"Catch Me If You Can"
LTC Deborah Ellis, United States Army, LTC Jayson Gilberti, United States Army
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
Participants will be given brief instruction on required skills before embarking on a TOP SECRET mission. If you’ve ever wondered if you have what it takes to plan and execute a mission to find the enemy, then this course is for you. No prior military experience required.
Sponsor(s): Center for International Studies, MIT Security Studies Program
Contact: Harlene Miller, 258-6531, harlenem@mit.edu
| Jan/27 | Mon | 10:00AM-12:00PM | E40-496 |
Chinese Democracy by and for Third Graders
Christopher Leighton, Assistant Professor, History
| Jan/30 | Thu | 06:00PM-08:00PM | E51-095 |
Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/27
Prereq: None
The dream of a democratic China excites its champions and frightens its critics, but for some it already exists. When the eight-year old students at Wuhan’s Evergreen Primary School were allowed to elect their class monitor, a camera crew captured the experiment. The documented result was democracy in its most raw form, complete with character assassination, bribes, and demagoguery.
What can we learn about the promise or peril of democracy in contemporary China from this case? How have China’s values (whether traditional ethics or Maoist morals), social polices (e.g. the one child policy), or burgeoning economy of consumer capitalism shaped its prospects? To what extent are the problems we see universal, and to what extent do they seem particular and Chinese?
Participants will watch a documentary film, share a meal of Chinese food, and discuss these questions. No prerequisites; all welcome.
Sponsor(s): History
Contact: Christopher Leighton, E51-288, 617 324-0541, CLEIGHT@MIT.EDU
Contemporary Military Topics (series)
Colin Connor, USAF
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
Contemporary Military Topics (series of three sessions)
Sponsor(s): Center for International Studies, MIT Security Studies Program
Contact: Joli Divon Saraf, x8-7608, joli@mit.edu
| Jan/15 | Wed | 12:00PM-01:30PM | E40-496 Pye Conf Rm |
This 90 min. course will separate fact from fiction regarding the capabilities of the world's preeminent maritime force. Analyzing clips from popular movies with basic math, elementary physics & good humor we sort out what is real from what is not.
- Movies will include Top Gun, Battleship, Under Siege and many more.
- Did Maverick really need to shoot down those MIGs in "Top Gun", come and find out!
Karl McCarthy, USN
| Jan/16 | Thu | 10:30AM-12:00PM | E40-496 Pye Conf Rm |
This course will provide a quick overview of the Air Force structure followed by a discussion of the top priorities within the Air Force. Issues to be discussed will include nuclear weapons, aircraft inventory, and where the Air Force is focused for the immediate future.
Colin Connor, USAF
| Jan/29 | Wed | 10:30AM-12:00PM | E40-496 Pye Conf Rm |
In today's world, organizations must act fast, be decisive, & synchronize activities across functional areas -- exactly what the U.S. military does daily. Learn what the military decisionmaking process is & how it can be adapted to an organization. This course is for leaders in business, academic, or any organization who want to make decisionmaking more efficient & effective so as to leverage the power of their team.
Phill Bragg, USMC
Coolnetworking 3.0: Coolhunting and Coolfarming through Swarm Creativity
Peter Gloor
Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/07
Limited to 25 participants
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
This course consists of three parts, part I is the foundation for parts II and III, parts can be taken separately.
Day 1: I. How to Be an Efficient (Online) Networker
Part I is for everybody who would like to learn how they can be more efficient in their online and face-to-face networking.
Day 2: II. Coolhunting
Part II is for the power user who would like to learn how to apply Social Network Analysis to discover and predict emergent trends on the Web by mining Twitter, Blogs, Facebook, Wikipedia and the Web at large. Coolhunting means finding new trends by finding the trendsetters before anybody else, by tapping into the collective intelligence on the Web, and interpreting it through dynamic semantic social network analysis.
Day 3: III. Coolfarming
Part III builds on the basics from part II, it shows you how you can develop new trends through self-organizing teams (Coolfarming) by nurturing COINs (Collaborative Innovation Networks), and how you can better advertise your products on the Web through viral marketing using Twitter, Facebook, and Wikipedia. It will also introduce "virtual mirroring" to improve communication by continuously tracking and mirroring back a communication network.
