November 23, 2009

Contact:
Dr. James Giordano
703-525-0770
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  


A Decade of the Mind and Neuroethics: Initiatives in Alignment  

Arlington, VA— As we seek a better understanding of the workings of the human mind, we are continually confronted by fresh ethical, legal, and social questions. Now, researchers are increasingly emphasizing the role of a new discipline, neuroethics, to guide the search for answers to those questions.  This will become even more important as we embark upon an envisioned “Decade of the Mind” in 2010, a multidisciplinary effort dedicated to understanding the phenomenon of mind within the context of neuroscience.   

On December 11, 2009, the Center for Neurotechnology Studies at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies will host a lecture entitled “A Decade of the Mind and Neuroethics: Initiatives in Alignment.” The program will examine how objectives in neuroethics can mesh with the goals of a Decade of the Mind effort to bring about favorable outcomes in health care, education, national security and defense policy. The speaker will be Dr. James Olds of George Mason University’s Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study, which has taken a leading role in launching the Decade of the Mind project.    

The program is part of a monthly series sponsored by the Capital Consortium for Neuroscience: Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues (CCNELSI). CCNELSI brings together faculty and students from academic and research institutions - as well as interested individuals from the general public and media - within the Washington Metropolitan Area to present, discuss and examine new and novel developments and issues in neuroscience, as they impact the philosophy of mind and science, ethics of research and medicine, and social constructs and policy.

What: CCNELSI Lecture: “A Decade of the Mind and Neuroethics: Initiatives in Alignment”
Who: James Olds, Ph.D., Director, Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study, George Mason University
Where:  Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, 901 North Stuart Street, Suite 200, Arlington, VA, 22203
When: December 11, 2009, 3-6 pm  

More info:  www.ccnelsi.com

News Release

Book Talk: Ben Sheppard on the Psychology of Terrorism  
 
You are cordially invited to attend a talk on Thursday, November 19, by Potomac Institute for Policy Studies Fellow Ben Sheppard, Ph.D., author of The Psychology of Strategic Terrorism: Public and Government Responses to Attack.  The program will be held at 3 pm at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies in the M-level conference room, with wine and cheese to follow at 4.
In his talk, Dr. Sheppard will look at lessons learned from major terrorist attacks, with an eye to how the Obama administration might incorporate these into homeland security policy. Dr. Sheppard will explore how an interdisciplinary approach, combining the behavioral sciences and international relations, can further the understanding of the "terror" generated by strategic terrorism, and develop robust government responses.  
Dr. Sheppard will draw upon a series of contemporary case studies of the psychological and behavioral effects of terrorism. He will also examine how risk communication and public health strategies can amplify or reduce psychological and behavioral responses, and consider whether behavioral effects translate into political effects, and what governments can do to respond. Ultimately, Dr. Sheppard argues that the public is not prone to panic, but can change their behaviors to reduce their perceived risk of being exposed to a terrorist attack.
Please RSVP to Laurie Kinney at 703-525-0770 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

For Immediate Release

Contact:
Laurie Kinney
Potomac Institute for Policy Studies
901 North Stuart Street Suite 200
Arlington, VA 22203
703-525-0770
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
 
 
Event: "The Fog of War and Law: Can Justice Prevail?"
 
Arlington, VA - In the wake of controversy surrounding plans to transfer Guantanamo Bay detainees to US soil for trial, the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies will host an event on November 19 focusing on ethical, legal and practical issues related to terrorism cases.  Experts will examine confusion that arises from the "fog of war" in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Middle East and elsewhere, and how this will continue to challenge the United States and international community in the coming months and years.
 
The program will be chaired by Prof. Yonah Alexander, Director of the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies' International Center for Terrorism Studies. Panelists will include Prof. Anthony Arend of Georgetown University; Marion "Spike" Bowman, Esq., Former Senior Counsel, National Security Law, FBI; Ambassador Curtis Ward (Ret.), Esq., Former Jamaican ambassador to the UN; Richard Heideman, Esq., Senior Counsel, Heideman Nudelman & Kalik; Dr. Wayne Zaideman, Former FBI Legal Attache, Middle East; Prakhar Sharma, Visiting Fellow, Henry Stimson Center; and Prof. William Olson, National Defense University.
 
What:  Event: "The Fog of War and Law: Can Justice Prevail?"
When: 12:00 noon - 2:00 pm, Thursday, November 19
Where: Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, 901 North Stuart Street, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 22203

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 3, 2009

Contact:
Dr. James Giordano
703-525-0770
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.     


From a Neuroscience of Pain to a Neuroethics of Care

Arlington, VA—  Science now offers us ever more advanced ways to understand and control pain. But with those new treatments come new questions about the use (and misuse) of state-of-the-art technology and how far pain management can and should go.  Is pain a symptom or a disease? How much pain should be relieved? Can reducing pain be inappropriate or detrimental?  Can technologies capable of scanning the brain tell us whether a patient is really experiencing pain? And what questions arise in confronting (and treating) pain in animals and other non-human beings?  
On November 13, the Center for Neurotechnology Studies at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies will present the lecture “From a Neuroscience of Pain to a Neuroethics of Care” by Prof. James Giordano, internationally known for his work on the neuroscience and neuroethics of pain. The program will address the neuroscientific progress achieved during the Congressionally-designated Decade of Pain Control and Research, and discuss the ethical implications of this knowledge for medicine, and society at large. Researchers are now looking ahead to a Decade of the Mind, and this lecture raises questions about whether what we know about pain will both guide and be guided by what we seek to learn about the mind, and the nature of self and others.

What: CCNELSI Lecture: “From a Neuroscience of Pain to a Neuroethics of Care”
Who: James Giordano, Ph.D.
Where:  Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, 901 North Stuart Street, Suite 200, Arlington, VA, 22203
When: November 13, 2009, 3:30 – 6:00 pm

More info:  www.ccnelsi.com