James C. Scott is the Sterling Professor of Political Science, professor of anthropology, and codirector of the Agrarian Studies Program at Yale University. His books include "Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed"; "Domination and the Arts of Resistance: Hidden Transcripts"; and most recently, "The Art of Not Being Governed: An Anarchist History of Upland Southeast Asia". He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a mediocre part-time farmer and beekeeper.