Book Clubs London

🔭NASA Confirms Life on Mars: View With Wine, Music & Telescopes ☾P Date☽🪐

If you're looking for sensational headlines - this group is defo not for you! But seriously - do you look up and marvel with insatiable curiosity at both the beauty and the wonder of the **universe?** How it began, our place in it, how life evolved and where else in the cosmos other non-microbial life might live (99% of stars have exoplanets orbiting - some similar to Earth )? And nah I didn't make it up - unless you live in hibernation or have zero idea about our greatest endeavours - you'll know **NASA really did find the best evidence to date of ancient life on Mars.** This follows scientific verification of the biological signatures of microbe life discovered on Venus a few years ago So we'll defo take a look at the red planet as well the majestic rings of **Saturn** and it's potential life harbouring moon, the international space station, Tau Ceti star with **2 Earth like planets** orbiting in the habitable zone, remnants of **supernova** witnessed by our early ancestors plus a range of other fascinating celestial wonderments (comets, star systems, **galaxies**) over drinks and engaging chats and banter this Sept fully hosted by me - a passionate amateur astronomer and former global Reuters journalist covering cutting edge big picture science related stories. In between observing - we'll have **drinks and engaging chats** on all astronomy related topics for those inclined (Astrobiology, SETI/Femi Paradox, cosmology, space exploration, exoplanetology, astrophysics etc) as well as non space chatter and banter too. No doubt I'll hear the usual jokes we've all heard hundreds of times before! If those don't make you laugh, then my impersonation of Los Angeles ET will! 👽 **====Free Astronomy Club =====** Over the years we have enjoyed numerous social evenings of stargazing and thought provoking chatter with people of all ages and varying levels of astronomy knowledge - so complete beginners that are genuinely curious about the universe are very welcome. If you are just looking to meet generic randoms that you have nothing in common with / share passio**ns** then there are other groups that easily cater for that. The world renowed **BBC Television Sky at Night** also attended our events pre covid and interviewed some of us for it's show that aired on BBC1 in Feb 2019. BBC **Radio London** (94.9 FM / digital) were there Aug 2023 to cover our meteor shower event broadcasting live to millions of Londoners for 3 hours You don't need a telescope as you will be able to view through scopes belonging to me and other club members (as long as you behave responsibly and don't temper with expensive equipment). If you have your own telescope/binoculars feel free to bring along and I can help you setting it up if you're a newbie. **====ITINERARY=====** We will meet outside Camden Station. After a short wait for anyone delayed, I will escort everyone to our observation point in the park about 15-20 minutes walk away and brief you in terms of what to expect, observing etiquette, tips, equipment handling and take any questions you have - weather general or astronomy/cosmology related. **After Drinks:** on work nights - unless I have a important 9AM deadline for a client presentation or something - most of us usually head our way back to Camden for another drink till about 1am - yes even on a skool night. I will annouce the pub to all on the walk back. **===What Can You Expect To See (this time of year)? ====** * Orion Nebula * Jupiter and 4 moons * Meteors * Andromedia Galaxy * Saturn, rings & moon * Star clusters such as the Pleiades & Owl Cluster etc * International Space station fly by * Venus & Mercury * Binary & tripple star systems (think planet *Tatooine in* Starwars!), * Neptune * Uranuus * Mars * Our moon * A look towards the galactic centre where that supermassive £22b black hole sits (Sagittarius A) More here from Jodrell Bank Observatory/Astrophysics Centre: [http://www.jb.man.ac.uk/astronomy/nightsky/](http://www.jb.man.ac.uk/astronomy/nightsky/) Guide to viewing the cosmos for beginners: [https://phys.org/news/2018-05-universe-distant-starstips-cosmology-backyard.html#jCp](https://phys.org/news/2018-05-universe-distant-starstips-cosmology-backyard.html#jCp) **===Weather Dependent=====** The event is subject to clear skies forecasts on the night so if on the actual afternoon of the event the weather forecasts looks unsuitable beyond doubt then I will postpone so please check the event status on the day of the event . If this event is still listed here at 5PM on the day, it will be going ahead at the designated day and time! Happy Stargazing Lucas Skywalker (Amateur Musical Astronomer)

