Science (Audio)

How do research communities contend with controversial science? J. Benjamin Hurlbut, Ph.D., Arizona State University, Alysson Muotri, Ph.D., UC San Diego, Matthew Porteus, M.D., Ph.D., Stanford University, and Jacob (Yaqub) Hanna, M.D., Ph.D., Weizmann Institute of Science, explore controversial case studies and the limitations of scientific deliberation/dissent/ambivalence. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 38729]

The identity of somatic and pluripotent cells can be epigenetically reprogrammed and forced to adapt a new functional cell state by different methods and distinct combinations of exogenous factors. The aspiration to utilize such in vitro reprogrammed pluripotent and somatic cells for therapeutic purposes necessitates understanding of the mechanisms of reprogramming and differentiation and elucidating the extent of equivalence of the in vitro derived cells to their in vivo counterparts. Jacob (Yaqub) Hanna, M.D., Ph.D., presents his group’s recent advances toward understanding these fundamental questions and further details ongoing efforts to generate developmentally unrestricted human naive pluripotent cells with embryonic and extra-embryonic developmental potential. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 38323]

Why is the ocean — and this team of researchers — looking pretty in pink? For science! Scientists at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography have launched the PiNC (Plumes in Nearshore Conditions) experiment to study the coastal zone where a river meets the ocean. Using a non-toxic, environmentally safe pink dye and a suite of instruments, researchers released the dye in the mouth of the Los Peñasquitos Lagoon at Torrey Pines State Beach near San Diego, California in the winter of 2023.

Rivers and estuaries play an important role in delivering freshwater and materials such as sediments and contaminants to the coastal ocean, but little is known about how these plumes of more buoyant, fresher water interact with the denser, saltier and often colder nearshore ocean environment, particularly as the plumes encounter breaking waves. This experiment enables scientists to track the processes that take place when small-scale plumes of freshwater meet the surfzone. Series: "Scripps Institution of Oceanography" [Science] [Show ID: 38739]

Anthropogeny, has provided many new discoveries over the past decade, ranging from new fossil finds to ancient DNA data, including from extinct hominins. New methods and multi-disciplinary collaborations are providing exciting new insights into the complicated evolutionary journey that gave rise to our species. However, we remain far from understanding some of the most striking human-specific characteristics: the reasons for our bipedality, the factors selecting for our dexterity at creating and using tools, and the true age of fire use in our distant ancestors. This CARTA symposium features advisory committee members who highlight where they hope future efforts should be focused and what type of novel collaborations are most promising for improving our understanding of the human phenomenon. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 38305]

When not teaching at computer science at the UC San Diego, Barna Saha serves as the director of The Institute for Emerging Core Methods in Data Science (EnCORE). EnCORE is a National Science Foundation (NSF) Transdisciplinary Research in Principles of Data Science Phase II (TRIPODS) program housed at UC San Diego's Halıcıoğlu Data Science Institute. She talks with Saura Naderi about her early interest in data science and some of the amazing work being done with EnCORE. She also talks about the importance of getting more young women interested in STEM fields like data science. Series: "Science Like Me" [Science] [Show ID: 38550]

Anthropogeny, has provided many new discoveries over the past decade, ranging from new fossil finds to ancient DNA data, including from extinct hominins. This CARTA symposium highlights where future efforts should be focused and what type of novel collaborations are most promising to improve our understanding of the human phenomenon. Evan Eichler talks about the discovery and resolution of genetic variation which is critical to understanding disease and evolution. The data suggests that large-scale genome structural variation continues to play a crucial role in the evolution of the human species.Daniel Geschwind discusses human cognition and how human brain evolution is particularly susceptible to disruption of neuropsychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Education] [Show ID: 38630]

Anthropogeny, has provided many new discoveries over the past decade, ranging from new fossil finds to ancient DNA data, including from extinct hominins. This CARTA symposium highlights where the future efforts should be focused and what type of novel collaborations are most promising for improving our understanding of the human phenomenon. Pascal Gagneux offers a zoological view of the human cultural animal. Robert Kluender talks about the evolution of language structure and the future of linguistics. Anne Stone discusses ancient DNA research and the surprising insights into human evolutionary history. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Education] [Show ID: 38633]

Anthropogeny, has provided many new discoveries over the past decade, ranging from new fossil finds to ancient DNA data, including from extinct hominins. This CARTA symposium highlights where the future efforts should be focused and what type of novel collaborations are most promising for improving our understanding of the human phenomenon. Yohannes Haile-Selassie discusses the importance of fossil based human origin research. Carol Marchetto talks about the use of stem cells to study human origins. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Education] [Show ID: 38632]

Anthropogeny, has provided many new discoveries over the past decade, ranging from new fossil finds to ancient DNA data, including from extinct hominins. This CARTA symposium highlights where the future efforts should be focused and what type of novel collaborations are most promising for improving our understanding of the human phenomenon. Terry Sejnowski discusses how large-scale neural network models have inspired major advances in artificial intelligence. Sarah Tishkoff talks on how Africa is thought to be the ancestral homeland of all modern human populations. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Education] [Show ID: 38631]

Systems neuroscience aims to understand how brain cells and circuits are organized to produce behavior in living organisms. Julio Martinez-Trujillo, M.D., Ph.D., shares his research studying how neurons interact with one another and other cell types within a circuit during ex vivo and in vivo conditions. He also looks to the future and discusses how stem cell technologies can provide unique access to study human circuits and new insights into the nervous system. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 38322]