UC Berkeley’s flagship institute for social science research

Our purpose is captured in our name: we provide an organizational framework—a “matrix”—that supports cross-disciplinary research pursued by social scientists across the University of California, Berkeley campus and beyond.

California Spotlight

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Event Date: September 22nd, 2025
12:00pm-1:30pm

California Spotlight: Tech Authoritarianism

The rise of powerful tech entities and the rapid advancement of digital technologies are giving way to new forms of control, raising concerns about tech authoritarianism and its impact on democratic processes and communities. This panel will bring together experts to delve into the manifestations of tech authoritarianism, with a particular focus on its emergence and implications within California. The panel will include Elijah Baucom, Finn Brunton, and Lee Crandall, with James Holston moderating.

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Research Highlights

Article

Published August 1, 2014

Lie Detector

Recent research by a psychologist at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business suggests that our unconscious mind can detect lies.

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Interview

Published August 1, 2014

Reconstructing Disaster

UC Berkeley graduate student Siri Colom researches how politics shaped the reconstruction of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

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Research Highlights

Article

Published August 1, 2014

If Then What?

A Social Science Matrix seminar is examining the creeping presence of algorithms in modern society.

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Research Highlights

Article

Published August 1, 2014

Seeking New Models for Clinical Medicine

A new Social Science Matrix seminar is focused on finding radical new approaches to clinical health care.

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Science

Article

Published July 29, 2014

Mind Readers At Work

A team of researchers led by UC Berkeley neuroscientists are getting closer to decoding imagined speech from the brain.

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Research Highlights

Article

Published July 29, 2014

Arroyos and Socionatures

A UC Berkeley geographer explores a mystery to better understand the relationship between human-caused and natural phenomena.

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