science wire

The mathematical mind does not take weekends off. It is a way of looking at the world - its shapes, its patterns, its tendencies - that finds expression just as readily on a sleepy Sunday as any other day of the week.

The University of Oxford has released a set of sample questions from tutors who conduct Oxford s. Students applying for experimental psychology might be asked to speculate why research appears to show older siblings have higher IQs than their younger counterparts, while aspiring doctors might be asked to explain why the death rate from cancer is so much higher in the UK than in the Philippines.

Transparency has been a buzz word ever since President Barack Obama was criticized for running one of the most secretive administrations ever.

In line with the current Semester Question "How are we living in the digital future?", the philosopher Mark Coeckelbergh addresses with his research the cause and effects of digitisation entering our lives.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — If God is seen as infallible and morally perfect, how can that view be reconciled with the portrayals of a wrathful God in the Old Testament? The rabbis of ancient Judaism expressed their uncertainty by arguing with God.

The UCL Academy has achieved 'good' in all key areas in its latest Ofsted inspection and several aspects of the school's work have been identified as outstanding.

Donald Trump's recent resistance to cut ties with his personal businesses suggests that he is unconcerned by the appearance that he may benefit financially from being president of the United States.

Men are two to three times more likely than women to be mentioned when it comes to discussing sport and sporting achievement, according to new research by language experts at Cambridge University Press. Women get far less airtime than men and their physical appearance and personal lives are frequently mentioned.

What is our place in the natural world - and how do we feel about the scientific advances that are changing the way we live?  In her book Making a Good Life , Dr Katharine Dow explores the ethics of

As a PhD student in philosophy, Rebecca Millsop is working on doctoral research that's a little different than most at MIT.

Andy Martin (Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages) discusses existentialism and the EU referendum.

Internationally renowned Professor Julian Hughes is announced as the first RICE Professor of Old Age Psychiatry in a collaboration between The Research Institute for the Care of Older People (RICE), the Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust (RUH) and the University of Bristol.

Leading theologians have called on the Church of England to recognise and celebrate same-sex relationships at its forthcoming General Synod, warning that to take a hard line on the subject would be "suicidal".

Driverless cars pose a quandary when it comes to safety. These autonomous vehicles are programmed with a set of safety rules, and it is not hard to construct a scenario in which those rules come into conflict with each other. Suppose a driverless car must either hit a pedestrian or swerve in such a way that it crashes and harms its passengers.

Sensors stitched into a cap pick up the brain's electrical activity, providing researchers with real-time information on how the brain reacts to various situations.

Americans are living in a culture of outrage, one fueled by the belief that anger and retribution are central to achieving justice, political change and power.

UChicago's 100-year-old Renaissance Society recently teamed up with one of the University's newest entities-the Stevanovich Institute on the Formation of Knowledge - for a discussion of how doubt permeates questions of identity, language, and what we know (or think we know) about sex and science.

Eighty years ago, hundreds of Americans traveled to Berlin to attend the Summer Olympics. The Nazis passed the infamous Nuremberg Laws a year earlier, which denied German Jews basic rights of citizenship.

The UCL Centre for Ethics and Law ('CEL') is delighted to endorse and release the following statement in support of the London Anti-Corruption Summit by leading professional services organisations, reflecting their commitment to tackling corruption in the global economy.

Shedding new light on the nature of human experience by combining phenomenology, emotion theory, and psychiatry - this distinctive approach has led Matthew Ratcliffe to exceptional research results.

California recently joined Oregon, Washington, Vermont and Montana in legalizing physician-assisted suicide.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A new paper by a University of Illinois legal scholar offers a novel interpretation of contract law. The theory, dubbed "contract as empowerment," can help adjudicate contemporary debates over the proper shape of the law that governs many different markets - from those in consumer goods to labor, finance, credit and mortgages, among many others, said Robin B. Kar , a University of Illinois professor of law and of philosophy.

