Coming up at the Mershon Center
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Edgar S. Furniss Book Award Winner
Christine Jojarth
The Fuzzy Governance of Soft Hard Law and Hard Soft Law
Noon, Mershon Center for International Security Studies, 1501 Neil Ave.
 Christine Jojarth is a lecturer at Stanford University and an expert on energy policy and transnational organized crime. Her research examines how theories on institutional design can be advanced and be put into action to effectively govern these two areas. Jojarth's Crime, War, and Global Trafficking (Cambridge, 2009) has established itself as a leading work on transnational organized crime and successful policy responses. It is winner of the 2009 Edgar S. Furniss Book Award given by the Mershon Center each year to an author whose first book makes an exceptional contribution to the study of international security. Jojarth will discuss how legally binding agreements between nations are often weak, while non-binding agreements can be strong. Read more and register
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Michael Horowitz
How Prior Military Experience Influences The Future Militarized Behavior Of Leaders
Noon, Mershon Center for International Security Studies, 1501 Neil Ave.
 Michael Horowitz is associate professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on international conflict issues, especially military innovation by state and non-state actors. He is author of The Diffusion of Military Power: Causes and Consequences for International Politics (Princeton, 2010). In this talk, Horowitz will discuss findings from a new data set that encompasses the military, educational, occupational, and family background of almost 3,000 heads of state from 1869-2004. Read more and register
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Panel Discussion
The Arab Spring: Developments in North Africa and the Middle East
4 p.m., Mershon Center for International Security Studies, 1501 Neil Ave.
The Arab Spring: Developments in North Africa and the Middle East will bring perspectives from the field that give new meaning to events reported in the news. The focus will be on the supporters of the protests and revolutions — who is funding the revolutions and counter revolutions -- as well as democracy and representation in diverse Middle Eastern contexts; war's toll on Libyans and potentially on Syrians; international impact and response-in Europe; refugees; NATO involvement; and protests by Saudi women. The panel will examine the Arab Spring as a whole and in specific contexts. Panelists include Joshua Stacher, professor of political science at Kent State University; Sabra Webber, chair of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures; and Alam Payind, director of the Middle East Studies Center. It will be moderated by J. Craig Jenkins, director of the Mershon Center Director, with introductory remarks by William Brustein, vice provost for global strategies and international affairs. Read more and register
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Jeffrey Hunker
Cyber as a National Security Issue: What We Know and Don't Know (and What are the Elephants in the Room?)
Noon, Mershon Center for International Security Studies, 1501 Neil Ave.
 Jeffrey Hunker is an author, consultant and researcher, who does work mostly in cyber security, information policy and management, and national security issues. He is author of Creeping Failure: How We Broke the Internet and What We Can Do to Fix It (Random House, 2010), a consultant to NATO, and principal investigator on a National Science Foundation project on the future of the Internet. Hunker will discuss whether current cyber defense is working, its likely framework, and how cyber power might be exercised. Read more and register
Thursday-Saturday, November 10-12, 2011
Islam and Rationality: The Impact of al-Ghazali
Organized by Georges Tamer
Mershon Center for International Security Studies, 1501 Neil Ave.
 Islam and Rationality: The Impact of al-Ghazali will examine the influence of Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (1058-1111), a central figure in the history of Islamic theology, jurisprudence, philosophy and Sufism. Of Persian origin, he lived and worked in Baghdad and in other intellectual centers of the Muslim world of the 11th and 12th century. This conference, which features leading scholars in intellectual history, philosophy, Islamic law and theology, as well as medieval Christian and Jewish thought, will commemorate the 900-year-long legacy of al-Ghazali, focusing on his commitment to religion and rational thinking. Read more and register
Saturday, November 12, 2011
In Concert: Ali Jihad Racy
Presented in conjunction with the Islam and Rationality conference
8 p.m., 100 Independence Hall, 1923 Neil Ave. Mall
 Ali Jihad Racy is one of the world's foremost experts on Arab music, credited with studying and documenting numerous musical traditions throughout the Arab world. An accomplished performer, composer, and ethnomusicologist, he has inspired a generation of students and artists in this country and abroad.
Internationally known for his scholarly work, Racy has conducted field research and is credited with over 75 publications. Topics include the laments of Lebanon, Bedouin music, musical change and sound recording in early-20th century Cairo, improvisation, music of the Arab Gulf region, and folk instruments of the Near East.
Included in his work is the 10-part series, The Arabs, shown on British television and on PBS.
Racy also joined the Kronos Quartet in the world premiere of his Zaman Suite, which he composed for the Quartet. Samples of his music can be found at http://lyrichord.com/mysticallegacies-alijihadracy.aspx. Tickets are $15 general admission, $8 for students, seniors, and children.
RSVP at http://www.ria4edu.com/clients/oiaevents/node/650
Other events
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Abbe Smith
How Can You Not Defend Those People?
Noon, Saxbe Auditorium, 55 W. 12th Ave.
Sponsored by the Moritz College of Law
Abbe Smith, professor of law at Georgetown University and director of the Criminal Defense and Prisoner Advocacy Clinic, will be the featured speaker at the 2011 David H. Bodiker Lecture on Criminal Justice.
