#AcademicRunPlaylist - 6/26/25

I really enjoyed spending the afternoon giving a guest lecture for Katri Nousiainen's class at Harvard, and while heading to and from campus I listened to some talks for my #AcademicRunPlaylist!

First was an important talk by Angela Bradbury on the ethics and processes of returning genetic research results at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sh1aUy7P94U

Next was a compelling talk by Gina Grimshaw on using VR in emotion research at UCL Computer Science https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dht2oAxPc5c

Last was "How Life Works" by Philip Ball. Ball builds an understanding of biology from the ground up, starting at genes, building up to proteins, cells, and tissues, and finally bodies. This is a nuanced but scientifically rigorous exploration, and Ball isn't shy about expressing uncertainty when it exists, or noting that understanding of these processes is likely to change over time. He also brings in an excellent historical perspective on how certain phenomena were previously conceived and the evolution of our understanding. His only stumbles are when making analogies to computational processes (often misleading and inaccurate), and in strange detours into physics and philosophy that don't really go anywhere (the chapters on agency and making life can probably be skipped). That being said, this is an extremely well written, enjoyable, and enlightening dive into biology. Highly recommend https://how-life-works.philipball.co.uk/