Jazz: it has been called both cool and hot, earthy and avant-garde, intellectual and primitive. It is improvisational music touted for the freedom it permits its players, but in its heyday was largely composed and tightly arranged. It tells a story about race in America: not only because African American musicians were so central in its creation and African American audiences so important in their creative responses to it, but because whites played such a dominant role in its dissemination through records and performance venues and its ownership as intellectual and artistic property. But is jazz a relic of the past, or does it continue to have meaning and influence for today’s artists and audiences? And while it may still be present, does it still matter?

Academy Publications

As I write this message, the specter of COVID-19 still hangs over our country and our world. The Academy’s activities have been entirely virtual throughout 2021 (and for most of 2020), and we have postponed in-person Induction ceremonies for two consecutive years. That was a particular disappointment because it is always wonderful to greet our newly elected class and deeply moving to watch each person cross the stage to sign The Book of Members, attesting to their membership in the Academy. We will do everything possible to recreate that experience when it is finally safe to gather.

The Commission on Reimagining Our Economy issues final report and new dashboard in its efforts to advance an American economy that is centered on working for the people who make it work.

On April 12, 2012, North Korea unsuccessfully launched a long-range missile that was intended to carry an Earth observation satellite into space. North Korea fired the long-range test rocket in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions and an agreement with the United States. On the eve of the launch, the Academy convened leading North Korea experts to discuss the broader geopolitical and nonproliferation implications of North Korea’s nuclear program.

John E. Bryson (elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2011) passed away peacefully at his home in San Marino, California, on May 13, 2025. He left behind his wife Louise (elected to the American Academy in 2010), four daughters, eight grandchildren, two sisters, and a consequential life of civic, governmental, business, and philanthropic leadership.

Ellen T. Harris spoke at the Academy about Handel’s life and his inner circle of friends.

Inspired by the Academy report on "America’s Languages," Congressmen David Price (D-NC) and Don Young (R-AK) announced the establishment of the bipartisan Congressional Caucus on America’s Languages in order to address our nation’s need for more bilingual citizens to help ensure national security, promote economic and job growth, and develop the potential of every U.S. student.

The American Academy of Arts and Sciences has named Victor Seow the recipient of its Sarton Prize for the History of Science, recognizing his exceptional promise and distinguished achievements as an emerging scholar in the field.

It is simple to hope for an end to the world’s civil wars–nearly thirty of which are underway right now–but it is not at all simple to bring these conflicts to an end when the causes are wide-ranging, the effects are extensive, the international response is uncertain, and the solutions are elusive. The Winter 2018 issue of Dædalus, “Ending Civil Wars: Constraints & Possibilities,” identifies impediments to ending civil wars and offers policy prescriptions for states and for the international community facing the spread of instability and humanitarian crises, including pandemic diseases and transnational terrorism.

In January I had the opportunity to travel to London to participate in the continuation of one of the Academy’s longest institutional relationships: our shared pursuit of knowledge with the Royal Society, the oldest scientific society in existence. The first interaction between our two societies occurred in 1785, when Royal Society member Benjamin Gale contributed to the first volume of the Academy’s Memoirs. A few years later, in 1788, Royal Society President Sir Joseph Banks was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the Academy.

The American Academy's Humanities Indicators project provides new indicators on Americans' dwindling engagement with books, the types of texts they are reading, changing attitudes about censorship, and student reading proficiency.

The report, Forging Climate Solutions: How to Accelerate Action Across America, was developed over a two-year period by a diverse commission of leaders sharing their expertise and priorities. Their report recommends how corporations, frontline communities, government, and environmental groups can work together to mobilize investments, build infrastructure, reduce emissions, and prepare for the impacts of climate change.

One of the recommendations for strengthening American democracy proposed in Our Common Purpose - the report of a bipartisan Academy commission - is to invest in civic education programs and professional development opportunities for educators in all communities. This article examines legislative progress at the federal, state, and local levels concerning civics education.

David Ellwood and Christopher Jencks discuss how inequalities in race, gender, and income continue to divide American society. Through the 2000–2001 Stated Meeting series on inequalities, the Academy seeks to reevaluate what has been achieved in the past quarter-century and assess the challenges that await us in the future.

A new book from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, examines the impact of providing high-quality education to every child in the world between the ages of 6 and 16.

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

Ben Klutsey, a member of the Academy's working group on defining civic culture, expands on key lessons from the working group's report on fortifying civic culture, including how Americans can promote habits of service, share narratives of common purpose, and engage in other activities that strengthen civic culture.