Make New Friends At A Bookshop

Do you want to meet new people in a relaxing chill atmosphere surrounded by new books? Do you dislike loud and smelly places like pubs and clubs? This is the event for you. Science and Philosophy Book Club is creating a new kind of meetup where people who love books and knowledge can meet new friends in a big book shop. We will explore around different sections of the book shop together as a group while making interesting conversations with each other. We will go to both fiction and non-fiction areas. If you feel shy and feel nervous to come alone, I will make sure you will feel comfortable and accomodate to your needs. I will help introduce you to others so you can go over the barrier of anxiety when approaching a new person. We will meet on the ground floor lounge area of Doubletree Hilton Hotel at 6 p.m. It is an amazing cosy bar with classy vibes. We will wait for everyone to show up while getting some drinks and socializing. At 7 p.m we will head to the Waterstones book store near Russel Square and UCL. After we explore the book store, we will come back to the hotel bar and stay there for the rest of the night. This event requires £5 donation to cover the venue fees. You can pay via cash or card. Thank you for helping the book club!

The Doors of Perception by Aldous Huxley

In this event, we will discuss about a science or philosophy book chosen by London Science and Philosophy Book Club. The attendees will be divided into groups and each of them will focus on a chapter or one of the main ideas in the book. This month we will discuss about a fascinating book called The Doors of Perception by Aldous Huxley. If you haven't read the book, it's no problem. I will bring you up to speed with the discussion materials. We will meet in a nice lounge area at 6 p.m for introductions. Please come on time so you will not miss out on valuable discussion midway. If you end up in the waitlist, feel free to show up. Book Description: In 1953, in the presence of an investigator, Aldous Huxley took four-tenths of a gram of mescalin, sat down and waited to see what would happen. When he opened his eyes everything, from the flowers in a vase to the creases in his trousers, was transformed. Huxley described his experience with breathtaking immediacy in The Doors of Perception. In its sequel Heaven and Hell, he goes on to explore the history and nature of mysticism. Still bristling with a sense of excitement and discovery, these illuminating and influential writings remain the most fascinating account of the visionary experience ever written. Agenda: 6 p.m to 7 p.m: Introduction and Socializing 7 p.m to 9:30 p.m: Book Discussion 9:30 p.m to late night: Drinks, Dinner or Feel free to go home

Cosy Silent Reads☕️📚📖

Hello, This event is for anyone who enjoys reading and wants to do it in the quiet company of others. We’ll be reading together in complete silence no pressure to talk, just bring whatever you’re reading and settle in. When you arrive, grab a drink from the café if you like, find a comfy spot, and start reading. We’re usually there for about 2 hours, but feel free to come and go whenever it works for you. Looking forward to meeting you! Dee

Deeper Conversations - Monthly Book Club (Oct '26) - The Bell by Iris Murdoch

Join us for our monthly book club, where we read thought provoking fiction and get together to share our thoughts, different interpretations, and whatever the book left us thinking about. Whether you read all the time or are just trying to read more, everyone is welcome. **This Month's Book: The Bell by Iris Murdoch** Set around a small religious community in the English countryside, The Bell follows a group of people trying to make sense of their relationships, beliefs, desires and the choices they make. First published in 1958, it gives us plenty to talk about around love, morality, freedom, faith and how well we really understand ourselves and other people. **IMPORTANT: Please only RSVP if you are planning to finish the book. If you've RSVP'd but don't think you'll be able to finish it, please change your RSVP to No in advance rather than on the last day, so someone else can take your place. Regulars get priority when moving from the waitlist to confirmed.** **No show policy: If you can no longer attend, please cancel your spot at least 24 hours in advance so someone else can take it. Two no shows without cancelling, or two last minute cancellations, will result in a ban from future book club events. This also helps us give the venue accurate numbers.** **About Deeper Conversations** We have a mission at Deeper Conversations to improve the quality of people's lives through conversation. All our events are centred around the concept of connecting deeply, because we believe we all deserve to be seen, felt and understood for who we really are. To have the 'deeper conversation' approach when relating with others can change our lives and can change the world **Our Value** \*\*\ *Respect: \*\*Treat everyone with kindness and consideration. ❤ \*\*\* Open-mindedness: \*\*Be open to different perspectives and ideas \*\*\ *Active Participation: \*\*Share your thoughts and engage in meaningful discussions.

