Peter N. Miller – “Why Research Matters”
“What makes us live longer, better, and happier but is visible only to a few, and inexplicable even to those few?” This modern Sphinx’s riddle has but one answer: research. Those who do it think it self-explanatory, while those who benefit from it don’t see it at all. That’s why we are in such a bind right now; coming under attack by populist politicians who see research funding as a way of taming hostile institutions and classes, there is no united front to resist because there is no standard to rally around.
What would a history of research look like? What is the meaning of research? And, looking ahead, how might research adapt itself to a world of AI? For an institution like the American Academy in Rome, identified as late as 1930 as one of only two American research institutes, the answers to these questions are central to its past, present, and future.
Peter N. Miller is the President and CEO of the American Academy in Rome.
The lecture will be held in English.
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