Political Science | Penn Today

Two people sit in chairs in a discussion, with a table between them bearing a sign reading Perry World House, with a vase of flowers and glasses of water on top

Nuclear weapons in an age of emerging technologies

As part of a weeklong residency at Perry World House, Nobel Peace Prize winner Beatrice Fihn, executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, spoke on the impact artificial intelligence and other technologies have on nuclear risk.

Person in black suit and blue tie speaks at podium with red banner, gesturing with left hand

Philadelphia looks to evidence-based insights to inform policy

A conference bringing academics and policy makers together looks at how behavioral science can benefit local government.

Impeachment check-in: President Trump’s defense and Bolton’s book

John Gans of the Perry World House joined a conversation about the presidential impeachment trial.

Children liberated in the Auschwitz concentration camp, 1945

Remembering Auschwitz, with eyes on the present

On the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, scholars and experts share their thoughts in light of the recent rise in anti-Semitism.

Susan Rice on stage at Perry World House with Provost Wendell Pritchett

Susan Rice talks ‘Tough Love,’ career in government

Susan Rice, the former national security adviser and United Nations ambassador, spoke with Provost Wendell Pritchett about her new book and her time in the Clinton and Obama administrations

Why Trump persists

Diana Mutz of the Annenberg School for Communication and School of Arts and Sciences spoke about the effects of education on individual world views. “Every study I’ve ever seen across the social sciences shows that education promotes less in-group favoritism and greater tolerance toward those unlike ourselves,” she said. “In panel studies that track the same people over time, as people gain advanced levels of education, they become more tolerant and favorable toward liberal democratic norms.”

How political tribalism is leading to more political hypocrisy

Kathleen Hall Jamieson of the Annenberg Public Policy Center spoke about how the impeachment process is testing U.S. political systems. “We’re seeing a point at which we’re calling into question whether our institutions can function the way they were intended to function in a polarized age,” she said.

Pedestrian on the sidewalk walking past the wall of the former US embassy in Tehran.

Q&A

A history of US-Iran relations

John Ghazvinian, interim director of the Middle East Center and an expert on Iran/U.S. relations, talks about the countries’ historical relationship and what led to the current situation.

Brendan O'Leary standing with hands in pockets.

Brendan O’Leary: Whatever you say, say everything

The political science professor’s career, from aiding in the negotiating of peace in Northern Ireland to advising the Prime Minister of Kurdistan, has been guided by a simple principle: Say exactly what you mean.

Iranian commander killed—five things to know

A United States drone struck and killed a powerful Iranian military commander at an Iraqi airport, bringing vows of retribution from Iran and threatening to plunge the region into chaos. An expert on Iran shares her thoughts on the attack.

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