Tempe Mayor Declares May 1st, 2009 a Day Dedicated to Thinking

TEMPE, AZ--(Marketwire - April 29, 2009) - May 1st, 2009 has been declared the Leonardo da Vinci Society for the Study of Thinking Day by Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman. He declared this day in advance of a Da Vinci Society event that will take place on campus at the University of Advancing Technology (UAT), located in Tempe.

The Da Vinci Society was founded by UAT in 2005 in order to promote excellence in innovative thought by developing an honor society for the world's greatest living thinkers, and most importantly, to establish scholarship programs to encourage young thinkers.

UAT hopes to develop a world-class thinking curriculum through the establishment of the Da Vinci Society. By creating named and funded professorships in the discipline of thinking, the Society has honored some of the most prolific minds in the fields of systems thinking, organizational thinking, technology, and theoretical physics, including Dr. Michio Kaku and Dr. Fritjof Capra, the two most recent thinkers to join the Da Vinci Society with renowned technology futurist, inventor and entrepreneur, Ray Kurzweil as its 2009 inductee.

Mayor Hallman declared the Day of Thinking as a way of recognizing the importance of societal advancement through innovative thought and creative freedom. Recalling public advocacy proponent John William Gardner's statement that "Creativity requires the freedom to consider unthinkable alternatives and doubt the worth of cherished practices," Hallman states that, "It is in the spirit of exploration that I have declared May 1st as a day devoted to thinking."

Establishing a particular day that emphasizes the ideas of innovation and imaginative thought illustrates both the Mayor's and UAT's commitment to societal advancement through thinking.

About UAT: The University of Advancing Technology is a unique, private college that serves its student body by fostering knowledge creation and academic excellence in an environment that embraces the young technophiles of the world. With three centers of research and a suite of technology-centered undergraduate and graduate degrees, the University is a recognized leader in technology education.

For more information, please visit: www.davincithinking.org

Contact Information: CONTACT: Robert Marshall UAT/Media Relations pressrelease@uat.edu