In the News

The Potomac Institute for Policy Studies is pleased to present the second event in the John Henry Cardinal Newman Lecture series for 2010, chaired by Dr. James Giordano, director of the Center for Neurotechnology Studies. 

The lecture will be by Prof. Peter Moskovitz, MD, a surgeon and neurophilosopher on the faculty of the George Washington University School of Medicine.  His talk is entitled "Toward a Neurobiological Theory of Empathy." Prof. Moskovitz will explore the question of whether human beings are neurologically predisposed to behaviors commonly described as displaying empathy, sympathy, or altruism, all of which foster interaction within groups.  For more information including instructions on how to RSVP, please click here.   

Dr. Tawfik Hamid, the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies' Chair for the Study of Islamic Radicalism, will be a keynote speaker at an interfaith conference in Hamburg, Germany, on February 19.  The progam is sponsored by the non-profit association "Ethik im Alltag e. V.” (Ethics in Everyday Life), and will be held at Hamburg University. Dr. Hamid's talk will focus on the question, “How can we pray together?” The conference aims to find common ground shared by the world's religions and to foster greater understanding among them.  Click here for more information about Dr. Hamid and his research in the area of Islamic radicalism.  

Prof. James Giordano, PhD, Director of the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies' Center for Neurotechnology Studies, writes in a February 12 letter to The Washington Post that it's time to revisit the issue of pain care in severely neurally- compromised patients. His letter follows recent reports in the Post and elsewhere that modern technology has detected evidence of brain activity in some patients whose brain injuries have left them in a vegetative state. Dr. Giordano argues that where there is brain activity, there could well be pain, even when patients are incapable of communicating - which raises some potentially alarming issues relating to care.  Click here to read his letter in its entirety.       

Potomac Institute for Policy Studies CEO Michael Swetnam comments on the latest controversy surrounding US counterterrorism policy in a report produced by Voice of America.  As VOA News reports, the Obama administration's desire to try terrorism suspects in US civilian courts has ignited fresh debate over whether terrorism should be treated as an act of war or a criminal act. That question was also articulated by moderator Michelle Van Cleave at the Institute's January 29 terrorism review seminar held at the Brookings Institution, which was covered by VOA.  Swetnam argues that while terrorist acts certainly have a criminal aspect, "We should not let the consideration that it is a criminal act prevent us from using our war powers when necessary and vice versa."  Click here for text and video versions of the full report. 
     

 Professor Yonah Alexander, Director of the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies' International Center for Terrorism Studies,  is pleased to announce the release of a new special report: Maghreb and Sahel Terrorism: Addressing the Rising Threat from Al Qaeda and Other Terrorists in North and West/Central Africa.  The report is an up-to-the-minute look at the rising threat of radicalization and terrorist activity in this troubled part of the world.  It also raises the alarm about a disturbing trend: the increasing cooperation between narco-traffickers based in Latin America and Al Qaeda in the Maghreb.  Click below to access the report in its entirety.

       

What would it be like to hear using cochlear implants?  Cochlear implants are more than hearing aids: these high-tech devices don't just amplify sound, they "create" the experience of sound for profoundly deaf users.  On February 19, attendees at the next Capital Consortium for Neuroscience: Ethical, Legal and Social Issues (CCNELSI: www.ccnelsi.com) lecture will have the opportunity to experience a simulation of cochlear-implant sound and hear more about the experiences of users from Dr. Michael Chorost, a science writer who began using the implants after going deaf in 2001. Dr. Chorost has written extensively about cochlear implants, and the implications for progressively more integration of technologicial devices into the human body. HIs talk will be entitled "Cyborg Ear, Cyborg Mind."  The event will be held at noon on February 19 at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies. Click here for more details.