A document by Mazhar_Ali . Click on the document to view its contents.

Hello Reddit! We are Ida Donkin, Soetkin Versteyhe, Lars R. Ingerslev, and Romain Barrès from the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research. We recently published a study that shows that sperm from obese men carry a distinct epigenetic signature compared to lean men, in particular at genes controlling brain development and function. In addition, we also looked at gastric bypass patients before and after surgery, and found that the sperm methylome is remodeled notably at gene regions implicated in the central control of appetite. Please Ask Us Anything! We will start answering questions at 1 pm EST (19:00 CET). EDIT 3.20 PM EST: Thank you so much for all the great questions! We’re signing off now, but we’ll check in again tomorrow for a few follow-up questions. Again, thanks guys! ANOTHER EDIT: The story behind the AMA here: http://www.museion.ku.dk/2015/12/reddit-science-ama/ Links: The actual paper: http://www.cell.com/pb-assets/journals/research/cell-metabolism/on/cmet1935_r.pdf NY Times http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/08/science/parents-may-pass-down-more-than-just-genes-study-suggests.html The Guardian http://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/dec/03/overweight-men-may-pass-genetic-obesity-risk-to-their-children Our research group: http://metabol.ku.dk/research/section-for-integrative-physiology/environmental-epigenetics/

A document by Guillermo_Velasco . Click on the document to view its contents.

Hi Reddit, My name is Lara Aknin and I am an Assistant Professor of Social Psychology at Simon Fraser University. My research focuses on the relationship between generosity and happiness. I am Kiley Hamlin, and I’m an Associate Professor of Developmental Psychology at the University of British Columbia (UBC). My research focuses on the development of moral action and judgment in preverbal infants and toddlers. And I am Elizabeth Dunn, a Professor of Social Psychology also at UBC. My research focuses on the factors that shape human happiness. We recently published a paper titled “Giving Leads to Happiness in Young Children” in PLOS ONE. In this paper, we show that toddlers find giving treats to others more rewarding than receiving treats themselves. These findings support the idea that humans may have evolved to find giving rewarding. We will be answering your questions at 1pm ET (10am PT) – Ask Us Anything! NOTE: Lara, Kiley, and Elizabeth are sitting together to answer these questions and coming up with a collaborative response to inquiries.

Hi Reddit! We are Derek Sowers (NOAA seafloor mapping expert), Kasey Cantwell (NOAA ocean explorer), Cheryl Morrison (research geneticist, USGS), and Leslie Sautter (geologist, College of Charleston). We are joined by the Mission Team on board NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer to answer your questions about our current expedition exploring deep-sea habitats of the southeast U.S. Continental Margin. Throughout the expedition, we are using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to explore the seafloor and video streams from the ROVs are being transmitted via satellite from ship to shore. This means anyone with an Internet connection – including YOU! – can tune in LIVE with scientists from around the world, sharing an unprecedented glimpse of never-seen-before deep marine habitats. We expect to encounter large, diverse coral and sponge communities; uncover important deep-sea ecosystems; explore historical shipwrecks; map the seafloor; and learn more about the geologic history of the area. Information collected during the expedition will expand our knowledge of these unknown and poorly known deepwater areas and to provide data for decision makers. We’re here from 2 - 4 pm ET to answer your questions about our deep-ocean exploration missions. Big thanks to everyone who joined us today! We had a great time responding to all the great questions about ocean exploration! The Windows to the Deep 2018: Exploration of the Southeast U.S. Continental Margin expedition is just getting started, so be sure to visit the pages below to follow along as we explore submarine canyons, submerged cultural heritage sites, deep-sea corals and sponge habitats, inter-canyon areas, gas seeps, and more! Live video of dives (daily, June 14 - July 1, from ~8 am to 4:30 pm ET): https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/livestreams/welcome.html Windows to the Deep 2018 web coverage: https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/okeanos/explorations/ex1806/welcome.html Expedition images/videos: https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/okeanos/explorations/ex1806/logs/photolog/welcome.html Bios of the explorers on the current mission: https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/okeanos/explorations/ex1806/background/explorers/explorers.html Home page of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research website (so you don’t miss future expeditions): https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/welcome.html Time to get back to exploring!

