Ep. 40: Roundtable on the Importance of Science Communication with Dan and Gabe from TheSciCommunity
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
Release Date: 12/13/2018
Risk and Reward in Alzheimer's disease
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
Alzheimer's Disease Risk and Reward When they hear about my work as a neurodegeneration researcher, people always ask me about Alzheimer's disease risk factors. What really causes Alzheimer's disease? Plaque and tangle buildup The truth is there's no one secret to staving off dementia, other than living your best life. This doesn't mean following every impulse, but rather thinking clearly about your habits and consciously making those good habits easier to access. Better lucky than good, but in this case it helps to be both. The kicker is that stress is...
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Deep Brain Degeneration in Alzheimer’s Disease with Dr. Lea Grinberg & Research Team
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
Deep Brain Degeneration in Alzheimer’s Disease with Dr. Lea Grinberg & Research Team Losing Control from the Locus Coeruleus, starring Jonathan Chen, Felipe Pereira, and Ian Oh This episode kicks off a series all about my recent work in neurodegenerative disease, with a an emphasis on Alzheimer’s disease, a devastating and complex dementia and a major focus of my (Dr. Connor Wander’s) dissertation at UNC Chapel Hill. And where better to start than where the first major pathological changes of tau, a disordered protein that goes dysfunctional in the brain, begins to accumulate and kill...
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Season 2 Episode 1: Neural Networks on Noradrenaline
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
This episode is about neural networks on noradrenaline- the key neuromodulator known to flip almost every switch in the brain! Drs. Esteban Oryarzabal and Connor Wander break down how noradrenaline, or norepinephrine help regulate brain states useful for attention and task-switching. The studies here cover a whole new way to interpret brain imaging studies, which could have huge implications for neuroscience everywhere! Youtube link: https://youtu.be/NyMQhw5NpG4 Please note that this episode is special- it's a preview from research that hasn't fully undergone peer review. ...
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Ep56- Unlocking Genetic Regulation
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
How did you get so put together? DNA is the blueprint, but it doesn't determine everything. DNA gets turned into RNA, and then finally into proteins that help build your body and brain. But there are SO many steps in that process that affect the final product- you. The sum of these steps is a process called genetic regulation. Genetic regulation makes sure that not all of our genes are expressed and turned into protein at the same time and same place- that would be a mess! This episode is all about genetic regulation by long, non-coding RNAs...
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Ep55- Fetal Vulnerability to Cannabis and Alcohol
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
Marijuana and other cannabis products are becoming increasingly available across the country, and while compounds like CBD have been shown to be safe and even helpful in adults, the side effects of cannabis products are relatively unknown when it comes to the developing fetus. We've known that alcohol causes birth defects for over 40 years, causing a condition called Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) and the greater spectrum of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders . But alcohol isn't the only commonly used substance to cause birth defects. Dr. Parnell's lab and others shows that...
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E54- Supermassive Black Holes in Dwarf Galaxies
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
This week's episode is about the big things in life- specifically, supermassive black holes in dwarf galaxies! Connor Wander sits down with Mugdha Polimera from UNC to talk about her work studying supermassive black holes and how their frequency in dwarf (smaller) galaxies can teach us about the formation of the universe. She quite literally looks back in time! Mugdha explains how she studies such huge elements so far away, what her studies could mean for our understanding of the universe, reviews her journey to be an astrophysicist, comments on some popular science myths,...
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Ep 53 - How Bacteria Survive the Immune System
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
This episode is all about bad bugs. Specifically, a flesh-eating bacteria strain called Staphylococcus aureus (S.aureus). S. aureus is a very common bacteria that's best known for becoming resistant to antibiotics, and becoming MRSA. Bacteria and the immune system are always at war with each other. Antibiotics can give the body the edge in this battle, but common resistance is making this much harder in hospitals and homes across the world. Bacteria survive these antibiotics and the immune system is left to clean up the mess. Currently, S. aureus is a major...
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Ep 52 - Diabetes and Placental Epigenetics
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
This weeks episode combines several topics you may have heard of, but never thought about in the same context! Diabetes and epigenetics are two well-researched topics, but not in the context of fetal development. During pregnancy, the placenta is the highway that connects a mother and fetus, so when epigenetics act on the placenta, they could have huge effects on development of the fetus and/or the mother. We break it down straight from a scientist in this episode with Laetitia Myeyruix from in the . I learned a LOT from this episode, and I'm sure you...
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Ep. 51 – New Cancer Therapies & Targeting Cancer Biology
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
Join Lebaron (Lee) Agostini and Connor Wander in our FIRST VIDEO episode! This episode is all about Cancer Biology. Lee studies experimental cancer therapies for pancreatic cancer. New cancer therapies called combination or synergystic cancer therapies use multiple drug types to shut down, corner, and eliminate cancer cells in the body. The of this episode is available on Nov 5th at 7PM EST ! Head on over to our check it out there! Also streaming (audio only) on all the usual platforms. Further information Here's a recent paper from Lee and his lab at Jefferson University: Any...
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Ep.50 - Alzheimer's disease FAQ
The Straight from a Scientist Podcast
What is Alzheimer's disease? Who can get Alzheimer's, and how does the disease progress? Maya Gostyla and Connor Wander break down the state of Alzheimer's disease treatments, risk factors, and potential breakthroughs in the field. Related Episodes If you like this episode, we have tons of You can hear more about Further Reading about Alzheimer's disease from the experts on where Alzheimer's research and therapies are today. For more in-depth analysis of developments in AD and other neurodegenerative diseases, check out for Alzheimer’s disease background reading....
info_outlineTo honor our recent collaboration with TheSciCommunity, we sat down with the founders Dan and Gabe and discussed the importance of science communication. Dan and Gabe share their values and mission to spread science in a transparent and direct way. Also in this episode, we discuss our pathways into science, how to improve the dialogue between scientists and the public, and fake news. We also talk about the Skype A Scientist program that connects scientists with classrooms around the world. Finally, we answer the question: Is scicomm enough?
About Dan
Dan is a science writer and founder of Instagram's theSciCommunity, a science-centered networking page that strives to bring scientists and science enthusiasts from all over the world together to share their love of the STEAM fields. Dan strives to prove to as many people willing to listen that science is for everyone.
Connect with Dan on Instagram.
About Gabe
Gabe Santos is a paleontologist from Los Angeles, California where he is the Collections Manager and Outreach Coordinator for the Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology. As Collections Manager, Gabe is responsible for the care, cataloging, and organization of the Alf Museum’s research fossils. Also as Outreach Coordinator, he organizes the museum’s outreach and education programs, such as Skype in the Classroom and Discovery Days. Gabe also assists in teaching the Museum After School program. He received his B.Sc. in biology at University of California-Irvine, and his M.Sc. in geology at California State University-Fullerton. His research interests focus on the Eocene vertebrate fauna of Southern California and the paleobiology of marine mammals, particularly in the extinct hippo-like desmostylians. Gabe is also an active science communicator and co-founder of the Cosplay for Science Initiative, which connects pop culture with science education to make science more relatable and scientists more approachable.
Connect with Gabe on Instagram.
Also check out Cosplay for Science.
More Information
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Want to learn more about science communication? Listen to Episode 20: Biomedical Engineering and Science Education with Stephanie Teeter to hear a discussion about difficulties in science education recorded at ComSciCon Triangle.
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