WRITE CLUB: one hour of silent writing (or reading) in the company of others

The first rule of WRITE CLUB is that you do not talk ***during*** WRITE CLUB. This very simple meetup is based on the premise that public and peer accountability enables more productive writing than sitting at home and getting distracted by the fridge. We will write/read for an hour in silence. (I will be writing thought experiments for my other meetup group: [THOUGHT EXPERIMENTS IN PUBLIC](https://www.meetup.com/thought-experiments-in-pubs)) If you'd like to hang out afterwards, or if you prefer just to hang out, I have another event immediately afterwards in the same place :-) You can find that here: [HANGING OUT AT THE SOUTHBANK](https://www.meetup.com/experimentsin/events/316536684) And if you'd like to finish the evening with a dance, there is a free social salsa meetup just outside The Southbank Centre just afterwards. More info [here](https://www.instagram.com/salserosfriends/). **This event will take place in the foyer of The Southbank Centre.** You can find us by looking out for: * A tote bag with WRITE CLUB sewn onto it * My T-Shirt, which will have HANGING OUT embroidered on the back of it * Other writers - who may be spread out across the centre. They will have white pieces of paper with the WRITE CLUB stamp at the top of the page. There are plenty of places to buy refreshments, but you can also bring your own if you prefer. [WHATSAPP GROUP](https://chat.whatsapp.com/BpMwnRev0H237KMx4uPnek) [INSTAGRAM](https://www.instagram.com/experimentsingroupwisdom) [SUBSTACK](https://experimentsingroupwisdom.substack.com/) Looking forward to meeting and writing with you :-) Bonny

Book Swap Meetup 📚📚📚

Basic Ideas: 🌞 📚☕ Any books sitting there collecting dust? Some holiday gifts? Or it’s a book that has changed your life that you want to share? Feel free to bring book(s) to discuss or swap, we usually have more books than people in the end, so feel free to pop along just to have a chat as well. Aiming for every 4 weeks book swap meetup. Note: The event is free to attend, so the only cost for you will only be buying a drink at the location, so coffee/tea/beer etc.

Deeper Discussion: Does your life have a purpose?

Does your life have a purpose? Is purpose something we discover, something we create, something given to you by divine authority or something that simply doesn’t exist? Join us for an open, thoughtful conversation exploring one of life’s most enduring questions. We’ll dig into ideas from philosophy, psychology, science, and personal experience—without needing to arrive at a single “right” answer. Is purpose inherent, or do we invent it? How do meaning, happiness, and mortality shape our sense of purpose? What happens when the answer feels unclear—or changes over time? This Deeper Discussion gathering invites a serious, open, and unhurried examination of the topic. We will move past slogans and surface talking points to explore the harder terrain. The atmosphere we will encourage is one of curiosity, logic, critical thinking and less ideological emotional outbursts. This is not a debate with predetermined sides or a lecture. It is a facilitated conversation designed for people willing to sit with complexity, hear opposing perspectives, and think carefully about what kind of future is possible—and desirable—for our societies. Expect thoughtful exchange, rigorous questioning, and space for disagreement without virtuous performance. Agenda: 6 p.m to 7 p.m: Introduction and Socializin 7 p.m to 9:30 p.m: Topic Discussion 9:30 p.m to late night: Drinks, Dinner or Feel free to go home

