HSS 60th Anniversary Celebration | Conference

Please join us as we celebrate 60 remarkable years since Caltech established the Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences in 1966, renaming its original Division of Humanities founded in 1926. Saturday, November 7, will offer a full day of presentations by HSS alumni followed by conversations with current HSS faculty, organized around four themes showcasing the reach and relevance of our expertise.

VIEW THE COMPLETE PROGRAM ON THE HSS WEBSITE
Registration is required.

9:30 a.m. MAKING THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE: POLICY AND INSTITUTIONS

• Space Sustainability in the Era of Satellite Megaconstellations and Novel Space Activities
  Roohi Dalal (BS '18, Astrophysics and History) — Deputy Director of Public Policy, American Astronomical Society
• Take Three: Attempts to Build Inclusive Infrastructures in Academia
  Sera Linardi (PhD '10, Social Sciences) — Associate Professor of Economics (with Tenure), University of Pittsburgh; Founding Director, Center for Analytical Approaches to Social Innovation (CAASI)
• Merit and Representation
  Teddy Mekonnen (Linde Postdoctoral Scholar, 2017–2019) — Orlando Bravo Assistant Professor of Economics, Brown University

11:00 a.m. PERSPECTIVES ON FREEDOM AND DEMOCRACY

• The Escapes of David George: Overcoming Slavery in Revolutionary America
  Greg O'Malley (Caltech-Huntington Mellon Postdoctoral Instructor in History, 2007–2008) — Professor of History, UC Santa Cruz
• Chatbot Democracy: The Power of Conversations
  Betsy Sinclair (PhD '07, Social Sciences) — Thomas F. Eagleton University Professor of Public Affairs and Political Science, Washington University in St. Louis
• The Art of Killing Time
  Anna Stielau (Weisman Postdoctoral Scholar Teaching Fellow in Visual Culture, 2023–2025) — Assistant Professor of Art History and Visual Culture, OCAD University

1:30 p.m. READING THE ROOM: DATA, INFORMATION, AND STRATEGY

• The Upside-Down World of Political Advice
  Catherine Hafer (BS '93, Economics) — Associate Professor of Politics, New York University
• Not Infinitely Rational, Just a Few Steps Ahead: A Theory of Hierarchical Reasoning in Games
  Po-Hsuan Lin (PhD '24, Social Sciences) — Assistant Professor of Economics, University of Virginia
• The Use and Misuse of Data on Digital Platforms
  Erik Madsen (BS '11, Physics and Economics) — Associate Professor of Economics, New York University

3:00 p.m. WHITHER THE UNIVERSITY?
A roundtable on the challenges facing higher education.

• John Brewer (HSS Faculty 2002–2016) — Eli and Edythe Broad Professor of History and Literature, Emeritus, Caltech
• Colin Camerer — Robert Kirby Professor of Behavioral Economics, Caltech
• Susanne Hall — Teaching Professor of Writing and Director of the Hixon Writing Center, Caltech
• Jennifer Jahner — Professor of English and Dean of Undergraduate Studies

These events are free and open to the public.
Registration is required.

>> Don't miss the keynote conversation at 4 p.m. on Friday, November 6, "Leviathan Unchained: Rethinking the Framers on Executive Power," featuring John Ferejohn (Samuel Tilden Professor of Law, Emeritus, NYU School of Law; HSS faculty, 1972–1983) and Jean-Laurent Rosenthal (Rea A. and Lela G. Axline Professor of Business Economics, Caltech).