This is a revised and condensed version of a distributed course, which has been taught for the last 9 years at MIT, Helsinki, Cologne, and Savannah. (http://sites.google.com/site/coincourse2013/)
Sponsor(s): Sloan School of Management
Contact: Peter Gloor, NE25-749, x3-7018, pgloor@mit.edu
| Jan/08 | Wed | 03:00PM-06:00PM | NE25-749, Bring your laptop |
How to Be an Efficient (Online) Networker
twenty rules for networking :
You will create a "virtual mirror" of your own communication behavior, telling you how much of a "star" or a "galaxy" you are, analyzing your own Facebook and e-mail networks.
Peter Gloor
| Jan/09 | Thu | 03:00PM-06:00PM | NE25-749, Bring your laptop |
Coolhunting
As part of the course you will get Condor, which allows you to analyze Web sites, Blogs, Twitter, Wikipedia, Facebook and E-Mail.
Peter Gloor
| Jan/10 | Fri | 03:00PM-06:00PM | NE25-749, Bring your laptop |
Coolfarming
In this part we will use Condor to analyze organizational e-mail networks, and study interpersonal networks on the Web, Twitter, and Facebook.
Peter Gloor
Finding Research Datasets
Katherine McNeill
| Jan/23 | Thu | 09:30AM-11:00AM | 14N-132 |
Enrollment: Register at: http://libcal.mit.edu/event.php?id=196874
Sign-up by 01/22
Limited to 40 participants
Need data to answer a research question? Interested in analyzing raw datasets with micro-level records about individual respondents? This hands-on workshop will familiarize you with the resources of the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) and the Harvard Dataverse Network, which provide access to datasets in the social sciences and related fields. Topics will include the structure of data files, finding and downloading datasets, and understanding data documentation.
Please register for this session.
Sponsor(s): Libraries
Contact: Katherine McNeill, E53-168c, x3-0787, mcneillh@mit.edu
Fundamentals of Science and Technology Public Policy Making: MIT Sci/Tech Policy Bootcamp
William Bonvillian, Director, MIT DC Office
| Jan/27 | Mon | 09:00AM-03:30PM | 56-114 |
| Jan/28 | Tue | 09:00AM-03:30PM | 56-114 |
| Jan/29 | Wed | 09:00AM-12:00PM | 56-114 |
| Jan/30 | Thu | 09:00AM-12:00PM | 56-114 |
| Jan/31 | Fri | 09:00AM-01:00PM | 56-114 |
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
This activity examines the public policy behind, and the government's role in the science and technology based innovation system. Emphasis placed on the U.S. S&T system, but international examples discussed. The seminar aims to equip those planning careers in and around science and technology with the basic background for involvement in science policymaking.
We cover the following topics:1)drivers behind science and technology support: growth economics, direct and indirect innovation factors, innovation systems theory, the "valley of death" between R&D and public-private partnership models; 2)organizing framework behind US science agencies, their missions and research organizational models, and the DARPA model as an alternative; 3)the way innovation is organized when it's face-to-face; 4)barriers and challenges to health science advance; 5)The energy technology challenge - how the science/tech innovation system needs to be organized to meet it within an existing and established complex economic sector; and 5) upcoming competitiveness challenge in advanced manufacturing.
Please fill out this web form to participate in activity:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1y9B5ioN-3MS9qm3lXdHhQtZyytwSUfEPJhDuZhcyE3Q/viewform
Sponsor(s): Political Science
Contact: Dilon Gardner, dillon@mit.edu
Harry Potter, World War II & and War on Terror
Amanda Rothschild, PhD Student Political Science
Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/14
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
Are the Harry Potter books just a fictional account of a fantastical wizarding world, or do the books offer a more nuanced political commentary on current and past international events? This course explores the political implications of the Harry Potter series, with a particular focus on parallels to World War II and the War on Terror. Topics explored include the sorting process, minority persecution, resistance movements, historical parallels to Death Eaters, and similarities between violence in the Harry Potter series and terrorism today. All students are welcome, but ideally students would have read all seven books or be familiar with the films. Wizarding robes are optional, but encouraged.
