Professor Michael Horowitz from the University of Pennsylvania will speak at the MIT Security Studies Program's Wednesday Seminar.Summary: In this seminar, Professor Horowitz will address the question: are nuclear weapons useful for coercion, and, if so, what factors increase the credibility and effectiveness of nuclear threats? While prominent scholars like Thomas Schelling argue that nuclear brinkmanship, or the manipulation of nuclear risk, can effectively coerce adversaries, others contend nuclear weapons are not effective tools of coercion, especially coercion designed to achieve offensive and revisionist objectives. Simultaneously, there is broad debate about the incorporation of artificial intelligence (AI) into military systems, especially nuclear command and control. We develop a theoretical argument that explicit nuclear threats implemented with automated nuclear launch systems are potentially more credible compared to ambiguous nuclear threats or explicit nuclear threats implemented via non-automated means. By reducing human control over nuclear use, leaders can more effectively tie their hands and thus signal resolve. While automated nuclear weapons launch systems may seem like something out of science fiction, the Soviet Union deployed such a system during the Cold War and the technology necessary to automate the use of force has developed considerably in recent years due to advances in AI. Preregistered survey experiments on an elite sample of United Kingdom Members of Parliament and two public samples of UK citizens provide support for these expectations, showing that, in a limited set of circumstances, nuclear threats backed by AI integration have credibility advantages, no matter how dangerous they may be. The findings Professor Horowitz will discuss in this seminar contribute to the literatures on coercive bargaining, weapons of mass destruction, and emerging technology.

Do you have intermediate to advanced skills in Python? Are you interested in learning how to work with geospatial data in your research? In this workshop, you will learn how to work with both vector and raster data using Python. You will explore how to import, visualize, crop, and assess spatial datasets to focus on areas of interest. You will conduct a hands-on case study analyzing the impact of the 2023 wildfire on Rhodes, Greece, working with real-world satellite and topographical data, calculating NDVI, identifying scorched areas, and comparing pre- and post-disaster landscapes. This session will help integrate powerful spatial tools into your data science or research workflows.

Ten minutes for your mind@2:50 every day at 2:50 pm in multiple time zones:Europa@2:50, EET, Athens, Helsinki (UTC+2) (7:50 am EST) https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88298032734Atlantica@2:50, EST, New York, Toronto (UTC-4) https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85349851047Pacifica@2:50, PST, Los Angeles, Vancouver (UTC=7) (5:50 pm EST) https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85743543699Almost everything works better again if you unplug it for a bit, including your mind. Stop by and unplug. Get the benefits of mindfulness without the fuss.@2:50 meets at the same time every single day for ten minutes of quiet together.No pre-requisite, no registration needed.Visit the website to view all @2:50 time zones each day.at250.org or at250.mit.edu

Speaker: Monty McGovern (University of Washington)Title: Pattern avoidance and singularity of K-orbit closuresAbstract: Kazhdan-Lusztig-Vogan polynomials provide fairly complete information about the singularities of K-orbit closures in flag varieties; but in view of their complexity, it is often convenient to have weaker information available in a more explicit form. The combinatorial notion of pattern avoidance provides a tool for doing this. I will characterize smoothness and rational smoothness of K-orbit closures via pattern avoidance in all classical cases. The conditions exhibit many similarities to but also intriguing differences from their counterparts for Schubert varieties.

Time: 7:00 PMLocation: Worcester, MA

Join us for a zine making workshop Wednesday, October 22 at 5pm in the Nexus in Hayden Library (14S-130). Explore and find inspiration from zines in the MIT Libraries' collection and then make your own. Supplies provided. Free registration.This event is part of the Libraries' Science Storytelling through Book Arts series. Other events in the series include a panel discussion with book artists and an open house featuring new acquistions and other materials from Distinctive Collections and Rotch Library.