Acknowledgements
In this unit we explore how proteins are the 'doers' of the cell. They are huge in number and variety and diverse in structure and function, serving both the structural building blocks and the functional machinery of the cell. Just about every process in every cell requires specific proteins. The basic principles of protein structure and function which are reviewed in this unit are crucial to understanding how proteins perform their various roles.
Capitalism 3.0: An Institutional Revolution In the Making
C. Otto Scharmer points to what he calls a "blind spot" in
contemporary leadership research: the organization and management of
attention. He argues that there are different kinds of awareness or
attentiveness, that different problems require different qualities of or
approaches to awareness. Leaders who understand this can
Race from France to France, Leave Antarctica to Starboard
Rich Wilson had followed the Vendée Globe Race ('round-the-world single-handed) since its inception in 1988 but had never considered sailing it himself—“too hard, too long, too dangerous, too risky, too, too, too, the boats were too big, the sails were too big.”
Then he reconsidered the possibility when he realize
Modeling Human Mobility
Researchers who wish to study mobility patterns might be reaching for your phone. Increasingly, cell phones are equipped with locational receivers (Global Positioning Systems or GPS) and their bread crumb trails are opening up entirely new ways to study and predict the dynamics of travel. “We are in the GPS revolution because
6.2 Catalytic mechanisms
In this unit we explore how proteins are the 'doers' of the cell. They are huge in number and variety and diverse in structure and function, serving both the structural building blocks and the functional machinery of the cell. Just about every process in every cell requires specific proteins. The basic principles of protein structure and function which are reviewed in this unit are crucial to understanding how proteins perform their various roles.
References
Energy from sources other than fossil and nuclear fuels is to a large extent free of the concerns about environmental effects and renewability that characterise those two sources. Each alternative source supplies energy continually, whether or not we use it. This unit considers one of these alternative sources, geothermal energy derived from the interior heat of the Earth, and the potential for this alternative to supplant fossil and nuclear fuel use to power social needs fast enough to avoid t
The Future of Science Journalism
Susan Hockfield states that science journalism “is now, and in the decades ahead, absolutely indispensable.” As we confront global warming and health pandemics, science reporting must be sustained, Hockfield says, “in its rightful place, at the top of the profession and in the thick of the national conversation.
The Power of Competition: How to Focus the World’s Brains on your Innovation Challenges
Cooperation may be making us “a little bit too nice” when it comes to innovation, suggests Fiona Murray. She believes there’s nothing like competition for injecting energy into the process of solving key innovation problems, whether in business or society.
Murray is convinced competition make ventures “more ef
Leadership and Entrepreneurship
While their ventures couldn’t be more dissimilar -- engineering high tech defense gear for soldiers, and running an exclusive online boutique -- this panel’s entrepreneurs share some common experiences and lessons.
Moderator David Fialkow would “love to tell you I’m wicked brilliant, analytical, clairv
The Power of Basic Science Applied to Medical Progress: Past Examples and Hope for Schizophrenia and
An exemplar of the purpose-driven life in medical science, Ed Scolnick details research milestones from a remarkably varied career, revealing how scientific insight and collaborative effort translate into life-saving solutions for millions.
This physician turned biochemist has held distinguished positions at t
Autism: What Do We Know? What Do We Need?
“I’ll give you the 30,000 foot view of autism.”
Remarking that autism today, in terms of interest and funding, is like cancer was 20 years ago,
Dr. Thomas Insel provides the latest medical and scientific views on this complex developmental brain disorder. The formal definition of autism includes three main componen
6 Permeability
Water is arguably the most important physical resource as it is the one that is essential to human survival. Understanding the global water cycle and how we use water is essential to planning a sustainable source of water for the future. In the UK there are areas where water supplies are limited, showin by recent droughts. Globally, there are many reas that do ot have enough water to support the current population adequately. Decisions will have to be made on the best way to use water in a world
Sex Battles in the Brain
The expression of certain genes depends on whether they were inherited from the mother or the father, a phenomenon known as imprinting. Catherine Dulac has discovered that a surprisingly large number of brain genes are imprinted, often in complex ways. Her findings have broad implications for understanding the inheritance o
Alzheimer’s Disease: Realizing the Promise of Molecular Medicine
In 1906, when Alois Alzheimer first described the disease that bears his name, it was a rarity; life expectancy in the US was around 50 years, and few people lived long enough to develop Alzheimer’s disease (AD). But as life expectancies have risen around the world, AD has become vastly more prevalent, and it is now one of the m
Security, Privacy and Technology
New technologies allow individuals, corporations and government entities to monitor, track and identify employees, customers and the general public. This panel provides a forum to discuss security and privacy in today's global economy.
Human Rights & the US State Department
Ambassador Shattuck provides insights from his experiences as Assistant Secretary of State for Human Rights in the Clinton Administration. Highlights include his analysis of the global events in the post-Cold War period which he states foreshadowed the attacks of September 11th . He defines two competing forces, the forces of integration, (
The Militarization of Science and Space
Chomsky launches a savage, two-pronged assault on national economic policies and efforts at “global domination….By now the stakes are so high that issues of survival arise,” says Chomsky.
The basic principle underlying our current economy is “to make rich people happy and make everybody else frightened.” Chom
The Future of Nuclear Energy
Nuclear energy will emerge either as a solution to the twin crises of global warming and a secure energy supply, or global catastrophe. Within this panel at least, there doesn’t seem to be a comfortable middle ground.
MIT’s Andrew Kadak, one of the two speakers arguing the necessity of nuclear energy, advance
The Next Catastrophe: Reducing Our Vulnerabilities to Natural, Industrial, and Terrorist Disasters
It’s time to trade in the Department of Homeland Security for a Department of Homeland Vulnerabilities, says Charles Perrow. At its peril, our nation “privileges terrorism over natural and industrial disasters.”
From Perrow’s perspective, the U.S. landscape is riddled with “weapons of mass destruction:
Global Concerns of National Importance for the Next U.S. Administration
“I’ve drunk kava in the South Pacific and rubbed noses with natives,” says William Fallon. “I’ve enjoyed tender baby camel as a delicacy. I’ve met presidents, kings, prime ministers and many ordinary folks. I’ve done a lot of things. That was yesterday. What matters is today and tomorrow.” Now, says Fallon, is the time for a
