Paul M. Sutter, Ph.D.

I School Ph.D. alums Nitin K. and Emily Aiken, as well as Prof. Joshua Blumenstock published their research in Nature Magazine Scientific Reports. In this paper, the team develops and tests an approach for releasing private mobility data and utilizes mobile data from Afghanistan and Rwanda to show how this algorithm can enable the use of private mobility data in two high-stakes policy decisions: pandemic response and the distribution of humanitarian aid. To read the paper: https://lnkd.in/gWkNrwFw

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The problem for determinism: quantum mechanics suggests that the movement of subatomic particles is probabilistic rather than deterministic. The problem for free will: quantum indeterminacy does not get us to free will, and there is no convincing explanation for how free will would work. https://lnkd.in/gBtERiCs @JHUNewsLetter #Physics #FreeWill

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I wrote an article on two of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s High Energy Density Science Fellows—physicist Elizabeth “Liz” Grace (2022 fellow) and plasma physicist Graeme Sutcliffe (2023 fellow). Liz and Graeme are using high-intensity lasers and advanced diagnostics to observe the behaviors of plasma, also known as the “fourth state of matter.” Plasmas make up the majority of visible matter in the universe, like stars and nebulae, and replicating these conditions is a key step to achieving robust igniting inertial fusion designs for energy resilience.

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Scientists from Project CETI (Cetacean Translation Initiative) and MIT’s Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Laboratory believe they have decoded, or at least discovered, the “sperm whale phonetic alphabet,” revealing a rich lexicon not previously observed in whale communication. The research is published in Nature Communications. #spermwhales #whales #CETI #MIT #NatureCommunications

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UMN researchers partnered with scientists at Smithsonian Institution and others to propose a plan that could safeguard Earth’s endangered #biodiversity through storage on the moon at extremely low temperatures. UMN's Susan Wolf & John Bischof were key contributors to this innovative new idea, with Bischof contributing his strong background in engineering & #cryopreservation, and Wolf providing expert advice on ethics and governance issues. The proposal builds on work demonstrating the successful cryopreservation of skin samples from a reef fish called the starry goby. Currently stored at the Smithsonian, these are intended to be the first samples for the lunar biorepository. The next steps are to begin a series of radiation exposure tests to help design packaging that could safely deliver samples to the moon. For species that don’t have skin, such as invertebrates, larvae and other reproductive materials may be used. Published today in the journal BioScience, the study that Bischof and Wolf contributed to outlines a roadmap for the creation of a lunar biorepository. NSF ERC Advanced Technologies for the Preservation of Biological Systems (ATP-Bio) Consortium on Law and Values in Health, Environment & the Life Sciences https://lnkd.in/gjRv8Bva

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Some write to me asking whether my figural ontology borders on a new religion. To this question I turn, for now, that is, before publishing my own Zarathustra, unto the crucial relationship between Metaphysics and Theology, in Duns Scotus' Opus Oxoniense, more especially. #philosophy #ontology #superhuman #ΛOΓΟΣ

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Electrical & Computer Engineering Assoc. Prof. Jia (Kevin) Liu leads a team of researchers that received a $1.2M grant from NSF to develop a real-time, crowd-sourced geospatial digital twin to enhance how vital information is delivered to mobile devices. https://lnkd.in/gF9P8gZp Geospatial digital twins allow for real-time updates and interactions, making them invaluable for applications such as monitoring, maintenance and emergency response. Traditionally, data for GDTs has been collected through automated systems like distributed sensor devices, satellites and drones. “These methods have limitations, especially when it comes to updating data quickly and covering hard-to-reach areas,” said Liu. To overcome these challenges, the team will develop a novel approach that involves the community through “human-in-the-loop” strategies. This means using crowd-sourced data, where people provide real-time updates to digital models. This method not only promises to enhance the accuracy and timeliness of the information, but also to allow discovery of new information.

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The tachyon cosmological model is unlikely to pass rigorous experimental tests, given the unlikely nature of tachyons - particles that (in a weird aspect of relativity) might (notionally) move ONLY faster than light. And if they interacted with regular matter could hence (as in Greg Benford's TIMESCAPE) conceivably violate causality. Now this study suggests that a background flood of tachyons could explain BOTH dark matter AND dark energy effects. Well, it has survived a first-order, very preliminary check. One of many more before the idea is taken as more than a quirky side thought. https://lnkd.in/gvCs3yAR

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Yesterday, David R. Liu published his lab's creation of #eePASSIGE, an "engineered and evolved" twist on prime editing that efficiently inserts large sequences of DNA into the genome. It's an important advance in the competitive gene insertion field. I covered the eePASSIGE data for Endpoints News when Liu first debuted it at ASGCT in May, along with gene insertion disclosures from Tome Bio, SalioGen, and Renegade (now owned by Orna). For more on those companies and the emerging field, check out my story: https://lnkd.in/gZFCW7CX #biotech #geneediting #CRISPR #genomeengineering #synbio #geneticmedicine

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We spoke with three new Carnegie Science Observatories astronomers—Peter Senchyna Jessica spake, and Shreyas Vissapragada—about what first piqued their interest in the field, why they chose Carnegie, the biggest "wow" moments in their careers so far, their postdoctoral experiences, and more. CHECK IT OUT: https://lnkd.in/gsAuiaZ5

