American Academy in Rome: Peter N. Miller Warns of a 'War on Research' in Welcome Lecture for 2026-2027 Fellows

Fatti principali

• Peter N. Miller, president of the American Academy in Rome, delivered the lecture 'Why Research Matters?' on September 9.
• The event welcomed the 2026-2027 Rome Prize Fellows & Italian Fellows.
• Miller said 'the war on research has been going on for twenty months,' referring to the American context.
• He cited Lorraine Daston and Peter Galison's concept of 'epistemic virtues.'
• Miller referenced Arnaldo Momigliano and Renaissance antiquarians, stating 'Rome was one of the first places of research.'
• Karl Popper's Logik der Forschung (1934) became The Logic of Scientific Discovery in English in 1959, dropping the word 'research.'
• Miller described Vannevar Bush's postwar model of government-funded basic research at universities as 'an enormous success.'
• He warned that a third age of research may shift work from universities to the private sector and artificial intelligence.
• Miller argued that 'artists do research,' citing Rome Prize Fellow Rick Lowe, founder of Project Row Houses.
• Academy director Aliza Wong, in her final year in office, also participated in the evening.