Burgold Posted February 1, 2013 Share Posted February 1, 2013 Does altruism exist? When does life begin? Why is the sky blue? Every look through the Prism provides a new answer. Welcome to the Prism on the Voice of Russia, I’m Andrew Hiller. Today, we gaze through the crystal to examine how pluripotent stem cells may hold the answer to medical mysteries, how the Grand Parade of the 20th Century can be boiled down to only two acts, but first, we look five miles up at the bacteria and microorganisms that flit and cluster above our heads. You are entering the world of the Prism. WASHINGTON – New stem cell research is now allowing doctors to use pluripotent stem cells to build new organs, create individualized drug treatments and even diagnose patients. Host Andrew Hiller spoke with Dr. Joseph Wu, an associate professor of cardiovascular medicine at Stanford’s Cancer Institute, to discuss how by copying damaged or disease organs, researchers can better determine problems a patient may face in the future. http://voicerussia.com/radio_broadcast/72430379/103298142.html Also, For the first time, scientists have used genomic techniques to look four to five miles up in the quest to understand the microorganisms – principally bacteria – that live in the middle and upper troposphere. Host Andrew Hiller spoke with Dr. Kostas Konstantinidis, a Carlton S. Wilder Assistant Professor in the School of Civil & Environmental Engineering and School of Biology at the Georgia Institute of Technology, to discuss the research. http://voicerussia.com/radio_broadcast/72430379/103298393.html and finally, From man's first flight to his first steps on the moon, typewriters to laptops, or even George Gershwin to Kanye West, the 20th Century has seen tremendous changes in cultural, scientific and political realms. It's been a grand, albeit sometimes terrifying, parade. Now, a new production blending circus, theater, music and improvisation has arrived at Arena Stage to celebrate one volatile century. http://voicerussia.com/radio_broadcast/72430379/103174899.html ---------- Post added February-1st-2013 at 05:19 PM ---------- It's curious to me that we haven't explored the microorganisms in the troposphere before. Apparently, we've tried collecting from the top of mountains, but not beyond. I guess it took NASA and a hurricane to get the answer. What they're doing with stem cells is amazing. Imagine what will be possible in just a few years at the rate we're going. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgold Posted February 2, 2013 Author Share Posted February 2, 2013 One of the concerns I have with medicines tailored specifically from our genes is the lack of secondary positive effects. Sometimes when you're being really precise you miss the forest. Aspirin is the classic example of a medicine that we take for one purpose that has multiple positive effects. I thought Wu gave a good answer and I think the overall value is immense. Besides, simply getting to try a thousand treatments on yours cells to see what works best should not only speed up research but greatly improve the success rates of medicines and limit the negatives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgold Posted February 8, 2013 Author Share Posted February 8, 2013 http://voicerussia.com/radio_broadcast/72430379/104122871.html Even viruses might be impacted by climate change... a new study shows how seasonal, constant, and random temperature change impacts some pretty simple organisms. Dr. Alto, who has run tests on thousands of generations of viruses grown in his lab, is seeing a disturbing trend. While ever-adaptable viruses can easily morph themselves genetically to deal with gradual changes in temperature, sudden drastic changes leave them decimated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Harris Posted February 8, 2013 Share Posted February 8, 2013 so is climate change our strategy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgold Posted February 8, 2013 Author Share Posted February 8, 2013 What's actually interesting to me is that his study showed that these 5 celled organisms are really adaptable. They were able to handle warm. They didn't care about cold. Seasons didn't bother them, but variability (high one day and low the next) really impacted them. The study followed these viruses in various settings over 100 generations. ---------- Post added February-8th-2013 at 05:34 PM ---------- so is climate change our strategy? I actually thought about that in prepping for the interview except that some "viruses" are adaptive and useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgold Posted February 10, 2013 Author Share Posted February 10, 2013 Wow, just realized that the Prism, my radio show, is now over a year old... Been working so hard on the show that we never even celebrated its anniversary. Pretty cool. Thanks to so many including those that helped groom me in this crazy business. The Prism is a one-hour weekly celebration of curiousity that airs on Fridays in DC, New York, and Miami. It explores the latest in science and the arts using long form features. I am grateful to all the guests, engineers, and production staff that have supported this effort. More, to those listeners, especially on ES, who given me and the show a chance and been so gracious and occassionally critical. Thanks! Let's continue to explore this land of science fiction and wonder that we live in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterMP Posted February 11, 2013 Share Posted February 11, 2013 Congratulations! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbear Posted February 11, 2013 Share Posted February 11, 2013 How extreme do the temp changes have to be and for how long to have an impact? Is this why our body runs a fever, and would running outside in the cold while dealing with a cold be a potentially viable strategy? I have to admit going out and playing soccer with a cold in the early spring or late fall never made my cold worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riggo-toni Posted February 11, 2013 Share Posted February 11, 2013 Congrats on the anniversary Burgold. Your articles/interviews are always quite fascinating and informative. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgold Posted February 11, 2013 Author Share Posted February 11, 2013 How extreme do the temp changes have to be and for how long to have an impact?Is this why our body runs a fever, and would running outside in the cold while dealing with a cold be a potentially viable strategy? I have to admit going out and playing soccer with a cold in the early spring or late fall never made my cold worse. Good questions. Not sure if the study looked at that directly, but what Alto found was that constant temps didn't do much, predictable variability actually strengthened the bugs or at least forced the subsequent generations to adapt and become hardier. Chaos was the condition that caused their reproduction to decline. So, I guess if you went from a sauna to an ice locker plus a couple other conditions it would be bad for the health of the virus. Of course, what's bad for the virus in this case is also bad for you. ---------- Post added February-11th-2013 at 09:52 AM ---------- And thanks for the congrats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bang Posted February 11, 2013 Share Posted February 11, 2013 Congrats on the anniversary! ~Bang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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