G14-18792_Summer 2014 newsletter_Layout 1 10/9/14 12:35 PM Page 1 The Institute Letter InstituteIAS for Advanced Study Summer 2014 Sabine Schmidtke Appointed to Faculty Environmental Turn in the Human Sciences Researching the Intellectual History of the Islamic World Will It Become Decisive Enough? abine Schmidtke, a leading BY SVERKER SÖRLIN Sscholar of Islamic intellec- tual history whose innovative hat do the humanities have and insightful work has shaped Wto do with the environ- new understanding of the classi- ment? As they are commonly cal and postclassical Islamic understood, environmental prob- world, has joined the Faculty in lems are issues that manifest the School of Historical Studies. themselves primarily in the envi- Schmidtke, who is a former ronment itself. Natural scientists Member (2008–09, 2013–14) research these problems and sug- in the School, was Professor of gest solutions, aided by technol- Islamic Studies at the Freie ogy, economics, and policy. It Universität Berlin and found- was scientists who defined the ERIC LEWIS, THE NEW YORKER COLLECTION/THE CARTOON BANK ing Director of the University’s modern usage of the concept of Research Unit on the Intellec- “the environment” after World War II. Ecologist William Vogt famously used it in STAATSBIBLIOTHEK ZU BERLIN AND FREIE UNIVERSITÄT BERLIN 2014 tual History of the Islamicate his 1948 volume The Road to Survival: “We live in one world in an ecological—an Sabine Schmidtke World, as well as an Associate environmental—sense.” He and others at the time thought of “the environment” as Member of the Laboratoire a composite of issues that had been in the making for some time—most prominently, d’Études sur les Monothéismes, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique population growth, which had been much discussed since the World Population (CNRS) in Paris. Schmidtke succeeds Patricia Crone, Andrew W. Mellon Professor Conference in Geneva in 1927, but also soil erosion, desertification (observed by since 1997, who has become Professor Emerita. Schmidtke will continue the impor- Paul Sears in his famous 1935 book Deserts on the March), pollution, food, poverty, tant work begun with the 1990 appointment of the late Oleg Grabar (1929–2011), and starvation. (Continued on page 19) In the public’s mind, environmentalism is still connected with the 1960s, from Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring (1962) to the foundation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Earth Day in 1970, but in reality, its start was earlier, and humanist thinkers were deeply part of the first phase of the environmental revolu- BICEP: Spacetime Ripples or Galaxy Dust? tion. In France, a cohort of eminent historians started the journal Annales d’histoire Doubts Arise Over Claims of Evidence for Cosmic Inflation économique et sociale in 1929, which became an outlet for a take on history as an interaction of humans with physical geographies. Aldo Leopold was as much a “ pace Ripples Reveal Big philosopher as an ecologist when he developed his concept of a “land ethic” in A SBang’s Smoking Gun,” read Sand County Almanac (1949). When the important Princeton conference on “The the New York Times headline Earth as Transformed by Human Action” took place in 1955, Lewis Mumford, the last March 17. In a seemingly planning philosopher and urban historian, was a notable speaker. momentous news conference at However, the humanist presence faded quickly, and for half a century there were the Harvard–Smithsonian Cen- few humanists at the top levels of environmental science planning and as policy ter for Astrophysics, researchers advisers. Humanists themselves commonly accepted the outsider role. using a BICEP (Background Im- aging of Cosmic Extragalactic The widening domain of environmentally relevant knowledge J.-P. BARNARD/PLANCK COLLABORATION, R. FLAUGER Polarization) telescope at the Now we seem to be in for a change. The background is the current inadequacy of In September, Planck researchers confirmed Member South Pole announced that they the established scientific, policymaking, and economic approaches. In fact, despite Raphael Flauger’s assertion that the level of galaxy dust in this Planck slide was underestimated by the BICEP team. had detected the first direct all our efforts, most indicators of our future point in the wrong direction. As some evidence for cosmic inflation, a of us, members of a team led by ecologist Johan Rockström, discussed in “A Safe theory about the very beginnings of the universe first proposed in 1979. Operating Space for Humanity,” a since much-cited 2009 article in Nature, human The BICEP announcement claimed that the first images of gravitational waves, societies are rapidly transgressing a set of planetary boundaries, including rising lev- or ripples in spacetime, had been detected, a tantalizing and long hoped-for con- els of atmospheric carbon dioxide, biodiversity loss, and ocean acidity. We face both nection between quantum mechanics and general relativity. The landmark claim local and global coupled multiscalar crises of geopolitical