Pour&Ponder: Why lie?

​🗓️: Friday, 20th Feb 2026

​🕡: Doors open at 7:00 PM

​📍: Alma House Lobby Lounge

​Why do we lie? What is the cost of lying? Is lying to others different from lying to oneself? What might we make of our propensity to lie?

​Join us as we Pour&Ponder on why we lie big and small, and why lying to ourselves might be worse.

​What to expect

• ​45-minute keynote.

• ​Curated Q&A & discussion. Share your “aha” moments and trade insights with other guests.

• ​Drinks. Kick back with a glass of wine or beer, or opt for a non-alcoholic option—tea, coffee, and soft drinks available.

​Our lead speaker and discussant will be Rajeev Patke, Professor Emeritus at the National University of Singapore. He was Director of the Division of Humanities at Yale-NUS College from 2012 to 2025, and prior to that he was a member of the Department of English Language & Literature at the National University of Singapore.

​He has authored seven books of literary studies, and he also collects, edits, anthologizes, and writes on the classical music of South Asia.

​Agenda

​7:00PM - Doors open: come early to snag a seat and a drink or two

​7:25PM - Introduction

​7:30PM - Lecture

​8:15PM - Audience Q&A and discussion

​8:30PM onwards - Free and easy mingling with speaker and fellow guests

​Pour & Ponder is a roving lecture-in-a-bar series, blending passionate ideas from experts with craft drinks to spark discussions beyond campus walls.