Cars are carefully engineered, designed, manufactured and marketed. They're also absolutely irrational, possibly the most irrational things we tend to pay a lot of money for. Writing about cars for a living requires a strong technical background but also a surprising amount of art knowledge —  art and art history —  and an appreciation of art itself. 

A degree in art history may not seem essential for a career in automotive journalism, but the truth is cars are a lot more like art than we want to admit. Art that hauls our butts and all the connected bits all around the city but art nevertheless. Jason Torchinsky, co-founder of The Autopian, will discuss the irrationality of cars; why a car is the best, most human-representative object to send to aliens; how cars are closer to fashion than you'd think; and why no one cries when they get rid of a fridge, but they'll weep when their old car is hauled away. 

Torchinsky's talk is part of Arts and Your Major, a series of programs highlighting the overlap between arts and STEM. The series sponsors are the Arts Village, Arts NC State and NC State University Libraries.