Sponsor(s): Political Science
Contact: Amanda Rothschild, rothscaa@mit.edu
| Jan/27 | Mon | 06:30PM-08:00PM | Location TBD |
The series begins and ends with significant emphasis on the sorting process. How does Rowling define courage and why might that definition be important? What does Dumbledore mean when he says we must choose between what is right and what is easy? Why do readers assume Hufflepuffs are not as capable as others? Why is ambition the quality associated with the darkest house and what are the implications of that association?
| Jan/29 | Wed | 06:30PM-08:00PM | Location TBD |
We discuss parallels between Muggle-borns and other persecuted minorities throughout history with a particular focus on the persecution of Jews during the Holocaust. Discussion may include the Muggle-born registry, racial purity in the series, ideology of Lord Voldemort, Grindelwald and "the greater good," racially derogatory terminology, Snatchers and the Gestapo, Death Eaters and the Nazi Party, and other topics.
| Jan/30 | Thu | 06:30PM-08:00PM | Location TBD |
Are the tactical axioms of Death Eaters similar to those of terrorist organizations? How do attacks by Death Eaters mirror terrorist attacks? How does the Ministry of Magic's response to the return of Lord Voldemort, under both Minister Fudge and Minister Scrimgeour, parallel the response of governments to terrorist attacks?
| Jan/31 | Fri | 06:30PM-08:00PM | Location TBD |
Is moral courage a central theme? Who are the courageous in the series? Which characters resist evil and how do they do it? What does it mean to value courage, fairness, wit, or ambition most? Is Dumbledore correct that we are defined not by our abilities, but by our choices? How do we apply this lesson to our life at MIT and beyond?
How Baseball, Poker, and Fermat Teach Us the Best Way to Elect the President
Alan Natapoff, Research Scientist
| Jan/22 | Wed | 04:00PM-05:30PM | 37-212 |
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
There is currently an unconstitutional (Article I.10.3) movement that is trying to install presidential elections by simple majority vote (SMV) through a compact among states, without an amendment. Nine states have signed it. Calculating voting power under SMV shows that it destroys individual voting power in any large, poorly-contested election. The present imperfect rules provide more power, have the advantages of long success, and are analogous to the successful scoring rules of large-statistics sports. We discuss the lessons offered by the history of presidential elections and examine the simple system that can cure the errors of the current design without destroying its critical strengths.
Contact: Alan Natapoff, 37-147, 617 253-7757, NATAPOFF@MIT.EDU
Marxism today, 23 Years since the "collapse of communism".
Felix Kreisel
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
World capitalist order, established by the US at the end of World War II and based on its economic hegemony, has crashed and the United States is at the center of economic and political convulsions. The American ruling elite is trying to reverse its long-term economic decline through frenetic military interventions in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Iran and elsewhere, and by exporting its crisis to competitors. Collapse of the Soviet Union and other so-called "socialist" states has exacerbated rivalries among the advanced capitalist countries and flashpoints of future wars are growing around the world.
Contact: Felix Kreisel, NW21-109, 617 253-8625, FJK@MIT.EDU
| Jan/07 | Tue | 05:00PM-07:00PM | 6-120 |
From Greece to the US, capitalism is characterized by permanent budget crises, as global financial institutions drive the various governments to impoverish the working class and reverse social gains of the past century. In response we see an eruption of mass struggles: the anti-budget cut protests in Greece, the Occupy movement, etc. Class struggle to oppose capitalist dictatorship is again the driving force of history.
Felix Kreisel
| Jan/14 | Tue | 05:00PM-07:00PM | 6-120 |
We shall present an understanding of the 1917 Russian Revolution and its place in history, then view a documentary film "Tsar to Lenin", with original footage from the Russian Revolution. The preview can be seen here: http://tsartolenin.com/ The film will be followed by discussion. Suggested reading: Trotsky's "History of the Russian Revolution".
Felix Kreisel
| Jan/23 | Thu | 05:00PM-07:00PM | 6-120 |
We shall review the history of the Soviet state over its 74-year lifetime, examine its internal contradictions, great strides forward, achievements and bitter defeats, the ruling Stalinist regime's crimes against its own people and its betrayal of socialism. We shall examine the collapse of the USSR and suggest lessons for the future. Suggested reading: Leon Trotsky's "The Revolution Betrayed".
Felix Kreisel
| Jan/28 | Tue | 05:00PM-07:00PM | 6-120 |
What is the balance sheet of capitalist restoration in the former Soviet Union 22 years after its demise? While high oil and gas prices have propped up the Putin regime and the energy exporting Russian economy, its overall health is fragile. We shall look at the trends in the economy and society, the recent election protests and see where Russia and the other successor states are heading.
