In this special episode, my friend Dr. Sharon Abada shares the story of her grandfather, Dr. Marshall Klaus, and how he helped discover a lifesaving treatment for premature infants called surfactant. This story weaves together family, scientific curiosity, failure, and collaboration to tell the story of a treatment that has saved countless lives. You can read Dr. Klaus's paper on the website: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/11/12/season-4-episode-2-lifesaving-treatment-for-premature-infants-an-interview-with-dr-sharon-abada/ More information about the other characters in this story: Dr. Mary Ellen Avery: You can read her paper here: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/article-abstract/499174#google_vignette, and find more information about her here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Ellen_Avery. Dr. John Clements: You can learn more about him here: https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2024/09/428391/john-clements-whose-science-transformed-newborn-care-dies-101. All comments made by Sharon are made in her individual capacity and not on behalf of UCSF, and are not reviewed or approved by UCSF. Erratum: Dr. John Clements's industry partner was Burroughs Wellcome, not Burroughs Williams as stated in the podcast. In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats) Logo credit: Biographics (Jessica Higginbotham, Tania Lintz, and Yolanda Campos Jurado)
Do police disproportionately target Black drivers for traffic stops? This is an important question to ask, but actually answering it poses a surprisingly difficult problem. Join expert Luke Brinkman and guests Sofia Angulo Lopera and Grace Moore to discuss a paper that proposes one way to answer this tricky question. Read the paper here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/10/08/season-4-episode-1-do-police-target-black-drivers-for-traffic-stops/ In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats) Logo credit: Biographics (Jessica Higginbotham, Tania Lintz, and Yolanda Campos Jurado)
Earlier this summer, I participated in a science communication program in combination with the Pain Research Forum and the North American Pain School. As part of this program, I had the honor of interviewing Jessica Merlin – a clinical pain researcher focusing on the intersection of chronic pain and opioid misuse/use disorder across populations and settings. During their wide-ranging conversation, Merlin detailed her nonlinear career path, her beginnings in research in chronic pain of HIV patients, and her current passion of providing palliative care in addiction treatment settings. Jessica Merlin, MD, PhD, is a professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania, USA. Merlin is a prolific pain researcher who has authored more than 110 original, peer-reviewed articles addressing pain management in populations with substance misuse/use disorder. She is an active clinician, including as co-director of a palliative care program for individuals with serious illness who also have a substance use disorder. For more from the Pain Research Forum, including other interviews from my fellow PRF-NAPS Correspondents, visit their website: https://www.iasp-pain.org/publications/pain-research-forum/
Science can be found everywhere, even in your favorite board games, books, and video games! In this fun-filled episode of In Plain English, I sat down with James Reed of Science Night, Maura Lydon of Her Dark Ministrations, and Max Wolslegel to discuss the science concepts embedded in our favorite nerdy hobbies! Want to be on the podcast? We are looking for both expert and layperson guests for our upcoming episodes! Click here or email inplainenglishpod@gmail.com to get in touch! In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats) Logo credit: Biographics (Jessica Higginbotham, Tania Lintz, and Yolanda Campos Jurado) Image Credit: NimoStar on DeviantArt
In April 2024, I attended the conference for the United States Association for the Study of Pain (USASP) in Seattle, Washington. This episode is the sixth in a series of interviews I conducted there, and features research on endogenous opioids - opioids that your brain makes - and the connection between pain and alcohol use disorder. View the posters here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/07/16/season-3-episode-23-interviews-in-pain-research-part-6/ Interview 1: Kathryn Braden, a postdoctoral fellow at Washington University, on how brainstem opioids affect pain sensation. Interview 2: Yolanda Campos Jurado, a postdoctoral fellow at Washington University, on the connection between chronic pain and alcohol use disorder. In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats) Logo Credit: BioGraphics (biographicsco@gmail.com)
Scientific rigor is an incredibly important topic...but what does rigor actually mean? And how can we create communities where rigor is the norm? Join Konrad Kording, Kaela Singleton, Arjun Raj, and me for the first ever In Plain English live show, where we discuss these issues and more! Kaela Singleton is a Black, Samoan, Queer neuroscientist who founded the nonprofit Black in Neuro and directs the organization's Grants Management department. She completed her PhD in neuroscience at Georgetown and did a postdoc at Emory University. Arjun Raj is a professor of Bioengineering and Genetics at the University of Pennsylvania. In addition to developing new imaging techniques, his lab has a strong focus on science communication and open source resources. He also runs a blog discussing issues in scientific rigor and reproducibility. Konrad Kording is a Professor of Psychology at UPenn and the team lead for Community for Rigor. His lab uses computational approaches to study the brain. View on the website: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/07/02/season-3-episode-22-rigor-in-plain-english-live/ In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats) Logo credit: Biographics (Jessica Higginbotham, Tania Lintz, and Yolanda Campos Jurado)