instability, resource ignited the field and led to talk of a new era of cosmology. scarcity, and economic collapse. At the Institute for Advanced Study, Raphael Flauger, Member (2013–14) in the Our belief that science alone could deliver us from the planetary quagmire is long School of Natural Sciences, began looking closely at the data. The year prior, Flauger dead. While science remains essential for “the power of betterment—that riddled had analyzed the first round of cosmic microwave background data released by the word”––just as J. Robert Oppenheimer reminded us in his 1953 Reith lectures, (Continued on page 7) (Continued on page 12) Einstein Drive, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 www.ias.edu G14-18792_Summer 2014 newsletter_Layout 1 10/9/14 12:35 PM Page 2 News of the Institute Community ANIELLE ALLEN, UPS Foundation Professor in dental methods in complex geometry. Griffiths, with Dthe School of Social Science, has been elected Mark Green and Matt Kerr, has also coauthored Special Chair of the Pulitzer Prize Board. Her book Our Dec- Values of Automorphic Cohomology Classes (American Of Historical Note laration: A Reading of the Declaration of Independence in Mathematical Society, 2014) and served as editor, with Defense of Equality was recently published by Liveright Eduardo Cattani, Fouad El Zein, and Lê D ng Tráng, The following excerpt is from the article “Can We Publishing Corporation. of Hodge Theory (Princeton University Press,ũ 2014). Survive Technology?” by John von Neumann, q q published by Fortune magazine in 1955. Von ANI RODRIK, Albert O. Hirschman Professor in OAN WALLACH SCOTT, Professor in the Neumann was among the Institute’s first Profes- Dthe School of Social Science, has been awarded JSchool of Social Science since 1985 and Harold F. sors and its youngest. Having pioneered the mod- an honorary doctorate from the University of Gronin- Linder Professor since 2000, has become Professor ern computer, game theory, nuclear deterrence, gen in the Netherlands. Rodrik has also been appointed Emerita, with effect from July 1. and more, von Neumann illuminated the fields of pure and applied mathematics, computer science, visiting Centennial Professor at the London School of q Economics for the three-year period 2013–16. physics, and economics. He remained a Professor nstitute Trustees JEFFREY A. HARVEY and at IAS until his death in 1957. q IJAMES H. SIMONS, Vice Chairman of the Board, ICHARD TAYLOR, Robert and Luisa Fernholz along with six former Members, have been elected to Professor in the School of Mathematics, and three “ ll experience shows that even smaller R the National Academy of Sciences. technological changes than those now in former Members in the School, have been awarded the q A inaugural Breakthrough Prizes in Mathematics from the cards profoundly transform political and the Breakthrough Prize Foundation. Taylor is honored nstitute Trustee SHIRLEY TILGHMAN, President social relationships. Experience also shows for his numerous results in the theory of automorphic IEmerita of Princeton University and Professor of that these transformations are not a priori pre- forms, including the Taniyama-Weil conjecture, the Molecular Biology and Public Affairs, has been named dictable and that most contemporary “first local Langlands conjecture for general linear groups, an Officer of the Order of Canada for outstanding level guesses” concerning them are wrong. For all and the Sato-Tate conjecture. of talent and service to Canadians. these reasons, one should take neither present q difficulties nor presently proposed reforms too q seriously. ARTIN HAIRER, Member (2014) in the DWARD WITTEN, Charles Simonyi Professor in The one solid fact is that the difficulties are School of Mathematics, and MANJUL BHAR- the School of Natural Sciences, has been awarded M due to an evolution that, while useful and con- E GAVA, former Member (2001–02) in the School, have the 2014 Kyoto Prize in Basic Sciences by the Inamori structive, is also dangerous. Can we produce been awarded the 2014 Fields Medal. Bhargava, Pro- Foundation for his outstanding contributions to math- the required adjustments with the necessary fessor of Mathematics at Princeton University, received ematical science through his exploration of super- speed? The most hopeful answer is that the the award for developing powerful new methods in the string theory. human species has been subjected to similar geometry of numbers. Hairer was cited for his outstand- q tests before and seems to have a congenital ing contributions to the theory of stochastic partial dif- ATRICIA CRONE, Andrew W. Mellon Professor ability to come through, after varying amounts ferential equations, and in particular for the creation of Pin the School of Historical Studies since 1997, has of trouble. To ask in advance for a complete a theory of regularity structures for such equations. become Professor Emerita as of July 1. JONATHAN recipe would be unreasonable. We can specify ISRAEL, Professor in the School since 2001, succeeds q only the human qualities required: patience, Crone as Andrew W.