Last time, I discussed the concept of emergence as a general background for understanding life. I proposed that the best way to think of emergent phenomena in this connection is in the way that condensed-matter physicists do. Namely, qualitatively new entities and properties arise  due to symmetry breaking, and new effective fields emerge as we move [...]

Natural genetic engineering in bacteria. Bipedal goats and dogs. Maze-solving slime mold, ferrets that see with their auditory cortex, fruit flies with inverted visual fields, and humans who “see” with their tongues. These are some of the phenomena I’ve looked at in previous weeks in order to make the case that living beings possess a general ability [...]

Last week, I looked at the work of Mary Jane West-Eberhard on the contribution that developmental plasticity makes to evolution. In particular, I reviewed examples like Slijper’s goat and Faith the Dog, in which a severe perturbation at the genetic level results in a truly stunning compensation at the level of the adult phenotype. Such [...]

TheBestSchools.org is proud to announce a new feature article entitled “Remembering Einstein.” This article honors the achievement of one of the most original and influential scientists—and creative human beings—who ever lived. To do this, we set about trying to gather reminiscences of Einstein from surviving scientists who knew him personally when they were young. We contacted [...]