Philosophers have asked "What is race?" for centuries now without any consensus on an answer. In this talk, Quayshawn Spencer will consider the U.S. government’s current definition of race, how it generates a novel answer to the general question of what race is, and discuss why all former race theories have been radically incorrect.

Voters caucused in Iowa on February 3, 2020 and the first primary election in the nation was held in New Hampshire on February 11— just two days before this talk. What can these early and limited results tell us about what the electorate is thinking and what might come next? A panel of professors from the Department of Political Science discussed these questions and others from the audience.

Our current understanding of the universe starts with a Big Bang 13.7 billion years ago that created a simple, featureless soup of subatomic particles and ends today with a complicated structure of galaxies, stars, and planets. An interesting period of the universe’s history—the first billion or so years when the first stars and galaxies formed—has largely remained hidden from our view by its great distance from us and the lack of light from these times.

It’s no secret that U.S. water infrastructure is failing. Flint, Michigan; Newark, New Jersey and other cities are experiencing serious water crises. Bad news captures headlines, but is there hope on the horizon? In his talk, Howard Neukrug, the former Commissioner and CEO of Philadelphia Water, explains the underlying factors that led to these water crises and what can be done to minimize similar problems in the future. He’ll also share some positive trends in innovation and ingenuity in the water sector.