School’. Yes just twelve. Already we have people coming from 12 different countries. The mix is amazing. Where else would you find in the same room an astrologer and a research scientist; a teacher and an entrepreneur; a poet and a public sector boss? Oh and by the way they will be in what is probably the most beautiful classroom in the world!

Who knows who will buy the next twelve tickets? It’s 23-25 October, Villefranche-sur-Mer. The prospectus is here. And you can book your tickets here.

Are you coming?

Have a curious day!

How to think like an eight year old

October 8, 2013

Where do great ideas come from? They come when we take our adult experience and combine it with something that many of us have forgotten – how to think like an eight year old.

We were all eight years old once. It’s a time of boldness; magic; and genius. If only we can recapture that simplicity; that creativity; that unshakable belief that anything is possible, we can create a wealth of new ideas, new opportunities and new possibilities both in our work and in our everyday lives.

School of Curiosity founder, Malcolm McClean, will be reminding you how to shake off the mental locks that have trapped your inner eight year old, at our ‘End of Summer School’ 23-25 October, Villefranche-sur-Mer. It’s not a lecture, it’s an experience, just like everything else at the school. There’s still time to drop everything and come. You can download the full prospectus here.

If you are in a hurry go straight to the booking page here.

Boldness; Magic; Genius; and all for £199….we must be mad.

Have a curious day!

Homer Simpson makes the cut?

October 7, 2013

News just in from Tom Calderbank, The School of Curiosity’s resident philosopher, poet and rescuer of ancient buildings. After much deliberation he has made his list of philosophers to be discussed when he guides The Villefranche Walk of the Philosophers through the medieval Old Town, during our “End of Summer School’ 23-25 October. You can get the full prospectus here.

Better still, you can book your place right here.

In case your wondering, here’s the list that he has come up with….

1. HOMER (Simpson)
2. EPICURUS (Epicurious?)
3. MARX (Karl and Groucho)
4. NIETZCHE
5. SATRE

Have a curious day!

Courage is contagious

October 4, 2013

Harvard’s ‘Nerd Hero’ Dr Brian Palmer makes his first public appearance at The School of Curiosity ‘End of Summer School’ following the launch of his new book 101 Historical Heroes. He’ll be with us for a whole three days and will also run a class to help you explore ‘What is happiness?”

You should come. It’s on the 23-25 October in beautiful Villefranche-sur-Mer. You can download the full prospectus here.

Brian likes to ask big questions. He’ll ask  ”What is it that fascinates us when someone risks everything to save a stranger?”, before bringing to life our bravest contemporaries and fallen friends. He suggests that their acts of courage touch the mystery of existence. And he explores why courage can sometimes be almost as contagious as fear.

We are going to be doing something quite different at The School of Curiosity. Have you got the courage to come?

Have a curious day!

 

Oh to be in Villefranche now that October’s here (almost)

September 30, 2013

 

Here’s a picture of our ‘school’ taken just now on the last day of September. With three and a half weeks to go to our “End of Summer School’, we can’t guarantee you this kind of weather, but the chances are it will look just like this on 23-25 October. The average temperature in Villefranche-sur-Mer for October is 19 degrees.

If you haven’t booked your place yet, what are you waiting for? Here’s the full prospectus and here’s the booking page.

Already we have an eclectic mix of people coming from US, Canada, Russia, Holland, France, Norway, Denmark, Monaco and the UK. Don’t dither…”In twenty years time you’ll be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do”.

Have a curious day!

A man with a grey beard, Belfast City Airport and a seed

September 23, 2013

Watt Nicoll, the septuagenarian whirlwind who was voted the World’s Most Inspirational speaker, looked over his coffee cup in the cafe at Belfast City Airport and said one sentence. It was 2005 and it planted a seed. Years later that seed was to grow into The School of Curiosity ‘End of Summer School’ Villefrabce-sur-Mer 23-25 October. You can download the full prospectus here.

Watt himself will be there, but he has no idea that he played a part in planting the seed. So it was nice when we received an email from him yesterday in which he said this…

“Wonderful you are going ahead with The Curiosity School because it is the singularly most intriguing and exciting concept I have heard of in absolute ages”.

Oh. You’re wondering what it was that he said? Well come and find out…at the same time as he does.

Have a curious day!

 

 

 

 

17 equations that changed the world…plus one more

September 20, 2013

We like this. Ian Stewart say’s of his book 17 Equations That Changed the World….

“The power of equations lies in the philosophically difficult correspondence between mathematics, a collective creation of human minds, and an external physical reality. Equations model deep patterns in the outside world. By learning to value equations, and to read the stories they tell, we can uncover vital features of the world around us… This is the story of the ascent of humanity, told in 17 equations”.

That’s right. Equations have important stories to tell, like this one 3 nights + 3 days + 10 experiences # 1 life. It’s the equation we use to describe The School of Curiosity ‘End of Summer School’, 23-25 October Villefranche-sur-Mer. You can download the full prospectus here.

Maybe, just maybe, it will be the 18th equation that changes your world.

Have a curious day.

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