#AcademicRunPlaylist - 3/31/25

I had a pretty hectic day, but luckily I was still able to catch some talks for my #AcademicRunPlaylist!

First was an excellent conversation with Maia Müller on international business associations and regulations on multinational corporations from the 60s to the 90s at the Hagley Museum and Library https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrsseyKAv94

Next was a thought-provoking talk by Wakanyi Hoffman on interpreting generative AI through the African ubuntu mindset at the Institute for Science and Ethics (IWE) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elawwD-EjQ8

Next was a great talk by Karl Pertsch on scalable robot learning in the real world at UW https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e97JUYkXTlY

Last was "Insulin" by Kersten Hall. This is an extremely informative, biographically-focused history of the science behind insulin's discovery and eventual commercial production. This book is one of the best examples of how all science is political, social, and deeply human. It's also a strong argument against the need for a patent system to drive innovation, as well as using patents as a measure of innovation. The sections on concerns around regulating recombinant DNA research has strong echoes in today’s efforts to regulate AI.

There are a lot of details here that make the book more enjoyable but ultimately distract from the point of the book (e.g. Margaret Thatcher was a former student of a prominent scientist), and the whole work would probably be better as an academic work if it were 50% shorter. That being said, this is an enlightening book that is a must for anyone in science or technology. Highly recommend https://global.oup.com/academic/product/insulin---the-crooked-timber-9780192855381