Speaker:

Prof. Stuart Firestein

Professor of Neuroscience, Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, USA;

Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS);

Distinguished Cognitive Neuroscientist.

Main Content:

The value of pursuing “ignorance” in science lies not only in its ability to yield new facts or knowledge, but, more importantly, in guiding us toward “better ignorance”—that is, toward higher-quality and more sophisticated questions. It is the depth of these questions that ultimately determines the value of science. While failure may appear negative at first, it can help us recognize a deeper layer of ignorance: the things we “do not know we do not know.” Doubt and uncertainty are precisely what allow intuition and creativity to become part of the scientific process. Perhaps counterintuitively, it is ignorance, failure, doubt, and uncertainty—these seemingly most negative and daunting challenges in science—that constitute the very source of science’s exhilarating and enduring optimism.

Time:

Thursday, January 29, 2026

10:00 - 11:30

Hosts:

Prof. Zhou Tongquan, Prof. Wu Jinjin

Organizers:

School of Foreign Languages;

International Cooperation Department, SEU

Venue:

Room 821, 8th Floor, School of Foreign Languages, New Liberal Arts Building, Jiulonghu Campus, SEU