The first speaker in this year's Patten Lecture Series is Thomas Schelling, Nobel Laureate in Economics (Tuesday, Sept. 23 and Thursday, Sept. 25).
Both FREE lectures will be at 7:30-8:30 p.m. in Ballantine Hall, room 109.
Schelling will speak on
"Managing Nuclear Proliferation" Tuesday, Sept. 23-- Nobel Laureate Thomas Schelling will discuss his views on the management of nuclear proliferation in his first of two Patten Lectures. For more than sixty years, since Nagasaki in 1945, no nuclear weapons have been exploded in anger, despite several wars in which one side possessed nuclear weapons. The "taboo" is an asset to be preserved. New nuclear weapon states should recognize that the weapons have proven useful for deterrence; any other "use" will almost certainly bring universal opprobrium. Certain responsibilities will accrue to any new nuclear-weapon states: security against accident, sabotage, or unauthorized use. The United States was slow to recognize the need for such security, as it was slow to recognize the crucial importance of designing weapons safe from attack. Perhaps China, a mature nuclear-weapon state, is in a strong position to provide guidance to any nations contemplating nuclear weapons.
"Managing the Greenhouse Problem" Thursday, Sept. 25 -- Nobel Laureate Thomas Schelling will discuss his belief that the uncertainties are great but so are the certainties of greenhouse problems in his second of two Patten Lectures. Venus and Mars show what too much, or too little, greenhouse gas can do to the possibility of life. Carbon dioxide's ability to absorb infra-red radiation can be measured. But the analysis of how much warming, what changes in climate, what impact on agriculture, on health and comfort, how well different countries can adapt, is still in progress; too little is known to predict what concentration will be too much, so no global "rationing" scheme is likely. Certainly the worst climate impacts will be on the rural poor; economic development is an important defense. An ambitious program of research, development, and exploration for new economical energy sources and locations for carbon sequestration is urgently needed. The already-developed nations will have to provide financial and technological assistance to the less developed.
For more information, visit http://www.patten.indiana.edu.
