The evening featured two scientists approaching the mysteries of the natural world from very different angles: David Stern, Ph.D., a Stowers Institute and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator researching plant-insect interaction, and Lars Chittka, Ph.D., Professor of Sensory and Behavioral Ecology at Queen Mary University of London delivered talks on what it means for the smallest brains to think, learn, and interact.

You don’t have to travel to the moon

Stern began by shifting the audience’s sense of scale. “Our universe is a remarkable place,” he said. “But you don’t have to travel to the moon to unravel these mysteries.” Right here on the ground, in the trees, and on the plants we grow for food, are the tiny insects capable of extraordinary biological feats that attracted Stern toward his biggest questions.

Aphids, he explained, inject a complex mixture of molecules into plants, reprogramming them to form structures known as galls. These are not accidental growths, but highly specific, species-dependent forms. Each aphid species engineers its own distinct structure. These galls have existed for millions of years, quietly shaping ecosystems and even human history. When crushed and combined with iron salts, they produce a durable ink once used to write documents like the Declaration of Independence and the Magna Carta.

Stern’s lab has identified a class of proteins—what he calls “BiCYCle proteins”—that aphids use to manipulate plant development. At the center of his research is a deeper molecular question: How do these proteins direct such precise and complex transformations? It is a question that underscores how much biology remains unknown, even in organisms that have existed for millions of years. Our understanding of how these proteins work might one day help scientists find solutions to address the negative impacts of aphids and galls on human agriculture.

The strange little minds that surround us

If Stern’s research reveals how insects reshape the physical world, Chittka’s explores how they perceive and navigate it.

“How much intelligence can you squeeze into one small brain?” Chittka asked, opening a window into the cognitive lives of bees in ways that challenge long-held assumptions about cognition and consciousness in nonhuman species. Once considered little more than “cleverly designed reflex machines,” bees are now understood to possess learning abilities, memory, and forms of problem-solving that rival expectations for far larger brains.

Bees navigate using sensory systems fundamentally different from our own—detecting ultraviolet light, polarized light, and mapping their environments with remarkable precision. They remember the locations of high-value flowers, build internal maps, and communicate that information through behaviors like the waggle dance.

Chittka’s work, combining computational and experimental approaches, has demonstrated that bees can learn socially, innovate individually, and even preserve behavioral traditions. In one striking example, his research confirmed a hypothesis first suggested by Charles Darwin—that bees can learn behaviors such as robbing nectar from other bees—by observing one another.

These findings ask us to consider what intelligence actually is. “Forms of intelligence we’ve associated with species containing large brains… take place in these tiny brains,” Chittka noted. “So, the mystery becomes why does any being need such a large brain when a small one appears to suffice?”

Throughout his talk, Chittka returned to a broader philosophical idea—that human understanding is constrained by our own sensory experience. Bees, he suggested, offer a glimpse into entirely different ways of perceiving and communicating—systems that may feel almost alien, yet exist on this planet. “They are strange little minds that surround us everywhere,” he said.

Each discovery opens new doors

Together, the two talks formed a compelling picture: From the molecular manipulation of plants by aphids to the cognitive complexity of bees, insects reveal both the physical and mental dimensions of life in ways that challenge human assumptions.

In the fireside conversation that followed, Sánchez Alvarado guided the discussion toward shared themes—curiosity, discovery, and the evolving nature of scientific understanding. Both speakers emphasized that their work is not driven by a single defining question, but by continuously unfolding new ones. Each discovery, Chittka noted, opens the door to several new paths to explore.

The evening concluded with questions from the audience, including a notable number from students—an indication of the curiosity and engagement the series aims to inspire. A reception followed, extending the conversation beyond the auditorium, bringing the public into the process of scientific discovery and illuminating why foundational biology matters.

By exploring the minds of insects, the BIG IDEAS event offered something larger—a reminder that intelligence, innovation, and complexity are not confined to human experience, but are woven throughout the living world. And in the smallest of minds, there remain large mysteries yet to be understood.

Learn more about the Stowers Institute's BIG IDEAS lecture series here and watch the full talk here.