2011 Table Topics and Conversationalists

The Crisis in Public Higher Education: Where Do We Go From Here John Antel, Provost and Senior Vice President

“Mouse Over Thumbnail”: Language in a Computer Age Richard Armstrong, Classical Studies and Comparative Literature

Psychotic, Insane, and Other (In)convenient Labels Julia Babcock, Psychology

Why Americans Are Bad At Science (And How We Can Get Better) Simon Bott, Chemistry

America’s Elites and the Tea Party Movement Sue Collins, Phronesis Program in Politics and Ethics

Good Times or Bad? The 1960s in America Lawrence Curry, Professor Emeritus, History

Outlive Your Doctor: Making Sense of Health Information Cliff Dacso, Director, The Abramson Family Center for the Future of Health

Why Poetry Matters Ted Estess, Founding Dean, The Honors College

Art and Activism: How Creative People Can Save the World Karen Farber, Director, Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts

The Clash Over Religious Icons Cynthia Freeland, Philosophy

Dollars and Sense: The Market Value of Motherhood Elizabeth Gregory, Women’s Studies Program

You Say You Want a Revolution: Regime Change and American Foreign Policy Terry Hallmark, Political Science

Lord of the Isles: Sacred Waters from Orkney to Islay John Harvey, Artist-in-Residence, Center for Creative Work and Andrew Davis, Director, Graduate Studies Moores School of Music

Obama, Palin, and Donald Trump? What It Takes to Be President in the 21st Century Christine LeVeaux-Haley, Political Science

Are We There Yet? Renu Khator, Chancellor and President

Democracy in 140 Characters or Less: An Inquiry into Political Twitterpation Andy Little, Political Philosophy

Since When is a Myth Untrue? Mythos and Logos in a Postmodern Age Pittman McGehee, Director, Institute for the Advancement of Psychology and Spirituality

Wikileaks, Oil Spills, and the Illusion of Mastery William Monroe, O’Connor Abendshein Professor and Dean, The Honors College

Intellectuals: Who Needs Them? Iain Morrisson, Philosophy

Return to Divided Government: Compromise or Partisan Warfare for the Next Two Years? Richard Murray, Political Analyst

Beyond The Fountainhead: What Architects Really Do Patricia Oliver, Dean, College of Architecture

Greening–America: Good Intentions, Bad Consequences Dan Price, Science & Humanities

The Gulf Oil Disaster and the Future of Offshore Drilling Tyler Priest, Global Studies Program, Bauer College of Business

24/7: College Athletics and the Media Mack Rhoades, Director of Athletics

How We Converse: Norms of Civility in Public Discourse John Roberts, Dean, Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

The ABCs of Wine: Anything but Cabernet or Chardonnay Kevin Simon, Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management

Searching for E.T.: The Viability of Life on Other Planets Mark Smith, Dean, Natural Sciences and Mathematics

Our National Discourse: Have We Become a Nation of “Angry Birds”? Steve Smith, Broadcast Journalist and Media Consultant

Do We Still Have True Grit? Honor, Revenge, and Justice in the 21st Century Tamler Sommers, Philosophy

Wills and Kate: A Modern Day Fairytale Helen Valier, History

History Are the French Lazy? (And Why Do We Care?) Robert Zaretsky, French History