Science & Justice Research Center opening celebration

Tuesday, May 29, 2012, 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Location: 231 Oakes College, Mural Room

The Science & Justice Research Center (SJRC), launched this year, will provide a hub for the many science & justice activities on campus and will offer new infrastructural and intellectual support for a wide variety of interdisciplinary and collaborative research. This celebration will highlight the work being conducted by the Science & Justice Training Program fellows and celebrate the new space in Oakes College.

The event includes a playful and provocative take on a poster session by our graduate students. Some will prepare brief discussions around a question that emerges from their research and include a concrete case from their work. Others will conduct interactive games or show artistic projects. Rather than offer finished results, presenters will engage guests in conversations around issues of common concern.

These are some of the planned provocations:

• Do you know your data? What are the consequences of the increasing distance between researchers and the organisms and environments they study? Does objectivity improve or lessen with this distance?
• How does political consensus assemble around scientific uncertainties? If contentious political and economic issues depend on scientific results and practices that are riddled with unresolvable uncertainties, how do stakeholders made do and come to a decision?
• How can we design sustainable technology that serves the needs of people? Many green technologies are directed at large-scale efficiency gains that primarily benefit actors with economic clout. How can we target smaller actors in a way that the technology scales to their needs?
• How can/should we think about future generations as we design today's science and technology?

Schedule:
4:00 pm Opening remarks (Oakes Mural Room)
4:30 pm First round of presentations (231 Oakes)
5:15 pm Second round of presentation (231 Oakes)
Drinks and snacks will be served.

Sponsors:
The Science & Justice Research Center is hosted and supported by the Division of Social Sciences and supported by the Center for Biomolecular Science & Engineering, Division of Graduate Studies, Division of Physical and Biological Sciences, Baskin School of Engineering, and the Office of Research.