American Philosophical Society

Bonnie Bassler. Photo by Alena Soboleva Election to the American Philosophical Society honors extraordinary accomplishments in all fields. Those accomplishments don’t end upon induction, however. In this week’s APS Member News Digest, read about the Copley Medal, civility versus collegiality, and optimism about our scientific future.

“Perfect as is the wing of a bird, it never could raise the bird up without resting on air. Facts are the air of a scientist. Without them you never can fly. Without them your “theories” are vain efforts.” Ivan Pavlov (1849–1936) was a Russian neurologist, physiologist, and surgeon best known for discovering classical conditioning through experiments with dogs. He led the Institute of Experimental Medicine in Russia for 45 years, and worked diligently for scientific reform.

Elizabeth Graeme Fergusson It was Saturday night. Elizabeth Graeme rushed to put the house in order, preparing refreshments and reorganizing the furniture. In the early 1760s, on the north side of Chestnut Street between Seventh and Sixth Streets, Graeme opened her home each week to the writers, artists, and philosophers of Philadelphia. It was her night. With the expected grace of an eighteenth-century hostess, Graeme had skillfully engineered acceptable transgression.

Image from Lee Friedlander: Life Still (Aperture, 2026). © 2026 Lee Friedlander. Courtesy Lee Friedlander; Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco; and Luhring Augustine, New York. Election to the American Philosophical Society honors extraordinary accomplishments in all fields. Those accomplishments don’t end upon induction, however. In this week’s APS Member News Digest, read about comedic photography, storytelling and its relation to history, and whether leaders make a difference.

“Science is competitive, aggressive, demanding. It is also imaginative, inspiring, uplifting. You can do it, too.” Vera Rubin (1928–2016) was an American astronomer best known for her pioneering work on galaxy rotation rates. This work helped Rubin prove the existence of dark matter.

Terence Tao, photo by David Esquivel for UCLA Election to the American Philosophical Society honors extraordinary accomplishments in all fields. Those accomplishments don’t end upon induction, however. In this week’s APS Member News Digest, read about AI and mathematics, how brain cells create feeling, and recommendations for avoiding chronic disease.

“There are three great questions which in life we have over and over again to answer. Is it right or wrong? Is it true or false? Is it beautiful or ugly? Our education ought to help us to answer these questions.” Sir John Lubbock, 4th Baronet, (1834–1913) was an English banker, politician, and self-taught natural scientist and polymath who specialized in archaeology, animal science, and entomology. He is known for coining the terms “paleolithic” and “neolithic” in the field of archaeology.

The American Philosophical Society (APS) is pleased to announce the acquisition of the papers of evolutionary biologist Lynn Margulis (1938–2011). Not fully recognized in her time, Margulis is now seen as the greatest challenger to Darwin since Darwin. Now, housed at the APS’sCenter for the History of Science (CHS), her work resides alongside other scientific luminaries.

Photograph from the 10th Macy Conference on Cybernetics held in 1953. Freed is second from left in the second row. Cybernetics, a precursor to contemporary artificial intelligence, was founded on the notion that human brains and machines work in similar ways. The Warren S. McCulloch Papers, held at the American Philosophical Society, record a key moment in the development of cybernetics: the Macy conferences, a series of 10 meetings held from 1946 to 1953.

Robert Tarjan. Photo by David Kelly Crow Election to the American Philosophical Society honors extraordinary accomplishments in all fields. Those accomplishments don’t end upon induction, however. In this week’s APS Member News Digest, read about AI and human curiosity, an “atomized” America, and grade inflation.