On February 19, 2010, Dr. Mazen Hashim, a professor in the political science department at University of Southern California and a member of the IIIT Council of Scholars, presented findings of his ongoing research on the issue of inheritance entitlement under Islamic law for male and female recipients. The research question he asked was whether dowry granted to a female sibling early in her marriage compensated for the smaller share of her inheritance as compared to her male sibling. Dr. Hashim illustrated his findings through a series of calculations covering various degrees of accumulated wealth and the presence of other siblings. He pointed out that research work was still preliminary and that the purpose was not rationalize inheritance rules or social customs but simply to understand their implication in economic terms. A lively discussion followed Dr. Hashim's presentation.