DOCSLIB.ORG

Qnas with Venki Ramakrishnan

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Qnas with Venki Ramakrishnan QNAS QNAS QnAs with Venki Ramakrishnan Prashant Nair Science Writer For more than three and a half centuries, surprised and also touched because I came the United Kingdom’s science Academy, The here as an immigrant from the US only in Royal Society, which today occupies the 1999. I became a dual national when I ac- stately address of 6–9 Carlton House Terrace quired British citizenship in 2011, so it is the near London’s St. James’s Park, has played first time that a US citizen who is a full mem- a prominent role in shaping science policy ber of the National Academy of Sciences, in that country, offering impartial advice on rather than a foreign associate, has been scientific matters, championing research elected to this office. It shows the wonderful and education, and enabling public under- openness The Royal Society has had ever standing of science, among other functions. since its inception and is a reflection of Brit- On December 1, 2015, Venki Ramakrishnan, ish science in general, which has been hos- Deputy Director of the Medical Research pitable to people from all over the world. Council Laboratory for Molecular Biology PNAS: How does The Royal Society’sin- (LMB) in Cambridge, United Kingdom, fluence on science policy compare with that and a member of the United States Na- of the US National Academies? tional Academy of Sciences, will take the Ramakrishnan: The Royal Society is cer- reins as President Elect of this august soci- tainly comparable to the Academies in its ety of distinguished fellows. Ramakrishnan influence on national science policy. It was was born and raised in India and per- set up as an autonomous body and is per- formed research in structural biology, first ceived as completely impartial, so people tend Venki Ramakrishnan. Image courtesy of in the United States and later in the United to respect The Royal Society’sjudgments Anne Purkiss (photographer). Kingdom, where he struck roots in 1999. across party lines. Honored with a share of the 2009 Nobel PNAS: In what ways will your interna- Prize in Chemistry, Ramakrishnan’s work tional experience help you at the helm of which often leads to major discoveries that has parted the curtain on the exquisitely one of the world’s oldest scientific societies? change our understanding of the world. complex process through which cells make Ramakrishnan: Science is an increasingly PNAS: The appointment comes at a time proteins, deconstructing the principal player— global enterprise. Even in my own group, when austerity measures have influenced a molecular machine called the ribosome— people from different parts of the world overall government spending for science in in exacting atomic detail and with dart-like come together to work on problems. Many many countries. What are your thoughts on precision. Although his worldliness is ac- large efforts involve multinational collabo- how to sustain and/or improve funding for knowledged and his reputation assured, rations. We in the West also need to be science in the UK? Ramakrishnan is a self-professed novice aware of developments in other parts of the Ramakrishnan: Despite austerity mea- to policymaking. But he has nonetheless world, especially Asia. So I hope that my sures, the UK did not decrease its science publicly expounded on an array of scientific broad background will help The Royal So- budget; it is just that its spending power issues with societal implications, whether ar- ciety in its international activities. has been eroded by inflation. As a result guing for sustained funding for science, urg- PNAS: What, in your opinion, are some of of the global economic downturn, the sci- ing dispassionate discourse on the benefits the most pressing science policy issues of ence budget is under pressure everywhere, and risks of genetically modified crops, or the day? including the United States. Given its size, decrying the pernicious influence of ideol- Ramakrishnan: The world faces a huge the UK has punched well above its weight ogy and gainful motives on the scientific number of pressing problems in the areas in science, but I am concerned that it is process. As he prepares for his upcoming of health, environment, food, energy, etc. now spending less than many other coun- presidency, Ramakrishnan, who has served By promoting research and evidence-based tries as a fraction of GDP, and there is a on the PNAS editorial board since 2008 policy, science can help society choose serious danger of its falling behind. The UK and will be stepping down later this year, among potential alternatives and point the and other countries in the West can only spoke to the journal about his plans. way forward to useful solutions. One of the compete globally by being more innovative PNAS: What was your initial reaction to roles of the Society is to help inform debate and at the cutting edge of new technologies. the news that you had been elected president on these issues, presenting the scientific ev- I am also concerned about sufficient invest- of The Royal Society? idence that should help policymakers to ment in basic science. In the long term, Ramakrishnan: I was first approached in make the best decisions. Equally important basic science can lead to advances that cre- November 2014 and asked if I would be will- are engaging the public and generating sup- ate completely new industries and result in ing to serve if elected. I was somewhat port for basic or “curiosity-driven” science, the greatest benefits, but we cannot predict www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1508750112 PNAS Early Edition | 1of2 Downloaded by guest on September 25, 2021 the “winners” in advance. I believe that we especially for basic science, with long-term personally, the