This society will focus on politics, civics, and community engagement.  If you are interested in campaigns, public policy, or getting involved in your local community, this society is for you.  We will certainly spend time on the 2016 Presidential election (and that crazy thing Donald Trump just said!), but we can also use our Society to explore other campaigns & elections (including those in Louisiana), to discuss the important issues of the day, or to find ways to get involved in the civic life of our community.

Health in New Orleans from a medical, public health, and/or historical perspective. Topic for first meeting: Zika!

Food and Film Society: We’ll pair independent and commercial films with dinner. At the beginning of each semester, we will select four films to watch at our monthly meetings. We can focus on specific directors, watch Academy Award winning films from various decades, or select an array of foreign films. Whenever possible, we’ll eat food depicted in the films we watch. This society will provide you with opportunities to socialize, to eat good food, and to learn how to evaluate films.

Join this Society to talk all things literary!

In 2013, the Atlantic published an article entitled “The Big Comeback: Is New Orleans America's Next Great Innovation Hub?” New Orleans has, in fact, demonstrated a great commitment to innovation in the post-Katrina era, with organizations such as the Idea Village, the New Orleans BioInnovation Center, and Propeller providing opportunities and support for start-ups and burgeoning entrepreneurs. Even the public sector is involved, with New Orleans recently awarded an Innovation Delivery Team grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies to reduce the murder rate and increase employment opportunities for African-American males.  So what does all this innovation mean for the community? Will New Orleans realize the Idea Village’s vision of becoming the hub of entrepreneurship in the South by 2018? We’ll hear from some of the key players, visit selected sites, and learn about initiatives to transform New Orleans from the City that Care Forgot to a mecca for young professionals with big ideas.

The human brain.  A hundred billion neurons interlinked by a hundred trillion connections, relaying trillions more electrical and chemical signals during each second of your life.  Out of this vast communication web emerges your every movement, sensation, urge, thought, decision, dream, and behavior.  Today, there is no more exciting science than the study of the brain and its underlying biology.  The theme of the Gray Matter Society will explore the workings of the human brain from psychological and biological perspectives.  Monthly group discussions will focus on topics that include how psychoactive drugs influence your brain and behavior; how your brain affects your sexual behavior, identity, and orientation; and what brain sciences tell us about the best strategies when you study and learn.  There will be opportunities for students to visit the laboratories of Tulane faculty members who are nationally-known researchers in the brain sciences; meet with local physicians whose specialties include psychiatry and obstetrics and gynecology; and talk with graduate students who are training to become the next generation of psychologists and neuroscientists.

If you like running, science, engineering, and anything unrelated, then this society is for you! Guarantees include food and exploring cutting edge research opportunities around campus. Jogs with Dr. Murfee around Audubon Park are optional, but having fun is not.

The goal of this society will be to foster students' interests in foreign languages, their understanding of foreign cultures, and to encourage relationships with international students.

Are you an early riser or a night owl? If you have a tight schedule or weird sleep cycle, the Larks and Owls Society is for you! We will take advantage of the odd hours to explore the city, in whatever ways you choose. Dr. Henry can take you birding, bird-banding, midnight canoeing, insect collecting…we can do a little Tai Chi in the park at dawn, have breakfast at a local dive, or go to a late night movie. Whatever the event, Dr. Henry loves debating about conservation issues, exploring natural places (on campus and beyond), and helping students find opportunities to get in the field, study abroad, and take the next steps after college. Let’s get out early, or stay up late…