The Torch of Progress

Join us for episode 15 of The Torch of Progress with Michael StrongKey Discussion Points:Academy of Thought and Industry and other schools he has foundedHow Progress Studies fits into the curriculumGuest Speaker Michael Strong:Michael Strong is one of the most experienced creators of small, innovative, high performance schools in the world. His projects include Moreno Valley High School, which was ranked the 36th best public high school in the U.S.; KoSchool, a lab school based on entrepreneurship and intellectual development; Winston Academy, a school at which middle school students passed Advanced Placement courses; and middle school programs for HeadsUp!, a multi-campus Montessori organization.One of Michael’s innovations at his schools is Socratic Practice, a form of text-based intellectual dialogue designed to increase SAT verbal scores and increase intellectual sophistication. He is the author of The Habit of Thought: From Socratic Seminars to Socratic Practice and has consulted for hundreds of schools and universities across world. Michael’s work as an educational entrepreneur led to a partnership with John Mackey, the founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market. John and Michael co-founded a non-profit, Freedom Lights Our World (FLOW, Inc.), dedicated to promoting entrepreneurial solutions to world problems. FLOW gave birth to Conscious Capitalism, Peace through Commerce, Radical Social Entrepreneurs, and the Startup Cities Institute. Michael is the lead author of Be the Solution: How Entrepreneurs and Conscious Capitalism Can Solve All the World’s Problems.

Join us for episode 14 of The Torch of Progress with Manjari Narayan.Key Discussion Points:How statistics evolved through applications in agriculture, medicine, and manufacturingThe “replication crisis” in science todayGuest Speaker Manjari Narayan:Manjari Narayan is a statistical data scientist interested in when and how the measurement of human brain function can inform diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric and developmental disorders. She is currently a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford School of Medicine. Her research broadly focuses on three areas i) interrogating methods for inferring causal mechanisms from imperfect measurements of biological systems, ii) developing methods to evaluate whether brain imaging derived biomarkers are actionable in terms of informing treatment iii) evaluating and mitigating bias in applying statistical machine learning for biomedicine. Previously, she received a Ph.D in Electrical Engineering from Rice University in 2016. Her dissertation work has been recognized by numerous student paper awards including the 2016 ENAR Distinguished Student Paper Award from the International Biometrics Society.

Join us for episode 13 of The Torch of Progress with Adam WigginsKey Discussion Points: Thomas Edison, Bell Labs, ARPA, and Xerox PARC: what do all of these people and groups have in common? They are all pioneers of the industrial research model.Basic science concerns itself with the search for truth, without any focus on how its findings may impact human existence. Business (even innovation ones like Silicon Valley startups) tend to put existing technology into practice, rather than inventing something new. Industrial research sits in the middle of this spectrum, seeking to find breakthrough ideas that have commercial applications on a five- to ten-year time horizon.Adam walks through this history, which was a big influence for his independent research lab, Ink & Switch (www.inkandswitch.com).Guest Speaker Adam Wiggins: Hi, I’m Adam, and my mission is to improve computers and the internet in the service of human prosperity. Right now I’m building Muse, which turns your iPad into a tool for thought. In the past, I founded the Ink & Switch research lab and Heroku. I design products, build teams, write, podcast, and occasionally invest. I’m from California but have settled in Berlin.Follow me on Twitter: @hirodusk

In Episode 12 of The Torch of Progress, we sit down with Adam Mossoff, Professor of Law at George Mason University. Key Discussion Points: The history of intellectual property The relation of patents to invention and progress What reforms the patent system needs today Adam Mossoff is a Professor of Law at Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University. He has published extensively on intellectual property rights and innovation policy. His scholarship has been relied on by the U.S. Supreme Court and by federal agencies, and he has been invited five times to testify before the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives on intellectual property legislation. He has been invited to speak at the Smithsonian Institution, the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, the National Academy of Sciences, and the U.S. Department of Justice, among other public and private institutions. In addition to his academic articles, his writings on intellectual property policy have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Forbes, Washington Times, Newsweek, and in other media outlets. In addition to his position at Scalia Law, Professor Mossoff is Co-Chair of the Technology, Innovation, and Intellectual Property program of the Classical Liberal Institute at NYU School of Law. He also holds numerous positions at research and policy organizations, including serving as Chair of the Intellectual Property Working Group of the Regulatory Transparency Project at the Federalist Society, Senior Fellow and Chair of the Forum for Intellectual Property at the Hudson Institute, Visiting Intellectual Property Fellow at the Heritage Foundation, and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Center for Intellectual Property Understanding. He is also a member of the Intellectual Property Rights Advisory Committee of ANSI and he has served as Chair and Vice-Chair of the Intellectual Property Committee of the IEEE-USA. Links: Progress Studies for Young Scholars: https://progressstudies.school The Academy of Thought and Industry: https://thoughtandindustry.com The Roots of Progress Blog: https://rootsofprogress.org Higher Ground Education: https://tohigherground.org

