Jewish, Islamic and Near Eastern Studies is an interdisciplinary program whose purpose is to explore the historical experience; literary, religious and cultural expression; and political and material life of the Jewish, Islamic and Near Eastern civilizations. Our program is unique in the United States because it integrates Islamic studies and Jewish studies. Whether students favor the study of ...

We compute the detectability of directed energy sources from distant civilizations that may exist. Recent advances in our own directed energy abilities allow us to foresee our own capability that will radically change our ability to broadcast our presence and hence allow us to ponder the reverse case of detection. In the next few decades we will evolve to the point where we will be able to prod...

The practice of medicine was considered a noble profession by Muslims. Before being allowed to practice one should have acquired a wide experience in medicine and should have been well trained and disciplined. Students were asked to be in close contact with patients in order 10 apply the theory they had learned by allending hospital rounds and seminars. The evolution of medical teaching passed ...

The cultivation and processing of grain is probably one of the most important technological achievements on humanity‘s path to modern civilization. 10,000 years ago, the first grains were already being cultivated in the Middle East, leading to the development of the first advanced civilizations. Today, various types of grains have become staples worldwide and thus essential to the basic livelih...

We speculate about possible cosmic exploration by extraterrestrial civilizations using interstellar smart probes. We call attention to some emerging technologies that may be used for interstellar exploration. We estimate that advanced civilizations may already have these technologies and may be using them to contact their galactic neighbors. We explore some observational consequences of these c...

Department Website: http://nelc.uchicago.edu Program of Study Majors in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations (NELC) at the University of Chicago pursue rigorous knowledge about a region of the world that is known as “the cradle of civilization” and the home of several important religious and cultural traditions, as well as one of the most important geopolitical areas of our contemporary wor...