Thursday, May 15 — 2:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Chair
Tianyuan Lu
University of Wisconsin–Madison
Dr. Tianyuan Lu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population Health Sciences and the Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from Fudan University and his PhD in Quantitative Life Sciences from McGill University. He was a Schmidt AI in Science Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Toronto before joining UW-Madison. His research focuses on developing and implementing rigorous statistical genetics and genetic epidemiology methods to improve the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of complex diseases, and translating research findings into new medical care approaches and therapies.
Panelists
Lucas Casten
University of Iowa
Lucas Casten is a computational geneticist and PhD candidate at the University of Iowa, where he works in Dr. Jacob Michaelson’s laboratory in the Department of Psychiatry. His research investigates how genetic variation influences human cognition and social behavior, focusing on language abilities – a core element of human social interaction. Lucas has previously published research on genetic factors underlying comorbidities in autism and bipolar disorder. His current work develops novel methods bridging evolutionary genomics with phenotypic variation in modern humans, offering new insights into how ancient genetic innovations continue to shape social and cognitive abilities.
Presentation or paper
A New Timeline for Language Evolution: Insights from a Novel Dating Approach
Bennett McIntosh
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Bennett McIntosh is a PhD candidate in the History of Science, Medicine, and Technology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Using historical and ethnographic techniques, he studies the data practices and data sharing in the contemporary sciences. He holds a BA in chemistry from Princeton University and an MS in science writing from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and worked as a science journalist before arriving at Wisconsin.
Presentation or paper
Reducing or reproducing: Precisely how are social categories geneticized?
Damien Morris
King’s College London
Damien Morris recently earned his PhD in Behavioral Genetics from King’s College London, supervised by Dr. Stuart Ritchie, Dr. Tom McAdams, and Professor Robert Plomin. He also holds a BA (Hons) in Philosophy from the University of Melbourne. His empirical research explores the genetic and environmental influences on cognitive traits and socioeconomic outcomes using longitudinal twin models and extended twin designs. Additionally, Damien writes on the philosophy of social and behavioral genetics, tackling misinterpretations of heritability and discussing the ethical, legal, and social implications of this controversial discipline.
Presentation or paper
Behavioral genetics and human agency: how selectively deterministic theories of free will drive unwarranted opposition to behavioral genetic research and undermine our moral and legal conventions