Vladimir Volkov, WSWS reporter, St. Petersburg, Russia
Media and Ethics
Mine Gencel Bek, Visiting Fulbright Professor
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Sign-up and continuous attendance appreciated but not required
Seminar focusing on media and ethics will cover the most prominent issues such as the philosophical foundations, theoretical approaches and journalistic guidelines. Each session will consist of 50 minutes of presentation, followed by discussion. In the final session, participants will have the opportunity to present their own case studies.
Taught by Visiting Fulbright Professor Mine Gencel Bek, professor at the Department of Journalism, Faculty of Communication, Ankara University. Her publications cover a wide range of issues: the political economy of Turkish media; the media policies in the European Union and Turkey; media professionals and textual analysis of news in press and TV on issues such as tabloidization and representation of women and children. Common to all of her work is criticism of unethical practices of irresponsible media and the call for the democratization of societies for freedom and equality, and the democratization of the media, with a special focus on journalism.
Sponsor(s): Comparative Media Studies/Writing
Contact: Rebecca Shepardson, BSHEP@MIT.EDU
| Jan/08 | Wed | 02:00PM-04:00PM | 4-144 |
Philosophical foundations of ethics and communication ethics
| Jan/15 | Wed | 02:00PM-04:00PM | 4-144 |
Journalism ethics: Theoretical approaches (classical, dialogical and social responsibility)
| Jan/22 | Wed | 02:00PM-04:00PM | 4-144 |
Journalism guidelines. Peace journalism and ethics.
| Jan/29 | Wed | 02:00PM-04:00PM | 4-144 |
Presentation and discussion of case studies of participants
Planners Read The Gorgias
Ezra Glenn
| Jan/14 | Tue | 03:00PM-05:00PM | 9-450A |
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
What is the role of oratory and power in a democratic society? Is it worse to do wrong or to be wronged? What is the difference between knowledge and true belief? Why is it important for both the accused and their judges to meet naked in court? (And what do all of these questions have to do with becoming an urban planner?) Come explore these themes with us in a dramatic -- possibly participatory -- reading of Plato's "Gorgias," a Socratic dialog written in 380 BC that is as relevant today as when it was written. Greek food included; togas optional.
Sponsor(s): Urban Studies and Planning
Contact: Ezra Glenn, 7-337, x3-2024, eglenn@mit.edu
Planning, Funding, and Implementing Transportation Projects in the Real World (or How It Really Works)
Eric Plosky, Kate Fichter
| Jan/22 | Wed | 01:00PM-04:00PM | 9-450 |
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
As a vital and complex element of any urban or regional environment, transportation infrastructure both affects and is affected by land use patterns, economic development policies, political power-brokering and environmental resources, and so offers a lens through which to study many of the choices and constraints available to today's planners. This seminar will offer a practice-oriented overview of the issues, players and trends most relevant to contemporary transportation planning, as taught by two MIT/DUSP alumni currently working in the field.
Sponsor(s): Urban Studies and Planning
Contact: Ezra Glenn, 7-337, x3-2024, eglenn@mit.edu
Public Opinion Data Resources
Katherine McNeill
| Jan/16 | Thu | 11:00AM-12:00PM | 14N-132 |
Enrollment: http://libcal.mit.edu/event.php?id=475979
Sign-up by 01/14
Limited to 20 participants
Interested in studying public opinion in the U.S. and other countries? This workshop will teach you how to find data from public opinion polls, both summary statistics and individual response-level data files that you can analyze yourself. Covers the Roper Center for Public Opinion Research and other resources on topics such as government, the economy, and much more.
Please register for this session.
Sponsor(s): Libraries
Contact: Katherine McNeill, E53-168c, x3-0787, mcneillh@mit.edu
Reducing the Danger of Nuclear Weapons and Proliferation
Professor A. M. Bernstein, Professor of Physics
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Students are welcome to participate in any or all of these sessions.
Prereq: There are no prerequisites.
The plan for this course is to start with the timely issue of Iran's nuclear enrichment program, it's possible development of a nuclear weapon, the efficacy of IAEA inspections, and the implications of the interim agreement and a possible agreement to curtail their program. This will be followed by a discussion of two ways that humans can change the climate. If nuclear war should occur, in addition to the immediate blast there are delayed effects of radiation and possibly "Nuclear Winter". By burning fossil fuels we are experiencing the steady, more gradual increase of Global Warming. The plan for the third lecture is to present a brief introduction to the production of nuclear weapons and how this can be detected by suitable international inspection. We anticipate that the final lecture will present an outlook for the further reduction of nuclear weapons and their deployment policy, including the administration's announced intention to reduce the role of nuclear weapons and work towards their elimination.
