Janus Forum Lecture Series

The Janus Lecture Series brings together two or more speakers with differing opinions on relevant social and political topics. Events are held five to six times per year and offer students a chance to hear diverging positions on critical issues from some of the most distinguished speakers in the country. The speakers each have 25min, following which audience members are invited to participate in a one-hour intensive and highly critical Q&A session.

Janus Lecture Events seek to address difficult and pressing political issues with a commitment to openness, honesty, and a genuine dedication to the pursuit of truth. To this end, Janus's Steering Committee, a group comprised of representatives from each of Brown’s major political, religious, or social groups, determines the topics that each event addresses.

Past Events

Genetic Engineering: Do the Benefits Outweigh the Costs?
Nigel Cameron and Gregory Stock
Thursday, April 25, 2013 - 4:00pm

In the past 20 years we have seen more rapid development in biomedical engineering and genetics than at any point in human history. From Dolly the sheep to the creation of Synthia, the world's first totally synthetic life form, by the J. Craig Venter Institute in 2010, the ability of humanity to...

Guns in America: Mental Health
Richard Alan Friedman, Doris Fuller, and Jeffrey Swanson
Tuesday, April 9, 2013 - 4:00pm

Public discussions following massacres like Sandy Hook often center around guns themselves and issues of general access to guns. However, we see a need for a serious discussion of the factors which lead people to commit such crimes. Specifically, we would like to frame this as a...

Guns in America: Cultural Legacy
Ellen Alberding, Cheryl Olson, and Craig Whitney
Thursday, March 21, 2013 - 4:00pm

 

This event addresses gun culture in America, in both historical and present context. The two main thrusts will be: a discussion of the legacy of gun culture in America and whether it is an inextricable component of American identity as well as the role guns and violence...

Guns in America: Reducing Crime
Carl Bogus, John Lott, and Steven Lippmann
Thursday, March 14, 2013 - 3:30pm

This discussion focuses on policies aimed at reducing gun violence. The loop we are investigating is the interplay of guns on crime and crime on guns broadly speaking. The speakers will examine policies aimed at reducing gun-related crimes and the effect guns and crime have on communities...

The Education Bubble: Is College Worth It?
Richard Vedder and Vivek Wadhwa
Thursday, February 21, 2013 - 4:00pm

With tuition and student debt at all-time highs, many Americans question whether college is worth the cost, especially in light of famous entrepreneurs who dropped out of college to enormous success. Others contend that college is still the key to a middle class lifestyle, a good investment even...

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