Hi Reddit! We’re NOAA Fisheries scientists Cali Turner Tomaszewicz and Larisa Avens. We study sea turtles using a combination of cutting-edge technologies and we’re excited to share our latest research with you during NOAA Sea Turtle Week (June 11-15). Sea turtles are notoriously difficult to track during their formative years. For a long time, it was unknown where juvenile sea turtles were living and feeding. Hatchlings would depart their nesting beach and show up again years later much larger with little indication of where they had gone and how they had survived. New technology and research methods allow us to not only accurately age sea turtles, but also examine chemical signatures in their bones to determine their diet, location, and health at certain points of their life. Valuable information like this can tell us a lot about sea turtle range and foraging habits, helping us more effectively protect their habitat and food sources. We have even adapted this information into tools such as TurtleWatch, which provides real time predictions of where turtles are most likely to occur based on sea surface temperatures. These predictions are communicated to fishermen who can avoid these hotspot areas, thus preventing potential sea turtle bycatch in their fishing gear. If you are interested in sea turtles and the people who spend their lives studying them, this is your chance to learn more from NOAA scientists. We’ll be here from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET. Ask us anything!

Thanks for all your insightful questions. This was really thought-provoking and I enjoyed answering every one of them. Find me on twitter as @thorogoodchris1 or Instagram @IllustratingBotanist

Hello Reddit! I am excited to talk with you today. I’m Dr. Megin Nichols and I’m a veterinary epidemiologist at CDC. I work on multistate outbreaks of Salmonella and E. coli infections that come from exposure to animals or animal products. I’ve worked on outbreaks of illnesses linked to backyard flocks, petting zoos, small turtles, livestock, and even puppies! In 2017, we saw the largest number of Salmonella infections from contact with chickens and ducks in backyard flocks. There were over 1,000 illnesses, and those are just the ones reported to us. For every one person with Salmonella infection we identify as part of these outbreaks, we estimate another 30 people are sick too. This means in the US last year alone there might have been as many as 30,000 illnesses as a result of contact with live poultry! The good news is there are simple prevention steps you can take to stay healthy and enjoy your backyard flock. Ask me anything! I’ll be back at 1:00 p.m. EDT and I’ll do my best to answer as many of your questions as I can. Additional resources: · Visit CDC’s webpage on keeping backyard flocks: https://www.cdc.gov/features/salmonellapoultry/index.html · Read up on last year’s outbreaks: https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/live-poultry-06-17/index.html · Find additional information on keeping chickens, ducks, and other animals: https://www.cdc.gov/healthypets/pets/farm-animals/backyard-poultry.html

The Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) Europe is hosting the 28th European annual meeting this week in Rome, Italy and has asked experts from across academia, government and industry to answer questions on an array of environmental issues and human health. We will have experts across a range of environmental science topics, pesticides, chemical risk assessment, microplastics, nanotechnology, personal care products and pharmaceuticals (in the environment), endocrine disruptors, metals in the environment, environmental disasters (such as oil spills), alternatives to animal testing, science communication and many more. – we’ll try to get you the best possible answers according to the latest science. Please do note that we are asking members of the society who represent researchers from a variety of disciplines and sectors; the answers are not official SETAC positions. We encourage discussion and debate! Just please keep it professional. For more information on SETAC go to www.setac.org Post your question and the organizers of the conference will find someone to answer it as soon as possible. Answers to questions will begin at 2 PM CEST, Rome time (1 PM /CET, 8 AM ECT/EDT, 4 AM PST, 7 AM/EST) and continue till 6 PM CEST, Rome time (5 PM/CET, 12 PM ECT/EDT, 8 AM PST, 11 AM/EST), with a few breaks.