Students are welcome to participate in any or all of these sessions. There will be time for questions and discussion.
Sponsor(s): Physics, Lab for Nuclear Science
Contact: Professor A. M. Bernstein, 26-419, 617-253-2386, bernstein@MIT.EDU
| Jan/22 | Wed | 03:00PM-04:30PM | 26-414 |
Is Iran Close to Making a Nuclear Weapons?
Dr. Jim Walsh - Research Associate / Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| Jan/23 | Thu | 03:00PM-04:30PM | 26-414 |
Effects of Human activities on the Climate; Global Warming and Nuclear Winter
Kosta Tsipis - Former Director, MIT Program STIS
| Jan/27 | Mon | 03:00PM-04:30PM | 26-414 |
From Mutually Assured Destruction to Mutually Assured Detection
Dr. Mike Hynes
| Jan/28 | Tue | 03:00PM-04:30PM | 26-414 |
Nuclear Weapons and Non-Proliferation Policy Outlook
Professor A. M. Bernstein - Professor of Physics
Revolutionary Marxist Theory for a World in Crisis
Safia Albaiti
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
Prereq: None
How does Marxism explain ongoing economic crises and the resistance to it? How does the Marxist theory of social reproduction explain the escalation of attacks on women’s reproductive rights and the misogyny pushing them out of the public sphere during the current crisis? Is environmental degradation caused by having too many people on the planet or is it a result of a system built on the accumulation of profits? How does the Marxist labor theory of value explain the drive to lower wages and benefits for workers in the pursuit of profits, and how does the Marxist theory of imperialism help to explain why the United States is onshoring and rebuilding a manufacturing base within its borders after decades of pronouncements that the United States was a post-industrial country? How have Marxist theoreticians of the past, from Karl Marx to CLR James, explained the central role racism has played in the development of US capitalism? How does Marxism as a revolutionary guide to action explain the role of the working class in revolutionary struggle, past and present, and what it takes to make a political revolution into a social revolution? What will it take to get to a future sustainable society that puts the needs of humanity, from each according to their ability to each according to their need, over the dictates of profit making?
Through this discussion based series of classes, we will take on the Marxist theoretical framework for understanding the world and its many crises today.
Contact: Safia Albaiti, E62-631, 617 253-9747, SALBAITI@MIT.EDU
Sharing Space in a Regulated Place
Corey Zehngebot, AIA, AICP
Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/08
Limited to 20 participants
Attendance: participants may attend just AM lectures, or lectures + PM workshops.
In this activity, we will look at the physical space implications and regulatory issues surrounding businesses that actively or passively associate with the “sharing economy” (e.g. Airbnb). Shifting urban demographics require a closer investigation into how different space “types” might address the needs of cities going forward. Designed to bring together academics, private businesses, think tanks, and public sector employees, this course is the beginning of a conversation about how residential models might be designed or retrofit concurrent with new zoning and emerging technologies to create broader housing opportunities in a city like Boston.
Sponsor(s): Urban Studies and Planning
Contact: Corey Zehngebot, coreyzehngebot@gmail.com
| Jan/13 | Mon | 09:30AM-04:30PM | 9-451 |
Schedules tentative, times may change based on participants; each day to include some AM lecture/discussion, followed by afternoon "workshop" component. Additional info to follow -- contact Corey for details.
Corey Zehngebot, AIA, AICP
| Jan/14 | Tue | 09:30AM-04:30PM | 9-451 |
Schedules tentative, times may change based on participants; each day to include some AM lecture/discussion, followed by afternoon "workshop" component. Additional info to follow -- contact Corey for details.
Corey Zehngebot, AIA, AICP
| Jan/15 | Wed | 09:30AM-04:30PM | 9-451 |
Schedules tentative, times may change based on participants; each day to include some AM lecture/discussion, followed by afternoon "workshop" component. Additional info to follow -- contact Corey for details.
Corey Zehngebot, AIA, AICP
| Jan/16 | Thu | 09:30AM-04:30PM | 9-451 |
Schedules tentative, times may change based on participants; each day to include some AM lecture/discussion, followed by afternoon "workshop" component. Additional info to follow -- contact Corey for details.
