ASTERs ability to sense fine-scale heated surfaces is providing never-before seen views of active volcanic eruptions. These observations provide a detailed look into the eruptive history. Lava flows, hot mud-flows, and other details of eruption activity that cannot be seen using other techniques are revealed. Michael Ramsey of the University of Pittsburgh will present initial observations of the recent phases of two ongoing eruptions in the Caribbean (Montserrat) and Russia (Bezymianny).

ASTERs ability to sense fine-scale heated surfaces is providing never-before seen views of active volcanic eruptions. These observations provide a detailed look into the eruptive history. Lava flows, hot mud-flows, and other details of eruption activity that cannot be seen using other techniques are revealed. Michael Ramsey of the University of Pittsburgh will present initial observations of the recent phases of two ongoing eruptions in the Caribbean (Montserrat) and Russia (Bezymianny).

Hundreds of forest fires continue to burn across the boreal forests of Russia, releasing thick clouds of smoke that are spreading as far south as South Korea and central China.

From 1969 to 1973, Paul Nitze served as a member of the U.S. delegation to the Strategic Arms Limitations Talks (SALT). In this video segment, Nitze describes the useful role that 'back channel' negotiations can play and discusses the particular problems with national security adviser Henry Kissinger's negotiations in the final days of SALT I. The second part of the segment addresses Watergate's impact on Nitze's participation in SALT II.Nitze's interview conducted for War and Peace in the Nuclear Age: 'One Step Forward' focuses on SALT I and SALT II. He recounts how he became part of the SALT I delegation, the key issues within the negotiating process, and the initial position statements he drafted for the Soviet delegation. Increasingly critical of U.S. arms policy, Nitze re-formed the Committee on Present Danger, which argued for a massive military buildup of U.S. forces in the post-Vietnam period. He spends considerable time in his interview going over the then-persistent threat of Soviet expansionism. Nitze explains his objection to President Jimmy Carter's nomination of Paul Warnke as his chief arms negotiator. He also explains his opposition to the SALT II Treaty, which he saw as codifying Soviet superiority in missile megatonnage and throw-weight.

The collapse of the Soviet State in 1991 was followed by Chechen President Dzhokhar Dudayev's declaration of the Chechen Republic's independence from Moscow. Concerned over the loss of its territorial integrity, Russian troops invaded the breakaway republic and a civil war ensued. In l996, Chechen rebels regained control of the capital, Grozny, from Russian forces, almost destroying the city in the process. Fighting in Chechnya continues to this day, although on a relatively smaller scale. The WIDE ANGLE video 'Greetings From Grozny' (2002) examines the conflict from the perspectives of Russian soldiers, Chechen separatist militants, radical Chechen Islamists, and civilians living in Grozny.In this lesson, students will explore the multiple perspectives surrounding the conflict, examine the conflict's regional and international implications, and understand the mindsets of Chechens who have managed to maintain their identity and self-esteem in the face of untold human suffering. This lesson can be used during or after a lesson on the breakup of the Soviet Union and the formation of the Russian Federation (1991- present). A basic knowledge of post- Soviet history and basic geographical facts of Eurasia are required for the successful completion of the lesson.

A comparative study of the grand strategies and military doctrines of the great powers in Europe (Britain, France, Germany, and Russia) from the late nineteenth to the mid-twentieth century. Examines strategic developments in the years preceding and during World Wars I and II. What factors have exerted the greatest influence on national strategies? How may the quality of a grand strategy be judged? Exploration of comparative case study methodology also plays a central role. What consequences seem to follow from grand strategies of different types? Open to undergraduates with permission of instructor.

This is a collection of downloadable video clips on the theme of Conflict, with guiding questions for students. Clips are drawn from the following PBS WIDE ANGLE documentaries: "Greetings from Grozny" (2002), "Ladies First" (2004), "Suicide Bombers" (2004).

A survey of world economic history, designed to introduce economics graduate students to the subject matter and methodology of economic history. Topics chosen to show a wide variety of historical experience and illuminate the process of industrialization. Term paper due at the end of IAP. This subject is taught at MIT in an open format. The interactive discussion ranges widely and is designed to help entering graduate students understand the context of the specific papers, read empirical work critically, and make up their minds whether an argument is convincing. The aims of the subject therefore are both to inform students about economic history and to give them a taste of applied economic research.

Offers photographs of the Russian Empire on the eve of World War I and the coming revolution. Medieval churches and monasteries, railroads and factories, and daily life and work of Russia's diverse population are among the subjects. The photos were taken by Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii (1863-1944), who, in the early 1900s, formulated a plan for a photographic survey of the Russian Empire that won the support of Tsar Nicholas II.

