The Short Coat (Audio): An Inside Look at Getting Into and Getting Through Medical School

Lisa Wehr teaches Kaci McCleary and Dylan Todd about the invention of the shipping container. We look forward to the day when humans are replaced by robots in the workplace so people can pursue their real dreams. On the other hand, we rage at the work-world gurus who suggest that we behave in a way that our bosses would fire us for (he's looking at you, four-hour-work-week, follow-your-dreams spewers).

Professor Hoffmann joins Melissa Palma to talk about his secret life, that of a pie baker. It's the sort of thing, he says, that allows him to work with his hands while turning down the intellect a bit. A pie, unlike science, is a short-term goal with an end that, like pie itself, is satisfying. Plus, pie.

Are you under-caffeinated but hate the kind of caffeine that doesn't stick to the roof of your mouth?  Do you lack ways to describe unlikely illnesses and injuries with absurd specificity?  Then come along with us as Kaci McCleary, Dylan Todd (Todd Dylan?), Marc Toral, and Lisa Wehr explore medical news that makes us go hmm...

Dave rewards his podcasters with a tasty treat. Though this may be a new definition of the words 'tasty' and 'treat' of which Marc Toral, Dylan Todd, Emily White, and newbie Alex Volkmar were previously unaware. And as a special bonus, we offer lots of lovely lip smacking sounds for our listeners.

Dylan Todd, Marc Toral, Eric Wilson are on hand to give advice to caller Todd, who is just beginning his journey from community college to medical school. Is the advice we give any good? Well, we tried, and that's all that counts. Also, we discuss researchers' discovery that it's possible to cause hallucinations just by staring into someone else's eyes for 10 minutes. Try it! Don't be weird, get permission first; maybe even start by introducing yourself. Also, it's time to brush up on your cyber-security skillz, as a group demos how it might be possible to hack pacemakers and such. And Dr. Oz returns after a listening tour of America in which he sought feedback on his brand of infotainment. Been a rough year for our boy, but can he come out smelling like a ratings rose?

John Pienta, Kaci McCleary, and Caroline Sanderson join special guest Frank Canady on this week's show. Frank's here to talk about his recent astrocytoma diagnosis, discuss what he's experienced during treatment so far, and reflect on some of the things he's learned about what patients experience when facing a serious illness. Also, the kiss of death for your research poster may not have anything to do with your research. And John and Dylan Todd (among others) are revitalizing Vital Signs, the on-hiatus medical student newspaper which traces its history to well before Roe v. Wade.

Christine Sloan, Marc Toral, Dylan Todd, and Eric Elliott are all in the Medical Scientist Training Program, which recently enjoyed a retreat in which they explored the intersections between medicine and science fiction to look at where medical science has been and where it's going. Jenna calls in with a question about what the spouse of a future medical student can do to support them during their studies. We inadequately explore the question, since only Christine is in an actual relationship with another human.

From the vibrant Boulware Learning Community, Kaci McCleary, Aline Sandouk, Dylan Todd, and Lisa Wehr discuss Yelp's new hospital reviews and ProPublica's Surgeon Scorecard. And we talk about why science and science facts fail to persuade people to believe the truth. Are emotional appeals better used than facts to teach people about medical truths? Is scientific fact as irrelevant now for most people as it was in the early part of the 20th century?

The Annals of Internal Medicine published an editorial from a medical educator admitting and highlighting the fact that there are objectionable people in medicine, and showing how the hierarchical nature of medicine leads otherwise well-meaning students to play along with racism, sexism, and harassment.   One can argue that no-one should ever play along, but in order to not be taken off guard by those who have control over your life, you must have a plan for bad behavior.  Corbin Weaver and newbies Tony Rosenberg, Nicole Westergaard, and Emily White toss around some ideas. Also, Dave and Nicole plan a CCOM motorcycle gang, despite the occasional judgy medical students (and Nicole's EMT background).  Researchers grow a small brain from stem cells that includes 99% of the cell-types present in the human brain.  Female viagra is approved by the FDA, after having twice been rejected.  A blood test for suicidal thoughts might be BS, but we talk about it anyway.

Kaci McCleary, Cory Christensen and Tae Kim are excited to experience Iowa State Fair food, which is arguably responsible for a large percentage of the people needing bypass surgery in Iowa every year.  Enjoy your nacho balls, bacon and brisket explosion, and fried food-that-used-to-be-good-for-you-until-they-fried-it on a stick.  We also talk about The Atlantic's article about what babies undergrads are about touchy subjects, which just annoys Kaci, who thinks this is a media-manufactured trend. Also, researchers grow monkey arms in the lab .  And Google Life Sciences is working on a bandage-sized disposable device that will replace the familiar but reviled finger stick that diabetics use to monitor blood glucose.