What if everything we thought we knew about cancer was wrong?
For decades, scientists have debated what really causes cancer. Is it genetic mutations, as the Somatic Mutation Theory suggests? Is it a metabolic dysfunction, as the Metabolic Theory argues? Or is there a deeper, overlooked truth—one that could redefine cancer treatment as we know it?
In this episode, Dr. Ralph Moss and Ben Moss break down the battle between competing cancer theories, why conventional wisdom is being challenged, and what the latest research is uncovering about cancer stem cells, metabolism, and the Warburg Effect.
🔥 Are we on the verge of a breakthrough—or have we been on the wrong path all along?
📌 Subscribe for more in-depth discussions on cancer research and integrative medicine.
The body you inhabit is made up of lots of moving parts that need to communicate with each other.
Some of this communication – in the nervous system, for example – takes the form of bioelectrical signals that propagate through the body to trigger the appropriate response.
Now, US researchers have discovered that the epithelial cells that line our skin and organs are able to signal the same way to communicate peril. They just use a long, slow ‘scream’, rather than the rapid-fire communication of neurons.
Brain implants hold immense promise for restoring function in patients with paralysis, epilepsy and other neurological disorders. But a team of researchers at Case Western Reserve University has discovered that bacteria can invade the brain after a medical device is implanted, contributing to inflammation and reducing the device’s long-term effectiveness.
The research, published in Nature Communications, could improve the long-term success of brain implants now that a target has been identified to address.
“Understanding the role of bacteria in implant performance and brain health could revolutionize how these devices are designed and maintained,” said Jeff Capadona, Case Western Reserve’s vice provost for innovation, the Donnell Institute Professor of Biomedical Engineering and senior research career scientist at the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center.
Researchers have enabled a man who is paralyzed to control a robotic arm through a device that relays signals from his brain to a computer.
He was able to grasp, move and drop objects just by imagining himself performing the actions.
The device, known as a brain-computer interface (BCI), worked for a record 7 months without needing to be adjusted. Until now, such devices have only worked for a day or two.
The BCI relies on an AI model that can adjust to the small changes that take place in the brain as a person repeats a movement – or in this case, an imagined movement – and learns to do it in a more refined way.
“This blending of learning between humans and AI is the next phase for these brain-computer interfaces,” said the neurologist. “It’s what we need to achieve sophisticated, lifelike function.”
Science, Policy And Advocacy For Impactful And Sustainable Health Ecosystems — Dr. Catharine Young, Ph.D. — fmr. Assistant Director of Cancer Moonshot Policy and International Engagement, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP)
Dr. Catharine Young, Ph.D. recently served as Assistant Director of Cancer Moonshot Policy and International Engagement at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (https://www.whitehouse.gov/ostp/) where she served at OSTP to advance the Cancer Moonshot (https://www.cancer.gov/research/key-i… with a mission to decrease the number of cancer deaths by 50% over the next 25 years.
Dr. Young’s varied career has spanned a variety of sectors including academia, non-profit, biotech, and foreign government, all with a focus on advancing science.
Dr. Young previously served as Executive Director of the SHEPHERD Foundation, where she championed rare cancer research and drove critical policy changes. Her work has also included fostering interdisciplinary collaborations and advancing the use of AI, data sharing, and clinical trial reform to accelerate cancer breakthroughs.
Dr. Young’s leadership in diplomacy and innovation includes roles such as Senior Director of Science Policy at the Biden Cancer Initiative and Senior Science and Innovation Policy Advisor at the British Embassy, where she facilitated international agreements to enhance research collaborations.
Convergent engagement of neural and computational sciences and technologies are reciprocally enabling rapid developments in current and near-future military and intelligence operations. In this podcast, Prof. James Giordano of Georgetown University will provide an overview of how these scientific and technological fields can be — and are being — leveraged for non-kinetic and kinetic what has become known as cognitive warfare; and will describe key issues in this rapidly evolving operational domain.
