Matrix On Point
Recap
Published April 15, 2022
The Future of Money: Mobile Money, Social Media, and Cashless Economies
Focusing on forms of cashless payment, such as mobile money and apps, this "Matrix on Point" panel explored questions about how the social connections made through money are changing, and what the implications might be for our understanding of money, trust, and social connection. The panel featured Kevin Donovan, Lecturer in the Centre of African Studies at the University of Edinburgh; Lana Swartz, Assistant Professor of Media Studies at the University of Virginia; and Jayati Ghosh, Professor of Economics at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. The panel was moderated by Marion Fourcade, Professor of Sociology at UC Berkeley and Director of Social Science Matrix.
Learn More >California Spotlight
Recap
Published April 12, 2022
The Social and Economic Impacts of Wildfires
Recorded on April 4, 2022, this panel focused on the contemporary social and economic impacts of wildfires in California during another record-breaking fire season. How have fires changed during the last five years, and with what impacts on the economy? How might policy-makers and economists respond to the changing fire season? The panel was co-sponsored by the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment (CLEE) and presented as part of the Social Science Matrix California Spotlight series.
Learn More >Article
Interview
Published March 21, 2022
A Visual Interview with Eric Stanley on “Atmospheres of Violence”
How should we understand violence against trans/queer people in relation to the promise of modern democracies? In their new book, "Atmospheres of Violence: Structuring Antagonisms and the Trans/Queer Ungovernable," Eric A. Stanley, Associate Professor in the Department of Gender and Women’s Studies, argues that anti-trans/queer violence is foundational to, and not an aberration of, western modernity. For this visual interview, Julia Sizek, Matrix Content Curator and a PhD candidate in the UC Berkeley Department of Anthropology, asked Professor Stanley about their research, drawing upon images and videos referenced in the book.
Learn More >Matrix On Point
Recap
Published March 16, 2022
Matrix on Point: The War in Ukraine and Its Consequences
In this Matrix on Point event, recorded on March 15, 2022, a panel of UC Berkeley scholars discussed the Ukraine-Russia War conflict and its implications. Panelists included John Connelly, the Sidney Hellman Ehrman Professor in the Department of History; Yuriy Gorodnichenko, Quantedge Presidential Professor in the Department of Economics; Gérard Roland, the E. Morris Cox Professor of Economics and Professor of Political Science; and Katerina Linos, the Irving G. and Eleanor D. Tragen Professor of Law. Daniel Sargent Associate Professor of History at UC Berkeley, moderated.
Learn More >Matrix On Point
Recap
Published March 14, 2022
Cryptography and the Future of Money
Recorded on March 2, 2022, this "Matrix on Point" panel featured presentations by Markus K. Brunnermeier, Edwards S. Sanford Professor in the Economics Department at Princeton University and Director of Princeton’s Bendheim Center for Finance; Stefan Eich, Assistant Professor of Government at Georgetown University; and Christine Parlour, the Sylvan C. Coleman Chair of Finance and Accounting at Berkeley Haas. Moderated by Barry Eichengreen, the George C. Pardee and Helen N. Pardee Chair and Distinguished Professor of Economics and Professor of Political Science at UC Berkeley.
Learn More >Authors Meet Critics
Recap
Published March 8, 2022
Precolonial Legacies in Postcolonial Politics
Watch the video of our “Author Meets Critics” panel focused on the book, "Precolonial Legacies in Postcolonial Politics: Representation and Redistribution in Decentralized West Africa," by Martha Wilfahrt, Assistant Professor in the UC Berkeley Department of Political Science. Recorded on March 7th, 2022, the panel included Scott Straus and Alberto Díaz-Cayeros, and was moderated by Leonardo Arriola.
Learn More >Matrix Lecture
Recap
Published February 28, 2022
The Problem of Trust in the Digital Public Sphere
On February 24, 2022, Matrix was honored to host William Davies, Professor of Political Economy at Goldsmiths, University of London, for a Matrix Distinguished Lecture. Davies explored how the digitization of our public sphere has made trust harder to establish, as the ideal of “facts” has been challenged by that of “real-time data,” and consequently altered the forms of allegiance, organization, and political coalitions that are possible.
Learn More >Authors Meet Critics
Recap
Published February 8, 2022
Bankers in the Ivory Tower: The Troubling Rise of Financiers in US Higher Education
Watch the video (or listen to the podcast) of our “Author Meets Critics” panel on the book, "Bankers in the Ivory Tower: The Troubling Rise of Financiers in US Higher Education," by Charlie Eaton, Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Merced. Recorded on Feb. 3, 2022, the panel included Emmanuel Saez and Jonathan Glater, with Jennifer Johnson-Hanks as moderator.
Learn More >Authors Meet Critics
Recap
Published February 3, 2022
The King and the People: Sovereignty and Popular Politics in Mughal Delhi
On January 26, 2022, Social Science Matrix hosted an “Authors Meet Critics” panel discussion focused on the book, "The King and the People: Sovereignty and Popular Politics in Mughal Delhi" (Oxford University Press), by Abhishek Kaicker, Associate Professor in the UC Berkeley Department of History. Professor Kaicker was joined in conversation by Professors Asad Ahmed and Aarti Sethi. The panel was moderated by Professor Pradeep Chhibber.
Learn More >Matrix On Point
Article
Published January 5, 2022
Matrix on Point: Democracy, Misogyny and Digital Media
On December 13, 2021, Matrix convened a diverse group of speakers to discuss today’s remarkable political moment, marked both by a new kind of women’s activism (centered on #MeToo and related movements) and by the rise of a misogynistic far-right. Panelists included Sarah Sobieraj, an award-winning teacher and researcher with expertise in US political culture, extreme incivility, digital abuse and harassment, and the mediated information environment; C.J. Pascoe, an associate professor of sociology at the University of Oregon and co-editor of Socius Journal; Julia Ebner, a radicalisation researcher and bestselling writer based in London; and Kishonna L. Gray, Associate Professor in the Writing, Rhetoric, Digital Studies program at the University of Kentucky. The panel was moderated by Raka Ray, Dean of the Division of Social Sciences at UC Berkeley.
Learn More >Special Event
Recap
Published December 10, 2021
Berkeley Psychology 100 Year Celebration
Recorded on December 8, 2021, this video features a series of talks by members of the University of California, Berkeley Department of Psychology, in celebration of the department's 100th anniversary. The event featured “lightning talks," short form-presentations from four distinguished members of the faculty, showcasing the exciting research being conducted in this top-ranked department.
Learn More >Grad Student Profile
Interview
Published December 10, 2021
Addressing Latinx Social Inequality in Later Life
For this Q&A, Julia Sizek, Matrix Content Curator and a PhD Candidate in the UC Berkeley Department of Anthropology, spoke with two graduate students from UC Berkeley — Isabel García Valdivia and Melanie Z. Plasencia — whose research examines what aging looks like for the Latinx communities in the United States, particularly in California, Mexico, and New Jersey.
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