I've been fascinated by the placenta ever since I wrote about Lucile Packard Children's Hospital neonataologist Anna Penn, MD, PhD, and her quest to find …
Month: February 2013
Talking to kids about junk food ads
In case you haven't seen it, the New York Times' Well blog quotes Stanford childhood obesity expert Thomas Robinson, MD, in a piece on how to help your …
When mice mislead, medical research lands in the trap
An article in today's New York Times highlights just-published work by Massachusetts General Hospital researchers and Stanford genomics expert Ron Davis, PhD, in which the …
Using Facebook to prevent HIV among at-risk groups
New research suggests that social networking sites, such as Facebook, could be effective tools in increasing awareness about HIV and potentially reducing infection rates among at-risk …
A call to "break the silence of stillbirth"
Over on Motherlode, there's a beautiful and heartbreaking piece on stillbirth, written by a woman who lost her daughter during her 36th week of pregnancy. …
The trickle-up effect of pediatrics research
Because I spend so much time writing about children with serious medical problems, I'm acutely aware of one of the most challenging problems facing really …
A closer look at Stanford medical school's new dean
It's been several months since Lloyd Minor, MD, took helm of Stanford's medical school, and a new video and Inside Stanford Medicine article provide a detailed look at our …
Image of the Week: Glass sculpture of an HIV virus
Artist Luke Jerram has created a remarkable collection of glass sculptures depicting some of the most notorious microbes. This image illustrates the HIV virus and, …
Grand Roundup: Top posts for the week of Feb. 3
The five most-read stories on Scope this week were: Stanford Hospital & Clinics introduces month-long heart health challenge: Stanford Hospital & Clinics' 28-Day Heart Health …
Stanford Medicine X conference issues call for presenters and papers
Updated 03-18-13: The deadline for submitting abstracts for the Stanford Medicine X 2013 conference has been extended to April 15 as the organizers continue to …
Exploring zombie consciousness
Last fall, we posted a fun video exploring the scientific plausibility of a real-life zombie apocalypse. Now, a Popular Science article asks the question, “Do zombies experience consciousness?” The …
A discussion on Parkinson's disease and stem cells
For those of you interested in learning more about Parkinson's disease and stem-cell research, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine recently posted a video conversation with …
Designing the next generation of sleep devices
Past data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that 30 percent of American workers don't get enough sleep, increasing their risk of …
Deja Vu: Adults' immune systems "remember" microscopic monsters they've never seen before
Probably no human whose age consists of two digits hasn't at one time or another experienced a case of deja vu, the uncanny sense of having …
Reversing course on allowing psychiatric patients to smoke
In case you haven't seen it, the front page of the New York Times includes a story today on the "growing effort" among health officials to ban smoking …
Shingles immunity from chicken pox vaccine unclear, experts say
I was around eight years old when I got chicken pox, and I remember there was a lot of scratching and calamine lotion involved. These days, you don’t …