"Kafka Comes to America: Fighting for Justice in the War on Terror"
"Our government can make you disappear." Those were the words Steven Wax never imagined he would hear himself say. In his twenty-nine years as a public defender, Wax had never had to warn a client that he or she might be taken away to a military brig, or worse, a "black site", one of our country's dreaded secret prisons. How had our country come to this? The disappearance of people happens in places ruled by t
"India: The Emerging Giant"
A talk by Arvind Panagariya.
Arvind Panagariya discusses his new book, "India: The Emerging Giant", a history of the economic development of India since independence and the "definitive book on the Indian economy" according to Newsweek editor Fareed Zakaria. Panagariya is Jagdish Bhagwati Professor of Indian Political Economy, International and Publ
"Challenges for the New Administration in Iraq and Afghanistan"
A talk by Juan Cole.
Juan Cole will discuss the future of U.S. foreign policy in Iraq and Afghanistan beyond the November presidential elections. Juan Cole is Richard P. Mitchell Distinguished University Professor of History at the University of Michigan. He has written extensively about Egypt, Iran, Iraq, and South Asia. He studies and writes about contemporary Isl
"The Duel: Pakistan on the Flight Path of American Power"
Writer, film-maker, and leading figure of the international left Tariq Ali speaks about Pakistan, Afghanistan and the future of U.S. involvement in the region. Ali's new book, "The Duel: Pakistan on the Flight Path of American Power", weighs the prospects of those contending for power in the aftermath of Benazir Bhutto's assassination, and demonstrates Pakistan
Research on Microorganisms that Live Off Carbon Dioxide
This video produced by Teachers' Domain features Cathy Drennan, Professor of Chemistry and Biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Cathy explains that her research focuses on microorganisms that live off carbon dioxide, one of several greenhouse gases that are widely believed to accelerate global warming. Specifically, Cathy is investigating how a protein inside these microorganisms converts carbon dioxide into energy. Ultimately, Cathy hopes humans might apply what they learn from
"Sowing Crisis: The Cold War and American Dominance in the Middle East"
A talk by Rashid Khalidi.
Rashid Khalidi is Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies and Director of the Middle East Institute at Columbia University, and is among the foremost U.S. historians of the modern Middle East. He is the author of numerous books on the region--several written during his many years on the faculty at the University of Chicago--
Alash Ensemble Concert
A performance by the Alash Ensemble at International House.
Tuvan throat-singing and traditional Tuvan instruments and music.
Sponsored by the Center for East European and Russian/Eurasian Studies.
“Reconceptualizing the Question: Intervention Strategies”
A presentation and discussion with University of Chicago Professors Roger Myerson, Department of Economics & Marshall Sahlins, Department of Anthropology.
Roger Myerson: "A Field Manual for the Cradle of Civilization"
Marshall Sahlins: "On the Anthropology of the Counterinsurgency Field Manual"
Part of the April 2009 conference on "Reconsid
“'I Am Who I Am': On Being Nostalgic in Sanskrit”
A talk by David Shulman, Renee Lang Professor of Humanistic Studies, Department of Comparative Religion, Hebrew University of Jerusalem. From the South Asia Seminar.
“Invoking Chola and Maratha Pasts in Colonial Thanjavur: King Serfoji II's Reinvention of the Brih
A talk by Indira Viswanathan Peterson, David B. Truman Professor of Asian Studies, Mount Holyoke College. From the South Asia Seminar.
“The Stones of Banaras: Conservation and Colonial Bureaucracy in a Small Indian City”
A talk by Michael Dodson, Associate Professor of History, Indiana University. From the South Asia Seminar.
“The Dragon's Gift: The Real Story of China in Africa”
A talk by American University professor Deborah Brautigam. Is China a rogue donor, as some media pundits suggest? Or is China helping the developing world pave a pathway out of poverty, as the Chinese claim? This well-timed book provides the first comprehensive account of China's aid and economic cooperation overseas. Deborah Brautigam ta
“Freefall: America, Free Markets, and the Sinking of the World Economy”
A talk by Columbia University professor Joseph Stiglitz. The current global financial crisis carries a "made in America" label. In "Freefall", Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz explains how America exported bad economics, bad policies, and bad behavior to the rest of the world, only to cobble together a haphazard and ineffective response when
“The Consequences of the Escalation of War in Afghanistan”
A talk by political scientist Gilles Dorronsoro, visiting scholar in the Carnegie Endowment's South Asia Program. His research focuses on security and political development in Afghanistan, particularly the role of the International Security Assistance Force, the steps required to achieve a viable government in Kabul, and the conditions necess
Keynote: “Provincializing the World: Europeans, Indians, Jews (1704)”
A keynote address by Carlo Ginzburg, Scuola Normale di Pisa (partial recording). From the conference 'After Europe: Postcolonial Knowledge in the Age of Globalization'. Co-sponsored by the Chicago Center for Contemporary Theory (3CT), the Franke Institute for the Humanities, and the Nicholson Center for British Studies.
Panel 1: The Idea of Europe
Panel 1: Sandro Mezzadra, University of Bologna; Sanjay Seth, Goldsmiths, University of London; Faisal Devji, St. Anthony's College, University of Oxford. Co-sponsored by the Chicago Center for Contemporary Theory (3CT), the Franke Institute for the Humanities, and the Nicholson Center for British Studies.Author(s):
Panel 2: The Problem of Historical Difference
Panel 2: Miranda Johnson, University of MIchigan; Bain Attwood, Monash University; Ajay Skaria, University of MInnesota. Co-sponsored by the Chicago Center for Contemporary Theory (3CT), the Franke Institute for the Humanities, and the Nicholson Center for British Studies.Author(s):
“Celling India: The Mobile Phone's Contribution to Capitalism, Democracy and Unsettling Society”
A talk by Robin Jeffrey, Director, Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National University. From the South Asia Seminar.
“Impossible Translation: Beyond the Legal Body in Two South Asian Family Courts”
Srimati Basu, Associate Professor of Gender and Women's Studies University of Kentucky on "Impossible Translation: Beyond the Legal Body in Two South Asian Family Courts"
“Situating the Subaltern in South Asian Medical History”
A keynote address by David Hardiman, History, University of Warwick at the Seventh South Asia Graduate Student Conference. With the support of the Committee on Southern Asian Studies (COSAS), The Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture (CSRPC) and The Center for Gender Studies (CGS).













