A scientist assesses the potential of stem cell therapies for treating such brain disorders as stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease.
Stem cell therapies are the subject of enormous hype, endowed by the media with almost magical qualities and imagined by the public to bring about miracle cures. Stem cells have the potential to generate new cel ... Show More
Nov 19
Carl Benedikt Frey, "How Progress Ends: Technology, Innovation, and the Fate of Nations" (Princeton UP, 2025)
In How Progress Ends: Technology, Innovation, and the Fate of Nations (Princeton University Press, 2025), Carl Benedikt Frey challenges the conventional belief that economic and technological progress is inevitable. For most of human history, stagnation was the norm, and even tod ... Show More
54m 29s
Nov 13
Facing Infinity: Black Holes and Our Place on Earth
Humanity’s relationship with black holes began in 1783 in a small English village, when clergyman John Michell posed a startling question: What if there are objects in space that are so large and heavy that not even light can escape them? Almost 250 years later, in April 2019, sc ... Show More
55m 54s
Nov 13
Craig Hogan, "The Unlikely Primeval Sky" (American Scientist, November-December)
Of all the patterns that could possibly be preserved in the post–Big Bang radiation, the one we see is surprisingly smooth on large angular scales. Sitting by a campfire on a dark night, looking up at the Milky Way, a curious child asks, “What does the sky tell us? Where does it ... Show More
30m 27s
Feb 2021
Jack Price, "The Future of Brain Repair: A Realist's Guide to Stem Cell Therapy" (MIT Press, 2020)
A scientist assesses the potential of stem cell therapies for treating such brain disorders as stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease.
Stem cell therapies are the subject of enormous hype, endowed by the media with almost magical qualities and imagined by the public ... Show More
1h 4m
Oct 2021
Can we grow a conscious brain?
<p>Philosophers have long pondered the concept of a brain in a jar, hooked up to a simulated world. Though this has largely remained a thought experiment, CrowdScience listener JP wants to know if it might become reality in the not-too-distant future, with advances in stem cell r ... Show More
35m 46s
Sep 2019
101: Have we found a cure for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Depression and ALS? | Dr. Jay Lombard
If you’ve ever “gone with your gut” to make a decision or felt “butterflies in your stomach” when nervous, you’re likely getting signals from an unexpected source: your second brain. Hidden in the walls of the digestive system, this “brain in your gut” is revolutionizing medicine ... Show More
50m 16s
May 2021
The New Science of Cell Shape
<p>They say you should never judge a book by its cover, but can you judge a cell by its shape? On this episode, host Lauren Richardson is joined by Maddison Masaeli (CEO and cofounder of Deepcell), and a16z general partner Vijay Pande (whose lab at Stanford focused on the develop ... Show More
32m 11s
Sep 2023
#316 Biology of Belief with Dr. Bruce Lipton, PhD
<p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/775589/open_sms">Send us a text</a></p><p>This week on The Less Stressed Life Podcast, I have on author Dr. Bruce Lipton, who is a former medical school professor and research scientist. Bruce explains hi ... Show More
1h 25m