The past twenty years have demonstrated the role of biology in our political predispositions, with evidence from twin studies, genetics, and brain imaging. Recent trends have highlighted political polarization on an emotional, identity-driven level where the other side is seens as a hated enemy. The consequences have ranged from increasing dissatisfaction with democracy to a rise in violent extremism.

Darren Schreiber’s research centers on emergence and complexity in political systems. While earning his Ph.D. in Political Science at UCLA, Darren developed an agent-based computer simulation of the formation dynamics of political parties. He is a pioneer in the field of neuropolitics and twenty five years ago was the first to use functional brain imaging (fMRI) to study the neural foundations of politics. His research has appeared in Science, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, PLOS One, and Political Psychology.

The age of presidential candidates has become a salient concern, but age is not the only physical factor that should concern citizens. Presidents can also suffer various forms of illness, both physical and psychological.  This talk highlights the nature of these concerns and how we might work to mitigate their impact on political outcomes.

The lecture is presented by Rose McDermott, PhD, who is the David and Mariana Fisher University Professor of International relations at Brown University and a Fellow in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.  She is author of five books and over two hundred academic articles encompassing topics such as American foreign and defense policy, experimentation, national security intelligence, gender, social identity, cybersecurity, emotion and decision-making, and the biological and genetic bases of political behavior. 

In one of the most extraordinary cases in the history of science, the mating calls of insects were mistaken for a “sonic weapon” that led to a major diplomatic row.  The lecture traces the origins of the syndrome, the response of the U.S. government, the results of scientific investigations and opinions, the evolution of the syndrome over time and similar phenomena that have occurred in the past.

The lecture is presented by Robert W. Baloh, MD who is a Professor of Neurology and Head and Neck Surgery (Emeritus) at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.  Author of 14 books and more than 350 articles in peer reviewed journals, he is a pioneer in the study of the vestibular system and clinical neurotology.   He has a recent book on Havana Syndrome co-authored with Robert Bartholomew, a sociologist from New Zealand.  Two other recent books are: “Medically Unexplained Symptoms” and “Exercise and the Brain”.

Emerging research examine functional connectivity (ie, synchrony or correlation of activity between multiple brain regions) has begun investigating the neural underpinnings that drive political ideology, political attitudes, and political actions. This lecture presentation explores the neurological roots of politics with a large sample, whole-brain analysis of functional connectivity across common fMRI tasks. Studies to date suggest that liberals and conservatives that can be identified with high accuracy using contemporary artificial intelligence methods. The data suggest that biological and neurological roots of political behavior run deeper than previously thought.