I’m Duncan Pritchard, Chancellor’s Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Irvine, and Professor of Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh. I work mainly in epistemology. In my first book, Epistemic Luck, (Oxford UP, 2005), I argued for a distinctive methodology that I call anti-luck epistemology, and along the way offered a modal account of luck. In my second book, The Nature and Value of Knowledge: Three Investigations, (with A. Haddock & A. Millar), (Oxford UP, 2010), I expanded on anti-luck epistemology to offer a new theory of knowledge (anti-luck virtue epistemology), and also explained how knowledge relates to such cognate notions as understanding and cognitive achievement. I also discussed the topic of epistemic value. In my third book, Epistemological Disjunctivism, (Oxford UP, 2012), I defended a radical conception of perceptual knowledge, one that treats such knowledge as paradigmatically supported by reasons that are both rational and reflectively accessible. In my most recent book, Epistemic Angst: Radical Skepticism and the Groundlessness of Our Believing, (Princeton UP, 2015), I offer an innovative response to the problem of radical scepticism. This argues that what looks like a single problem is in fact two logically distinct problems in disguise. Accordingly, I argue that we need a ‘biscopic’ resolution to scepticism that is suitably sensitive to each aspect of the sceptical difficulty. To this end I bring together two approaches to radical scepticism that have hitherto been thought to be competing, but which I argue are in fact complementary—viz., epistemological disjunctivism and a Wittgensteinian hinge epistemology. Right now I’m working on a new book on scepticism as part of Oxford UP’s ‘a very short introduction to’ series. I’m also developing my recent work on risk and luck, particularly with regard to epistemic risk, and I’m interested in ‘applied’ topics in epistemology, such as the epistemology of education, the epistemology of law, the epistemology of religious belief, and the epistemological implications of extended cognition. I’m the Editor-in-Chief of the online journal Oxford Bibliographies: Philosophy, and co-Editor-in-Chief of the journal International Journal for the Study of Skepticism. I am also the series editor of two book series, Palgrave Innovations in Philosophy and Brill Studies in Skepticism. I’ve edited a lot of volumes, and also written/edited several textbooks. On the latter front, see especially What is this Thing Called Philosophy?, (Routledge, 2015), Epistemology, (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016), and What is this Thing Called Knowledge?, (Routledge, 4th ed. 2018). I’ve been involved with numerous MOOCs (= Massive Open Online Courses), including the ‘Introduction to Philosophy’ course which was for one time the world’s most popular MOOC. I’ve also been involved with a successful Philosophy in Prisons programme. I’ve led quite a few large externally funded projects, often of an interdisciplinary nature. Some highlights include a major AHRC-funded project (c. £510K) on Extended Knowledge, and two Templeton-funded projects, Philosophy, Science and Religion Online (c. £1.5M), and Intellectual Humility MOOC (c. £400K). In 2007 I was awarded the Philip Leverhulme Prize and in 2011 I was elected to a Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. In 2013 I delivered the annual Soochow Lectures in Philosophy in Taiwan. My Google Scholar Profile is here. If you want to know what will eventually cause my demise, click here. Links of Interest: I was recently interviewed by 3AM: Magazine Another recent interview, this time with the Italian online journal, APhEx (PDF) The Introduction to my latest monograph, Epistemic Angst: Radical Skepticism and the Groundlessness of Our Believing (Princeton UP, 2015) “Epistemological Disjunctivism: A First Pass”, the opening chapter to Epistemological Disjunctivism (Oxford UP, 2012) A fairly recent video of a talk I gave at a conference in Bonn that gives an overview of my stance on radical scepticism A fairly recent video of a talk on ‘Faith and Reason’ that I gave to a conference (aimed at a general audience) organized by the Royal Institute of Philosophy A ‘research in a nutshell’ video that I recorded a few years ago A recent blog post on ‘Intellectual Humility and Conviction’, for the Open For Debate Blog A recent blog post on ‘Farewell to Epistemic Angst’, for the Imperfect Cognitions Blog “The Value of Knowledge”, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy article EDIT: Thanks everyone for your questions! I apologise to all those I didn’t get to, and thanks to everyone for having me.

Edit: Thanks everyone! We’re stepping away for now but might check back for new questions later. This was a blast, thanks for the great questions! -Eric and John Hi! I’m John Hawks and I’m a paleoanthropologist at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. I study the fossil and genetic evidence for human origins. I’ve done fieldwork around the world, most recently in South Africa with Lee Berger, where our team has uncovered the fossils of Homo naledi in the Rising Star cave system. Our origins are a big topic, and I’m here to share some of the new perspectives on human origins coming from fossil and genetic discoveries. Many old ideas have changed in the face of new evidence, and it’s an exciting field that changes every day. Where did we come from, and how did we get here? That’s what we’re studying. I’m on Twitter @johnhawks. And I’m Eric Wilcots and I’m a professor of astronomy at UW–Madison. I study how galaxies acquire the gas they need to form stars, and what role the environments of galaxies play in the process. My work involves a number of telescopes around the world, including the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) in Sutherland, South Africa. UW–Madison is the second-largest partner outside the South African government in maintaining and running the telescope, which became operational in 2005. I have been involved since 2000 and I am currently a member of SALT’s board. At SALT and other telescopes around the globe (including radio telescopes, too), my team and I ask questions that are helping us understand the ecology of galaxy groups, which is the most common environment in which galaxies reside. It’s a bit different from the observing I did with my first telescope as an 8-year-old kid in Philadelphia, but it’s been rewarding all the same. I’m especially passionate about working with students and sharing astronomy with people who don’t necessarily study it. In fact, one of my favorite public outreach events is Universe in the Park, a free, weekly “star party” in state parks all over Wisconsin. It attracts more than 4,000 people each summer! I also help steer the annual Wisconsin Science Festival, which brings science into communities all over the state. I suppose I would be remiss if I did not also mention that I once made an appearance as a “Way Cool Scientist” in an early episode of Bill Nye the Science Guy. Along with my graduate student, Julie Davis, John, our colleague Clark Johnson in geoscience and tons of other partners in Wisconsin and South Africa, I’ve been part of UW–Madison’s Origins storytelling project for the last year. We’re really excited to share this project with you by answering questions today about some of the biggest mysteries in nature, like where everything we see around us comes from. You can check out more at origins.wisc.edu.

