Stuart Firestein is Professor of Neuroscience and former Chair of the Department of Biological Sciences at Columbia University. His laboratory is one of the world’s leading laboratories on the neuroscience of our sense of smell. He has published over 100 scientific papers in journals such as Nature, Science, PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences), Cell and Neuron and presented his work at numerous national and international meetings. He regularly consults for the fragrance and flavor industry.
In addition to his laboratory research Professor Firestein is deeply engaged in science communication and science policy. He is a fellow of the Alfred P Sloan Foundation, a Guggenheim Fellow and recipient of support for his efforts from numerous public and private foundations (e.g., Sloan, Templeton, Mellon). He has published two books on the inner workings of science for a popular audience. Ignorance, how it drives science, was based on a class he originated at Columbia and has now been replicated at the PSL Universities in Paris. Firestein was invited to give a TED talk on Ignorance in 2013 which continues to be among the more popular talks on the TED website, currently with over 3 million views.
A second book, Failure, Why Science is so Successful was published in 2016 and highlights the value of failure, not only as a learning experience but as an integral part of the process of science. Both books have been translated into more than 12 languages and are widely used in university philosophy and science classes and (most gratifyingly ) in many high school classes.
Firestein lectures regularly on these subjects to varied audiences including educators, High School students, University students and faculty, business leaders, development officers, biotech companies, even churches and synagogues. He has lectured throughout Europe and in South America, Asia and New Zealand. He has appeared on numerous NPR and BBC programs. Opinion pieces and essays have appeared in the LA Times, NY times, Wired magazine, Quanta magazine, Nautilus magazine (where he also serves as a member of the advisory board).
In 2022 Firestein joined the Fractal Faculty of the Santa Fe Institute (SFI). The Fractal Faculty are a small group of scientists, writers, artists (others include physicist Sean Carrol, author Andrea Wulf) who are frequently in residence at the Institute.