UC Berkeley’s flagship institute for social science research

Our purpose is captured in our name: we provide an organizational framework—a “matrix”—that supports cross-disciplinary research pursued by social scientists across the University of California, Berkeley campus and beyond.

Matrix On Point

Recap

Published April 10, 2025

Mainstreaming Psychedelics

Psychedelics are steadily moving from the fringes of counterculture to the heart of mainstream society, driven by a growing body of research and shifting public perception. As psychedelics shed their stigma, they are catalyzing a broader conversation about mental health, spirituality, and the boundaries of human consciousness. Recorded on March 6, 2025, this panel featured Diana Negrin, David Presti, Charles Hirschkind, and Graham Pechenik, with Poulomi Saha moderating.

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Authors Meet Critics

Recap

Published February 19, 2021

Bloc by Bloc: How to Build a Global Enterprise for the New Regional Order

Joined by a panel of scholars, CLTC Faculty Director Steve Weber discussed his book, which outlines a framework for how firms should position themselves for the new economic geography.

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Podcast

Interview

Published February 13, 2021

Matrix Podcast: Interview with Clancy Wilmott

In this episode, Professor Michael Watts interviews Clancy Wilmott, Assistant Professor in Critical Cartography, Geovisualisation, and Design in the Berkeley Centre for New Media and the Department of Geography. Professor Wilmott comes to UC Berkeley from the Department of Geography at the University of Manchester, where she received her PhD in Human Geography with a multi-site study on the interaction between mobile phone maps, cartographic discourse, and postcolonial landscapes.

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Matrix Lecture

Recap

Published February 5, 2021

Our Common Purpose: Reinventing American Democracy for the 21st Century

Recorded on February 3, 2021, this video features a Matrix Distinguished Lecture by Danielle Allen, James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University and Director of Harvard’s Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics.

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Solidarity and Strife

Recap

Published February 5, 2021

Measuring Belief in Fake News Online

Recorded on January 29, 2021, this video features Joshua A. Tucker, Professor of Politics at New York University. Tucker discussed his recent research, which focused on understanding how well can ordinary people do in identifying the veracity of news in real time.

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Podcast

Interview

Published January 30, 2021

Matrix Podcast: Interview with Mariane Ferme

In this episode, Michael Watts talks with Mariane C. Ferme, Professor of Anthropology at UC Berkeley and the author of "Out of War: Violence, Trauma, and the Political Imagination in Sierra Leone" and "The Underneath of Things: Violence, History, and the Everyday in Sierra Leone."

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Matrix On Point

Recap

Published December 22, 2020

Disaster and Displacement – Inequalities in Climate Migration

Recorded on December 11, 2020, a Matrix On Point panel discussion brought together a group of esteemed scholars to discuss the impacts of climate migration and potential solutions.

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