October 23rd, 2011

Charles Perrow: How technology can nudge climate change politics

Writing in Bloomberg View, Charles Perrow says U.S. investment in carbon capture and storage technology could "induce China and Europe to follow suit." This "would allow the world time for renewable-energy technologies to mature -- to the point where we could do away with coal burning altogether." Read more »

September 6th, 2011

Sept. 11: Are we safer 10 years later?

Ten years after the terrorist attacks, five leading experts weigh in on the state of the jihadist movement, U.S. intelligence, and the cost of safety. Read more »

June 14th, 2011

Thomas Isaacs: Is nuclear the fuel of the 21st century, or a relic of the past?

The 8.9 earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan on March 11, 2011 set in motion one of the largest nuclear disasters in almost three decades. It also renewed the debate over the future of nuclear energy in the U.S. and abroad. With 104 nuclear power plants across the country, generating about 20 percent of America's energy, there is no doubt that we are currently dependent on nuclear energy, yet the debate over this highly contentious technology is far from resolved. At the World Affairs Council of Northern California, Thomas Isaacs discussed what this disaster means for the future of U.S. energy. Read more »

June 7th, 2011

Kate Marvel and Michael May: What is the future of nuclear energy?

In a new paper published by the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, Kate Marvel and Michael May explore the potentially game-changing events for the future of nuclear energy.
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May 13th, 2011

Rodney Ewing: Why are rare events so common?

"More than a month has passed since the one-two punch of an earthquake and tsunami added a third dimension to the tragedy in Japan: a major nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station," writes CISAC's Rodney Ewing in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. "Over the next year, the impact of the Fukushima disaster on the public's perception of nuclear power will evolve, with advocates portraying the event as an opportunity to make an indispensable source of energy safer, and critics characterizing it as a final indictment of the dangers of nuclear energy. As this debate develops, the public would be well served by answers to a few simple but critical questions." Read more »

May 8th, 2011

CISAC honors student awarded for "exceptional, tangible" intellectual achievement

Ten undergraduates recently received the 2011 Deans' Award for Academic Accomplishment, which honors extraordinary undergraduate students for "exceptional, tangible" intellectual achievements. Among them: CISAC honors student Anand Habib, a senior majoring in biology with honors in international security studies. He is completing an honors thesis focusing on health governance. Read more »

April 7th, 2011

Charles Perrow: How we can prevent the worst

In a revised and updated edition of his 2007 book, The Next Catastrophe, CISAC's Charles Perrow examines the dangers we face today and what we must do to confront them. Read more »