The moderators of /r/philosophy are pleased to announce an upcoming AMA by Professor Duncan Pritchard, Chancellor’s Professor of Philosophy, UC Irvine & Professor of Philosophy, University of Edinburgh. This AMA is the seventh in our Spring 2018 AMA Series; you can find more details on all of this semester’s AMAs with philosophers by going to the AMA Hub Post. You can find all of our previous AMAs over the years by going to the AMA wiki. Professor Pritchard will be joining us on Monday May 7th at 1PM EDT to discuss issues in epistemology and scepticism. Hear it from him: Duncan Pritchard I’m Chancellor’s Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Irvine, and Professor of Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh. I work mainly in epistemology. In my first book, Epistemic Luck, (Oxford UP, 2005), I argued for a distinctive methodology that I call anti-luck epistemology, and along the way offered a modal account of luck. In my second book, The Nature and Value of Knowledge: Three Investigations, (with A. Haddock & A. Millar), (Oxford UP, 2010), I expanded on anti-luck epistemology to offer a new theory of knowledge (anti-luck virtue epistemology), and also explained how knowledge relates to such cognate notions as understanding and cognitive achievement. I also discussed the topic of epistemic value. In my third book, Epistemological Disjunctivism, (Oxford UP, 2012), I defended a radical conception of perceptual knowledge, one that treats such knowledge as paradigmatically supported by reasons that are both rational and reflectively accessible. In my most recent book, Epistemic Angst: Radical Skepticism and the Groundlessness of Our Believing, (Princeton UP, 2015), I offer an innovative response to the problem of radical scepticism. This argues that what looks like a single problem is in fact two logically distinct problems in disguise. Accordingly, I argue that we need a ‘biscopic’ resolution to scepticism that is suitably sensitive to each aspect of the sceptical difficulty. To this end I bring together two approaches to radical scepticism that have hitherto been thought to be competing, but which I argue are in fact complementary—viz., epistemological disjunctivism and a Wittgensteinian hinge epistemology. Right now I’m working on a new book on scepticism as part of Oxford UP’s ‘a very short introduction to’ series. I’m also developing my recent work on risk and luck, particularly with regard to epistemic risk, and I’m interested in ‘applied’ topics in epistemology, such as the epistemology of education, the epistemology of law, the epistemology of religious belief, and the epistemological implications of extended cognition. I’m the Editor-in-Chief of the online journal Oxford Bibliographies: Philosophy, and co-Editor-in-Chief of the journal International Journal for the Study of Skepticism. I am also the series editor of two book series, *Palgrave Innovations in Philosophy and Brill Studies in Skepticism. I’ve edited a lot of volumes, and also written/edited several textbooks. On the latter front, see especially What is this Thing Called Philosophy?, (Routledge, 2015), Epistemology, (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016), and What is this Thing Called Knowledge?, (Routledge, 4th ed. 2018). I’ve been involved with numerous MOOCs (= Massive Open Online Courses), including the ‘Introduction to Philosophy’ course which was for one time the world’s most popular MOOC. I’ve also been involved with a successful Philosophy in Prisons programme. I’ve led quite a few large externally funded projects, often of an interdisciplinary nature. Some highlights include a major AHRC-funded project (c. £510K) on Extended Knowledge, and two Templeton-funded projects, Philosophy, Science and Religion Online (c. £1.5M), and Intellectual Humility MOOC (c. £400K). In 2007 I was awarded the Philip Leverhulme Prize and in 2011 I was elected to a Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. In 2013 I delivered the annual Soochow Lectures in Philosophy in Taiwan. My Google Scholar Profile is here. If you want to know what will eventually cause my demise, click here. Links of Interest: I was recently interviewed by 3AM: Magazine Another recent interview, this time with the Italian online journal, APhEx (PDF) The Introduction to my latest monograph, Epistemic Angst: Radical Skepticism and the Groundlessness of Our Believing (Princeton UP, 2015) “Epistemological Disjunctivism: A First Pass”, the opening chapter to Epistemological Disjunctivism (Oxford UP, 2012) A fairly recent video of a talk I gave at a conference in Bonn that gives an overview of my stance on radical scepticism A fairly recent video of a talk on ‘Faith and Reason’ that I gave to a conference (aimed at a general audience) organized by the Royal Institute of Philosophy A ‘research in a nutshell’ video that I recorded a few years ago A recent blog post on ‘Intellectual Humility and Conviction’, for the Open For Debate Blog A recent blog post on ‘Farewell to Epistemic Angst’, for the Imperfect Cognitions Blog “The Value of Knowledge”, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy article AMA Please feel free to post questions for Professor Pritchard here. He will look at this thread before he starts and begin with some questions from here while the initial questions in the new thread come in. Please join me in welcoming Professor Pritchard to our community!