Science as a Gateway to Understanding

In October 2007, the U.S. National Academies and the Iranian Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Science organized the first of a series of planned U.S.-Iranian workshops on the topic "Science as a Gateway to Understanding." This new workshop series is a component of the broader effort of the National Academies to support bilateral workshops and exchange visits in a variety of fields with a number of Iranian institutions that began in 2000.

This book includes papers that were presented at the workshop and summaries of the discussions that followed some of the presentations. At the conclusion of the workshop there was general agreement that the presentations on many aspects of science and scientific cooperation that have a bearing on mutual understanding were an important first step. Several participants underscored that the next workshop should emphasize how scientific cooperation can lead in concrete terms to improved understanding among both academic and political leaders from the two countries.

• Front Matter
• Words of Welcome--Mohammad Kazem Bojnordi
• 1 Where Does Science Go?--Honorable Mohammad Khatami
• 2 Scientists and Truth--Reza Davari Ardakani
• 3 The Innovation Ecology--William Wulf
• 4 Wisdom: the Best Gateway to Understanding--Mostafa Mohagheh Damad
• 5 Interacademy Cooperation: An Approach to Understanding--Abulhassan Vafai
• 6 Understanding Others, the Science Way--Yousef Sobouti
• 7 Loving and Sharing Science: Pierre-Gilles de Gennes--Etienne Guyon
• 8 Successes in Building International Bridges through Science--Norman Neureiter
• 9 The Universality of Science: Examples from History--Hossein Masoumi Hamedani
• 10 The Role of International Scientific Organizations--Michael Clegg
• 11 Science and Culture--Bernard Maitte
• 12 A Half Century of Successes and Problems in U.S.-Iranian Cooperation in Science, Engineering, and Medicine--Glenn Schweitzer
• 13 Opportunities for International Collaboration in Earthquake System Science--Thomas Jordan
• 14 Science, Technology, and Innovation in the Knowledge Economy: Prospects for Cooperation--Ousmane Kane
• 15 Summary of Open Forum--Yousef Sobouti
• 16 Closing Remarks--Norman Neureiter
• Appendix A: Workshop Agenda
• Appendix B: Workshop Participants