Geraldine Heng is Perceval Associate Professor of English & Comparative Literature at the University of Texas, Austin.Her book, Empire of Magic, traces the development of European romance, & the King Arthur legend, in response to the the crusades, & Europe's myriad encounters with the Middle East, Asia, & Africa. Her work focuses on literary, cultural, & social encounters between worlds, & webs of exchange between communities & cultures, especially when contact is expressed through gender, race, sexuality, & religion. She also founded & co-directs the Global Middle Ages Project (G-MAP), the Mappamundi digital initiatives, & the Scholarly Community for the Globalization of the Middle Ages (SCGMA): http://www.laits.utexas.edu/gma/portal/