James Giordano PhD, is the Pellegrino Center Professor in the Departments of Neurology and Biochemistry; Chief of the Neuroethics Studies Program; Co-director of the Project in Brain Sciences and Global Health Law and Policy; and Chair of the Subprogram in Military Medical Ethics at Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington DC. Professor Giordano is Senior Bioethicist of the Defense Medical Ethics Center, and Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry at the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences; Distinguished Stockdale Fellow in Science, Technology, and Ethics at the United States Naval Academy; Senior Science Advisory Fellow of the SMA Branch, Joint Staff, Pentagon; Non-resident Fellow of the Simon Center for the Military Ethic at the US Military Academy, West Point; Distinguished Visiting Professor of Biomedical Sciences, Health Promotions, and Ethics at the Coburg University of Applied Sciences, Coburg, GER; Chair Emeritus of the Neuroethics Project of the IEEE Brain Initiative; and serves as Director of the Institute for Biodefense Research, a federally funded Washington DC think tank dedicated to addressing emerging issues at the intersection of science, technology and national defense. He previously served as Donovan Group Senior Fellow, US Special Operations Command; member of the Neuroethics, Legal, and Social Issues Advisory Panel of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA); and Task Leader of the Working Group on Dual-Use of the EU-Human Brain Project. Prof. Giordano is the author of over 350 peer-reviewed publications, 9 books and 50governmental reports on science, technology, and biosecurity, and is an elected member of the European Academy of Science and Arts, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine (UK), and a Fulbright Professorial Fellow. A former US Naval officer, he was winged as an aerospace physiologist, and served with the US Navy and Marine Corps.
Originally released December 2023._ In today’s episode, host Luisa Rodriguez speaks to Nita Farahany — professor of law and philosophy at Duke Law School — about applications of cutting-edge neurotechnology.
They cover: • How close we are to actual mind reading. • How hacking neural interfaces could cure depression. • How companies might use neural data in the workplace — like tracking how productive you are, or using your emotional states against you in negotiations. • How close we are to being able to unlock our phones by singing a song in our heads. • How neurodata has been used for interrogations, and even criminal prosecutions. • The possibility of linking brains to the point where you could experience exactly the same thing as another person. • Military applications of this tech, including the possibility of one soldier controlling swarms of drones with their mind. • And plenty more.
In this episode: • Luisa’s intro [00:00:00] • Applications of new neurotechnology and security and surveillance [00:04:25] • Controlling swarms of drones [00:12:34] • Brain-to-brain communication [00:20:18] • Identifying targets subconsciously [00:33:08] • Neuroweapons [00:37:11] • Neurodata and mental privacy [00:44:53] • Neurodata in criminal cases [00:58:30] • Effects in the workplace [01:05:45] • Rapid advances [01:18:03] • Regulation and cognitive rights [01:24:04] • Brain-computer interfaces and cognitive enhancement [01:26:24] • The risks of getting really deep into someone’s brain [01:41:52] • Best-case and worst-case scenarios [01:49:00] • Current work in this space [01:51:03] • Watching kids grow up [01:57:03]
The 80,000 Hours Podcast features unusually in-depth conversations about the world’s most pressing problems and what you can do to solve them.
Learn more, read the summary and find the full transcript on the 80,000 Hours website:
A team of medical researchers and engineers at Google Research has developed a way to use the front-facing camera on a smartphone to monitor a patient’s heart rate. The team has published a paper on the technology on the arXiv preprint server.
Tracking a patient’s heart rate over time can reveal clues about their cardiovascular health. The most important measurement is resting heart rate (RHR)—people with an above-normal rate are at a higher risk of heart disease and/or stroke. Persistently high rates, the researchers note, can signal a serious problem.
Over the past several years, personal health device makers have developed wearable external heart monitors, such as necklaces or smartwatches. But these devices are expensive. The researchers have found a cheaper alternative—a deep-learning system that analyzes video from the front-facing camera of a smartphone. The system is called PHRM.
