It’s time to look back at this month’s five-most read stories on Scope. They were: Eating for good blood: Tips for boosting iron levels and hemoglobin: …
Month: August 2015
A tribute to Oliver Sacks, from a science writer
The news this weekend of neurologist and writer Oliver Sacks' death brought back a crystalline memory of myself at 18, searching through the library stacks …
An Rx for physician burnout
Burnout, which is characterized by emotional exhaustion, a sense of depersonalization and a lack of a sense of personal accomplishment, is on the rise among …
Immunosuppression brings higher risk for skin cancer – and need for specialized care
An estimated 50 million Americans must take immunosuppressants to treat more than 80 autoimmune disorders, according to the National Institutes of Health. These medications are …
Back to school = back to the doctor
Many kids head back to school today; others, including my own, already have several days or weeks under their belt. Wherever your child is in …
Remembering Oliver Sacks, “sleuth of the mind”
In memory of well-known neurologist and author Oliver Sacks, MD, who died yesterday: A look back at a lengthy conversation he had with us in 2012. …
Taking breaks for physical activity may benefit children’s long-term health
Here's an eye-opening statistic: Children in the United States spend on average 6 hours per day sitting or reclining. As we head into the fall and winter …
A call to focus on the nutritional value of foods, rather than calorie counts
To reduce obesity rates, cardiovascular risk and chronic diseases, ditch calorie counting and instead emphasize the nutritional content of foods. That's the message from a …
Turning brown bananas into ice cream: Repurposing surplus food reduces hunger, creates jobs
According to a recent report, the United States is one of the most wasteful countries in the world. Up to 40 percent of American food is thrown in …
As life expectancy rises worldwide, many are living longer with illness and disability
Good news: Average life expectancy has continued to climb over the past two decades. The downside is that those extra years are often marked by …
A stem cell “kill switch” may make therapies safer, say Stanford researchers
Stem cell biologist Hiromitsu Nakauchi, MD, PhD, and his colleagues published an interesting article today about how to use stem cell technology to boost our …
During their first days at Stanford, medical students ponder the ethical challenges ahead
In an effort to help prepare this year’s crop of new medical students for the future challenges of keeping true to the spirit of the …
Short and sweet: Research papers with succinct titles cited more often
As a burgeoning journalist, I was often coached to cut unnecessary words. College professors mandated that story ledes be short and snappy and never exceed 35 …
Using “spaced repetition” and other learning strategies to better retain medical school knowledge
Many have described the medical school experience as "drinking from a firehose" of knowledge. Over on the Wing of Zock, radiology resident Peter Wei, MD, …
Quest for molecular cause of ALS points fingers at protein transport, say Stanford researchers
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, is a progressive, fatal neurodegenerative disease made famous by Lou Gehrig, who was diagnosed with the disorder in 1939. Although …
Science for popular audiences is not just “adding to the noise”
If you're reading this blog, chances are you're a fan of popular science - i.e. scientific research made accessible to people who aren't professional academics. …