Author: Christina M. H. Powell, PhD
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Which Butterfly Caused the Tornado?
The public expects science to deliver discoveries that provide increasingly precise answers about our world. Yet some scientific discoveries suggest inherent limits to scientific knowledge. One example is chaos theory, popularized as the “butterfly effect.” The butterfly effect is a simple insight first extracted from the complex science of meteorology by Edward Lorentz in 1961 […]
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Connecting the Dots
In his 2005 Commencement address at Stanford University, Steve Jobs (1955-2011), co-founder of Apple Inc., made this statement: “If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots […]
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Finding Answers Together
Near the end of a typical Harvard commencement ceremony, the University President confers degrees on the candidates from the various schools. Doctoral candidates belonging to the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences are welcomed “to the ancient and universal company of scholars,” a traditional phrase that accurately describes the life of an academic researcher. […]
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The Power of a Good Question
I believe in the power of a good question. Questions promote discovery. Every scientific experiment starts with a question that leads to a hypothesis. Why is the sky blue? What causes uncontrolled growth in tumor cells? How do plants convert sunlight into energy? In life, questions can clarify your goals and sharpen your sense of […]