Established in 2004, the Richard E. Snyder President’s Lecture series is intended to invigorate the intellectual environment on campus by providing a forum for the presentation of provocative points of view on matters of national and international importance. The goal of the lectures is to stimulate thought and discussion that foster a deeper understanding of contemporary issues and challenge conventional wisdom. The Snyder Lectures are made possible through the generosity of Tufts University alumnus Richard E. Snyder A55, former chairman and chief executive officer of Simon & Schuster.
Upcoming Lecture
None at this time
Past Snyder Lectures
October 13, 2011 – Niall Ferguson, historian
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April 25, 2011 – Bob Woodward, journalist
“From Nixon to Obama”
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November 3, 2010 – Michael Sandel, political philosopher
“Justice: What’s The Right Thing To Do?”
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April 26, 2010 – Sherry Turkle, psychologist and director of the MIT Initiative on Technology and Self
“Cyberintimacy/Cybersolitude”
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October 1, 2009 – Freeman Dyson, physicist
“Nukes and Genomes: Two Genies Out of the Bottle”
Read more | Watch the lecture (Windows Media)
March 24, 2009 – Michael Pollan, author
“In Defense of Food: The Omnivore’s Solution”
Read more | Watch the lecture | Watch the Q&A (Windows Media)
October 16, 2008 – Tom Freston, media/entertainment executive
“The Birth of MTV: New Media in the 1980′s”
Read more | Watch the lecture (Windows Media)
April 3, 2008 – David Hackett Fischer, historian and author
“Open Leaders: Washington, Lincoln, and FDR”
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October 4, 2007 – Lynn Margulis, biologist
“Evolution: An Unauthorized Biography of Our Symbiotic Planet”
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March 14, 2007 – Lawrence H. Summers, economist and university leader
“Rethinking Undergraduate Education”
Read more | Watch the lecture (RealMedia)
September 26, 2006 – Shelby Steele, author and scholar
“White Guilt: Why American Can’t Solve the Race Problem or Win Wars”
Read more | Watch the lecture: Part 1; Part 2 (RealMedia)
March 28, 2006 – Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web
“Hopes and Fears: Web Design and Web Use”
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September 27, 2005 – Salman Rushdie, author
“Step Across This Line”
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February 16, 2005 – Daniel Kahneman, psychologist and Nobel Laureate
“Toward a Science of Well-Being”
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October 4, 2004 – Leon Kass, bioethicist
“Ageless Bodies, Happy Souls: Biotechnology and the Pursuit of Happiness”
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