edited by R Ragaini (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, USA)

This was the first of a number of seminars dealing with one of the most complex of the new challenges in the 21st century, which call for the participation of a broad range of experts. Eminent economists, decision-makers, defence specialists, political analysts and sociologists presented their views and participated in the debates. In the wake of the dramatic event of 11 September 2001, the Afghanistan war and the resurgence of terrorist acts on all the continents, a host of issues were reconsidered and the role of science and technology was reassessed. The 27th Session was primarily oriented toward the definition of the new types of confrontation, and the identification of various factors and issues that gave rise to them and global trends.

The proceedings have been selected for coverage in:

• Index to Scientific & Technical Proceedings (ISTP CDROM version / ISI Proceedings)

• Index to Social Sciences & Humanities Proceedings® (ISSHP® / ISI Proceedings)

• Index to Social Sciences & Humanities Proceedings (ISSHP CDROM version / ISI Proceedings)

• Opening Session (T D Lee, K Siegbahn & A Zichichi)
• Society and Structures: Historical Perspectives — Culture and Ideology (E Sagarra, F Mehr, K Talattof & I Karawan)
• Society and Structures: National and Regional Geopolitical Issues (K C Sivaramakrishnan, D V Segre, A F B Tompson & K K Rebane)
• Society and Structures: Globalisation — Economy and Culture (A Kamal, L Wood, W Fulkerson & P Lock)
• Society and Structures: Human Rights — Freedom and Democracy Debate (W R Shea, A Grieder & R Wilson)
• Confrontations and Countermeasures: Present and Future Confrontations (A L Adamishin, C Daase, T Parkhalina, W Müller-Seedorf, A Beauchamp & T Taylor)
• Confrontations and Countermeasures: Psychology of Terrorism (G M Mirdal & A Kamal)
• Confrontations and Countermeasures: Defensive Countermeasures (R Garwin, D A Yerxa & W A Barletta)
• Confrontations and Countermeasures: Preventive Countermeasures (J Jarab, C Daase, L A Bolshov, A Sarkisov & T Taylor)
• Science and Technology: Emergencies (J Mittelstrass, A Peyraube & N Kroo)
• Science and Technology: Pollution (S Parmigiani, F S vom Saal, P Palanza, T Colborn, L Everett & S Kowall)
• Science and Technology: Climate — Greenhouse Effect (P Tans, H-J Wang & J Veizer)
• Science and Technology: Desertification — Water Pollution — Algal Bloom (T Wang, D M Anderson, E Teller & M Ó Cinnéide)
• Science and Technology: Brain and Behaviour Diseases (P M Conneally & M G Spillantini)
• The Cultural Emergency — General Debate and Conclusions (A Zichichi, W Shea, K C Sivaramakrishnan & R A Mason)
• Permanent Monitoring Panel Reports (N Charpak, A Piontkovsky, H Schubert, H Wegener, R Clark, R Ragaini, K Siegbahn & A Warren)
• Brain and Behaviour Diseases Workshop (A S Bassett, C R Cloninger, P M Conneally, C DeCarli, M F Folstein, S E Folstein, B Ghetti, J L Haines, H C Hendrie, K Hall, A Ogunniyi, S Gao, F J McMahon, S Paradiso, L Schrock, M A Pericak-Vance, M G Spillantini, G J Treisman, R G Will, R S G Knight & M D Spencer)
• Information Security Workshop (A Kamal)
• Kangaroo Mother's Care Workshop (N Charpak, O Guifo, C Huraux & S Mendoza)