Why do people have such a big brain compared to other animals? Vertebrate embryonic development is a highly conserved process, particularly in the earliest phases. (note: you may find this September 2020 post on regulation of bee brain size to be interesting.) A wide variety of vertebrate animals including humans start out with embryonic body plans […]
Why is the human brain super-sized? Read More »
I’ve now been blogging about stem cells here on The Niche for nearly 2 years, but why do I keep doing it? I’m by no means the only one who blogs about stem cells, but it is just that professors still are reluctant in the stem cell field to blog. Two outstanding blogs that tied
Why I am still blogging here on The Niche Read More »
It wasn’t so long ago that I did a post explaining why after following the company for years, I finally bought a small amount of stock in the stem cell biotech, Advanced Cell Technology (ACT; symbol ACTC). In part it was motivated by my enthusiasm to see them publishing a paper, a very preliminary paper,
Why Lanza and I sold ACT stock Read More »
My family is excited about the Grammys. Some members like the Oscars. We are not so into the Tonys, but millions of Americans are into them. We need an awards ceremony, maybe even a show for scientists. Scientists will never be the stars that artistic performers are, but it is sad and arguably a sign
We need an annual American awards ceremony for scientists Read More »
They say politics makes strange bedfellows….remember the Witherspoon Council? These are the fellows who are the BFFs of the two scientists suing to stop federal funding of human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research. They also wrote a large, very stodgy tome about stem cell research, in which they mentioned me and this blog…kinda implying we
Witherspoon Council, Komen, and Fox News Read More »
How sure are you that your last paper was right? Could you be wrong about something big even though you are sure you are right? The reality is that there’s a bigger chance than you think that you are totally wrong about many things, especially those you are most sure that you are right about.
Humbling lessons from the Umbrella Man about science Read More »
Does the Planned Parenthood icon at left send chills down your spine, because according to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and most Republican Leaders, it should scare you greatly. An opinion piece today in the WSJ provides an extreme perspective on the debacle in which the Komen Foundation last week dropped support for Planned Parenthood,
Refuting the WSJ’s propaganda piece on Planned Parenthood Read More »
The Komen foundation has had a rough couple weeks, huh? First, it said it would not longer provide support to Planned Parenthood under pressure from anti-choice extremists, some of whom appear to have infiltrated Komen itself. Predictably, there was a firestorm of criticism that has damaged Komen and arguably may have actually been quite helpful
Lessons from the Komen Fiasco and Propaganda Wars Read More »
What’s the Witherspoon Institute? Most of you know about the 2 scientists who for their own reasons want to kill embryonic stem cell (ESC) research and with it the hopes for millions of people. Relatively new on most of our radar screens, however, is an extremist right-wing “think tank” called The Witherspoon Institute, which I
Secrets of the Witherspoon Gang Read More »
What does it take to succeed in research including for science newbies? Here are some key ingredients in my opinion after 22 years in academic science. Passion. One important ingredient that we cannot necessarily change significantly about ourselves, but that I think nonetheless is crucial for success, is a true excitement for science. Sometimes people
While my gel was running: advice for success for science newbies Read More »