Also this year, AIAS will join the annual Festival of Research at Aarhus University with two 20-minute speed lectures:

2:45: Is there ever a good time for despotism? by Shiru Lim, AIAS Fellow

3:25: Can we learn from the past? by Iza Romanowska, AIAS Fellow

See the full programme of the Festival of Research about TIME here

14:45: Is there ever a good time for despotism?

Democracy is in crisis, and the genuine appeal of autocracy as a serious political alternative appears to be persistent. However, our age is obviously far from the first to live in the shadow of autocrats, tyrants and despots. This lecture looks back at the period in which the term ‘despotism’ first came into use: Europe’s Age of Enlightenment. It explores the grey areas of what Enlightenment philosophers wrote about despotism, and what we share with their struggles to ensure that political power is exercised legitimately, sustainably and accountably.

Speaker: Shiru Lim, Postdoc, Fellow, Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies
Research field: History of Ideas
Room: Conference Room 2

15:25: Can we learn from the past?

Dusty file cabinets, jungle ruins, pyramids and Vikings. Archaeology is the coolest discipline of science! The past is like an uncharted territory, where each new discovery helps us piece together the stories of our distant ancestors. Climate change, social unrest, economic crises and pandemics – we've seen it all before, and we can learn a lot from our ancestors' successes and failures.

Speaker: Iza Romanowska, Postdoc, AIAS-COFUND Fellow, Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies
Research field: Archaeology and computer science
Room: Preben Hornung Stuen 

What is the Festival of Research?

The Festival of Research is a nationwide knowledge festival that takes place each year in the spring with about 500 events and more than 65,000 visitors around Denmark. The Danish Ministry of Higher Education and Science is behind the initiative, which aims at bringing research and the Danish population closer.