Common Question

In 2024-25, CQ asks the Hopkins community: What is human?

What does it mean to be a human being? What do humans have in common with other biological life-forms? What activities, attitudes, endeavors, and values are unique to human beings? What does it mean to be a human being in the era of advanced artificial intelligence and deepfakes? How have definitions of humanity changed over time, and how do they vary by era, culture, political identity, and religious affiliation? This year, the Common Question explores these questions in terms of advanced artificial intelligence, law and civil rights, the arts, climate change, economics, biomedical research, philosophy, the telling and retelling of histories, spiritual and religious practice, and more.

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How Do You Define What’s Human?
We invite JHU community members to answer this year’s Common Question.

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Common Question + Writing Center Events

Spring 2025

This year, we invite you to join us in the Writing Center (Gilman Hall 230) and elsewhere for a series of events exploring this year’s Common Question. While all events are free and open to the campus community, we recommend registering early to save your spot.

 

A full-color flier featuring an author photo of R. Eric Thomas on the left and his baby pink book jacket on the right. The title of the book is "Here for It, or, How to Save Your Soul in America," and it features an open hand that appears to have just tossed a handful of colorful paper confetti into the air.

R. Eric Thomas
Pre-Book Talk Event
Exploring R. Eric Thomas’s Here for It or, How to Save Your Soul in America
Tues., Feb. 25th, 2025 | 1 – 3:00 p.m.
JHU Writing Center
Gilman Hall 230

Brought to you by the FLI Network, the Writing Center, and JHU’s Common Question, this pre-book talk event will explore the poignant and often laugh-out-loud funny essays of Baltimore native and acclaimed author R. Eric Thomas.

Come for the lunch and refreshments, and stay for an in-depth exploration of Thomas’s work and a related, short writing activity.

Register here: https://forms.office.com/r/C8026QHtmL

Note: R. Eric Thomas will give a public reading on March 12, 2025 in the Glass Pavillion. You can register for that event by clicking here.

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Explore These Sources

  • Project Nim: A Documentary by James Marsh

    Project Nim, a 2011 documentary by filmmaker James Marsh, tells the story of a controversial 1970s experiment in which a human family was tasked with raising a chimpanzee named Nim Chimpsky and teaching him sign language. The film deftly explores the complex nature of human-chimp interactions and of language acquisition, raising the question: what truly separates humans and great apes?

     

    The film is free to stream for JHU affiliates via Kanopy. Don’t have a Kanopy account? Register for one here via JHU’s Sheridan Libraries.

     

  • Baltimore Museum of Art: Whose humanity has typically been represented in art institutions (and whose hasn’t)?

    Now through February, the Baltimore Museum of Art’s exhibition “Preoccupied: Indigenizing the Museum” gives viewers the opportunity to experience work by Native artists, scholars, and community members—people who have long been underrepresented in American arts institutions. [Photo Credit: Mike Steele via Flickr. CC License]
    Read more here.

  • JHU Professor David Kaplan and the quest for the “God particle.”

    JHU Professor David Kaplan’s award-winning documentary about humanity’s search for the Higgs boson particle presents viewers with cutting edge technologies and raises existential questions about the nature of human existence.

    View the film here.

  • International Monetary Fund: AI Will Transform the Global Economy. Let’s Make Sure It Benefits Humanity

    Artificial intelligence is already changing the way that we work, play, and spend our resources. How can we make sure that those economic changes benefit humanity?

    Read more here.

  • Joshua Rothman writing for the New Yorker magazine: In the Age of A.I., What Makes People Unique?

    The New Yorker magazine’s ideas editor Joshua Rothman asks what happens to human values when AI-generated content becomes indistinguishable from art, media, and thoughts produced directly by humans.

    Read more here.

  • International Committee of the Red Cross: On Being Human Now and in the Future

    University of Oxford Senior Fellow Hugo Slim explores the late historian Bruce Mazlish’s conception of humanity as a species, as a code of ethical conduct, and as a global identity.

    Read more here.

