The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) are holding a historic congress in Bogota this week to determine the political fate of the demobilized guerrilla organization. Gustavo Flores-Macias, a professor of government at Cornell University and author of the book “After Neoliberalism? The Left and Economic Reforms in Latin America”, says that while much is still unclear about the FARC’s ideological identity and popular support as it transitions into a political party, the process itself will strengthen Colombia’s democracy.

Law, Government & Public Policy

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Art DeGaetano, professor of earth and atmospheric sciences and expert on climate data at Cornell University, says that although the meteorological elements in hurricane formation are common in late summer weather patterns, climate change has affected those components and the strength and impacts of Harvey.

Energy, Environment & Sustainability

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Cornell University economist Steven C. Kyle, an expert in macroeconomics and government policy, says economic indicators are ill-equipped to calculate the economic damage caused by natural disasters such as Hurricane Harvey – which is expected to drift back into the Gulf of Mexico today.

Dyson School of Applied Economics & Management

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What place do Confederate statues and symbols have in society today? The question has triggered national debate and continues to fuel political clashes across the country. Riché Richardson, associate professor of African American literature at Cornell University, researches the public dialogue about controversial symbols, including lingering Confederate symbolism.

Arts and Sciences

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Voyager 1 and 2 will reach 40 years of operation and exploration later this month and in early September. Despite their distance, they continue to communicate with NASA daily and are still exploring the final frontier. Lisa Kaltenegger is the director of the Carl Sagan Institute and professor of astronomy in the College of Arts and Sciences at Cornell University.

Arts and Sciences

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Phillip Nicholson, an astronomy professor at Cornell University who studies the solar system, says they’re very predictable – you can actually calculate future eclipse times within a few seconds. But millions of years from now, total solar eclipses will only be a thing of the past.

Arts and Sciences

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On Wednesday, the Dow Jones industrial average broke through the 22,000-point mark for the first time in its history. Andrew Karolyi, professor of asset management and finance at Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, recently authored a paper about the shrinking number of exchange-listed firms in the U.S. He says that today’s milestone should prompt investors to sit down for a financial checkup.

Cornell SC Johnson College of Business

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Chemical and biological engineer Paulette Clancy and astronomer Jonathan Lunine are members of a Cornell team that in 2015 modeled the membrane now found on Titan. They say the discovery gets us closer to finding life in a truly alien environment.

Engineering

Arts and Sciences

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Professor Rick Geddes is the founding director of the Cornell Program in Infrastructure Policy at Cornell University. Geddes also serves on the board of directors for the Hyperloop Advanced Research Partnership (HARP) and is affiliated with the Cornell Center for Transportation, Environment and Community Health(CTECH).

Human Ecology

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Charles H. Greene is a professor of Earth and Atmospheric sciences in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University, a fellow at the Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future and a leading expert in effects of global climate change on ocean ecosystems and extreme weather.

Arts and Sciences

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