This course will examine European politics, specifically analyzing its process of integration into a supranational entity: the European Union. It will teach the student about key historical events and trends, why Europe is unique, and possible scenarios for Europe's future. It will examine the sovereign state system that emerged from the Wars of Religion, the intricacies of the European Union in the post-World War II environment, major states that make up the EU or play a key role in European politics, and many important contemporary issues that the EU and Europe face. Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to: summarize the emergence of modern Europe and the challenge of competing European nationalisms and nation states to European peace and prosperity; describe the emergence of the post World War II European peace project that has taken primary form in the development of the contemporary institutions of the European Union while addressing the public and foreign policy issue areas of primary concern to Europeans, including economic, development, and security issues; assess the challenges confronting traditional national state identity among the political communities of West Europe since World War II, which has gained renewed focus with the end of the Cold War and the re-emergence of the question of the relationship of Western Europe to Eastern Europe; analyze the international and national public policy challenges that continue to determine both the policy agenda within the European Union and the institutional evolution of the European Union to meet these challenges. (Political Science 323)

Examines interactions across the Eurasian continent between Russians, Chinese, Mongolian nomads, and Turkic oasis dwellers during the last millennium and a half. As empires rose and fell, religions, trade, and war flowed back and forth continuously across this vast space. Britain and Russia competed for power over Eurasia in the "Great Game" of geopolitics in the nineteenth century, just as China, Russia, and others did in the twentieth century. Today, the fall of the Soviet Union and China's reforms have opened new opportunities for cultural interaction. Topics include: the religious traditions of Central Asian Islam, Buddhism, Christianity, and Confucianism; caravans and travelers like Marco Polo and Rabban Sauma, the first Chinese to travel to the West; and nomadic conquest and imperialist competition, past and present. Source materials include primary documents, travelogues, films, music, and museum visits.

This unit introduces students to the expectations for the behavior of men and women through beliefs and practices present in the Russian culture. After being introduced to the basic idea of gender, students familiarize themselves with a number of gender stereotypes and learn that many people in the Russian culture believe in gender stereotypes staunchly. Nevertheless, a number of current practices for men and women in Russia diverge from these stereotypes, varying significantly by milieu. Students learn about these practices by completing a Webquest and analyzing a text taken off a site for Russian masculine ("butch") lesbians. The culminating project for the unit is a PowerPoint presentation in which students analyze gender-specific normative qualities and behavior norms in advice literature (such as articles in magazines and online and advice books). Students prepare for this final project in the last lessons of the unit by analyzing the typical features of advice texts and discussing the role that various advice texts play with relation to the social beliefs about gender.

This is a collection of downloadable video clips on the theme of Human Rights, with guiding questions for students. Clips are drawn from the following PBS WIDE ANGLE documentaries: "Greetings from Grozny" (2002), "Time for School" (2003).

Medieval and early modern Russia stood at the crossroads of Europe and Asia. In this course we will examine some of the native developments and foreign influences which most affected the course of Russian history. Particular topics include the rise of the Kievan State, the Mongol Yoke, the rise of Muscovy, Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great, relations with Western Europe. How did foreigners perceive Russia? How did those living in the Russian lands perceive foreigners? What social relations were developing between nobility and peasantry, town and country, women and men? What were the relations of each of these groups to the state? How did state formation come about in Kievan and Muscovite Russia? What were the political, religious, economic, and social factors affecting relations between state and society? In examining these questions we will consider a variety of sources including contemporary accounts (both domestic and foreign), legal and political documents, historical monographs and interpretive essays.

Dean Rusk-the sole cabinet member addressed by President John F. Kennedy as 'Mr. Secretary'-was the second-longest-serving secretary of state: his service spanned the Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson administrations, from 1961 to 1969. This video segment illustrates Rusk and Kennedy's close relationship during the Cuban missile crisis and conveys the president's emotions and approach to decision-making as events unfolded. His interview conducted for War and Peace in the Nuclear Age: 'At the Brink' reveals Rusk to have been a very trusted adviser whose counsel was reserved for the president. While Rusk was part of the Executive Committee inner circle during the missile crisis, he was also a separate entity: he reserved his recommendation 'until the president and I heard from all of these working groups.' Throughout the two-week crisis, Rusk avidly pursued a diplomatic resolution, helped build consensus, and facilitated out-of-channel communications. Beyond the missile crisis, Rusk talks about European fears that the United States' commitment to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) would be weakened by the 'flexible response' strategy.

A collection of downloadable video clips on the theme of Nationalism, with guiding questions for students. Clips are drawn from the PBS WIDE ANGLE documentary "Greetings from Grozny" (2002).

Visualizing Cultures opens a window on modern times by wedding popular images and scholarly commentary in ways that were not technologically possible until recently. Focusing to date on Japan and Asia in the modern world, these units enable users to “see” historical moments as they were actually depicted for mass audiences at the time from various national, cultural, racial, ideological, and individual perspectives. The graphics themselves also reflect the evolving nature of different mediums of visual communication. Before our present-day digital revolution, most of these evocative images were exceedingly difficult for students and scholars to access in any systematic or comprehensive way. In a word, the on-going Visualizing Cultures project exploits virtual technology to open new avenues of public education and global historical and cultural understanding.