Domestic dogs, Canis familiaris, have insinuated themselves into our society and imagination: long present in our art and narratives, they are now ubiquitous in American homes. Alexandra Horowitz, Barnard College, Columbia University, discusses the dog's historical and contemporary role, attributions typically made to dogs, and an alternative empirical approach to considering dogs. Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Humanities] [Show ID: 25113]

Women have achieved parity in obtaining doctoral degrees, but do not experience the same career trajectory as men. Is this discrimination or family formation? Mary Ann Mason, Professor of the Graduate School and Faculty Co-Director of the Earl Warren Institute for Law and Social Policy, University of California, Berkeley explores twelve years of research to address the question of the effect of family formation from the graduate student years though retirement. Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Public Affairs] [Education] [Show ID: 24965]

Top incomes represent a small share of the population but a very significant share of total income and total taxes paid. Emmanuel Saez, Professor of Economics and Director, Center for Equitable Growth, University of California, Berkeley presents evidence on income inequality gathered by a collective group of researchers in the World Top Incomes Database.

Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Public Affairs] [Business] [Show ID: 24689]

Leon Wieseltier is an American writer, critic, and longstanding literary editor of The New Republic. In this UC Berkeley Forester lecture, he discusses the Jewish belief in a Messiah. Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Humanities] [Show ID: 24599]

Are intelligent machines possible? If they are, what will they be like? Jeff Hawkins, an inventor, engineer, neuroscientist, author and entrepreneur, frames these questions by reviewing some of the efforts to build intelligent machines. He posits that machine intelligence is only possible by first understanding how the brain works and then building systems that work on the same principles. He describes Numenta’s work using neocortical models to understand the torrent of machine-generated data being created today. He will conclude with predictions on how machine intelligence will unfold in the near and long term future and why creating intelligent machines is important for humanity. Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Science] [Show ID: 24412]

How the brain creates intelligence is viewed by many as the greatest scientific quest of all time. We are living at the time when rapid progress is being made and a comprehensive theory of brain function is emerging. Jeff Hawkins, an inventor, engineer, neuroscientist, author and entrepreneur, presents the big picture of what we know so far and describes recent progress in a core issue: why neurons are arranged as they are in the neocortex, how this arrangement builds models of the world, and how these models make predictions and generate actions. Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Science] [Show ID: 24411]

There is widespread agreement that happiness is good, but is it the sole ultimate good? Princeton University Professor Peter Singer explores arguments for and against such a conclusion. He considers the implications for public policy that take happiness as one of the most important goods that individuals can achieve. Singer specializes in applied ethics, approaching ethics from a secular preference utilitarian perspective Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Humanities] [Show ID: 24344]

Theda Skocpol surveys the current political landscape and explores its most consequential questions: What happened to Obama’s “new New Deal”? Why have his achievements enraged opponents more than they have satisfied supporters? How has the Tea Party’s ascendance reshaped American politics? At this moment of economic uncertainty and extreme polarization, as voters prepare to render another verdict on Obama’s historic presidency, Skocpol reviews its triumphs and setbacks to see where we might be headed. Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Public Affairs] [Show ID: 24397]

All the ancient philosophers, pagans and Christians alike, agreed that death is the separation of a soul and a body. While there was much disagreement on the precise relationship between a being and his soul, as well as what sort of thing they took a soul to be, it is the agreement among the philosophers rather than their differences that calls for critical attention. Jonathan Barnes examines why ancient philosophers believed that beings were composed of two parts, the divorce of which is death. Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Humanities] [Show ID: 23825]

Michael Marmot is an internationally acclaimed public health specialist and a distinguished epidemiologist. Marmot heads an active epidemiology research program on social and cultural determinants of health and ill-health. His work on cardiovascular disease has led to important strategies of prevention and heath policy. His new research includes investigating social gradients in health in Japan, causes of East-West differences in coronary heart disease, and pursuing an initiative on psychological triggers of biological pathways of disease. Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 23792]