We sit down with Jerry Neumann, Adjunct Professor at Columbia University and Founder of Neu Venture Capital.Key Discussion Points:- The funding, organization, and management of research- Linear and non-linear models of innovation- Uncertainty vs. risk in progressGuest Speaker: Jerry Neumann A veteran in the world of venture capital, Jerry Neumann has been investing in internet startups for more than 20 years. He presently runs Neu Venture Capital, a firm he founded in 2008 that invests in early-­stage internet companies. Neu has been among the first investors in groundbreaking enterprise software companies including Datadog, The Trade Desk, and Flurry. The companies Neu has helped seed-fund have created more than $50 billion in market value and more than 3,000 jobs. He has been called one of New York’s top early-stage investors by Business Insider. Jerry also teaches entrepreneurship and innovation at Columbia University.Before Neu, Jerry co-founded Root Markets, a pioneer in programmatic marketing. He ran the venture capital division of Omnicom Group, the world’s leading marketing services company, where he was involved with the seed financing of many of the earliest internet marketing firms. Prior to that he was at Prodigy Services and Deloitte & Touche Consulting Group. He started his career at IBM as an engineer on the design team of the ES/9000 family of mainframes. He graduated from Columbia University with a BS and MS in electrical engineering and from NYU with a MBA. He writes at http://reactionwheel.net.Progress Studies for Young Scholars: https://progressstudies.schoolThe Academy of Thought and Industry: https://thoughtandindustry.comThe Roots of Progress Blog: https://rootsofprogress.orgHigher Ground Education: https://tohigherground.org

Join us for episode 10 of The Torch of Progress with Laura Mazer, Assistant Professor of Surgery, Division of Minimally Invasive Surgery, University of Michigan.Key Discussion Points:– The history and future of surgery– How we can improve surgical practiceGuest Speaker:Dr. Laura Mazer is a faculty member in the Division of Minimally Invasive Surgery. Her surgical training was completed at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Stanford University, where she also completed a fellowship in Surgical Education and a Master’s in Health Professions Education. She completed a fellowship in Minimally Invasive Surgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center prior to joining the faculty at the University of Michigan. She is the recipient of multiple local and national teaching awards, including the Association for Surgical Education Outstanding Resident Teacher Award in 2016 and the Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism and Excellence in Teaching in 2018.

Danica Remy is the President of B612 Foundation and leads the organization’s global efforts to protect earth from asteroid impacts. She co-founded Asteroid Day, a United Nations day of education and awareness. She is a recognized expert in information technology, facilities, human resources, finance, and government relations.

Dr. Anton Howes is a historian-in-residence at The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufacture, and Commerce. His recent book, "Arts and Minds: How the Royal Society of Arts Changed a Nation," tells the story of Britain's subscription-funded national improvement agency, the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA). Anton is now writing a book on the causes of the British Industrial Revolution, focusing on the hundreds of individual inventors and innovators who made it possible, and the institutions they created to keep it going.

In our 7th episode of The Torch of Progress, we talk with Noor Siddiqui, Founder and CEO of Orchid Bioscience. Links: Progress Studies for Young Scholars: https://progressstudies.school The Academy of Thought and Industry: https://thoughtandindustry.com The Roots of Progress Blog: https://rootsofprogress.org Higher Ground Education: https://tohigherground.org Guidepost Montessori: https://guidepostmontessori.com

In the sixth episode of The Torch of Progress, we sit down with Joel Mokyr, the Robert H. Strotz Professor of Arts & Sciences and Professor of Economics & History at Northwestern University. Mokyr explores the shifting attitudes on progress and its causes throughout history.