Smith teaches and writes in the areas of criminal defense, legal ethics, juvenile justice, and clinical legal education. She is the author of Case of a Lifetime and co-author of Understanding Lawyers' Ethics. She also a published cartoonist.
From 1982 to 1990, Smith was a trial attorney with the Defender Association of Philadelphia. The purpose of The David H. Bodiker Lecture is to promote, improve, and advance the highest level of academic and professional interest in protecting the constitutional rights of the defendant in the criminal justice system through an annual lecture series at Moritz.
Lunch will be provided. Please RSVP by Nov. 1 to Chris Marcum at marcum.34@osu.edu or (614) 688-8232.
Monday, November 14, 2011
Sheryl WuDunn
Half the Sky: A National Perspective
4 p.m., Ohio Union, Archie Griffin Ballroom, 1739 N. High St.
Sponsored by the John Glenn School of Public Affairs
Sheryl WuDunn, the first Asian American reporter to win a Pulitzer Prize, is the best-selling author of Half the Sky, a business executive, and a lecturer. Currently, she is a senior managing director at Mid-Market Securities, an investment banking boutique serving growth companies in the middle market, including companies founded and run by women. She is also president of TripleEdge, a social investing consultancy, and – as of Fall 2011 – will be a Senior Fellow at Yale University, co-teaching a course on global affairs with a specific focus on China's economic development and its global role. WuDunn is co-author of Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, a New York Times best-selling book about the challenges facing women around the globe. Read more and register
Previous events available for viewing
Martha Olcott (center), senior associate with the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment, speaks to students in Bill Liddle's Islam and Democracy class on April 12, 2011, at the Mershon Center.
Olcott discusses prospects for upheaval in Central Asia
Watch a streaming video of Martha Olcott, senior associate with the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment, speaking about "State and Society in Central Asia: Revolutions on the Horizon?" at the Mershon Center for International Security Studies. Olcott is author of Central Asia’s Second Chance (Carnegie Endowment, 2005), which examines the economic and political development of this ethnically diverse and strategically vital region in the context of the changing security threats post 9/11.
Full Archive
Visit the Event Recordings page for the full list of streaming videos from previous events sponsored by the Mershon Center. Note: Streaming videos recorded before Fall 2010 require RealPlayer. If you do not have RealPlayer, you can download it free.
Mershon News
Ohio State celebrates International Eductation Week
The week of November 14-18, 2011, marks the 12th annual celebration of International Education Week. A joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education, International Education Week is an opportunity to promote a broader understanding of world cultures. Ohio State joins thousands of other institutions worldwide participating in events that bring an international perspective to college campuses.
You can find the complete schedule of events for International Education Week at Ohio State listed at http://oia.osu.edu/international-education-week.html
'Origins' examines transition in U.S. energy policy
 Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective is pleased to announce the publication of its November 2011 issue, featuring "Energy Policy and the Long Transition in America" by William Childs.
Energy has been in the news lately: The natural gas industry appears to be developing a world market; the U.S. Army is experimenting with "alternative" and "renewable" energy sources; "green" and "conservation" are being marketed as sound corporate management strategies. A half century ago the emphasis on natural gas, alternative and renewable fuels, and conservation were not in the energy policy mix in the United States. The convergence of historical trends in the 1970s, however, ushered in a long transition in American energy policy-making that is ongoing.
Origins is a free, non-commercial publication from the Public History Initiative and eHistory in Ohio State University's History Department. Each month, an academic expert analyzes a particular current issue -- political, cultural, or social -- in a larger, deeper historical context. In addition to the analysis provided in each month's feature, Origins also includes podcasts, images, maps, graphics, timelines, and other material to complement the article.
Origins can be found at http://ehistory.osu.edu/osu/origins/. The podcast is found at http://ehistory.osu.edu/osu/origins/podcasts.cfm. You can also follow Origins on Twitter: OriginsOSU
Celebration of Research to take place November 8
November is "Celebration of Research" month at Ohio State – an annual recognition and celebration of the depth and breadth of research at the university.
Caroline Whitacre, vice president for research, will deliver the "State of Research" address on Tuesday, November 8, at the Ohio Union and announce the winners of the 2011 "Innovator of the Year" awards.
Visit the annual Research Expo and meet with more than 50 exhibitors (Office of Research support services, research centers, institutes, core laboratories, shared services and vendors) in one convenient location. All members of the research community are welcome to attend (faculty, staff, research scientists, post docs, and undergraduate and graduate students).
November 8 Schedule
8:30 a.m. State of Research Address and presentation of the 2011 Innovator of the Year awards, U.S. Bank Conference Theater
9:30 a.m. Reception honoring the 2011 Innovator of the Year winners, Performance Hall
9:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Research Expo, Performance Hall
The Office of Research will be sponsoring a series of events throughout the remainder of the month highlighting the wide range of support services available to researchers.
Full schedule of events: http://go.osu.edu/celebrateresearch2011
Register: http://go.osu.edu/researchexpo
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