In-Person SBC at the London Night Cafe

Enfield Interactive Dating For Matched Personalities

**UPDATE: This event has been rescheduled and is now set to begin at 8:00 PM on Sun, Sep 27 (local time).** Virtual speed dating hosted on Zoom for singles living in Enfield. Participate in rapid individual rounds while grouped by age, all from the comfort of your home. Simply confirm your attendance and we will contact you with the complete information. Availability is restricted and the gathering might be called off if attendance is insufficient.

Luton Speed Date from Your Couch

**UPDATE: This event has been rescheduled and is now set to begin at 8:00 PM on Sun, Sep 27 (local time).** Virtual speed dating hosted on Zoom specifically for single people in Luton. Engage in rapid individual rounds with matches based on age, all from the comfort of your home. Simply confirm your attendance and we will contact you with every necessary detail. Availability is restricted and the gathering might be called off if attendance is insufficient.

☕Coffee Chats: Consciousness, Sprituality & Universe🧠

Time is precious. Here we cherish non-boring big picture chats and interactions that are fully engaging, soulfully enriching, inspiring, and leave you a bit wiser than when you arrived. In that spirit (mind the pun!), today’s fully hosted laid back social coffee chat will offer a perfect haven for the inquisitive and curious **independent big picture thinkers** drawn to the mysteries of life, the universe and unknown. An adrenaline caffeine infused fun afternoon of thought-provoking causal chats exploring spirituality/consciousness and related interconnected topics spanning **philosophy,** **neuroscience**, **parapsychology,** **paranormal.** **cosmology** and **noetic sciences** over a mug of sweet coffee (or amazin value Chardonnay!) Chaired by me - a former empirical evidence driven Reuters journalist & published researcher exploring spirituality topics in pursuant of the "truth" since a teenager, there'll be no strict structure - a relaxed friendly space to openly chat, exchange ideas & experiences without judgement, but I'll preside to promote inclusivity and zone in on specifics to avoid people digressing onto unrelated tangents to ensure like all of our events - particpants derive maximum utlity and engagement from attending. We’ll touch on everything from the limits of scientific understanding to exploring the unexplained using practical fun exploratory divination practices drawing on elements of **psychology, metaphysics, epistemology** and **statistical** **probability** of rare events as we do so. Whether you're a practicing "spiritualist", a curious skeptic, or just someone who loves deep conversation on **life’s big questions**, you’ll hopefully walk away more enlightened with some practical tips you can start applying and inspired to explore more! As well as illuminating chats to guide self-reflection, obviously no sprituality event woul be complete without practical tools so there'll be FREE Tarot & I-Ching readings, demonstrations of meditation method to activate super powerful gamma brain waves, and pyschic tests for a bit of fun, laughter & intrigue! **Sample of conversational threads** might include: Are we mere organisms pursuing biological survival or does consciousness exist beyond neurons firing in our brains? What explains peoples' paranormal experiences? What would reality look like If our brains were limitless? Declassified CIA files show that as as well as mind control experiments, the US govt employed mediums and remote viewers. If all mumbo jumbo then why? Is Nirvana just a fantasy of deluded people? Does everything happen for a reason? To clarify - we define spirituality here as an exploration of consciousness, Donald Rumsfeld's unknown unknowns and undiscovered aspects of reality, NOT religion. After all, as my philosophy professor once rightly postulated to me: "If God created Adam, who created God Lucas?" Yep - that inconvenient flaw **debunks every fairytale religion** out there including the oldest religion of them all - paganism - so why is witchcraft still practised outside of **Hogwarts** today? I may also share the latest peer reviewed empirical evidence surrounding **paranormal** and **consciousness** phenomena. **=== POTENTIAL CONVERSATION STARTERS ===** 1. Does consciousness survive death or is Cambridge Astrophysics Professor Brian Cox right in asserting if **ghosts** existed then particle accelerators at CERN would have already detected ghost molecules making Ouija boards kids play? Are Poltergiests 100% hoax? Brain scans indicate thalamocortical circuits in our brain (pathways in the parietal cortex & central lateral thalamus) drive **consciousness -** so how can spirit/mind live on after **brain death**? 