Corey Zehngebot, AIA, AICP
| Jan/17 | Fri | 09:30AM-04:30PM | TBA (Media Lab) |
Schedules tentative, times may change based on participants; each day to include some AM lecture/discussion, followed by afternoon "workshop" component. Additional info to follow -- contact Corey for details.
Corey Zehngebot, AIA, AICP
Surveillance in Cultural Context: seven films
Jim Paradis, Professor of Comparative Media Studies and Writing
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
Explore the culture of surveillance in modern society in a series of brilliant films about surveillance and modernity. Brief introductions and after-viewing discussions explore the rise of surveillance in the framework of shifting media regimes. Light snacks will be served.
Sponsor(s): Comparative Media Studies/Writing
Contact: Jim Paradis, jparadis@mit.edu
| Jan/07 | Tue | 06:00PM-08:30PM | 56-114 |
Futuristic sci-fi film of crime detection in a PreCrime Department (Tom Cruise) that apprehends criminals before they commit crimes. (2002), directed by Steven Spielberg (145 min)
| Jan/14 | Tue | 06:00PM-08:30PM | 56-114 |
Pursuit of a compulsive child killer (Peter Lorre) in pre-WWII Berlin in a growing web of police, neighborhood, and underworld surveillance practices concludes with an injunction to "keep closer watch over the children." (1931), directed by Fritz Lang (111 min)
| Jan/16 | Thu | 06:00PM-08:30PM | 56-114 |
East German Stasi officer (Ulrich Muhne) oversees the surveillance of a state-approved playwright's East Berlin apartment and becomes emotionally entangled with his subject in a milieu in which everyone monitors everyone. (2006), directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmark (138 min)
| Jan/21 | Tue | 06:00PM-08:30PM | 56-114 |
Professional photographer (James Stewart), incapacitated with an injury, passes the time monitoring neighbors with binoculars during a summer heatwave and stumbles on what seems to be a murder scene in a milieu of suspicious neighbors. (1954), directed by Alfred Hitchcock, (112 min)
| Jan/23 | Thu | 06:00PM-08:30PM | 56-114 |
Surveillance expert (Gene Hackman) descends into a informational hall of mirrors, as he misinterprets a conversation and unwittingly sets the stage for a murder. (1974), directed by Francis Ford Coppola (113 min)
| Jan/28 | Tue | 06:00PM-08:30PM | 56-114 |
Out of control NSA agents engage in political assassination, which is inadvertently recorded and then followed by a surveillance/counter surveillance extravaganza that entangles a lawyer (Will Smith) whose identity and reputation are destroyed. (1998), directed by Tony Scott (132 min)
| Jan/30 | Thu | 06:00PM-08:30PM | 56-114 |
Documentary exploration of the hacktavist culture of Anonymous and its modeling of surveillance and action by the many against organizations and state-supported institutions. (2012), directed by Brian Knappenberger (93 min)
Sustainability and the Corporation - New Strategies for Managing Global Business
Jette Steen Knudsen, Visiting Professor
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
In April 2013 the collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory in Bangladesh killed more than 1,100 people. The collapse led to heavy criticism of working conditions for garment workers in Bangladesh and to demands that western companies such as H&M and the GAP take increased responsibility for improving social and environmental conditions in supplier factories. Many other sectors such as consumer electronics (Apple) and toys (Mattel) have faced similar challenges.
These examples illustrate a growing trend. Today stakeholders as diverse as investors, employees, the media, NGOs and customers have strong views on how corporations should be run. Firms operating in or sourcing from developing countries are increasingly held responsible for a range of issues that were previously considered the responsibility of public authorities, such as environmental management, labor standards and human rights. Furthermore, several governments have adopted new regulations that require companies to adopt CSR activities (i.e., non-financial reporting requirements; green public procurement; legislation pertaining to anti-corruption). Companies therefore have to consider a wide range of new social issues as a key element of their broader risk management. How can firms best manage and prioritize their social risk management efforts? Which types of regulation (private or public) are most helpful for managing social risks?
Sponsor(s): Political Science
Contact: Jette Steen Knudsen, jettesk@MIT.EDU
| Jan/14 | Tue | 10:00AM-12:00PM | E53-438 |
Overview of the development of sustainability as business strategy (also referred to as corporate social responsibility/CSR) and focuses on the impact of globalization. Examines strengths and limitations of sustainability as a business strategy. Is there a business case for sustainability? Which companies gain from having a sustainability strategy? Does society gain from sustainability and if so under what conditions?
| Jan/16 | Thu | 10:00AM-12:00PM | E53-438 |
This session examines the changing boundaries between public and private regulation of sustainability. Can governments govern international business? How are boundaries changing between public and private regulation of sustainability?
