Dr. Cara Westmark is an Assistant Professor in the Dept of Neurology, at UW-Madison.  She studies the amyloid beta protein precursor and amyloid beta in Alzheimer’s disease, Down syndrome, Fragile X syndrome (FXS) and autism.  We discuss her background and research as well as the response of the Catholic Church to COVID and the challenges Catholic scientists faced during the pandemic.  We also touch on future pandemic responses. Finally we cover bioethics and Cara's view on the compatibility of faith and reason.

00:01:26 - Introduction

00:12:05 - Research

00:37:10 - Cara's Faith Journey

00:40:49 - The COVID-19 response and the Catholic Church (erratum: COVID-19 started in March 2020, not March 2019)

00:56:53 - Role of the Catholic scientist during pandemics

00:59:31 - Bioethics

01:03:33 - Compatibility of science and faith

EPISODE LINKS:

Dr. Cara Westmark website: https://neurology.wisc.edu/people/westmark-cara/