productivity of my laboratory need to continue to make a strong case and commitment and cross-party support; will not suffer. also to point out that cuts made during tem- (ii) competitiveness in recruiting and retain- PNAS: Your most recent predecessors— porary economic crises are a false economy ing the best scientists (resources, salary, immi- Paul Nurse, Martin Rees, Robert May—had and will cost more than they save. gration and visa rules, etc.); (iii) streamlining experienceinsciencepolicywhentheytook PNAS: Your predecessor, Paul Nurse, is regulations to reduce the increasing bu- office. What major challenges do you envi- currently leading a review of the UK research reaucratic burden scientists face; (iv)the sion as you embark on your new role? councils to determine best ways to support quality and level of science education, espe- Ramakrishnan: It is true that I have been research, and the review is said to include cially at the high school level; (v)engaging much more focused on my own research international comparisons. Given your with the public about science so they can compared with them. However, in numer- trans-Atlantic perspective, what are your share the joy of understanding the natural ous articles, interviews, and talks at public thoughts? world and also understand decisions that forums since 2009, I have tried to be clear Ramakrishnan: Given the pressures on affect them in an increasingly technological and forthright about a wide range of topics, ’ the government sbudget,itisonlyfairto world; (vi) promoting evidence-based policy so my views are not exactly unknown. Some make sure that money allocated for science (both in terms of laws and level and alloca- challenges will be getting to know key peo- ple, understanding details of how decisions is spent wisely and efficiently. Moreover, tion of resources) by government and other coming from America, I especially feel the are made, and when and where one can be organizations; (vii) finally, to make the best need to justify the use of taxpayers’ money. most effective. I hope to educate myself use of available talent, the scientific enter- Paul Nurse is passionate about science, and about the role in the coming months. prise should be as inclusive and diverse as I am sure that he and his colleagues will PNAS: Among the past presidents of the possible. So it is very important to ensure look into this carefully and come up with Society are J. J. Thomson, William Bragg, and an effective set of recommendations to that women, minorities, and those who are Aaron Klug, all of whose work has a bearing make sure that money is spent well to min- economically or geographically disadvan- on your own. Would you care to comment? imize waste and duplication. International taged are encouraged to go into science, Ramakrishnan: There is, of course, a comparisons are always good. We practice and just as importantly, their careers are thread running down the work of these that in our own institute’s reviews to ensure nurtured as they proceed up the ladder. people. Thomson discovered the electron PNAS: that our science is up to the highest stan- Will the appointment mean that and helped establish modern physics, while dards. This review has the potential to help you will have less time to devote to your Bragg (and more importantly his son Law- scientists too, by streamlining application considerably prolific structural biology work? rence Bragg) laid the foundations of X-ray Ramakrishnan: procedures and minimizing the effort to Unlike the National Acad- crystallography, which is dominated by scat- obtain funding. emy of Sciences presidency, which is a paid tering from electrons. Klug used both crys- PNAS: Are there any long-term visions for position for which the president effectively tallography and electron microscopy to your new role that you would like to share at moves to Washington this is an honorary study the structure of large complexes. So the moment? position, and there is a mutual understanding my own work wouldn’t be possible without Ramakrishnan: The Royal Society is in- that I intend to continue directing our re- theirs.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Stephen Hawking (1942–2018) World-Renowned Physicist Who Defied the Odds
    COMMENT OBITUARY Stephen Hawking (1942–2018) World-renowned physicist who defied the odds. hen Stephen Hawking was speech synthesizer processed his words and diagnosed with motor-neuron generated the androidal accent that became disease at the age of 21, it wasn’t his trademark. In this way, he completed his Wclear that he would finish his PhD. Against best-selling book A Brief History of Time all expectations, he lived on for 55 years, (Bantam, 1988), which propelled him to becoming one of the world’s most celebrated celebrity status. IAN BERRY/MAGNUM scientists. Had Hawking achieved equal distinction Hawking, who died on 14 March 2018, was in any other branch of science besides cos- born in Oxford, UK, in 1942 to a medical- mology, it probably would not have had the researcher father and a philosophy-graduate same resonance with a worldwide public. As mother. After attending St Albans School I put it in The Telegraph newspaper in 2007, near London, he earned a first-class degree “the concept of an imprisoned mind roaming in physics from the University of Oxford. He the cosmos” grabbed people’s imagination. began his research career in 1962, enrolling In 1965, Stephen married Jane Wilde. as a graduate student in a group at the Uni- After 25 years of marriage, and three versity of Cambridge led by one of the fathers children, the strain of Stephen’s illness of modern cosmology, Dennis Sciama. and of sharing their home with a team of The general theory of relativity was at that nurses became too much and they sepa- time undergoing a renaissance, initiated in rated, divorcing in 1995.
