The report calls attention to the United States’ comparative decline in research investments over the past decade and offers recommendations for sustaining long-term thinking in science and technology policy, and for strengthening the partnership among government, universities, and industry.

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Citing a forthcoming Academy report, Neal Lane testifies in front of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and says America’s future as a global leader depends on a robust and expanding science and technology research and development agenda by the federal government.

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On November 22, 1788, the General Court of Massachusetts approved the Academy’s petition to hold a public lottery. Proceeds would go toward the purchase of a unique, grand model of the solar system for Harvard College.

The Academy, in conjunction with a consortium of national humanities organizations, will create a prototype set of indicators – statistical data about the people who work in the humanities and about the work they do – to provide a comprehensive picture of the state of the humanities in the United States, from primary to higher education to public humanities activities.

It is with deep sadness that the American Academy of Arts and Sciences notes the passing of business leader, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and dedicated public servant Morton L. Mandel, who received the organization’s Scholar-Patriot Award in 2016.

What challenges confront U.S. courts as democratic institutions in the twenty-first century? And what does the changing role of courts teach us about our conceptions of justice? The Summer 2014 issue of Dædalus explores the complex shifts occurring in U.S. courts and the implications for the citizens that rely on them.

A protracted debate within the Academy over Darwin’s Origin of Species began with a paper on Japanese flora presented by Asa Gray in 1858, leading to an exchange between Louis Agassiz and William Barton Rogers...

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.

In a forum essay, the HULA team (Danielle Allen, Maggie Schein, Christopher Pupik Dean, and David Kidd) describes its work, which start in the education sector but are now being extended to public humanities projects.

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A selection of Dædalus essays from MIT Press on the history, culture, and struggles of America’s indigenous peoples

The first Stated Meeting in the 220-year history of the Academy to be held outside the United States took place at the residence of the US Ambassador to France on June 6, 2000.

Richard Saller, Elaine Treharne, Franco Moretti, Joshua Cohen, and Michael A. Keller discussed the humanities in the context of rapidly developing new technologies.

The Rumford Prize, which recognizes contributions to the fields of heat and light, broadly interpreted, was first awarded in 1839 and is one of the oldest scientific prizes in the United States. Previous prize recipients include Thomas Edison in 1895, Edwin Land in 1945, and Enrico Fermi in 1953.

The American Academy awarded the 2021 Rumford Prize to astrophysicist Charles L. Bennett for his contributions to the field of cosmology. The virtual award ceremony included remarks by Academy President David Oxtoby, an introduction from theoretical physicist Marc Kamionkowski, a reading of the Rumford Prize citation by astronaut and scientist Kathryn Sullivan, and a presentation from Charles Bennett. An edited version of the speakers’ remarks follows.

The Unstable Biomedical Research Ecosystem: How Can It Be Made More Robust?

When an experimental brain operation left him a “profound amnesiac,” Henry Gustav Molaison might have chosen a private existence away from the public eye. Instead he made a gift of his misfortune, willingly exposing himself to the tests of 100 researchers over 50 years so that science might learn something about memory and the human brain. The American Academy will explore Molaison’s life and legacy on February 15, 2012 with a reading from the new play, “Yesterday Happened: Remembering H.M.,” and a panel of experts.