Ebooks and science: Livestreamed tonight

Posted on by Matt Kristoffersen

I’m heading to New York this evening for an exciting conversation about the future of books, hosted by Science Online New York. We’ll be talking about the new opportunities opened up by ebooks and apps, as well as some of the problems they will bring with them. There’s now a waiting list to get into the room, but you can watch it livestreamed here, starting at around 7 pm EST. What makes the event particularly exciting for me is that you could pick any five members of the audience as the panelists, and the conversation would be just as interesting. So the prepared remarks are going to be short (just long enough to show off a few examples of new kinds of science books), and then we’re going to plunge into a wide-ranging, room-wide exchange. We’ll also be tracking questions with the #sonyc hashtag on Twitter, so feel free to join in the conversation.

Originally published September 20, 2011. Copyright 2011 Carl Zimmer.

Eye Versus Camera

Posted on by Matt Kristoffersen

Metaphors are essential to writing about science. Even scientists themselves use metaphors all the time, drawing from their familiar experiences to describe the unfamiliar. Building proteins is known as translation, for example, because the sequences of DNA and proteins are akin to words written in different languages. The cell has to translate one language into another using–another metaphor–the genetic code.

Metaphors can be powerful, but they can also trip us up if we mistake them for an equivalence. DNA isn’t really a human language, for example. In my latest column for Discover, I take a look at another tricky metaphor: the eye as camera. Some scientists are actually making that metaphor real, by building video cameras that can let blind people see. As I point out, however, eyes are not cameras, and the differences are fascinating. They’re also crucial to the future success in treating blindness with technology. Check it out.

Originally published September 16, 2011. Copyright 2011 Carl Zimmer.

“I See,” Said the Blind Man With an Artificial Retina

Posted on by Lori Jia

Discover, September 15, 2011

Link

For 100 million people around the globe who suffer from macular degeneration and other diseases of the retina, life is a steady march from light into darkness. The intricate layers of neurons at the backs of their eyes gradually degrade and lose the ability to snatch photons and translate them into electric signals that are sent to the brain. Vision steadily blurs or narrows, and for some, the world fades to black. Until recently some types of retinal degeneration seemed as inevitable as the wrinkling of skin or the graying of hair—only far more terrifying and debilitating. But recent studies offer hope that eventually the darkness may be lifted.

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Autumn yammerings: Where I’ll be talking this fall

Posted on by Matt Kristoffersen

After a fairly quiet summer, I’m going to be giving some talks this fall, starting around my neighborhood and then radiating outwards. Here’s a preliminary list of public events. I may be adding extra ones as the launch of Science Ink approaches. You can find the most up-to-date information on my talks page.

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