Welcome to The Scholars’ Circle
Producers: Maria Armoudian, Ankine Aghassian & Melissa Chiprin
contact us : host (at) scholarscircle.org
The Scholars’ Circle is a weekly production. Our library contains interviews from 2011 to present.
Below are our 10 most recent recordings.
First, why do states choose to use third parties to intervene in other nation’s civil wars and political conflicts? On today’s show we interview Andrew Mumford on the legality, efficacy, and implications of the waging of proxy warfare. Hosted by Doug Becker. [ dur: 21 mins. ]
In December unexpected volcanic eruption in White Island, NZ. killed 21 people, recent Taal volcano erupts in Philippines caused thousands of people to flee the area, from Ecuador warning of pending eruptions. With Climate Change will volcanic eruptions become more frequent? By looking at ice cores, chemistry, size of eruptions, volcanoes buried in glaciers we get insight into this question. Hosted by Maria Armoudian. [ dur: 35 mins. ]
Produced by the Scholars’ Circle team: Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.
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First, how emigration could lead to greater democratization in the world. [dur: 11 mins. ]
For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ
Then, today’s panel hosted by Professor Doug Becker, International Studies at University of Southern California (USC), lays the foundations of public diplomacy, its techniques, and its effectiveness. It then examines the role of new technologies in the digital age and how it poses new challenges and opportunities. [ dur: 45 mins. ]
For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ
Produced by the Scholars’ Circle team: Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Anaïs Amin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.
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Following the US drone strike killing General Suleiman in Iraq, Iran shot down a Ukrainian passenger airliner. As tensions rose, international concerns over security as well as legality rose as well. And in Iran, protests against the government’s response to the attack on the airliner arose and have been intensifying. On today’s show, we will examine both the international and the local responses to the tensions and the military strikes that have led to this crisis. [ dur: 31 mins ]
What is the relationship between climate change and wildfires? The intensity and breadth of the wildfires in Australia has drawn attention to the effects of climate change and the need for a greater commitment to countering the globe’s increasing tensions. We explore the scientific and political linkages between these fires and climate change. [ dur: 27mins. ]
This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.
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International laws of war and executing targeted assassination by states. We discuss what is a threat and which international laws apply. Hosted by Doug Becker. [ dur: 58 mins. ]
- Mark Drumbl is a Professor at Washington and Lee University, School of Law and the Director of the University’s Transnational Law Institute. He is the author of numerous books including the award winning , Atrocity, Punishment, and International Law, and Reimagining Child Soldiers in International Law and Policy .
- Hannah Garry is a Professor of law at the University of Southern California’s Gould School of Law and Director of the International Human Rights Clinic. She specializes in international human rights law, international criminal law, international humanitarian law and international refugee law, USC
- Hamoud Salhi is a Professor of Political Science and Middle East, and Associate Dean of the College of Social and Natural Sciences at California State University, Dominguez Hills.
This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.
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We re-broadcast an interview with William Greider based on his book Come Home America. He passed away on December 25 2019. Greider was a journalist and author of seven books including Secrets of a Temple on the Federal Reserve Bank.
Then, how successful is the UN in achieving its sustainable development goals for poverty reduction, economic development, environmental protection, and political empowerment? This interview hosted by Doug Becker.
This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.
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First, why do people seem to know so little about politics? And what does that mean for democracy? We speak with Arthur Lupia author of Uninformed: Why People Know So Little About Politics and What We Can Do About It.[ dur: 27 mins. ]
Finally, what is love? Is it emotional? Is it biological? Can it be summoned by rational decision and how does it play out in society? [ dur: 28 mins. ]
- Simon May is a Visiting Professor of Philosophy at Kings College London. He is the author of Love: A History and Nietzsche’s Ethics and his War on ‘Morality’.
- Bennett W. Helm is a Professor of Philosophy at Franklin & Marshall College. He is the author of Love, Friendship, and the Self: Intimacy, Identification, and the Social Nature of Persons and Emotional Reason: Deliberation, Motivation, and the Nature of Value.
- Dr. Robert Epstein is a Senior Research Psychologist at the American Institute for Behavioral Research and Technology. He is currently working on a book called Making Love: How People Learn To Love, and How You Can Too, which is based on his research on how love emerges over time in arranged marriages. He is also the author of, Cognition, Creativity, and Behavior: Selected Essays.
This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.
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A study suggests that the powerful feel less empathy. Does it have implications for society? [ dur: 18mins. ]
Then, while advances in neuroscience are making great leaps in understanding humanity, scholars and doctors disagree on what neuroscience does and does not tell us about what it means to be human. Are we our brains? Do we have free will? How far can neuroscience take us? [ dur: 40 mins. ]
This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.
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Since the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014, Eastern Ukraine has been a site of conflict. Russophones in Ukraine, armed by Russia and joined by Russian nationals, launched a revolt to break from Kyiv. Following months of fighting, the area became a frozen conflict. Each week brings new casualties but little territory has changed hands. We spend the hour discussing the causes of the conflict in Eastern Ukraine, the impact of the internationalization of the war, and potential pathways to peace. Doug Becker hosts. [ dur: 58 mins. ]
This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.
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Why do sustainable business initiatives so often fail? What fundamental changes we need from societies and the economic system to stem a climate change induced collapsed? What economic systems might work on a planet with a finite capacity to sustain life? [ dur: 58 mins.]
This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.
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We spend the hour on good food politics, the food revolution, and the movements to build equitable and sustainable food systems. First, we’re joined by Will Allen author of Good Food Revolution. [ dur: 25 mins. ]
- Will Allen is the author of Good Food Revolution and the founder of the non-profit Growing Power.
Then, our guests have studied the food system and what it means to have an equitable and sustainable system. What are the problems in the system and what are the solutions? [ dur: 33 mins. ]
Raj Patel and Saru Jayaraman are contributors to The Nation magazine’s special issue, “The Future of Food: Setting the table for the next generation“.
This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download