advocacy · science · stem cells

Paul Knoepfler: Stem Cell Researcher–and Advocate

Paul Knoepfler, who runs his own research lab at University of California, Davis, will receive specialrecognition by the Genetics Policy Institute for his advocacy of stem cell research via the blog that he’s beenhosting since 2009. Readers of my Forbes blog may recognize Knoepfler’s name, as I’ve often reported his views on stem cell papers and aspects of… Continue reading Paul Knoepfler: Stem Cell Researcher–and Advocate

Aquinas · book review · Fabrizio Amerini · history of science · medieval history · philosophy

Book Notes: Fabrizio Amerini on Aquinas and the Beginning and End of Human Life

Fabrizio Amerini is not an author most Americans are likely to have heard of, but if you’re a fan of Umberto Eco, you might want to check out his new book. ‘New’ is not entirely accurate, perhaps, as it was first published in Italian in 2009. But Georgetown University professor Mark Henninger’s translation hit the… Continue reading Book Notes: Fabrizio Amerini on Aquinas and the Beginning and End of Human Life

Bayesian networks · big math · data analytics · Via Science

Looking Beyond Correlations…

Following up on my recent post on Via Science, I wanted to dig a little deeper into how their machine learning platform, REFS™ works, and why it requires so much CPU power. Dr. Jeremy Taylor has a Ph.D. in physics from McGill, and he brings years of experience in software development for complex modeling to his current role… Continue reading Looking Beyond Correlations…

Augustine · philosophy · the soul · theology

Augustine and the Evolution of the Soul

By the term ‘soul’ (anima) Augustine meant the highest immaterial element in man, the art of man to which mind (mens, more rarely animus) is but a function. Exactly what ‘soul’ is and how God creates souls he regarded as beyond human knowledge. It would make for simplicity, he once remarked apropos of infant baptism,… Continue reading Augustine and the Evolution of the Soul