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Controversial Science
When I'm not thinking about what I'm going to wear the next day, I'm a biochemist. Yes, I'm a nerd - I like working in a lab. I like memorizing all kinds of facts about proteins and chemicals and, my personal specialty, RNA. And in my particu... 
When I'm not thinking about what I'm going to wear the next day, I'm a biochemist. Yes, I'm a nerd - I like working in a lab. I like memorizing all kinds of facts about proteins and chemicals and, my personal specialty, RNA. And in my particular tiny tiny niche of science, there's not much to argue about: a band in my gel is there or it isn't.But not every corner of science is as objective and issue-free as most people think it is, or most scientists want it to be.When people think "politics," they think Republicans vs. Democrats, Red-Staters vs. Blue-Staters, conservatives vs. liberals. But there are a lot more divides than that.The recent talk in the news about Intelligent Design (also known as ID) vs. Darwinism has drawn a tidal wave of ID-criticism from the scientific community. Should parents have the rights to choose what their children learn and, some would say, freely practice their religion in a country founded by the religiously persecuted? Or should the state be mandated to teach what is almost certainly proven as truth? And what effect is this discussion having on the kids?Though evolution is the most recent controversy in science, there are many other enormously important issues. Stem cell research and bioethics, the government handling of a potential avian flu epidemic, health care and its financing, the environment vs. the economy: these are matters that are becoming more important as we stop thinking about what the new millenium is about and start living it.Related Top 10 Sources: Science News | Environment | Women In Science | US Politics 
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Continuing my series of notes on Sewall Wright's population genetics, I come to the subject of migration. This is important in understanding the differences between Wright and R. A. Fisher on the role of genetic drift in evolution. Fisher and Wright both agreed that genetic drift would be too weak a process to be of evoluti...
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Charles Johnson has some thoughts on the sesquicentennial of evolutionary science....
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More religious demographics from Pew: Conservative blacks and Mitt Flanders.
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Note: this turned into kind of a rough draft of an essay, and I think the part about the origin of life and complexity of the cell would be publishable in perhaps an education journal. So I welcome any comments on the argument, supporting or undermining points, etc. I don’t have my references folders handy at the moment but...
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In discussions of nature vs. nurture a common assumption is that if it is in the genes then we can't fix it. Or we can only change it by eugenics or bioengineering babies. I wish to suggest a different approach.The following links provide background:Bioengineered Stem Cells Rejuvenate Muscles In MiceStem Cell Review Series:...
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Recent advances in genotyping have made genome-wide association studies the standard way to study the genetics of a phenotype in humans (model organisms, for various reasons, are suddenly lagging behind). In terms of simply identifying loci underlying disease, this approach has led to a number of notable successes, but...
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Trait-Like Brain Activity during Adolescence Predicts Anxious Temperament in Primates. ScienceDaily summary:We all know people who are tense and nervous and can't relax. They may have been wired differently since childhood....."We're looking for better ways to diagnose and treat mental illness," explains Kalin, about his...
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PLoS stays afloat with bulk publishing: Science-publishing firm struggles to make ends meet with open-access model. In Nature News.
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The Spanish Parliament has voted to extend certain rights to apes, according to this news story from Reuters. The Great Ape Project seems to have been highly influential in prompting the action: The new resolutions have cross-party or majority support...
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