In April 2024, I attended the conference for the United States Association for the Study of Pain (USASP) in Seattle, Washington. This episode is the fifth in a series of interviews I conducted there, and features novel animal models for studying back pain, innovative research into diabetic nerve pain using human tissue, and early studies into the link between facial pain and nervous system dysregulation. View the posters: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/06/18/season-3-episode-21-interviews-in-pain-research-part-5/ Interview 1: Aleyah Goins, a PhD student at the University of New Mexico, on a new mouse model for studying the role of the immune system in low back pain. Interview 2: Ishwarya Sankaranarayanan, a postdoctoral fellow at UT Dallas, on how human tissue from organ donors can help us understand the underlying causes of diabetic nerve pain. Interview 3: Hong Chen, an assistant professor at Ohio State University, on the connection between facial pain and nervous system dysfunction. In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats) Logo Credit: BioGraphics (biographicsco@gmail.com)
In April 2024, I attended the conference for the United States Association for the Study of Pain (USASP) in Seattle, Washington. This episode is the fourth in a series of interviews I conducted there, and features research on the role of gene regulation in chronic pain, the intersection of HIV, sleep, and pain, and rates of opioid use disorder treatment among veterans. Link to RSVP to the In Plain English Live Show tomorrow: https://bit.ly/3WDmdbd?r=qr See the posters on the website: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/06/11/season-3-episode-20-interviews-in-pain-research-part-4/ Interview 1: Nathaniel Hernandez, a PhD candidate at Duke University, on the role of gene regulation in chronic primary pain syndromes like migraine headaches or fibromyalgia. Interview 2: Shannon Gilstrap, a PhD student at the University of Alabama Birmingham, on the intersection between HIV, sleep, and chronic pain. Interview 3: Jessica Wyse, a researcher at Oregon Health and Sciences University, on how previous use of opioids to treat chronic pain affects rates of medication treatment for opioid use disorder. In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats) Logo Credit: BioGraphics (biographicsco@gmail.com)
In autoimmune disease, your own immune system turns against you. But advances in immunology research reveal a promising new kind of treatment: targeting rogue immune cells with...other immune cells! In this episode, expert Clarice Pavlak and guests Johari Hunt and Andrew Holder discuss how this treatment, called CAR-T cells, works, the wide range of diseases it could treat, and the benefits and drawbacks of personalized medicine. Download the paper: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/06/04/season-3-episode-19-personalized-therapy-for-autoimmune-diseases/ Come see the In Plain English live show on June 12th! RSVP here: https://bit.ly/3WDmdbd?r=qr In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats) Logo credit: Biographics (Jessica Higginbotham, Tania Lintz, and Yolanda Campos Jurado)
In April 2024, I attended the conference for the United States Association for the Study of Pain (USASP) in Seattle, Washington. This episode is the third in a series of interviews I conducted there, and features research on Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, understanding arthritis using an "organ-on-a-chip", and how autoimmune diseases cause chronic pain. See the posters here: inplainenglishpod.org/2024/05/21/season-3-episode-18-interviews-in-pain-research-part-3/ Interview 1: Amy Nippert, a researcher at Stanford, on the role of non-neuronal brain cells called astrocytes in Complex Regional Pain Syndrome. Interview 2: Matias Preisegger, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pittsburgh, on developing a joint-on-a-chip to study osteoarthritis. Interview 3: Lubya Salih, a graduate student at St. Louis University, on how antibodies in autoimmune diseases cause chronic pain. In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)
In April 2024, I attended the conference for the United States Association for the Study of Pain (USASP) in Seattle, Washington. This episode is the second in a series of interviews I conducted there, and features research on pain and sleep disturbances, muscle pain in Long COVID, and chronic pelvic pain. Interview 1: Ashley Bocanegra, a graduate student at Indiana University, on the relationship between injustice and sleep disturbance in people experiencing pain. Interview 2: Tracy Anastas, a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Washington, on gender and racial disparities in pain associated with Long COVID. Interview 3: Shreela Palit, an assistant research scientist at Nemours Children's Health, on mental and physical health factors that predict the severity of chronic pelvic pain. See the posters here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/05/14/season-3-episode-17-interviews-in-pain-research-part-2/ In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)
In April 2024, I attended the conference for the United States Association for the Study of Pain (USASP) in Seattle, Washington. This episode is the first in a series of interviews I conducted there, and features research on the role of skin cells in sickle cell and nerve pain, as well as risk and resilience factors that could contribute to prescription opioid misuse. See the posters here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/05/07/season-3-episode-16-interviews-in-pain-research-part-1/ Interview 1: Dianise Rodriguez Garica, a graduate student at the Medical College of Wisconsin, on the role of skin cells in sickle cell disease pain. Interview 2: Christina Mecca, a gruaduate student at the Medical College of Wisconsin, on the role of skin cells in pain after nerve injury. Interview 3: Eric Vilsmark, a medical student at the Frank Netter School of Medicine, on risk and resilience factors that predict opioid misuse among chronic pain patients. In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)
