New Horizons in Science 2010 Speakers
Yale University, New Haven, CT Nov 5–9, 2010
Ralph J. Cicerone
President, Chair, National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council
Ralph J. Cicerone's, Ph.D., studies of atmospheric energy dynamics, climate change, and ozone depletion have long put him at the intersection of science and government policy. He has directed atmospheric chemistry studies at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado, is a former president of the American Geophysical Union, and was chancellor of the University of California, Irvine, from 1998 to 2005.
Briefing(s): Future Climate/Future Life (Redux)
Jo Handelsman, Ph.D.
professor of molecular, cellular and developmental biology, Yale University
Jo Handelsman's work on organisms in the soil and in the guts of humans and even insects has led to findings that are proving important in human disease and in pest control. It’s a case, she says, of basic research once again surprising us with unexpected and important practical implications.
Briefing(s): Discoveries in the dirt: Soil metagenomics leads to important findings on antibiotic resistance
Leroy Hood, M.D., Ph.D.
President, Institute for Systems Biology
Leroy Hood, M.D., Ph.D., is a biologist and co-founder of the Institute for Systems Biology in Seattle. He pioneered the development of the DNA and protein sequencers and synthesizers that have revolutionized research in genomics. He helped found the Institute for Systems Biology in 2000 to pursue systems approaches to biology and medicine. He has participated in the founding of more than a dozen biotechnology companies.
Briefing(s): P4 Medicine: A Newly Emergent Biological Paradigm
Neil Johnson, Ph.D.
Professor of Physics, University of Miami
Neil Johnson heads a new interdisciplinary research group on complexity dealing with such seemingly unrelated phenomena as quantum entanglement in nanostructures and the evolution of human disease.
Briefing(s): Modeling insurgency: Physicist detects similar patterns in very different wars
Dan M. Kahan
Elizabeth K. Dollard Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Dan M. Kahan has studied such issues as gun control, the risks of nanotechnology, gay parenting, “acquaintance rape,” criminal law and evidence, and white males. He served as a law clerk to Justice Thurgood Marshall of the U.S. Supreme Court 1990-1991.
Briefing(s): Why do people who oppose abortion also tend to doubt climate change?
Ami Klin, Ph.D.
Harris Professor of Child Psychiatry and Psychology, Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine
The Child Study Center's autism program, which Ami Klin directs, draws on the expertise of researchers in clinical psychology, neuroimaging, child psychiatry, social work and genetics.
Briefing(s): Early diagnosis and treatment of autism
Harlan M. Krumholz, M.D., M.Sc.
Harold H. Hines Jr. Professor of Medicine and Public Health, Yale School of Medicine
Harlan M. Krumholz, M.D., M.Sc., is a distinguished expert on drug testing and clinical trials. He is an editor at several journals and an architect of the national-outcomes measures used by the government.
Briefing(s): Upending conventional wisdom--and sorting spin from substance.
Haifan Lin, Ph.D.
professor of cell biology and director of the Yale Stem Cell Center, Yale School of Medicine
Haifan Lin's research deals with the mechanisms governing the behavior of stem cells.
Briefing(s): The dark side of biology: Tiny RNA molecules controlling gene expression
Steven Lohrenz
Chair, Department of Marine Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi
Steven Lohrenz has studied carbon dioxide distribution in coastal waters, methods for detecting algal blooms and other biogeochemical properties of coastal waters.
Briefing(s): Oil spill: The role of science in a national crisis: Update on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Michael Mann
professor of meteorology and director of the Earth System Science Center, Pennsylvania State University
Michael Mann received his Ph.D. at Yale University and is a co-founder of the website RealClimate.org. He shared in the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize given to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Briefing(s): Surviving a political attack, and an update on research
Helen S. Mayberg, M.D.
professor of psychiatry and neurology, Emory University School of Medicine
Helen S. Mayberg used neuroimaging to study mood regulation and neural networks for 20 years, leading to her pioneering development of deep-brain stimulation as a treatment for severe depression.
Briefing(s): Diagnosing and treating unremitting depression
Gil Mor, M.D., Ph.D.
professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences, Yale School of Medicine
Gil Mor conducts research on cancer progenitor cells, and also studies the interactions between the immune system and reproductive organs.
Briefing(s): Overturning cancer dogma: It’s the slowly dividing cells that matter
Laurie Santos, Ph.D.
associate professor of psychology, Yale University
Laurie Santos' current research concerns whether primates have precursors to a theory of mind, how they reason, and whether primates and humans share decision-making biases.
Briefing(s): Why evolution allows us to make bad decisions
David A. Spiegel, Ph.D., M.D.
assistant professor of chemistry, Yale University
David A. Spiegel is using new kinds of chemical synthesis to develop molecules that could help illuminate the mechanisms that underlie human diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, cancer and diabetes, in addition to his work with antibody recruiters.
Briefing(s): Recruiting antibodies to fight disease
Matthew State, M.D., Ph.D.
Donald J. Cohen Associate Professor of Child Psychiatry and associate professor of genetics at Yale School of Medicine, and co-director of the Yale Neurogenetics Program, Yale School of Medicine
Matthew State's research has focused on the use of the latest and fastest technology to analyze the genetics of Tourette syndrome, autism and other neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders of childhood.
Briefing(s): High-speed pursuit of the genes associated with neuropsychiatric disorders
Michael S. Turner, Ph.D.
director, Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics, University of Chicago
Michael S. Turner is a cosmologist who has been a pioneer in applying the physics of elementary particles to studies of the origin and evolution of the universe. His work has focused on inflationary cosmology, the origin of elements in the Big Bang, dark matter and dark energy – a term he coined to described the mysterious force that appears to be causing an acceleration in the universe’s rate of expansion.
Briefing(s): Cosmology at the Edge
Julie Zimmerman
professor of environmental engineering and forestry & environmental studies, Yale University
Julie Zimmerman is acting director of the Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering at Yale University. In addition to green chemistry, her research interests include the development of public policies to encourage sustainability, water-treatment technology for developing countries, and programs to encourage corporate environmental responsibility.
Briefing(s): Chemistry research that can cleanse the environment and encourage responsible corporate behavior