The Ins and Outs of Development Review
Ezra Glenn, Lecturer
Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/21
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
This five-part series will introduce you to an aspect of urban planning that often gets ignored, but can have profound effects on the design and function of our neighborhoods and communities: development review. Each day, we'll meet for a morning session exploring how city planners review, regulate, mitigate, modify, and ultimately approve or deny proposed projects. Cases will be drawn from real-world examples, presented by practitioners who have worked in the field.
Feel free to come to any, or all, of the sessions.
Sponsor(s): Urban Studies and Planning
Contact: Ezra Glenn, 7-337, 617 253-2024, EGLENN@MIT.EDU
| Jan/27 | Mon | 09:30AM-11:30AM | 9-450A |
Presents a overview of the process of development review, with special attention to the laws of Zoning and Subdivision Regulation. Special guest: George Proakis, Planning Director, City of Somerville.
| Jan/28 | Tue | 09:30AM-11:30AM | 9-450A |
Using draft and final documents from real-world zoning applications, we'll learn how planners read submitted plans for development and work with architects, engineers, and other experts to evaluate, clarify, and improve proposals. Special guest: Ralph Willmer, FAICP, Senior Planner/Project Manager, VHB.
| Jan/29 | Wed | 09:30AM-11:30AM | 9-450A |
Planners do not review plans in isolation: development review is a public process. This session will cover the basics of public involvement, from requirements for notification through more creative tools and techniques to truly engage the neighborhood as active participants in the development process. Special guest: Angus Jennings, principal, Angus Jennings LLC; former Director of Land Use Management, Town of Westford.
| Jan/30 | Thu | 09:30AM-11:30AM | 9-450A |
Development review is not simply about saying "Yea" or "Nay." In reviewing plans for proposed development, planners tweak, modify, and at times radically alter projects to meet public objectives and avoid negative impacts. This session will present and explore the wide range of tools planners use to ensure projects will improve -- and not harm -- existing communities. Special guest: Nick Marantz, DUSP PhD student.
| Jan/31 | Fri | 09:30AM-11:30AM | 9-450A |
The final session of the Development Review series will feature an interactive session facilitated by DUSP PhD student Todd Schenk, exploring how the different aspects of development review come together in practice, as participants take on different roles around a simulated proposal.
UNCOVERING IRAN: What You Need To Know About the World's Most Talked-About Nuclear Program in 2 Delicious Lunches
Patricia Weinmann, Associate Coordinator, Technology and Culture Forum, Samuel Brinton, Global Zero
Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Attendance: Participants welcome at individual sessions
UNCOVERING IRAN: What You Need To Know About the World’s Most Talked-About Nuclear Program in 2 Delicious Lunches:
Wednesday, January 22: "Persia: The Pertinent History of the Islamic Republic of Iran", with John Tirman, Executive Director, Center for International Studies
Friday, January 24: "Diplomacy in Danger: The Nuclear Build-up and Interim Deal with Iran", with Jim Walsh, Research Associate, Security Studies Program
12:00-1:30pm
4-253
Sponsored by MIT Global Zero and the Technology and Culture Forum at MIT
Sponsor(s): Technology and Culture Forum
Contact: Patricia Weinmann, W11, 617-253-0108, weinmann@mit.edu
| Jan/22 | Wed | 12:00PM-01:30PM | (CANCELED) |
UNCOVERING IRAN: What You Need To Know About the World's Most Talked-About Nuclear Program in 2 Delicious Lunches
Wednesday, January 22: "Persia: The Pertinent History of the Islamic Republic of Iran", with John Tirman, Executive Director, Center for International Studies
Jonn Tirman - Executive Director, Center for International Studies
| Jan/24 | Fri | 12:00PM-01:30PM | 4-253 |
UNCOVERING IRAN: What You Need To Know About the World's Most Talked-About Nuclear Program in 2 Delicious Lunches
Friday, January 24: "Diplomacy in Danger: The Nuclear Build-up and Interim Deal with Iran", with Jim Walsh, Research Associate, Security Studies Program
Jim Walsh - Research Associate, Security Studies Program
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