Course Description
This series invites Principal Investigators to share cutting-edge research and developments in their fields. Each session includes a 40-45 minute presentation followed by a Q&A or journal club discussion, fostering deeper insights and scholarly exchange. This is an in-person event held in the FAES Learning Labs in Building 10 located on the NIH Main Campus in Bethesda, MD. Lunch is provided on a first come first served basis.
This event is for members of the NIH community only. You must register with your nih.gov email to confirm your registration.
Nominate a speaker from this list of NIH principal investigators here!
Upcoming FAES Science Insight Series Events:
Trust Through Knowledge Grounding: AI Agents in Biomedicine
June 9, 2026 from 11:45 – 1:00 pm ET (must arrive by 12PM)
Location: FAES Learning Labs Classrooms
Speaker: Zhiyong Lu, PhD FACMI, FIAHSI, Senior Investigator, NIH, Professor of Computer Science (Adjunct), UIUC
Recent advances in large language models (LLMs) have enabled powerful AI agents for biomedical research, yet their adoption in high-stakes settings remains limited by concerns about hallucination, opacity, and reliability. In this talk, I discuss how expert-curated domain knowledge can be used to help mitigate these challenges in general-purpose LLMs. Drawing on real-world systems and case studies such as GeneAgent (Nature Methods 2025), I will highlight design principles for building AI agents that are scientifically sound, interpretable, and suitable for biomedical research and clinical applications.
Microscopic Imaging of the Retina in Patients Using Adaptive Optics
July 21, 2026 from 11:45 – 1:00 pm ET (must arrive by 12PM)
Location: FAES Learning Labs Classrooms
Speaker: Johnny Tam, Ph.D., Senior Investigator, Clinical and Translational Imaging Section, NEI
Adaptive optics is a technology used in modern large astronomical telescopes for correcting aberrations in earth’s atmosphere. In this talk, Dr. Tam will describe how adaptive optics has transformed the field of retinal imaging, with examples of new clinical insights from studying patients with rare diseases at the NIH Clinical Center.
Click here to see past Science Insight Series events.
Join FAES for the Following Upcoming Events:
Virtual Information Session: FAES Fall Programming
July 16, 2026 from 12 – 12:30PM ET
Location: Online Synchronous
Join the FAES Academic Programs Team to learn more about our fall courses, workshops, and our scholarship program.
Register now
FAES Educational Webinar Series: What You Can Discover with Single-Cell Sequencing: A Field Guide to scRNA-seq Applications
July 22, 2026, 12PM – 12:30PM ET
Location: Live-Online
Speaker: Rajee Ganesan, Ph.D. Candidate, Carnegie Mellon University (BIOF 555, BIOF 556)
Single-cell RNA sequencing has revolutionized the study of genomics. Here, we
discuss just a few applications of scRNA-seq downstream analysis, ranging from identifying cell-type-specific gene expression to uncovering regulatory evolution across species. We'll show how to use the bioinformatics pipeline established in BIOF 555/BIOF 556 as the foundation for answering large-scale biological questions. Whether you're interested in disease, development, or evolution, learn how to turn single-cell datasets into meaningful biological insights!
Register now
The Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) at NIH seeks to foster education and research in the biomedical sciences by providing instruction at the cutting edge of biological science and its evolving applications. Our goals also include responding to the educational and cultural needs of the NIH community and projecting FAES educational assets globally. All courses and workshops are open to the public. NOTICE OF NONDISCRIMINATORY POLICY AS TO STUDENTS FAES admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin, sex, disability, or age in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship programs, and other school-administered programs.
By registering for this event, you agree to allow FAES to take photographs of you during the event and to use these photos for promotional purposes, including on our website, social media, and marketing materials, without further compensation. You understand that you have no right to review or approve the final use of these images.