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Previous 2024-25 Common Question Events

 

Writing Center Fall 2024 Opening Reception
Thurs., Sept. 5, 2 – 4 pmJoin us for pizza, cake, and other treats as The Writing Center officially opens for the Fall 2024 term. Learn about the resources available in the Writing Center, meet our Director, Associate Directors, tutors, and staff, and help us kick off the academic year in style.
Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with Dr. Laura Hartmann-Villalta
Thurs., Sept. 19, 2 – 4 pmHow do you answer the Common Question from an Hispanophone perspective? Does the question translate in a way that makes sense? Answer these questions & more during our celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month with the University Writing Program’s Dr. Laura Hartmann-Villalta.
A Lunch & Learn on Connecting with Your Representative
Thurs., Oct. 3, 12 – 2 pm
In partnership with JHU’s Center for Social Concern & Hopkins Votes, join us for a conversation about American Democracy and learn how to effectively communicate your concerns to your local, state, and federal representatives. Join us in learning how to make your voice heard.
Solving Human Problems:
A Celebration of STEAM
Thurs., Nov. 7, 2 – 4 pm
Join us for pizza and cake and great conversation about how a broad education in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts & Mathematics) leverages innovation, growth, & technological and social progress.
“Sociolinguistic Research for Social and Linguistic Justice.”
Mon., Nov. 18, 12 – 1 pmJoin us for a discussion of sociolinguistics & linguistic justice with Dr. Chrstine Mallinson, Professor of Language, Literacy, & Culture & Affiliate Professor of Gender & Women’s & Sexuality Studies at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County.
A Celebration of Multilingual Writing
Thurs., Nov. 21, 2 – 4 pm:

The Writing Center & JHU’s Common Question invite you to join us for our second annual celebration of multilingual writing. We will explore the ways writers code mesh languages & dialects, demonstrating how writing is entwined with identity.

Honoring the Mind and the Body
Thurs., Dec. 5, 2 – 4 pmLet’s face it: it’s been a long semester filled with exciting and sometimes exhausting intellectual and academic challenges. Join us in the Writing Center for a relaxed and informal discussion of the mind-body connection and the relationship between physical, mental, and emotional well-being and academic success. 

Long Night Against Procrastination
Tues., Dec. 10, 8 – Midnight
Join us in the Writing Center for the Long Night Against Procrastination. Come get serious studying done in a collaborative, supportive environment & enjoy study time, pizza, snacks, & engagement with our writing tutors and participate in some necessary de-stressing activities.

Writing Center Spring 2025 Opening Reception
Fri., Jan. 24, 1 – 3 pmJoin us in the Writing Center (Gilman 230) for cake, snacks, and fun! Find out how the Writing Center can help you will all your writing projects, and learn more about the Common Question at JHU.
A colorful poster featuring a green and blue abstract background and text promoting a writing workshop at Johns Hopkins University featuring Dr. Lenny Grant. Writing for Resilience: Find the Words We Need to Flourish
Thurs., Jan. 30, 2:30 – 4 pm
Writing can be powerful medicine, helping us make sense of struggles and transform them into flourishing. In this workshop, we’ll dive into the science behind expressive writing, exploring how putting pen to paper can reduce stress, boost mental clarity, and improve your overall health.
A colorful poster, vertically aligned, featuring an abstract color collage as a background. Colors include bright blues, greens, yellows, reds, pinks, and oranges, merging and overlapping via gradients. Three black and white author photos appear in colorful circles. Event information is included at the top of the poster and in the footer. A registration QR code is included in the bottom righthand corner of the image. The poster is publicizing a Jan. 31, 2025 event at Johns Hopkins University featuring scholars Lakshmi Krishnan, Lenny Grant, and Jeremy Greene.
Rx: Conversations about Medicine & Writing
Fri., Jan. 31, 5 – 6:15 pm:
To practice medicine is to understand that writing is a key tool in the medical toolkit. Whether through the narrative art of diagnosis, or the therapeutic power of expressive writing, writing frames interactions & shapes how patients and providers see themselves and each other. Join us to explore how the written word informs & illuminates the practice of medicine today. Featuring Dr. Lakshmi Krishnan (Georgetown University), Dr. Lenny Grant (Syracuse University); and Dr. Jeremy Greene (JHU).
A full-color collage featuring images associated with love, including a photograph of intertwined hands, a candle, a cupid statue, and a heart-shaped lollipop. What is Love? A love letter and poem writing event
Thurs., Feb. 13, 2:00 – 4:00 pm:

In partnership with Writers’ Warehouse, JHU’s Common Question & the Writing Center invite you to join us for an afternoon of good food, good fun, and an exploration of romantic writing.

With live writing prompts and activities, we’ll help you write a letter or poem for your Valentine (or a friend, colleague, or family member). You can write an original work or take a famous love poem with you to give to that someone.