    [Show full text]
  • AHMED H. ZEWAIL 26 February 1946 . 2 August 2016
    AHMED H. ZEWAIL 26 february 1946 . 2 august 2016 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY VOL. 162, NO. 2, JUNE 2018 biographical memoirs t is often proclaimed that a stylist is someone who does and says things in memorable ways. From an analysis of his experimental Iprowess, his written contributions, his lectures, and even from the details of the illustrations he used in his published papers or during his lectures to scientific and other audiences, Ahmed Zewail, by this or any other definition, was a stylist par excellence. For more than a quarter of a century, I interacted with Ahmed (and members of his family) very regularly. Sometimes he and I spoke several times a week during long-distance calls. Despite our totally different backgrounds we became the strongest of friends, and we got on with one another like the proverbial house on fire. We collaborated scientifi- cally and we adjudicated one another’s work, as well as that of others. We frequently exchanged culturally interesting stories. We each relished the challenge of delivering popular lectures. In common with very many others, I deem him to be unforgettable, for a variety of different reasons. He was one of the intellectually ablest persons that I have ever met. He possessed elemental energy. He executed a succession of brilliant experiments. And, almost single-handedly, he created the subject of femtochemistry, with all its magnificent manifestations and ramifications. From the time we first began to exchange ideas, I felt a growing affinity for his personality and attitude. This was reinforced when I told him that, ever since I was a teenager, I had developed a deep interest in Egyptology and a love for modern Egypt.
    [Show full text]
  • The Past Decade and the Future of Cosmology and Astrophysics
    Towards a New Enlightenment? A Transcendent Decade The Past Decade and the Future of Cosmology and Astrophysics Martin Rees Martin Rees is a cosmologist and space scientist. After studying at Cambridge University, he held various posts in the UK and elsewhere, before returning to Cambridge, where he has been a professor, Head of the Institute of Astronomy, and Master of Trinity College. He has contributed to our understanding of galaxy formation, black holes, high-energy phenomena in the cosmos, and the concept of the multiverse. He has received substantial international recognition for his research. He has been much involved in science-related policy, being a member of the UK’s House of Lords and (during 2005–10) President of the Royal Society, the independent scientific academy of the UK Martin Rees and the Commonwealth. Apart from his research publications, he writes and University of Cambridge lectures widely for general audiences, and is the author of eight books, the most recent being On the Future (2018). Recommended books: Universe, Martin Rees, Dorling Kindersley, 2012; On the Future, Martin Rees, Princeton University Press, 2018. In the last decade, there has been dramatic progress in exploring the cosmos. Highlights include close-up studies of the planets and moons of our Solar System; and (even more dramatic) the realization that most stars are orbited by planets, and that there may be millions of Earth-like planets in our Galaxy. On a still larger scale, we have achieved a better understanding of how galaxies have developed, over 13.8 billion years of cosmic history, from primordial fluctuations.
    [Show full text]
  • TRINITY COLLEGE Cambridge Trinity College Cambridge College Trinity Annual Record Annual
    2016 TRINITY COLLEGE cambridge trinity college cambridge annual record annual record 2016 Trinity College Cambridge Annual Record 2015–2016 Trinity College Cambridge CB2 1TQ Telephone: 01223 338400 e-mail: [email protected] website: www.trin.cam.ac.uk Contents 5 Editorial 11 Commemoration 12 Chapel Address 15 The Health of the College 18 The Master’s Response on Behalf of the College 25 Alumni Relations & Development 26 Alumni Relations and Associations 37 Dining Privileges 38 Annual Gatherings 39 Alumni Achievements CONTENTS 44 Donations to the College Library 47 College Activities 48 First & Third Trinity Boat Club 53 Field Clubs 71 Students’ Union and Societies 80 College Choir 83 Features 84 Hermes 86 Inside a Pirate’s Cookbook 93 “… Through a Glass Darkly…” 102 Robert Smith, John Harrison, and a College Clock 109 ‘We need to talk about Erskine’ 117 My time as advisor to the BBC’s War and Peace TRINITY ANNUAL RECORD 2016 | 3 123 Fellows, Staff, and Students 124 The Master and Fellows 139 Appointments and Distinctions 141 In Memoriam 155 A Ninetieth Birthday Speech 158 An Eightieth Birthday Speech 167 College Notes 181 The Register 182 In Memoriam 186 Addresses wanted CONTENTS TRINITY ANNUAL RECORD 2016 | 4 Editorial It is with some trepidation that I step into Boyd Hilton’s shoes and take on the editorship of this journal. He managed the transition to ‘glossy’ with flair and panache. As historian of the College and sometime holder of many of its working offices, he also brought a knowledge of its past and an understanding of its mysteries that I am unable to match.
    [Show full text]
  • Review of the Year 2009/10
    Invest in future scientific leaders and in innovation Review of the year 2009/10 1 Celebrating 350 years Review of the year 2009/10 02 Review of the year 2009/10 President’s foreword Executive Secretary’s report Review of the year 2009/10 03 Contents President’s foreword ..............................................................02 Inspire an interest in the joy, wonder Executive Secretary’s report ..................................................03 and excitement of scientific discovery ..................................16 Invest in future scientific leaders and in innovation ..............04 Seeing further: the Royal Society celebrates 350 years .......20 Influence policymaking with the best scientific advice ........08 Summarised financial statements .........................................22 Invigorate science and mathematics education ...................10 Income and expenditure statement ......................................23 Increase access to the best science internationally ..............12 Fundraising and support ........................................................24 List of donors ..........................................................................25 President’s Executive foreword Secretary’s report This year we have focused on the excellent This has been a remarkable year for the Society, our opportunity afforded by our 350th anniversary 350th, and we have mounted a major programme not only to promote the work of the Society to inspire minds, young and old alike, with the but to raise the profile of science
    [Show full text]
  • Works of Love
    reader.ad section 9/21/05 12:38 PM Page 2 AMAZING LIGHT: Visions for Discovery AN INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM IN HONOR OF THE 90TH BIRTHDAY YEAR OF CHARLES TOWNES October 6-8, 2005 — University of California, Berkeley Amazing Light Symposium and Gala Celebration c/o Metanexus Institute 3624 Market Street, Suite 301, Philadelphia, PA 19104 215.789.2200, [email protected] www.foundationalquestions.net/townes Saturday, October 8, 2005 We explore. What path to explore is important, as well as what we notice along the path. And there are always unturned stones along even well-trod paths. Discovery awaits those who spot and take the trouble to turn the stones. -- Charles H. Townes Table of Contents Table of Contents.............................................................................................................. 3 Welcome Letter................................................................................................................. 5 Conference Supporters and Organizers ............................................................................ 7 Sponsors.......................................................................................................................... 13 Program Agenda ............................................................................................................. 29 Amazing Light Young Scholars Competition................................................................. 37 Amazing Light Laser Challenge Website Competition.................................................. 41 Foundational
    [Show full text]
  • Program Cincinnati Solving the Biggest Challenges in the Digital Universe
    July 31-Aug 3, 2019 PROGRAM CINCINNATI SOLVING THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES IN THE DIGITAL UNIVERSE. At Akamai, we thrive on solving complex challenges for businesses, helping them digitally transform, outpace competitors, and achieve their goals. Cloud delivery and security. Video streaming. Secure application access. Our solutions make it easier for many of the world’s top brands to deliver the best, most secure digital experiences — in industries like entertainment, sports, gaming, nance, retail, software, and others. We helped broadcasters deliver high-quality live streaming during the 2018 Pyeongchang Games. We mitigated a record-breaking, memcached-fueled 1.3 Tbps DDoS attack. We’ve managed Black Friday web trafc for the biggest retailers on the planet. SECURE AND GROW YOUR BUSINESS. AKAMAI.COM WELCOME TO MAA MATHFEST! The MAA is pleased that you have joined us in Cincinnati for the math event of the summer. What are my favorite things to do at MAA MathFest? Attend the Invited Addresses! When I think back on prior MAA MathFest meetings, the Invited Addresses are the talks that I still remember and that have renewed my excitement for mathematics. This year will continue that tradition. We have excellent speakers presenting on a variety of exciting topics. If you see an Invited Address title that looks interesting, go to that talk. It will be worth it. Remember to attend the three 20-minute talks given by the MAA Adler Teaching Award winners on Friday afternoon. Jumpstart your passion for teaching and come hear these great educators share their TABLE OF CONTENTS insights on teaching, connecting with students, and the answer to “life, the universe and everything” (okay, maybe they won’t talk about 3 EARLE RAYMOND HEDRICK LECTURE SERIES the last item, but I am sure they will give inspiring and motivating presentations).
    [Show full text]
  • Creative Genesis Escalating Naturalism and Beyond
    Philosophy, Theology and the Sciences 1(2014):9-35 DOI 10.1628/219728314X14946985796871 © Mohr Siebeck Holmes Rolston III Creative Genesis Escalating Naturalism and Beyond Does a plausible worldview need some explanations that exceed the natural? Hard naturalisms insist not, but softer, or more open naturalisms find that natural processes can produce ever more complex results – moving from matter to life to mind – in a superb natural history. This invites a religious naturalism, and challenges it. Repeatedly the critical junctures require analysis pressing beyond merely scientific explanations: whether such narrative history is self-explanatory, whether each stage is sufficient for the next when more emerges out of less, what account to give of the creative genesis found in cybernetic genetics, the rise of caring, surprising serendip- ity, the opening up of new possibility space. Even scientific rationality depends on non-empirical logic, particularly in mathematics. Thoughtful persons are the most remarkable result arising out of natural history. If there is no supernature, at least nature is super. Further still, the intensity of personal experience suggests the Pres- ence of transcending divine Logos, in, with, and under nature. 1. Nothing but Nature? When something has been explained as being “natural,” are explanations over? Local scientific explanations (how it rains) leave room for more inclu- sive explanations. Why is there the phenomenon of water with its unique properties, making life possible? One may get a further explanation how water came to be formed or placed on Earth, the polar nature of the water molecule, its liquidity, and so on. But there will linger the still further ques- tion: whether the presence of water signals any propensity of nature to sup- port life.
    [Show full text]
  • The Neocommunist Manifesto
    FAMOUS – BUT NO CHILDREN FAMOUS – BUT NO CHILDREN J O RABER Algora Publishing New York © 2014 by Algora Publishing. All Rights Reserved www.algora.com No portion of this book (beyond what is permitted by Sections 107 or 108 of the United States Copyright Act of 1976) may be reproduced by any process, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, without the express written permission of the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data — Raber, J. O. Famous, but no children / J.O. Raber. pages cm Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-1-62894-042-8 (soft cover: alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-62894-043- 5 (hard cover: alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-62894-044-2 (e) 1. Childfree choice. 2. Men. 3. Women. I. Title. HQ734.R117 2014 306.87—dc23 2014001045 Printed in the United States TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 Author’s note 4 CHAPTER 1. TO BEAR OR NOT TO BEAR: THAT IS THE QUESTION 5 CHAPTER 2. DON’T THEY LIKE CHILDREN? 13 The Ann Landers Survey 18 If You Had It To Do Over Again—Would You Have Children? 18 CHAPTER 3. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 25 CHAPTER 4. THE PROCREATION – I.Q. CONNECTION 33 CHAPTER 5. CHILD-FREE AND THE PROFESSIONS 37 Actors/Actresses: 38 Adventurers (explorers, daring risk takers) who did not sire/bear children 39 Architects who did not sire/bear children 40 Artists who did not sire/bear children 40 Cartoonists who did not sire/bear children 42 Champion Athletes who did not sire/bear children 42 Comedians who did not sire/bear children 44 ix Famous — But No Children Dancers/Choreographers
    [Show full text]
  • War of Letters Over Call to Abolish EC Scientific Adviser Role
    War of letters over call to abolish EC scientific adviser role | Science | theguardian.com War of letters over call to abolish EC scientific adviser role Jean-Claude Juncker will make a final decision on whether he wants a chief scientific adviser when he takes office later this year. Photograph: Olivier Hoslet/EPA Battle lines are being drawn in scientific communities across Europe after an open letter from NGOs earlier this week called into question the need for a chief scientific adviser working for the president of the European Commission. On Friday their call for the role's abolition provoked two further open letters supporting the post from major scientific organisations, including the Wellcome Trust and Royal Institution. Nine NGOs, including Greenpeace, wrote an open letter on Tuesday to Jean-Claude Juncker, the incoming president of the EC, demanding that the position be scrapped. The NGOs called the role, which was introduced in 2012 by current EC president José Manuel Barroso and has been occupied since then by a biologist at the University of Aberdeen, Prof Anne Glover, "fundamentally problematic". Their letter argued that the non-elected role concentrated too much influence in one person, undermining research by the wider science community, while being non-transparent and unaccountable. The letter took particular issue with Glover's pro GM crops stance. The NGOs want the president to take advice from a number of independent sources. Other signatories included GM Watch and the Health and Environment Alliance. In response, two more open letters were sent to Juncker on Friday, signed by numerous European scientific organisations, supporting the CSA role and its independence.
    [Show full text]
  • 30388 OID RS Annual Review
    Review of the Year 2005/06 >> President’s foreword In the period covered by this review*, the Royal Society has continued and extended its activities over a wide front. There has, in particular, been an expansion in our international contacts and our engagement with global scientific issues. The joint statements on climate change and science in Africa, published in June 2005 by the science academies of the G8 nations, made a significant impact on the discussion before and at the Gleneagles summit. Following the success of these unprecedented statements, both of which were initiated by the Society, representatives of the science academies met at our premises in September 2005 to discuss how they might provide further independent advice to the governments of the G8. A key outcome of the meeting was an We have devoted increasing effort to nurturing agreement to prepare joint statements on the development of science academies overseas, energy security and infectious diseases ahead particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, and are of the St Petersburg summit in July 2006. building initiatives with academies in African The production of these statements, led by the countries through the Network of African Russian science academy, was a further Science Academies (NASAC). This is indicative illustration of the value of science academies of the long-term commitment we have made to working together to tackle issues of help African nations build their capacity in international importance. science, technology, engineering and medicine, particularly in universities and colleges. In 2004, the Society published, jointly with the Royal Academy of Engineering, a widely Much of the progress we have has made in acclaimed report on the potential health, recent years on the international stage has been environmental and social impacts of achieved through the tireless work of Professor nanotechnologies.
    [Show full text]
  • 50 Years of Data Science’ Leaves Out” Wise
    JOURNAL OF COMPUTATIONAL AND GRAPHICAL STATISTICS , VOL. , NO. ,– https://doi.org/./.. Years of Data Science David Donoho Department of Statistics, Stanford University, Standford, CA ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY More than 50 years ago, John Tukey called for a reformation of academic statistics. In “The Future of Data Received August Analysis,” he pointed to the existence of an as-yet unrecognized science, whose subject of interest was Revised August learning from data, or “data analysis.” Ten to 20 years ago, John Chambers, JefWu, Bill Cleveland, and Leo Breiman independently once again urged academic statistics to expand its boundaries beyond the KEYWORDS classical domain of theoretical statistics; Chambers called for more emphasis on data preparation and Cross-study analysis; Data presentation rather than statistical modeling; and Breiman called for emphasis on prediction rather than analysis; Data science; Meta inference. Cleveland and Wu even suggested the catchy name “data science” for this envisioned feld. A analysis; Predictive modeling; Quantitative recent and growing phenomenon has been the emergence of “data science”programs at major universities, programming environments; including UC Berkeley, NYU, MIT, and most prominently, the University of Michigan, which in September Statistics 2015 announced a $100M “Data Science Initiative” that aims to hire 35 new faculty. Teaching in these new programs has signifcant overlap in curricular subject matter with traditional statistics courses; yet many aca- demic statisticians perceive the new programs as “cultural appropriation.”This article reviews some ingredi- ents of the current “data science moment,”including recent commentary about data science in the popular media, and about how/whether data science is really diferent from statistics.
    [Show full text]