Science Live: The Human

Grantor: Ministry of Science and Higher Education

Funding Amount: 219,340 PLN

Project Number: POPUL/SN/0130/2023/01

Project Duration: September 1, 2023 – August 31, 2025

In this project, we aim to work with invited researchers and popularizers to present to a broad audience the latest discoveries and findings in various scientific fields (from biology, the main area of the project, through medical sciences, psychology, to archaeology, physics, and astronomy) that are crucial for understanding our nature, origins, place in nature, and relationships with other elements of it. Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of science is that some questions – especially those about ourselves – never age and always inspire deeper reflection, search for meaning, and contemplation of our values.

The project consists of four modules: 1) Human Origins, 2) Human Body, 3) Human Mind, 4) Human in the Universe.

Module 1: Human Origins We will trace the phylogeny of our genus – discussing the evolution of hominids at the end of the Miocene and in the Pliocene, presenting the systematics of the genus Homo and the history of the discovery of various hominin populations. We will describe the latest discoveries in stone age archaeology and paleoanthropology, the debates in these fields, the methods used, the emergence of our species, our ancestors’ connections with other human populations, early migrations, and the colonization of different continents. We will explain the evolutionary mechanisms that led to the emergence of modern humans.

Module 2: Human Body We will focus on new anatomical, medical, and biotechnological discoveries: what we know and still do not know about the functioning of our body, the emergence of diseases that are the greatest challenge to modern healthcare (e.g., cancer, cardiovascular diseases, obesity) and prospects for their treatment. We will present new findings in genetics and new methods used in this field, advances in regenerative and personalized medicine, and attempts to slow down or halt the aging process.

Module 3: Human Mind We will discuss the progress in mapping our brain (e.g., within the Human Brain Project), attempts to scientifically explain consciousness, the brain’s connections with other body parts (e.g., the microbiome), the latest neuroimaging techniques, neurodegenerative diseases, the development and treatment of mental disorders, cognitive biases we systematically succumb to, differences and similarities between human and animal minds, and the breakthrough in artificial intelligence development.

Module 4: Human in the Universe We will describe our knowledge about the evolution of the cosmos, which includes the evolution of life on Earth, the search for life on other planets, and the effects of various human activities on the environment.

Each of these four modules will include a series of convergent activities: organizing live-streamed popular science lectures (4 for each module), a series of podcasts (4 episodes for each module), and a series of video materials (4 videos for each module).