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Please join us on Tuesday, October 23rd, for an STS Brown Bag Lunch Talk
at 12:00 noon in E51-275:<br><br>
<div align="center"><font size=4 color="#0000FF"><b>Recent Reforms in
Russian Science and Higher Education<br><br>
</font><font size=4>Loren Graham, MIT<br><br>
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Abstract<br>
The current attempts to reform science and higher education in Russia
shed much light on the question "What are the Optimal Forms of
Organization of Scientific Research and Higher Education?" After
adopting a radically different model from that of the United States,
Russians currently are trying to find ways to organize research and
higher education that both grow out of their own traditions and also
represents "best practices" abroad.<br><br>
Bio<br>
Loren Graham is professor emeritus of history of science at MIT. He
has published many articles and books, including one that was a finalist
for a National Book Award. He was awarded the Sarton Medal for
lifetime<br>
achievement by the History of Science Society. This talk is based
on a section of his forthcoming SCIENCE IN THE NEW RUSSIA (spring, 2008),
co-authored with the Russian scholar (and former STS fellow) Irina
Dezhina. He currently is writing a book entitled NAMING GOD, NAMING
INFINITIES, co-authored with the French mathematician Jean-Michel Kantor
(and former fellow of the mathematics department of MIT). The
latter book is on the different receptions given to set theory in France
and Russia connected with French "rationalism" and Russian
"mysticism." Another of his books, about Native American
history, is currently being made into a feature-length movie. He
does much of his work in a remote lighthouse on an island in Lake
Superior, often working at night by kerosene lamps.<br><br>
Feel free to bring your lunch; we'll provide coffee and dessert.<br><br>
Talk location:
<a href="http://whereis.mit.edu/map-jpg?mapterms=E51" eudora="autourl">
http://whereis.mit.edu/map-jpg?mapterms=E51<br>
</a><x-sigsep><p></x-sigsep>
Debbie Meinbresse<br>
STS Program, MIT<br>
617-452-2390<br>
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