Recommended Today — May 9, 2011

For other events today and this week, check out the calendar.

Science at Town Hall: Sharon Bertsch McGrayne — Why (and How) Bayes’ Rule Rules

Monday, May 9, 2011, 7:30-9:00pm

Downstairs at Town Hall, enter on Seneca Street (map). $5 on brownpapertickets.com or at the door starting 6:30pm.

Ms McGrayne lives in Seattle and writes books about science and scientists. The Theory That Would Not Die is published this spring and is about Bayes rule, the fascination and controversies that it has sprung and its many many many many applications. Dr. Toad is going to attend.

From the Town Hall Calendar:

Applied practically everywhere from DNA decoding to Homeland Security, Bayes’ rule appears to be a straightforward theorem: By updating our initial beliefs with objective new information, we get a new and improved belief. It would seem an elegant statement about learning from experience; but for centuries, opponents viewed it as subjectivity run amok. Seattleite Sharon Bertsch McGrayne, author of The Theory That Would Not Die: How Bayes’ Rule Cracked the Enigma Code, Hunted Down Russian Submarines & Emerged Triumphant from Two Centuries of Controversy, explores the theorem and the obsessions surrounding it, and how it ignited one of the greatest scientific controversies ever. Presented as part of Seattle Science Lectures, with Pacific Science Center and University Book Store. Series sponsored by Microsoft. Series media sponsorship provided by KPLU.

To learn more: www.mcgrayne.com