60-Second Lectures

Every spring and fall, Penn Arts and Sciences faculty take a minute out by the Ben Franklin statue in front of College Hall to share their perspectives on topics ranging from human history and the knowable universe to fractions and fly-fishing. 


The lectures have been a Penn Arts & Sciences tradition since 2003. More recently, the series has provided a platform for Penn and its experts to address the unprecedented challenges faced by our society, including the global COVID-19 pandemic, the enduring legacy of racism, and the ever-present threat of climate change. 

Look for past 60-Second Lectures on Vimeo and YouTube!

Upcoming Lectures


1.5* Minute Climate Lectures

60-Second Lectures

The 1.5 Minute Climate Lectures will return on September 23rd as part of Climate Week at Penn.Go to event

Featured Lectures

60Second - BLM Tukufu Zuberi

Being Human

Tukufu Zuberi, Lasry Family Professor of Race Relations and Professor of Sociology
60Second BLM Dorothy Roberts

Racism and the Policing of Black Mothers

Dorothy Roberts, George A. Weiss University Professor of Law and Sociology, Raymond Pace and Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander Professor of Civil Rights, and Professor of Africana Studies
David Barnes - 60 Second

Surviving Plagues Past and Present

David Barnes, Associate Professor of History and Sociology of Science
Sarah Barringer Gordon 60-Second

The Legal History of Epidemics in Modern America

Sarah Barringer Gordon, Arlin M. Adams Professor of Constitutional Law and Professor of History
Simon Richter

The Climate Patient’s Bill of Rights

Simon Richter, Class of 1942 Endowed Term Professor in the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures
Bethany Wiggin - 1.5 Minute Lectures

I'm Sensing Climate Change, What's Your Story?

Bethany Wiggin, Associate Professor of Germanic Languages and Literatures Director, Penn Program in Environmental Humanities

Browse the Archives

60Second BLM Dorothy Roberts

Racism and the Policing of Black Mothers

Dorothy Roberts, George A. Weiss University Professor of Law and Sociology, Raymond Pace and Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander Professor of Civil Rights, and Professor of Africana Studies
60Second - BLM Tukufu Zuberi

Being Human

Tukufu Zuberi, Lasry Family Professor of Race Relations and Professor of Sociology
60Second - BLM Jolyon Thomas

This Isn’t for You

Jolyon Thomas, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies
60Second - BLM Quayshawn Spencer

The Morality of Black American Reparations

Quayshawn Spencer, Robert S. Blank Presidential Associate Professor of Philosophy
60-Second Guthrie Ramsey

Art Answers

Guthrie Ramsey, Edmund J. and Louise W. Kahn Term Professor of Music
Brent Cebul - 60 Second Lectures

Renewal and Displacement

Brent Cebul, Assistant Professor of History