11.123 Big Plans (MIT)
This course explores social, technological, political, economic, and cultural implications of "Big Plans" in the urban context. Local and international case studies (such as Boston's Central Artery and Curitiba, Brazil's bus transit system) are used to understand the process of making major changes to the city fabric. The efficacy of top-down and bottom-up planning and the applicability of planning strategies across cultural boundaries are considered.
McMafia: Crime without frontiers
International journalist Misha Glenny talks about his investigation into the world of organised crime. He reveals how conventional policing cannot cope with globalised crime which is corrupting governments and fuelling human rights abuses and suffering. Misha Glenny is an award winning international journalist and author.
Celebrities and Aid: new humanitarians or just another fad?
Why do charities use celebrities to speak out on humanitarian action? Who do celebrities represent? Are they genuinely committed to the causes they espouse or have causes become another path to self-promotion? John Street is a Professor of Politics at the University of East Anglia. Kris Torgeson is the International Secretary for the Médecins Sans Frontières International Office. Award-winning journalist and freelance feature writer for the Sunday Times, Ann McFerran has interviewed and accomp
Afghanistan and Iraq: good war, bad war?
Lakhdar Brahimi, with an extensive career in peace-building, reflects on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq with Mary Kaldor. Lakhdar Brahimi was foreign minister of Algeria (1991-93( and prior to that ambassador to the UK (1971-79(. He mediated the end of the Civil War in Lebanon (1988-91( and headed UN Missions in South Africa, Haiti, Afghanistan and Iraq. Lakhdar Brahimi is now a member of "The Elders", a group created at the initiative of Nelson Mandela and his wife Graca Machel and chaired by
Indonesia: Global Reach, Regional Role
General TNI (Ret) Dr. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was born in Pacitan on 9 September 1949. Having graduated from the Military Academy in 1973, his military career and rank rose until he became a four-star general in 2000. In 1991, he received his Master of Arts in Management from Webster University, the United States. He earned a Doctorate Degree in Agricultural Economics from Bogor Institute of Agriculture in 2004.
NASA CONNECT World Space Congress 2002: The New Face of Space
The World Space Congress 2002 is the meeting of the decade for space professionals. From the discovery of distant planets to medical advancements, from geological exploration to urban planning, from water on Mars to energy sources in developing nations, you'll find it all here in NASA CONNECT World Space Congress 2002: The New Face of Space. Grades 6-8
Integrating CRE Skills and Techniques into Classroom Operations
A planning module supporting teachers wanting to systematically integrate Conflict Resolution Education into their classroom and school practices. Focus is on curriculum infusion through planning. Also includes a section on strategies for active engagement of students.
1.040 Project Management (MIT)
As technological integration and construction complexity increase, so does construction lead times. To stay competitive companies have sought to shorten the construction times of new infrastructure by managing construction development efforts effectively by using different project management tools. In this course, three important aspects of construction project management are taught: (1) the theory, methods and quantitative tools used to effectively plan, organize, and control construction proje
Open Education for an Open World
In Charles M. Vest’s expansive vision, scientists and engineers around the world are creating a “meta university” as they increasingly share ideas and build on common knowledge. Technology enables this integration of minds, leading us toward “an era better called brain circulation,” he says.
Vest cites evidence of rap
Stem Cells: Programming and Personalized Medicine
After years of relentless lab work, rising and falling expectations, and the challenge of a sometimes hostile public, Rudolf Jaenisch says, “The scenario that looked like a fantasy … has come closer to reality. We can study complex human diseases in a Petri dish and potentially contribute to therapy.” In this l
"The New Epoch" and the 21st Century Imperative for Engineering History
Great civil engineers finds an aesthetic appropriate for their building’s material and structure, asserts David Billington, whose life work has been the study of some of the world’s most stunning engineering feats.
He reviews his own intellectual journey, first honoring some of his forebears, including Elt
Energy resources: Water quality
Water is arguably the most important physical resource as it is the one that is essential to human survival. Understanding the global water cycle and how we use water is essential to planning a sustainable source of water for the future.
In the UK there are areas where water supplies are limited, shown by recent droughts. Globally, there are many areas that do not have enough water to support the current population adequately.
Decisions will have to be made on the best way to use water in a worl
A.B.L.E. Tech: Achieving Better Life Experiences for People with Injury, Disability and Aging Challe
Imagine a time when technology trumps injury and disease, and the very notion of disability begins to fade. These panelists suggest that we are at the dawn of such an era.
John Hockenberry, who zips around the stage in his flashing light –equipped wheelchair, tells us that “vast, extraordinary and sometimes
Future energy demand and supply
When you consider that the global annual consumption of primary energy increased more than ten-fold during the 20th Century, the importance of planning future energy supply becomes clear.
The International Development Fair: The Human Factor at Work in the World
Imagine if thousands of Amy Smiths were unleashed on the world, providing simple, ingenious inventions to make life easier for those subsisting on less than $2 a day -- half of humanity. This MacArthur Award-winning inventor has been seeding such programs at MIT, and describes tangible results of efforts to inspire
The Power of Competition: How to Focus the World’s Brains on your Innovation Challenges
Cooperation may be making us “a little bit too nice” when it comes to innovation, suggests Fiona Murray. She believes there’s nothing like competition for injecting energy into the process of solving key innovation problems, whether in business or society.
Murray is convinced competition make ventures “more ef
The Power of Basic Science Applied to Medical Progress: Past Examples and Hope for Schizophrenia and
An exemplar of the purpose-driven life in medical science, Ed Scolnick details research milestones from a remarkably varied career, revealing how scientific insight and collaborative effort translate into life-saving solutions for millions.
This physician turned biochemist has held distinguished positions at t
6 Permeability
Water is arguably the most important physical resource as it is the one that is essential to human survival. Understanding the global water cycle and how we use water is essential to planning a sustainable source of water for the future. In the UK there are areas where water supplies are limited, showin by recent droughts. Globally, there are many reas that do ot have enough water to support the current population adequately. Decisions will have to be made on the best way to use water in a world
Newton and the Counterfeiter: The Unknown Detective Career of the World's Greatest Scientist
Who knew that one of mankind’s greatest scientists also worked as a gumshoe on London’s mean streets, or that this same absent-minded professor helped England fix its monetary policy from an office in the Tower of London? Thomas Levenson brings all sorts of surprises to light in his own sleuthing of a little known but significa
Celebrating James Marshall and Humor in Children’s Books
Friends, colleagues and fans unite in loving praise of a children’s author who, though renowned, never got his due. James Marshall was writer/illustrator of the George and Martha and The Cut-Ups book series (he also illustrated Miss Nelson and The Stupids series, among many others). He died at ag
