In Plain English: Science Made Simple

What is CRISPR gene editing, and how can it help us understand how the brain works? Join me and my guests Dong-gyu Kim and Rachel Privett to learn about how neuroscience researchers use CRISPR today, and how gene editing might be used in the future!

This episode is based on my first paper in the Copits lab, available now on BioRxiv: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.10.10.561249v1

Download the paper here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2023/11/07/season-3-episode-2-crispr-gene-editing-for-neuroscience/

In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join ⁠here ⁠to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more!

Remember to follow In Plain English on ⁠Facebook ⁠, ⁠Twitter⁠, and ⁠Instagram ⁠to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider ⁠becoming a Patron⁠ to help support In Plain English!

And check out our ⁠Where to Listen⁠ page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform!

Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (⁠https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats⁠)

Image Credit: Ernesto del Aguila III, National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH

The past year has brought exciting advances in nuclear fusion, bringing us closer than ever to a fusion-powered future. So how close are we to achieving viable nuclear fusion, and what are some of the hidden challenges to overcome before we get there? Join expert Daniel Mulrow and guest Ryan Perez to answer these and more questions about nuclear fusion.

Read the articles here:

Check out Ryan's photography on Instagram!

In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join ⁠here ⁠to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more!

Remember to follow In Plain English on ⁠Facebook ⁠, ⁠Twitter⁠, and ⁠Instagram ⁠to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider ⁠becoming a Patron⁠ to help support In Plain English!

And check out our ⁠Where to Listen⁠ page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform!

Intro/Outro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (⁠https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats⁠)

Image Credit: "Nuclear fusion display at the Weiss Energy Hall" by Katherine Fellows.

How can we use computers to learn more about the brain? Join expert Dr. Eric Yttri and guest Sarah Brown to learn about how open source machine learning algorithms are revolutionizing neuroscience!

You can download the paper here: ⁠https://inplainenglishpod.org/2023/09/07/season-2-episode-12-machine-learning-revolutionizing-neuroscience/

If you liked this episode, check out Sarah's podcast ⁠The Queerience⁠.

If you are a researcher interested in using BSOiD, you can find the tutorial here: ⁠https://bsoid.org⁠.

In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join ⁠here ⁠to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more!

Remember to follow In Plain English on ⁠Facebook ⁠, ⁠Twitter⁠, and ⁠Instagram ⁠to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider ⁠becoming a Patron⁠ to help support In Plain English!

And check out our ⁠Where to Listen⁠ page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform!

Intro/Outtro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (⁠https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats⁠)

What is "benevolent" sexism and does it predict opposition to abortion rights? Join expert Abby, of Political Psych with Abby, and guest Rebekah to discuss the links between hostile sexism, benevolent sexism, abortion rights, and motherhood.

You can download the paper here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2023/08/01/season-2-episode-11-benevolent-sexism-abortion-and-motherhood/

If you liked this episode, check out Abby's YouTube Channel. You can also follow her on Instagram @politicalpsychwithabby.

In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more!

Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English!

And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform!

Intro/Outtro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)

Photo Credit: James McNellis from Washington, DC, United States

In this episode I discuss the new guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics on treatments for childhood obesity with expert Dr. Nicole Cifra and guest Brad Hicks.

Content note: This episode contains discussions of eating disorders and weight stigma.

You can download the guidelines and supporting documents here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2023/07/06/season-2-episode-10-new-guidelines-for-childhood-obesity/

If you liked this episode and want to learn more, you can follow Dr. Cifra on Twitter @DrNicoleC. You can find Brad on Tumblr and Reddit as InfamousBrad.

In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more!

Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English!

And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform!

Intro/Outtro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)

In this can't-miss episode, expert Jimmy Waldron of Dinosaurs Will Always Be Awesome and guests William Gousios and Ashley Hamer answer pressing questions like: "What did dinosaurs sound like?" "Did T-Rex have luscious lizard lips?" and "What is a dinosaur anyway?"

Download the paper here: https://inplainenglishpod.org/2023/06/06/season-2-episode-9-what-did-dinosaurs-sound-like/

If you liked this episode, you can follow Jimmy Waldron on Twitter @JimmyWaldron. You can also find Ashley Hamer on Twitter @SmashleyHamer, and listen to her podcast Taboo Science!

In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more!

Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English!

And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform!

Intro/Outtro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)

Interest in psychedelic therapy as a treatment for depression has been growing exponentially. But how do psychedelics leave a lasting impact on the brain, and why might this be useful for treating depression, anxiety, and similar conditions? Join expert Alex Kwan and guests Raven and Asmodeus to learn about the fascinating, long-lasting effects that psychedelic drugs have on the brain.

If you liked this episode, you can follow Alex Kwan on Twitter @kwanalexc. Also, be sure to check out Rayven and Asmodeus's podcast Smoking Out the Closet!

In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more!

Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English!

And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform!

Intro/Outtro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)

Image Credit: AlmudenaFM, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Can a virus increase your risk for developing multiple sclerosis? Join expert Dr. Neuro and guests The Pop Historian and Andrew Jensen to learn about the surprising link between multiple sclerosis and Epstein-Barr Virus, one of the viruses that cause mono.

If you liked this episode, you can follow Dr. Neuro on Twitter @neurofourier or on Twitch at twitch.tv/dr_neuro. Also, be sure to check out The Pop Historian on YouTube.

I will be doing a follow-up live stream with Dr. Neuro on Saturday April 8th at 7 pm Central/8 pm Eastern on the In Plain English YouTube channel! Dr. Neuro will be answering your questions about this episode live, so be sure to tune in and ask your questions in the chat!

In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more!

Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English!

And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform!

Intro/Outtro music credit: Sam Brunwasser (https://soundcloud.com/visualsnowbeats)

Image Credit: Ilena George and Daniel Reich, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health

In this bonus episode on Open Science, I sit down with Dr. Bryan Copits, an early career researcher at Washington University in St. Louis. We talk about the barriers to publishing open access papers as early career scientists, the research-stifling effect exerted by the most "prestigious" journals, and what efforts are currently underway to promote Open Science.

This episode is a follow-up to last week's episode, An Open Science Round Table. If you haven't listened to that discussion yet, go check it out! You can also find the unabridged version of that conversation on YouTube.

In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more!

Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English!

And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform!

Open Science Logo Credit: D. Schindler, G.emmerich. Modified using Canva.

Currently, scientists need to pay to publish research and readers need to pay to access most research articles. This outdated approach to sharing science slows advancement by locking research behind paywalls, and prevents the public from being able to read the research that their tax dollars funded.  In this round table, Sci-Hub founder Alexandra Elbakyan, eLife Editor-in-Chief Michael Eisen, and WashU neuroscientist Bryan Copits discuss the current state of open access science, efforts to make science more accessible, and what the future of scientific publishing could look like.

This conversation is an abridged version of the YouTube live stream that took place on Monday, February 27th. You can find the full live stream here. Additionally, I recorded a one-on-one follow-up conversation on this subject with Bryan Copits; I will upload that conversation next week.

In Plain English now has a Discord server! Join here to chat with other listeners, past experts, and guests about science, suggest new episode topics, and more!

Remember to follow In Plain English on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram to keep up with the latest announcements! If you are able, please consider becoming a Patron to help support In Plain English!

And check out our Where to Listen page to subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform!

Image credit: NASA