What is consciousness? How do we store memories, process thoughts, and command our bodies? Why do we require sleep to live? And can we trust our perception of the world around us? The Winter 2015 issue of Dædalus responds to these fundamental questions of human experience, exploring “What is the Brain Good For?” through recent developments and new theories in the field of neuroscience.

Across the country, state and local referenda gave voters a chance to enact the recommendations in Our Common Purpose. Almost everywhere, they did just that, supporting ballot measures to expand ranked-choice voting, increase access to early voting, and improve transparency around election funding.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has unleashed a humanitarian catastrophe, but Ukraine is only the most visible example of contemporary conflicts subjecting populations to systematic violence and depriving them of life-saving humanitarian assistance. In Ethiopia, Sudan, Yemen, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the eroding purchase of international humanitarian law, combined with intensifying geopolitical competition and the rapidly changing character of modern warfare, have put enormous strain on humanitarian actors. An issue of Daedalus explores the conflicts and the implications.

Academy Convenes Educators, Donors, and Evaluation Specialists

I hope you are well during this time of both peril and promise for our nation. After a harrowing year that challenged confidence in our public health system, our economy, and our notions of a just and equitable society, our system of democratic government itself came under unprecedented attack. The January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol revealed just how fragile democracy can be. It also underscored the need for constant vigilance to protect our democratic institutions and a renewed commitment to strengthening them in the years ahead.

There is no resource more central to life on Earth than water, and it is impossible to overstate its role in shaping human history. Humanity’s need for water is inextricably linked to its need for security, energy, food, and community. The Summer 2015 issue of Dædalus moves beyond the problems and failures.

At a meeting sponsored by the American Academy, the Royal Society, and the Carnegie Institution for Science, Wendy Freedman (Crawford H. Greenewalt Chair and Director of Carnegie Observatories at the Carnegie Institution for Science) and Martin Rees (Fellow of Trinity College; Emeritus Professor of Cosmology and Astrophysics at the University of Cambridge; Astronomer Royal; and Visiting Professor at Imperial College London and at Leicester University) discussed what we know and do not know about the universe.

On May 15, 2014, at the Academy’s 2008th Stated Meeting, five experts discussed how institutions protect against the threat of nuclear terrorism.

On January 22, 2014, Robert J. Birgeneau, Mary Sue Coleman, Philip Bredesen, Don M. Randel, and Frank D. Yeary participated in a conversation on the future of America’s system of public higher education.

Arms trafficking has a long and influential history. At an Academy event held in Berkeley, California, historian Brian DeLay described how U.S. arms trafficking intervened at critical moments to destabilize Mexican governance. The program included commentary from historians Priya Satia and Daniel Sargent, as well as from political scientist Ron Hassner. The presentations explored how the history of arms trading may help to better understand the history of state-making and the power relations between the United States and the rest of the world.

How to improve Congress? An opinion feature in the New York Times highlights bold ideas to make Congress better, including a link to the Academy's report, "The Case for Enlarging the House of Representatives.” The opinion piece and the report explain how expanding Congress would make it more representative, better serve voters, and keep the institution in line with the Founders’ vision.

On January 25, 2013,Thomas Levy described “cyber-archaeology” and the important role it plays in helping to promote excellence in the humanities and social sciences.

Ahead of the White House’s December 2021 Summit for Democracy and as part of its ongoing efforts to advance the recommendations in Our Common Purpose, the Academy organized two initiatives last fall aimed at young people: a national polling project and a summit of young leaders, who were brought together for their expertise, vision, and commitment to making progress on critical issues in their communities.

On January 7, 2019, the Academy published the first open-access issue of Dædalus in the journal’s sixty-four-year history. “Access to Justice,” the Winter 2019 issue, is a multidisciplinary examination of the national crisis in legal services, from the challenges of providing quality legal assistance to more people, to the social and economic costs of an of- ten unresponsive legal system, to the opportunities for improvement offered by new technologies, professional innovations, and fresh ways of thinking about the crisis.

In October 1964, China simultaneously announced the success of its first nuclear test and pledged to the international community that it would never be the first country to use nuclear weapons. For more than 40 years, this “no-first-use” doctrine has guided China’s nuclear policy, resulting in a nuclear arsenal much smaller than those of the world’s four other major nuclear powers.

Stephen Heintz, cochair of the Academy’s Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship, says Biden’s single most important step in his first 100 days is to establish a White House Office for Democracy.

What are the lessons learned when community college leaders, researchers, area employers, policymakers and philanthropists get together to discuss how to provide postsecondary students with the skills they need for meaningful employment?

Following an introduction from Mary C. Waters, Douglas S. Massey and Jorge Castañeda described the current state of U.S. immigration policy.

In today’s high-tech and hyperconnected world, threats from insiders go far beyond leakers and lone-wolf shooters. How can we better protect against the enemy within, no matter what it is that needs to be protected?