Math is everywhere, even in places you didn't expect to find it. Join expert Will Lima and guests Parker Craft and Nick Wolslegel as we go down the rabbit hole of one of the most complex areas of mathematics: category theory. Find the book on the website: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/04/02/season-3-episode-15-math-down-the-rabbit-hole/ In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats) Photo credit: aguayo_samuel on flickr
Opioid drugs, like morphine or fentanyl, can cause death by stopping the brain from telling the body to breathe. But is the effect of opioids on breathing that straightforward? And how can a better understanding of the breathing centers of the brain help treat opioid overdoses? Join expert Nick Burgraff and guests James Reed and Gabi Sullens to learn more about the complex relationship between opioids and breathing! Follow along with the paper here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/03/05/season-3-episode-14-opioids-breathing-a-complex-relationship/ You can find Nick Burgraff on the Neuro Network Podcast! You can find James Reed on the Science Night Podcast! In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)
In this set of interviews from the Society for Neuroscience 2023 conference, we cover a technology to help researchers study the behavioral and emotional aspects of pain, new research into treatments for ALS, and possibilities for early detection of glaucoma. This is the ninth and final episode in a multi-part series called "SfN Shorts" that features these brief (5-10 minute) discussions. Check out Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 as well as "Rigor Jeopardy!" with Community for Rigor. In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)
In this set of interviews from the Society for Neuroscience 2023 conference, we cover how your state of mind affects learning and memory, how COVID-19 infection during pregnancy affects the health of both parent and child, and how a treatment for trigeminal neuralgia causes measurable changes in the brain. This is the sixth in a multi-part series called "SfN Shorts" that features these brief (5-10 minute) discussions. Check out Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 as well as "Rigor Jeopardy!" with Community for Rigor. In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)
In this set of interviews from the Society for Neuroscience 2023 conference, we cover how sex differences and pain affect opioid use disorder, and the brain regions involved in social interactions. This is the sixth in a multi-part series called "SfN Shorts" that features these brief (5-10 minute) discussions. Check out Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 as well as "Rigor Jeopardy!" with Community for Rigor. In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)
Is degrowth a viable solution for climate change, or is the cure worse than the disease? Join expert Alejandro Gonzalez and guests William Lima and Evelyn Fraser for a critical discussion on the potential and pitfalls of degrowth. You can follow along with the articles on the website: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/02/06/season-3-episode-10-interrogating-degrowth/ You can find more of Alejandro's work here. You can find William's work here. In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats) Image credit: ckohtala on Flickr.
In this set of interviews from the Society for Neuroscience 2023 conference, we cover deep brain stimulation for Parkinson's disease patients, how music therapy can help people with Alzheimers, and how opioids affect sleep and memory. Follow along with the posters here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/01/30/season-3-episode-9-sfn-shorts-part-6/ This is the sixth in a multi-part series called "SfN Shorts" that features these brief (5-10 minute) discussions. Check out Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 as well as "Rigor Jeopardy!" with Community for Rigor. In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)
In this set of interviews from the Society for Neuroscience 2023 conference, we cover how opioids affect breathing and how we can use asthma medication to improve overdose reversal; a promising new treatment for one of the symptoms of spinal cord injury; and how our brains coordinate movements differently after a stroke. This is the fifth in a multi-part series called "SfN Shorts" that features these brief (5-10 minute) discussions. Check out Parts 1, 2, 3, and 4 as well as "Rigor Jeopardy!" with Community for Rigor. Follow along with the posters here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2024/01/23/season-3-episode-8-sfn-shorts-part-5/ Interview 1: Nicholas Burgraff, a PhD fellow at Seattle Children's Research Institute and the host of The Neuro Network Podcast, on how fentanyl disrupts breathing and how we can better treat opioid overdoses. Interview 2: Alex Benedetto, a PhD student at Northwestern University, on a promising new treatment that uses spinal cord stimulation to treat involuntary movements in patients with spinal cord injuries. Interview 3: Federico Barban, a research fellow at the University of Geneva, on how strokes impact our brain's ability to plan and coordinate movements effectively. In Plain English has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more! Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English! And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform! Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)