By Shilo Rea / 412-268-6094 / shilo [a] cmu (p) edu Alex John London, an acclaimed bioethicist at Carnegie Mellon University, has been appointed to the Committee on Clinical Trials During the 2014-15 Ebola Outbreak by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.

The ideas of physicist Nima Arkani-Hamed have revolutionized the field of particle theory over the last decade.

Becoming unemployed changes people's morals around the distribution of money, says a new study from The University of Nottingham. Understanding how becoming unemployed affects people's reasoning is important. Unemployment and the poverty it causes are associated with depression, anxiety, stress, low well-being and self-esteem.

Would you kill an innocent person to save five others? If, like most people, you said no, it may be because following moral rules such as "don't kill innocent people" sends a powerful social signal that you are trustworthy. New research suggests people perceive those who hold fast to these moral rules - even when breaking them might lead to better overall consequences - as more trustworthy and valued social partners than those who would be willing to override the rules for the sake of the greater good.

"Everyone is talking about food. Chefs and food critics have become celebrities.

Would you kill one innocent person to save five? Choose your answer wisely: your popularity may depend on it. New research from Oxford University shows people gauge others' trustworthiness based on their moral judgements. The findings can help explain why snap judgements about morality tend to be based on a set of absolute moral rules (such as 'don't kill innocent people'), even if we might make different decisions when given more time.

An exciting new initiative which aims to complement schools' Welsh Baccalaureate studies on global citizenship has been piloted by the University.

Turns out everyone does have a price - even babies. Babies as young as 12 months will take a smaller offering from a Good Samaritan than a larger one from a wrongdoer. However, children are much more willing to "do business" with the bad guy when their offer is substantially higher than the do-gooder's, a new study published in the journal Cognition shows.

Statement from Associate Professor Jon Willis, Director and Manager of Academic Programs, UQ Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Unit: The University of Queensland does not have an official

Genomic research holds great potential to advance human health and medicine. But for the millions of data points now being collected through large-scale sequencing efforts to be truly valuable, they must be analyzed in aggregate and shared across institutions and jurisdictions.

Professor Penney Lewis of The Dickson Poon School of Law , King's College London has today been appointed as an Authority Member to the Human Tissue Authority (HTA) by the Secretary of State for Health.

A Lancaster University-based designer is exhibiting his work at Brantwood, the former home of John Ruskin in Coniston, this spring.

In partnership with the Rock Ethics Institute, Penn State Today's feature column, "Ask an Ethicist," aims to shed light on ethical questions from our readers.

A Lancaster University Professor has been commended for his book which brings Indian and Western religious and philosophical ideas together.

ANN ARBOR-Employees who expose unethical behavior in organizations often face retaliation for speaking up. But company leaders who blow the whistle on such activity are less likely to be sanctioned, University of Michigan researchers say. In fact, in some cases, leaders can even be ostracized if they don't speak up, they say.

THREE QUESTIONS TO. Nancy Pedersen, professor at the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and one of the arrangers of a meeting for the Professors' Collegium, a discussion forum for all of KI's professors, on 22 February.

Following the relevations concerning the researcher and surgeon Paolo Macchiarini's actions, a number of investigations and other measures have been initiated. ...at Karolinska Institutet The inquiry into scientific misconduct is being reopened. Following fresh information, including new details about the first patient, whose case forms the bases of some of Paolo Macchiarini's articles, KI intends to reopen the inquiry into scientific misconduct.

The University has received a top rating from Research Councils UK (RCUK) for its expenditure in relation to research grants, fellowships and doctoral training grants as well as ethics in Research.

How likely are you to take a bullet for somebody? University of Queensland researchers have helped develop a way of predicting the strength of your convictions.

The College of Arts and Sciences' new home in Klarman Hall will host a series of "Big Ideas" panels as part of its New Century for the Humanities celebration.

As intelligent machines continue to make their way into all sectors of society, a growing number of scientists, ethicists, policymakers, and business executives are converging on the idea that more thought must be given to underlying issues of machines and morality.

ANN ARBOR-Corporate ethics compliance programs have flourished since the federal government gave companies that established one a break on fines and penalties in 1991.