One or two or 10 studies won’t solve our most complex societal challenges. Big problems require collaborations beyond academia.
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Loss of privacy is just the beginning. Workers are worried about biased AI and the need to perform the ‘right’ expressions and body language for the algorithms.
Frank Rosenblatt with the Mark I Perceptron, the first artificial neural network computer, unveiled in 1958.
National Museum of the U.S. Navy/Flickr
Danielle Williams, Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis
Enthusiasm for the capabilities of artificial intelligence – and claims for the approach of humanlike prowess –has followed a boom-and-bust cycle since the middle of the 20th century.
The pandemic spurred an increase in COVID-19 research, much of it with methodological holes.
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Tech companies are offering AI companions as a convenient cure for the loneliness epidemic, but there have been other forms of faux relationships, and they tend to have more to do with ego than heart.
Studying embryogenesis is key to unraveling the mysteries of early life.
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Early human development is a complex, multistep process that’s even more complicated to study in the lab. Models made from stem cells avoid some of the trouble with using real human embryos.
This little guy is very cute − and very white.
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Humanoid robots tend to be white or resemble white people. Here’s why this is a problem and what social scientists, designers and engineers can do about it.
The March for Science is one example of scientists advocating for political change.
AP Photo/Sait Serkan Gurbuz
Political mobilization among scientists has been growing in recent years. Two social scientists break down what this looks like and how it represents a culture shift among the scientific community.
The House of Wisdom was populated by a number of multitalented thinkers – at a time marked by fervent collaboration and intellectual prosperity in the Arabic-speaking world.
In Australia, the next government will need to meet the challenge of refreshing the social licence between science, government and the many and diverse communities that make up our nation.
‘Man Combating Ignorance’ – what’s science’s role?
Century of Progress Records, 1927-1952, University of Illinois at Chicago Library
There’s no shortage of problems facing humanity. Science’s role in how to tackle them has long been debated – including memorably by two of the 20th century’s greatest literary figures.
Advocating for facts and evidence at the March for Science in California earlier this year.
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Scientists typically stay out of public policy debates, but an academic makes the case that they need to push back against politicians who distort research.
With the right skills, scientists can draw journalists like bees to honey.
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In the wake of the Flint water crisis and with a new notably anti-science president, U.S. scientists are reevaluating how to navigate the tension between speaking out and a fear of losing research funding.
Children need to learn that science is worth getting excited about.
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For science to have an impact there must be a genuine will to implement its advances. This requires promoting a greater understanding of science in broader society.
Science teaching needs to engage all pupils, whether they’re future scientists or not.
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Science that students learn in context - rather than science as isolated knowledge items - can deliver both scientific literacy and positive learner interest.
Virginia Tech students process water samples from homes in Flint.
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Virginia Tech University engineering students blew the whistle on Flint, Michigan’s toxic drinking water. Hailed as heroes, they’ve also learned that it isn’t easy to do science for the public good.
Professor of Management & Organizations; Professor of Environment & Sustainability; Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at the Ross School of Business and School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan