Holiday Lectures

Holiday Lectures Series

• 124

  

  Lecture

  Patterns and Processes in Ecology

  What controls the numbers and distributions of animals in their environment? How do animals interact with other species? How do natural patterns arise in nature? Find out in the 2015 Holiday Lectures on Science.
• 23

  

  Lecture

  Biodiversity in the Age of Humans

  Are we witnessing a sixth mass extinction? What factors threaten ecosystems on land and in the sea? What are researchers doing to try to conserve biodiversity and ecosystems?
• 20

  

  Lecture

  Medicine in the Genomic Era

  In the 2013 Holiday Lectures on Science, leading medical researchers explain how advances in genomics are revolutionizing their work, leading to a better understanding of disease and to improved treatments.
• 9

  

  Lecture

  Evolution: Constant Change and Common Threads

  How has the amazing diversity of plants and animals evolved? What can fossils, butterflies, and stickleback fish tell us about the deep common ancestry of all living forms?
• 16

  

  Lecture

  Changing Planet: Past, Present, Future

  Has Earth changed over deep time? How did Earth shape life and life shape Earth? What does Earth's climate in the distant past tell us about the future?
• 22

  

  Lecture

  Bones, Stones, and Genes: The Origin of Modern Humans

  Where and when did humans arise? What distinguishes us from other species? Did our distant ancestors look and behave like us?
• 10

  

  Lecture

  Viral Outbreak: The Science of Emerging Disease

  Watch two leading virus researchers explain how they use both simple and sophisticated technologies to detect and fight infectious agents.
• 6

  

  Lecture

  Making Your Mind: Molecules, Motion, and Memory

  What is mind? Can molecular biology help us understand mental function?
• 8

  

  Lecture

  Exploring Biodiversity: The Search for New Medicines

  What medical secrets do venomous snails hold? How can listening in on bacterial conversations help develop new antibiotics? In four presentations, Dr. Bonnie L. Bassler and Dr. Baldomero M. Olivera reveal how a deeper understanding of nature and biodiversity informs their research into new medicines.
• 7

  

  Lecture

  AIDS: Evolution of an Epidemic

  Why has it been so hard to develop a vaccine against HIV? How are new medicines revolutionizing AIDS treatment? Can AIDS be cured?
• 6

  

  Lecture

  Potent Biology: Stem Cells, Cloning, and Regeneration

  Doug Melton and Nadia Rosenthal are leaders in stem cell research, working primarily with mouse and human tissue. They will discuss where embryonic and adult stem cells come from and the biology of how they supply the cells the body needs.
• 7

  

  Lecture

  Evolution: Fossils, Genes, and Mousetraps

  Leading evolution educator Ken Miller discusses the controversy surrounding the teaching of evolution.
• 9

  

  Lecture

  The Science of Fat

  In the 2004 Holiday Lectures on Science, HHMI investigators Ronald M. Evans and Jeffrey M. Friedman discuss how the body regulates weight by carefully controlling the storage and burning of fat—and how a better understanding of these complex metabolic systems could lead researchers to treatments that curb obesity and improve public health. Awards 2006 Telly Awards; Silver
• 5

  

  Lecture

  Learning from Patients: The Science of Medicine

  As part of the 2003 Holiday Lectures on Science, Dr. Bert Vogelstein and Dr. Huda Y. Zoghbi discuss how their patients have led to a deeper understanding of the genetic and molecular bases of neurological disorders and cancer. Thanks to these patients, researchers can now apply the knowledge gained to diagnosis, prevention, and the search for cures.
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  Lecture

  Scanning Life's Matrix: Genes, Proteins, and Small Molecules

  In four presentations, Stuart L. Schreiber, PhD, and Eric S. Lander, PhD, open a window onto the fast-paced world of genomic science and chemical genetics.
• 9

  

  Lecture

  The Meaning of Sex: Genes and Gender

  Four talks focus on sex determination—the molecular and genetic mechanisms that determine whether an organism will be male, female or a hermaphrodite.
• 7

  

  Lecture

  Clockwork Genes: Discoveries in Biological Time

  Four lectures highlight the research of two scientists who have made groundbreaking discoveries elucidating the molecular basis of circadian clocks—the internal timekeepers that govern fluctuations in behavior and physiology on a 24-hour cycle.
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  Lecture

  2000 and Beyond: Confronting the Microbe Menace

  (57 min 36 sec) In four presentations, Donald E. Ganem, MD, and B. Brett Finlay, PhD, discuss the latest advances in understanding how pathogens invade the body and how this knowledge is leading to the development of new therapies. They also explain how new infectious diseases are recognized and how epidemics arise.
• 6

  

  Lecture

  Of Hearts and Hypertension: Blazing Genetic Trails

  In four lectures, Richard P. Lifton, MD, PhD, and Christine E. Seidman, MD, discuss their groundbreaking work in using genetic and molecular approaches to understand cardiovascular diseases.
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  Lecture

  Senses and Sensitivity: Neuronal Alliances for Sight and Sound

  In four talks, A. James Hudspeth, MD, PhD, and Jeremy H. Nathans, MD, PhD, discuss how sensory information is encoded and transmitted to the brain. They describe the detailed workings of two senses of great importance to humans—vision and hearing.
• 6

  

  Lecture

  The Immune System: Friend and Foe

  A wide overview of the immune system, presented by HHMI investigators John W. Kappler, PhD, and Philippa Marrack, PhD
• 5

  

  Lecture

  The Double Life of RNA

  In four lectures, Nobel laureate Thomas R. Cech, PhD, discusses the ability of RNA to act as more than just an intermediary between DNA and proteins.