Introduction: Iran in the 21st century :politics, economics and confrontation / Homa Katouzian and Hossein Shahidi - National identity and national interests - Crafting a national identity amidst contentious politics in contemporary Iran / Farideh Farhi - The dilemma of national interest in the Islamic Republic of Iran / Hamid Ahmadi - From multilingual empire to contested modern state / Touraj Atabaki - Dissent - Three faces of dissent : cognitive, expressive and traditionalist discourses of discontent in contemporary Iran / Mahmood Sadri and Ahmad Sadri - From motherhood to equal rights advocates : the weakening of patriarchal order / Azadeh Kian-Thaebaut - Foreign policy challenges - Iran-US relations : responses to the "axis of evil" speech / Ali Ansari - A look to the North : opportunities and challenges / Farhad Atai - Israel-Iranian relations assessed : strategic competition from the power cycle perspective / Trita Parsi - Nuclear policy - Nuclear policy and international relations / Saideh Lotfian - Nuclear energy : a case for sustainable development / Mehdi Askarieh - Economic performance - Oil, economic diversification and the democratic process in Iran / Massoud Karshenas and Hassan Hakimian - Capital accumulation and economic growth in Iran : past experience and future prospects / Ahmad Jalali Naini - Human resources in Iran : potentials and challenges / Djavad Saleh-Isfahni - The significance of economic history, and the fundamental features of the economic history of Iran / Homa Katouzian.