Our Experts

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Lindsay M. Chervinsky, Ph.D.

Presidential Historian and Author of Making the Presidency: John Adams and the Precedents That Forged the Republic (Oxford University Press | Forthcoming 2024), The Cabinet: George Washington and the Creation of an American Institution (Harvard University Press | 2020)

Topics Dr. Chervinsky can discuss:

• Impeachment in history, as well as current methods, norms, and protocols
• John Adams’s role in protecting the nation from foreign attacks and promoting fair elections
• The importance of a smooth presidential transition
• The purpose of impeachment and its use in this current political moment
• The history of government institutions and how they come to bear on the present
• The purpose of the Presidential Cabinet and why it is still vital today

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Nicholas Dirks, Ph.D.

President and CEO of the The New York Academy of Sciences and Author of City of Intellect: The Uses and Abuses of the University (Cambridge University Press | 2024)

Topics Nicholas Dirks can discuss:

• The intersection of science and culture and how we can bridge science with humanities
• Policy, regulation, and societal impacts of artificial intelligence
• Denialism and declining public trust in science and higher education
• International collaboration, transnational science, and science without borders
• The contested future of higher education and the challenges of modern-day educators

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Brooke Grindlinger, Ph.D.

Chief Scientific Officer at The New York Academy of Sciences

Topics Dr. Grindlinger can discuss:

• The positive impact of science on society and how to catalyze advances in the field
• The importance of science communications and ways to make scientific topics more accessible to the public
• Bridging the gender gap and how to attract and retain more women in STEM
• Tips and techniques for early-career scientists and how to navigate the process from research to publication
• The growing role of philanthropy in supporting high-risk, high-reward scientific research
• How mission-based organizations like the New York Academy of Sciences drive innovative solutions to society’s challenges by advancing scientific research, education, and policy

Expert Materials | Author Photo | Book Jacket

Thomas G. Moukawsher

Former Connecticut Superior Court Judge and Author of  The Common Flaw: Needless Complexity in the Courts and 50 Ways to Reduce It (Brandeis University Press | 2023)

Topics Thomas Moukawsher can discuss:

• Why lawsuits last longer but almost never go to trial
• A better way to resolve legal disputes promptly and candidly
• Why courts can’t be replaced by artificial intelligence
• How cartoons and movies such as A Few Good Men and Dead Poets Society can help us fix the legal system
• Why the U.S. Supreme Court approval rating is at a historical low
• Why it shouldn’t be so hard to get a case heard and to understand what a court means
• How to reinvent the American lawsuit and focus on solving the problems of ordinary citizens and businesses
• Why courts should place humanism above scholasticism and formalism in decision making
• How the pretense of objectivity is hurting the courts—their denial of their humanity and their fallibility
• Why judges should guard against a herd mentality

Expert Materials | Author Photo | Book Jacket

Gretchen Sisson, Ph.D.

Author of Relinquished: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood (St. Martin’s Press | 2024)

Topics Gretchen Sisson can discuss:

• Why adoption is not a valid alternative to abortion, and how adoption may change during the post-Roe era  
• The role religion, race, and class play in pregnancy decision-making and adoption 
• The history of adoption and family separation in the United States 
• Debunking the feel-good narrative surrounding adoption, and the coercive messaging pregnant women receive
• The representation of abortion and adoption in American film and television 
  • Examples include The Handmaid’s Tale, This is Us, and Grey’s Anatomy
• The debate around transnational adoption