Simple Evolution

Hey all, we are back!

I'm happy to present our second guest speaker, my good friend Matt, speaking to you from sunny Los Angeles. We dive into a variety of topics, ranging from COVID-19 policies differences between the US and Canada to the importance of sports in American culture and some recommendations for dining in LA's food scene. I hope this episode provides new insights about Matt and what life is like in southern California!

This episode was recorded on July 22nd, 2021 and we apologize for any reductions in audio quality during this podcast. As always, thanks for the continued support and stay tuned for new episodes with guest speakers dropping later this summer and early fall. 

Wait, before you go...a few housekeeping notes (Wow, I'm definitely a real podcaster now):

1.) I'm referred to as a "med student" in the early part of our discussion and while I feel honoured to have that title I must acknowledge that I am a graduate student pursuing a MSc, not a medical student pursuing a MD. 

2.) Michigan State's football stadium ("Spartan Stadium") seats around 75,000 fans, not the 100,000+ that was mentioned in this episode.

3.) Matt is very knowledgeable about financial markets and I'm kicking myself for not taking a deep dive into the US market, the future of venture capital and the advantages and disadvantages of companies going public through an IPO vs. SPAC (guess there is room for improvement as I progress as a podcast host). 

See you on the next one!

Biologics, specifically monoclonal antibodies, are becoming more prevalent therapeutics in the doctor's toolkit for combating diseases. Historically, approval of medical products (e.g. drugs and medical devices) by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have been lower than products marketed as supplements. Tighter regulations, especially those enforced by the FDA, generally leads to fewer products being approved to market. The research and development road from compound identification through preclinical and clinical trials is both expensive and arduous, where safety and efficacy data often determine whether a potential drug is approved. Rigorous standards help ensure that the few approved products that reach the shelves for consumer purchase deliver a therapeutic benefit. Drug pipelines and treatment options are not created equal. Some medical fields benefit from having innovative new therapies available for patients each year while other specialists are left in a therapeutic drought, relying on limited options in their medical toolkits. This brings us to Alzheimer's disease, a form of dementia that progressively diminishes neurological function. This debilitating condition impacts the patient, family and surrounding community. When novel therapies are not abundant, a single drug approval is sufficient to provide hope. The major question, of which we only scratch the surface, is whether it is acceptable to approve therapies that show inferior safety and efficacy data if it means providing an available option for patients where there was previously a medical void. Is a subpar drug better than no drug? This is a very difficult question to answer and it's important to note that the lack of successful therapies in certain medical fields (e.g. in the treatment of neurological disorders) is not from lack of trying. Amazing scientists and clinicians are working endlessly on these problems to provide the therapies of the future. What better return on investment is there for decades of research, millions of dollars in funding and collaborative global efforts to see the emergence of a smile on a patient just informed that their disease or disorder is either in remission or fully treatable. Que up your favorite medical drama, dream up that MD PhD from Johns Hopkins and get ready to press play...you're in for a good one!

DNA --> RNA --> protein. This is the central dogma of molecular biology, where deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) functions as the master copy (e.g. biological template) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) is the working copy. Messenger RNA (mRNA) provides the biological blueprint for protein development. Put another way, this biological code, composed of 4 nucleotides, is an instruction set received by ribosomes, protein factories in the cell, to build protein products. We discuss the recent buzz around mRNA therapeutics, with a focus on mRNA technologies being used in vaccine development. Pzifer and Moderna both received emergency use authorization from the FDA for their respective mRNA vaccines against SARS-COV-2. In a world where the average vaccine development time is 10-15 years, 1 year to approval is lightning speed. mRNA vaccine development is versatile, quick and now benefits from improved stability (the previous Achilles heel) thanks to key scientific contributions from Dr. Katalin Kariko and Dr. Drew Weissmann at the University of Pennsylvania. Importantly, mRNA vaccines have utility beyond infectious disease, where immense interest in cancer vaccine development has grown. Throw on that lab coat, purify some RNA polymerase and get ready for an experiment. Instead of ready, set, go mRNA only cares about A, U, C and G. 

Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. That's exactly what Dr. Bharud planned for in Nandurbar, where a smaller community home to two million residents overcame soaring cases in the COVID-19 second wave with supplemental oxygen on-hand for any citizen that needed it. In other regions of India, oxygen was scarce. Family members, even those who tested positive, waited in long lines for several hours for a chance to return home with the life-saving gas. Others, exhausted from the wait and increased anxiety, returned home empty-handed. While we discuss how subsequent waves of the virus have ravaged India in recent months, we understand that periods of uncertainty and desperation shine light on those who advocate for the love and support of others over all else. It's reassuring to know that citizens find meaning in acting out of love rather than fear. Let's hope the current situation in India improves. Our support is with all those struggling during this time. 

