• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Emerging Scholars Blog

InterVarsity's Emerging Scholars Network

DONATE
  • Home
  • About Us
    • About Our Bloggers
    • ESN Writing Inquiries
    • Commenting Policy
  • Reading Lists
  • Scholar’s Compass
    • Scholar’s Compass Discussion Guide
    • Scholar’s Compass Posts
    • Scholar’s Compass Booklet
  • Connect
    • Membership
    • Events
    • Donate
    • Contact Us

neuroscience

Science Book Review: Being You – A New Science of Consciousness

June 8, 2022 by Andy Walsh Leave a Comment

At various times while reading Anil Seth's engaging and accessible Being You, I was reminded of the people in Helen Thomson's Unthinkable, the subject of a previous blog post. Thomson was documenting the distinct experiences of people whose perception of themselves and/or the world around them depart substantially from what is typical: people who think they are tigers or dead or who can have their orientation to the world flipped instantaneously. Seth is giving an account more generally of why perception works the way … [Read more...] about Science Book Review: Being You – A New Science of Consciousness

Filed Under: Book Review/Discussion, Science and Faith Tagged With: Anil Seth, Being You, cognitive science, consciousness, neuroscience, science, science book club, science corner

Science Corner: The Real Aliens Were the Friends We Made Along the Way

February 24, 2021 by Andy Walsh Leave a Comment

I promised we'd take the occasional break from evolutionary biology and simulated quandaries to check in on other science headlines, and that time has come. I'm going to try a slightly different format, more of a news roundup than a ramble on a single story. The biggest story of course is the landing of the Perseverance Rover on Mars. Below, you can check out video from the landing and the first audio from Mars (these come directly from NASA; there were fake Mars videos going around social media last week). … [Read more...] about Science Corner: The Real Aliens Were the Friends We Made Along the Way

Filed Under: Science and Faith Tagged With: life on Mars, neuroscience, science, science corner

Science Corner: Bird-Brained Schematic

September 30, 2020 by Andy Walsh Leave a Comment

Popular idioms aside, birds can actually be quite intelligent, with some species demonstrating the ability to use tools and to develop complex social dynamics. This despite some substantial differences in the anatomy of bird brains compared to those of mammals, particularly humans. A recent set of publications revealed stronger similarities at the level of cellular organization and the way neurons are connected even without the same higher-level anatomical organization. More specifically, bird brains lack a cerebral … [Read more...] about Science Corner: Bird-Brained Schematic

Filed Under: Science and Faith Tagged With: cognition, cognitive science, machine learning, neuroscience, science, science corner

Science Book Review: Unthinkable – An Extraordinary Journey through the World’s Strangest Brains

February 5, 2020 by Andy Walsh Leave a Comment

Cover art for Unthinkable by Helen Thomson

Helen Thomson closes Unthinkable by describing it as "romantic science," an approach that emphasizes human connection alongside data and clinical reports. The humans in question are not the practitioners of science but the subjects of its investigations. Thomson profiles nine people from all over the world whose subjective experiences of that world push the limits of our ability to communicate about them. She feels compelled to employ rich, high bandwidth personal accounts because an abstraction like "lycanthropy" needs … [Read more...] about Science Book Review: Unthinkable – An Extraordinary Journey through the World’s Strangest Brains

Filed Under: Book Review/Discussion, Science and Faith Tagged With: Helen Thomson, neuroscience, science, science book club, science corner, Unthinkable

Science Corner: The Prizes are in Bloom

March 27, 2019 by Andy Walsh Leave a Comment

Photo of bubble sitting on a ledge

Last fall I wrote about the Abel Prize ceremony because I was intrigued by the maze constructed for the occasion. I didn't intend to cover every winner, but I thought that Karen Uhlenbeck becoming the first woman to receive the honor warranted attention. Her work laid the foundation for a whole new branch of mathematics--geometric analysis--and she also provided critical tools to mathematical physicists for working with the Yang-Mills equations, which are central to the Standard Model of particle physics. Beyond her … [Read more...] about Science Corner: The Prizes are in Bloom

Filed Under: Science and Faith Tagged With: Abel prize, gender, gender equality, gender roles, math, mathematics, neuroscience, science, science corner

  • Go to page 1
  • Go to page 2
  • Go to page 3
  • Go to Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

Become a Member

Membership is Free. Sign up and receive our monthly newsletter and access ESN member benefits.

Join ESN Today

Scholar’s Compass Booklet

Scholar's Compass Booklet

Click here to get your copy

Top Posts

  • Book Review: The Problem of Pain
  • The Message of Genesis 1
  • A Prayer for Those Finishing a Semester
  • Science Book Review: Unthinkable - An Extraordinary Journey through the World's Strangest Brains
  • Teaching for Integration: Faith & Your Field in the Classroom

Facebook Posts

Facebook Posts

Footer

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

Recent Posts

  • Encouraging One Another
  • Science Corner: Grandmother, What Grey Fur You Have
  • ESN Conversation: Nailing It

Article Categories

Footer Logo
© 2025 InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA®. All rights reserved.
InterVarsity, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA, and the InterVarsity logo are trademarks of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA and its affiliated companies.

Member of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students

Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Contact Us