Author: This Is Your Brain producer
New York Times journalist Rod Nordland is confronting his glioblastoma diagnosis with positivity, not despair. In this inspiring episode, he speaks with Dr. Stieg about coming to terms with the disease, what it’s like to live with his everyday challenges, and why he hasn’t shed a tear over it. Dr. Stieg: Hi, this is Dr. Phil Stieg. Senators Ted Kennedy and John McCain brought nationwide attention to their battles with an incurable aggressive brain cancer called glioblastoma, or GBM for short. GBM is a top target in a worldwide research effort to find cures. We, as neurosurgeons working with our neurooncologist…
Dr. Richard Isaacson, Director of the Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic at Weill Cornell Medicine, shares the just-published results of his groundbreaking clinical trial which show that a personalized prevention plan can dramatically lower the risk or progression of Alzheimer’s. Also joining the discussion is one of Dr. Isaacson’s patients who is living proof that this new approach works. Dr. Stieg: Dr. Richard Issacson, one of the leading authorities on Alzheimer’s disease joins me today to talk about Alzheimer’s disease and the results from his groundbreaking clinical trial. I’m also especially pleased to welcome one of Dr. Isaacson’s patients from the trial, Karen…
Mass shootings, bullying and retaliation, and other acts of violence — why did the human brain evolve to be so aggressive? Dr. Heather Berlin, assistant professor of psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine, talks about the genetics of violence, the “mean girl” phenomenon, and why some psychopaths end up in jail while others land in the corner office. Dr. Stieg: It seems like every time we turn on the TV or go to our computer or onto our cell phone, we learn about another terrible act of public violence to help us better understand what’s happening in society and…
How have sexual behaviors changed in our Millennial, #MeToo era? Biological anthropologist Helen Fisher, PhD, explains the nuances of being just friends, friends with benefits, or a casual hookup — and tells us how the trend toward longer courtships may change everything. Dr. Stieg: We are here today with Dr. Helen Fisher. She is one of the world’s leading experts on love and author and biological anthropologist. She is a senior research fellow at the Kinsey Institute of Indiana university as well as a member of the center for human evolutionary studies in the department of anthropology at Rutgers University.…
Some 46 million Americans already have the early brain changes that are the harbingers of a dementia that won’t reveal itself for decades. Dr. Richard Isaacson, Director of the Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic at Weill Cornell Medicine, talks about the three stages of cognitive impairment, how to distinguish “senior moments” from symptoms of dementia, and whether multitasking puts our overloaded brains at risk. Dr. Stieg: I’m very happy to have Dr. Richard Isaacson with me today. He is one of the leading authorities on Alzheimer’s Disease and director of Weill Cornell’s Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic and Memory Disorders Program. He has just…
Chronic pain is a national epidemic. Journalist Melanie Thernstrom, author of The Pain Chronicles, explains the difference between chronic and acute pain, how chronic pain rewires the brain, and the brain’s ability to modulate pain. Dr. Stieg: Today I’m with Melanie Thernstrom, a journalist and author of several books including a New York Times Bestseller, The Pain Chronicles. She served on the National Academy of Science Institute of Medicine’s Committee on Advancing Pain Research, Education and Care in response to a congressional mandate to investigate the state of pain treatment in the United States. Melanie, thank you so much for…