The public good

On April 27-29, 2007, in Washington, DC, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society held a historical joint meeting: a celebration of Knowledge as the Foundation for a Democratic Society. Members of the National Academies (the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine) joined the American Academy and the Philosophical Society for this two-and-a-half-day meeting. The panel discussions and keynote addresses focused on major issues of the day: The Independence of the Courts; Religion and the Enlightenment; Media and Society; The United States and the Global Economy; Science, Health, and an Aging Society; and Energy Choices and Global Warming.