2. Is **synchronicity/coincidence** simply randomness disguised in the eye of the beholder or can what Einstein called “spooky action at a distance" (quantum entanglement) explain it? Molecular Biologists have shown that just like plants - our cells give off resonant frequencies between 10 & 180 kilohertz - could this be a source of non-verbal communication like telepathy? 3. Given **neuroscience**'s infancy with much yet undiscovered - could mediation help access functions outside of our BAU alpha & beta brain wave states? Can **Kundalini yoga** boost **DMT** (dimethyltryptamine) naturally vs drugs like ayahuasca, mushrooms, LSDand if so by what mechanism? Do the artifically created neural signatures using magnetic stimulation observed during mystical experiences debunk them? Is the Maharishi Effect real? 4. Are clairvoyants and mediums just good people readers or are they really able to access time and space in non-linear ways? Is Tyler Henry the real deal or just faking it? Was **Abraham Lincolm** precognizant when he dreamt his own fatal assignation? 5. The laws of statistical probability, Drake Equation & common sense tells us there is other non-microbial life out there. So what explains the Fermi Paradox? Was that 1976 WOW signal aliens? How about the recent strange bahaviour of Boyajian's star or Oumuamua/Atlas interstella object that has just entered our solar system? 6. Could metaverse explain deja vu & reincarnation vs theories from the **psychology** literature (Mandela Effect?) or do we just live in a **simulation** as **Elon Musk** proposes? 7. **Stephen Hawking** once said: "The past, like the future, is indefinite and exists only as a spectrum of possibilities" If matter only manifests when observed as the double slit experiments shows, does that mean everything is consciousness? Does the discovery of *quantum superposition /* disappearing neutrons imply **parallel universes**? 8. Do NDEs suggest something beyond physicality? Were Steve Jobs final words "Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow" before he died (New York Times) visions of an afterlife or just neurochemical changes / drugs playing tricks? 9. Can photons omitted by our bodies explain auras that people see? 10. Given the irrefutable scientific evidence for evolution at both micro and macro scale, denying it is basically delusional as thinking the earth is flat. But could panspermia explain the origin of life 11. Could limits in our understanding of quantum physics, space and time explain paranormal experiences? 12. What existed before the **big bang** \- how do you get something from "nothing"? I believe our reality is the product of a black hole\. What you reckon? ***So how do we get to the "truth"?*** Both in my journalism days and applying advanced empirical research techniques (while recognising that statistical causality and significance don't make something true) in my client consulting work - it becomes clear the truth is often elusive. No matter how much we triangulate evidence - we can only provide part answers. "All models are wrong, but some are useful" George Box What we think we know and reality diverge leading to that great **paradox of knowledge.** And as the boundary between knowns and unknown converge, we end up with cognitive dissonance and more questions. In that spirit - every credible philosopher & scientist acknowledges - we'll never get to the complete truth but could **experimental methods** get us closer to it? A balanced approach guided by Immanuel Kant's pragmatism and Aristotle's deductive reasoning seems the most rationale framework here but are there any other methodologies? How about the **"spirituality"** toolkit? **=== RENDEZVOUS POINT ===** We will meet in the outside back garden of this lovely posh Islington pub. 10 mins walk from Highbury & Islington station. Ask for me by name or I will post in commrents exactly what table we are at. I'll be wearing a **Starwars identifier** and will share mobile hotline just before event start and table number/location. Lucas - The Unenlightened Desperately Seeking Answers