(USA) Professor Calhoun is a world-renowned social scientist whose work connects sociology toculture, communication, politics, philosophy and economics. He took up his postas LSE Director on 1 September 2012, having left the United States where he had held positions such as University Professor at New York University, Director ofthe Institute for Public Knowledge and President of the Social Science Research Council. Professor Calhoun took a DPhil in History and Sociology at Oxford University and a Master's in Social Anthropology at Manchester. He co-founded,with Richard Sennett, Professor of Sociology at LSE, the NYLON programme which brings together graduate students from New York and London for co-operative research programmes. He is the author of several books including Nations Matter, Critical Social Theory, Neither Gods Nor Emperors and mostrecently The Roots of Radicalism (Universityof Chicago Press, 2012). Describing his own approach to academic work, Professor Calhoun says: "We must set high standards for ourselves,but in order to inform the public well, not to isolate ourselves from it."