As the tenth anniversary of 9/11 draws near, a decent respect for the sensibilities of those involved demands a renewed inspection of the motivations of the attackers. One cannot but wonder at the motivations of the perpetrators. To a large extent, they were trained in technical and scientific fields. In addition, compared to their peers, they generally enjoyed a relatively luxurious lifestyle.

In his book, “Human Being to Human Bomb: Inside the Mind of a Terrorist”, author Russell Razzaque, makes the point that, in every instance, these terrorists were academics trained in literalist, logic-based subjects. They were mathematicians, scientists and engineers. The disconnect between this formalist scientific training and their fundamentalist beliefs is quite striking.

Razzaque would elaborate on his critique. At a conference in Cambridge, entitled “After 9/11, he discussed his own dealings with on-campus Muslim organizations. His own association proved fruitless in a political sense but provided him with some insights into the minds of those enamored of radicalization.

To his mind, young people with a scientific bent are prone to seek black and white answers to all problems, even ones as intractable as “peace in the Middle East.” Spurred to conduct further research, he found, to his surprise, that those students following a decidedly liberal arts curriculum were more resistant to the terrorist group’s perorations.

Ultimately, he was shocked to see several of fellow students duped by the cult-recruiting techniques of these organizations. He watched as social alienation and personal marginalization were used to cull the most vulnerable members of the group.

Their protestations to the contrary, these groups, in no way, provided a free and open discourse. Instead, alternative opinions were actively discouraged. It was demanded that members devote inordinate amounts of time to the cause and unwaveringly believe in the simplistic, utopian ideas promulgated by their so called leaders. An unfortunate turn of events for the vulnerable.

At the end, Razzaque reiterates his final poignant point. Though in college and pursuing an advanced degree, some of our brightest students are subject to pressure that makes them vulnerable to terrorist organizations. It behooves all persons of responsibility to be aware of this threat and to take measures to countermand them.