Author Archives: Chris

Ambition and “Fire in the Belly”

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Chris

The term “fire in the belly” is an old term for someone who has a huge amount of drive and ambition. In general, people think of “fire in the belly” as meaning a kind of inner force, a kind of … Continue reading →

Posted in Neuroscience and Psychology, Performance | Leave a comment

Butter Is Back – NYTimes.com

Posted on March 26, 2014 by Chris

Gotta love this. I’ve felt this way about butter for a long time: it’s not only not bad for you, it’s good for you. I have to look further into the papers to know if I believe it about saturated … Continue reading →

Posted in Diet and Exercise, Science and Medicine | Leave a comment

How Fat May Hurt the Brain, and How Exercise May Help – NYTimes.com

Posted on March 5, 2014 by Chris

Scientist know that obesity harms cognition. But how? The blood brain barrier should keep out fat cell secretions. Many thought the brain, though, should be insulated from those harmful effects. It contains no fat cells and sits behind the protective … Continue reading →

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Why Vitamins May Be Bad for Your Workout – NYTimes.com

Posted on February 12, 2014 by Chris

It looks like anti-inflamatories may not be the only thing that inhibits body building in response to exercise. Anti-oxidants may also do the same thing. It’s not clear to me that this is the result of action on the same … Continue reading →

Posted in Diet and Exercise, Science and Medicine | Leave a comment

For Sleep Apnea Patients, a breathing “Pacemaker”

Posted on January 9, 2014 by Chris

Fascinating: an alternative to the CPAP mask that is an effective (but bothersome) treatment for apnea. Apnea occurs because the body totally relaxes muscles during deep sleep, which lets the airway collapse under negative pressure of inspiration. So this neurostimulator … Continue reading →

Posted in Science and Medicine, Sleep | Leave a comment

Drugs unlimited: Open source drug discovery

Posted on December 17, 2013 by Chris

Yet another sign that the world is changed by the internet. A journalist for the Guardian designs a legal variant of an illegal drug and contracts via the internet to have it manufactured in China. More and more, people will … Continue reading →

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‘Memories’ pass between generations

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Chris

Yet another example of how little we know about the workings of the body and mind. In a way, much of this is not new–we have known that epigenetic changes can be passed on (like the metabolic changes prompted by … Continue reading →

Posted in How Life Begins, Neuroscience and Psychology, Science and Medicine | Leave a comment

Ian Parker: The Search for a Blockbuster Insomnia Drug : The New Yorker

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Chris

A nice article on the efforts to get approval for a new type of sleep drug, based on the orexin receptor that was linked to narcolepsy at Stanford. Ian Parker: The Search for a Blockbuster Insomnia Drug : The New … Continue reading →

Posted in Neuroscience and Psychology, Science and Medicine, Sleep | Leave a comment

Five Surprising Ways Oxytocin Shapes Your Social Life

Posted on October 24, 2013 by Chris

Oxytocin is not exactly what it is supposed to be. It has the reputation of being the “love hormone” or the “cuddle drug.” But it’s more like the “clique” hormone–everyone inside the social group is wonderful, but woe to outsiders. … Continue reading →

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Opinion: How to Give Better Talks | The Scientist Magazine

Posted on October 8, 2013 by Chris

My colleague Dave Rubenson outlines the sins of scientist presenters and gives advice on how to improve scientific presentations. For me the key point is this: Realize that a slide presentation is not a journal article. Slide presentations can stimulate … Continue reading →

Posted in Current History, Presentation, Science and Medicine | Leave a comment