Author: This Is Your Brain producer

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.…

Read More

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…

Read More

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…

Read More

From Abraham Lincoln’s untreatable melancholy to the serendipitous discovery of SSRIs, we have come a long way in understanding depression. Psychiatrist Conor Liston, MD, PhD, explains the diagnostic challenges psychiatrists face, and the trial-and-error process to finding the right medication that frustrates both doctors and their patients. Dr. Stieg: We all go through depression at some point in our lives. It is part of the human condition, but there is more than one kind of depression. I’m pleased to welcome Dr. Conor Liston today to talk with us about some exciting advances in diagnosing and treating depression. Dr. Liston is…

Read More

Stem cells hold the potential to change the landscape of medicine and bring patient care and well-being into a new era. Neurosurgeon Robert Hariri, MD, PhD, talks about the possibilities and promise of using placental stem cells to target cancer cells, control diseases like HIV, restore brain function, and extend life expectancy. Dr. Stieg: I’m extremely pleased to have Dr. Robert Hariri as our guest today. He’s not only a visionary in the STEM cell industry, but also a neurosurgeon, biomedical scientist, and a highly successful entrepreneur, i.e., the Renaissance man. Bob is the founder and former CEO of Celgene…

Read More

“Neuro-pianist” and conductor Eitan Globerson explains the intricate connections between a musician’s instrument, hands, and brain and how the power of music can heal and improve brain performance and enrich our lives. Dr. Stieg: That music you just heard was performed by today’s guest. You may be wondering why we have a pianist on the show. Well, everything we do relates back to our brains including playing music, but more than that our guest is a neuro-pianist, both a scientist and a performer. We’ll be talking with him about yet another dimension of the human brain related to the performance…

Read More