Buckle up, you are in for an interesting podcast!

Times are changing. John D. Rockefeller built a physical empire on oil, large tech companies build digital empires with data. Certain commodities are only useful when transformed. Data, like oil, becomes valuable after refinement. Instead of drilling deep underground, companies extract data by drilling deep into our behaviours. You are the product. If a "free" service seems too good to be true, chances are it is. There is no free lunch. Business models are becoming more driven by personal data rather than physical device development. This leads us to Facebook vs. Apple and the growing push for privacy. We discuss App Tracking Transparency, part of the latest iOS update from Apple, and the future of users having the awareness and control to dictate which apps can track our data. Increasing privacy may lead to decreased data collection, contributing to a shrinking reservoir of available data resources for companies to tap into. Press pause on the Social Dilemma, exit out of the recent Spotify podcast with Tristan Harris and press play on Episode #16. We hope you enjoy!

We are cyborgs. 

Tell a human to choose between food and their phone for the next week and it isn't obvious which one gets kicked to the curb. Our daily living is a blend of physical and digital interactions, relying just as much on our legs to get us from point A to point B as our battery life to make it through the day on a single charge. Some of us (you know who you are!) are so attached to our devices that cell phones are becoming inseparable from our hands any waking hour. Navigating our electronic world began with the computer cursor, progressed to thumbs operating touch screens and now exists in our thoughts. You heard right, thinking is now doing, all thanks to Elon Musk and Neuralink building next-generation brain-computer interfaces (BMIs). We discuss how "The Link", or the Fitbit for the brain, is progressing as a neural implant in animal models (e.g. pig, monkey) and what the future holds if/when approval for this device will be given for humans. The very interesting relationship between humans and computers is about to get a bit more personal. The use of BMI as both a medical and consumer product may have huge implications for societies of the future. Inventions arise, innovation flourishes, and both communities and individuals evolve. It's time to pause Ex Machina, consider throwing away that recently purchased ergonomic mouse and put pen to paper constructing a comprehensive history of human and machine in no less than 5 volumes. Or, in other words, it's time to listen and learn!

Who doesn't enjoying watching a game of soccer, I mean football, with family and friends? Well, you are not alone. Football is the dominant international sport, inspiring youth around the world to set their sights on playing for both country and world-renowned clubs. Europe is the epicenter of top-class football, boasting some of the best leagues in England, Spain and Italy. We discuss the current state of European football, the relegation system and the failed attempt at the European Super League designed to showcase the biggest clubs at the highest level of competition, with the intention of replacing UEFA Champions League. Additionally, comparisons are made between professionals sporting leagues in North America and Europe with the goal of establishing what systems (e.g. relegation, salary cap) may improve the games we love moving forward. It's time to throw on that Pelé jersey, raise that football scarf and chant your bandwagon club's favourite mantra until the early hours of the morning. Gear up, we've got you covered!

Anyone tired of hearing just Eliot and I talk on a microphone? Well, we've got you covered! Episode #13 introduces our first guest, Gracie, to speak on the relationship between Northern Ireland and Ireland, including conflicts that have persisted for decades. We discuss The Troubles, Protestants vs. Catholics, EU vs. UK and much more. If you haven't finished your first pint of Guinness, take this as your cue to do so! It's time to listen and learn.

Note: We do not endorse the consumption of Proper 12 whiskey.

Social media is a pivotal tool for spreading information. The quest for quality, not quantity, is becoming more analogous to finding the needle in the information haystack. Interestingly, the use of "dummy pages", a key Facebook loophole being exploited by individuals and organizations to advance political, social and economic agendas poses a real threat to maintaining true content on social platforms moving forward. We live in an interconnected world where information is abundant, but true, quality information is scarce. One major questions remains: as social media evolves will the content become more beneficial or detrimental to the consumer? So, with everything laid out on the table, it's time to close that Facebook tab, exit Instagram and reconsider that Twitter post. Time to listen and learn!

Note: Apologies in advance to all the crypto enthusiasts. We made a huge error evaluating the price of Bitcoin (we said it traded around $20K when it traded at roughly three times that amount). Please don't hate us, we are both very grateful for your support!

There are 195 countries in the world, but only a few seem to govern our planet. Superpowers, countries capable of flexing economic and political muscle, may be viewed as monopolies in a global market. More importantly, superpowers sell headlines in world news. This episode focuses on a key rising superpower, China, and the global ripple effects that certain actions, or ideas, have on changing our world. Attention world travellers: open up that suitcase, secure that passport, remember to not store toiletries in your carry-on luggage, and, most importantly, get ready to listen and learn.