Speaker Juan Cole is professor of modern Middle East and South Asian history at the University of Michigan. He has written extensively about modern Islamic movements in Egypt, the Persian Gulf, and South Asia. Since September 11, 2001, he has given numerous media and press interviews on the War on Terrorism and, later, the Iraq War.
He is the author of several books, including Sacred Space and Holy War, which examines the Shiite branch of Islam in Iraq, Iran, and the Persian Gulf. His current research also focuses on the concept of "jihad" in Muslim radicalism, including the Taliban, al-Qaeda, and other groups. Cole is also the author of Colonialism and Revolution in the Middle East: Social and Cultural Origins of Egypt's 'Urabi Movement, a study of modern Egypt.
Cole's talk is part of The Humanities Project, an initiative by the University of Rochester emphasizing the influence and contributions of the humanities to academic and civic life.
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