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Federal and industrial quantum computing pioneers have explored something very specific but very important: quantum sensors in biomedicine. Celia Merzbacher, executive director of the Quantum Economic Development Consortium, joined the Federal Drive with Thomas Temin to discuss why this research is important. #QuantumSensors #TheFederalDriveWithTomTemin

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Prof. Ayelet Landau explores the cognitive and functional connections of brain-wide neural architecture. Her talk will survey a line of work investigating temporal decisions and offer new insights into the core mechanisms and models serving time perception. Look forward to these and other exciting sessions at this year's ESI Systems Neuroscience Conference (ESI SyNC) on "Time in the Brain". The ESI Systems Neuroscience Conference will take place from September 26-27, 2024 at the Ernst Strüngmann Institute in Frankfurt. Get informed and register now: https://lnkd.in/gneUjQNn Speaker: Prof. Dean Buonomano, Dr. Carey, Prof. Rachel Denison, Dr. Valerie Doyere, Dr. Tadeusz W. Kononowicz, Prof. Ayelet Landau, Prof. Hugo Merchant, Prof. Caroline Palmer, Joseph Paton, PhD, Prof. Andrea Ravignani #ESI #ESISyNC #time #zeit #timing #timeperception #neurobiology #neurobiologie #brain #gehirn #hirnforschung #brainresearch #neuraldynamics #neuroscience #neurowissenschaften #neurophysiology #neurophysiologie #fMRI #meg #eeg #computertomographie #computationalscience #computationalmodeling #basicresearch #grundlagenforschung #verhaltensforschung #behavioralscience #perception #wahrnehmung #cognition #speechscience #cognitiveneuroscience #amygdala #prefrontalcortex #memory

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Revisiting Leibniz in the 21st Century! 📜🔬 His 1714 Monadology still echoes in modern physics and ethics, showing profound foresight. Time to explore his vision through today's lens? #Philosophy #QuantumPhysics #Leibniz300 https://lnkd.in/dDmqF4Ry

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Eric and Wendy Schmidt Center fellows and co-lead paper authors Jiaqi Zhang (MIT EECS PhD student) and Ryan Welch (MIT master’s student in engineering), joined by senior author and Schmidt Center Director Caroline Uhler, have developed theoretical foundations for methods that could identify the best way to aggregate genes into related groups, so they can efficiently learn the underlying cause-and-effect relationships between many genes. This cost-effective and more feasible technique could help scientists identify potential gene targets to induce certain behavior in a more accurate and efficient manner, potentially enabling them to develop precise treatments for patients. Check out MIT News to learn more: https://lnkd.in/ekhyxXau Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology #SchmidtCenter #BroadInstitute #MIT #EECS #IDSS #LIDS #CausalDisentanglement #GeneExpression #Genomics #MachineLearning #MLinBio #ScienceNews #ScientificResearch

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I recently revisited Yuri Lazebnik's essay, "Can a Biologist Fix a Radio?—Or, What I Learned While Studying Apoptosis," which critiques how biologists approach the study of complex systems. Lazebnik compares the way biologists investigate apoptosis to trying to fix a broken radio without fully understanding its components or how they interact. His essay highlights critical challenges in biological research, particularly the limitations of reductionism and the lack of system-wide integration. Reductionism is the practice of breaking down systems into their component parts, which while useful for understanding building blocks in isolation often overlooks the complexity of interactions within a system. Lazebnik argues that knowing how parts work in isolation doesn’t necessarily lead to a full understanding of the whole, and in order to advance biological research we need to integrate our understanding of component parts into a broader more cohesive model. In biological systems, proteins, genes, and metabolites don’t function in isolation but form vast, interconnected networks that drive processes like signaling pathways and metabolic reactions. These networks reveal how components influence each other, shaping their dynamics and functions. While traditional methods often focus on individual molecules or processes, tools like network analysis enables us to explore entire systems, uncovering coordinated behaviors and key players. This approach provides powerful insights into how biological systems function, adapt, or break down in response to factors like aging, disease, drugs, exercise, or environmental changes. In this article, we will explore the principles of network analysis, its ability to reveal hidden patterns in large-scale biological data, and its potential to deepen our understanding of complex systems beyond human intuition. #compbio #bioinformatics #biotech #datascience #networkanalysis

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Ever wonder why everyone thinks you need a patent, Ph.D, and citations for an EB-1A? Simple. Congress created the EB-1A in 1990. At that time, the innovators in the world were researchers with patents, Ph.D’s, and citations. 🤓 So that is what was considered “extraordinary.” Since then, USCIS’ approach to analyzing EB-1A’s has not changed AT ALL. In fact, it’s gotten worse. Why? They don’t adapt. They are stuck in their own time capsule, with no incentive to leave. “If something doesn’t grow, it rots.” It’s like they don’t even know about all the technological advances that have happened in the last 30 years. So, to win an EB-1A as a leading technologist, you almost have to pretend you are explaining your achievements to someone who was magically transported to the present from a time when Google looked like this picture below. And that needs to be your mindset when building your profile. By the way, ARE you building your profile? Check out our $250 early bird special below 👇 #immigration #eb1a #globalmobility -------- Do you star in high-tech, are stuck in long green card backlogs, and are looking to level up to an EB-1A? Let us help you get there. I’m leading our next live EB-1A profile-building cohort that begins on September 7. Apply now to secure your spot! The link is in the comments below. 📣 And if you sign up by August 23, we are offering an early bird discount of $250!

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