Monday, June 22, 2020

Professor canceled for genomics work

Professor Steve Hsu has been fired as an Michigan State U administrator. He is largely known for is podcast interviews of various intellectuals, and promoting genomic research.

Here is a typical critic:
To me, though, it seems that he’s using Neanderthals and Homo Erectus and “things” with “really tiny brains” as a proxy for people of African heritage. He even went and said he wouldn’t want his daughter to marry a Neanderthal!
More recently, he had a podcast guest who said that there is no widespread racial bias in police shootings, based on the best published research.

Is there anyone who wants his daughter to marry a Neanderthal?

Saying Neanderthals are a "proxy for people of African heritage" is especially strange. Neanderthals were the least African people on Earth. I have more direct African heritage than the Neanderthals did.

It is also correct that the academic research on police shootings has shown that there is no widespread racial bias. Black criminals get shot at about the same rate as White criminals.

Hsu is obviously not a White supremacist, as he is not White. I have listened to many of his podcasts, and never heard anything offensive. Perhaps the most offensive thing is to say he favors eugenics, because he is involved with a startup company that does genetic screening to reduce birth defects. He has also talked about screening for positive traits also. This technology scares people, but the technology is getting better, and the Chinese are likely to use it even if we aren't.

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