University of California Audio Podcasts (Audio)

The human brain contains approximately 86 billion neurons, and 100 trillion connections between those neurons. Despite our inability to image each neuron and determine their exact connective patterns, several approaches for noninvasive imaging of the living brain have been developed and utilized to great benefit. LLNL scientist Alan Kaplan explores the immense landscape of the human brain and quantifies the brain in terms of data flow. Then describes engineering applications of recorded electrophysiological data and explores methods for analyzing such data to determine the pattern of signals that arise during various activities and mood states. Series: "Field Trip at the Lab: Science on Saturday" [Science] [Show ID: 34465]

Filmmakers Kady Le, Lan Nguyen, and Quyên Nguyen-Le join moderator erin Khuê Ninh (Asian American Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of their short films “Like Mother, Like Daughter,” “Bị Kẹt,” and “Nước (Water/Homeland).” The directors each speak to their creative process and how they each worked to articulate subtle and often complex themes with their differing narrative, documentary, and experimental approaches. They explain how personal questions of family, home, community, history, and identity shaped their work, as well as the influence of other Vietnamese-American authors, activists, and filmmakers. This event was co-curated by the Viet Film Fest and presented in conjunction with UCSB Reads 2019. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 34770]

Bridget “Biddy” Mason, born a slave in Mississippi in 1818, achieved financial success that enabled her to support her extended family for generations, despite the fact that she was illiterate. In a landmark case, she sued her master for their freedom, saved her earnings, invested in real estate, and became a well-known philanthropist in Los Angeles, California. Series: "Innovator Stories: Creating Something from Nothing" [Business] [Show ID: 34785]

Ecologist Rudo Sanyanga and filmmakers R. Lane Clark and Stephan Miescher join moderator Janet Walker (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of Clark and Miescher’s documentary film Ghana’s Electric Dreams. The film concerns the history of Ghana’s Akosombo Dam, and its complex legacy as a strategic modernization project launched during the presidency of Kwame Nkrumah. The panel conversation highlights the impetus for the film and its multi-stage development, the importance of the availability of archival footage and the filmmakers’ personal familiarity with this region of Ghana, and the far-reaching human and ecological impacts of large hydroelectric infrastructure projects. This event was hosted by the Carsey-Wolf Center in collaboration with the Mellon-Sawyer Seminar for Energy Justice in Global Perspective. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 34883]

Young Artist Winner Anne Liu performs Camille Saint-Saens’ witty "Second Piano Concerto," which has been described as “beginning with Bach and ending with Offenbach.” Series: "La Jolla Symphony & Chorus" [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 34888]

Alysson Muotri, Director of the UC San Diego Stem Cell program explores the many ways his and other labs are using brain organoids to understand neurodevelopment. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 34285]

Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla welcomes Former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and student speaker Michaela Juels to address UC San Diegos all campus commencement ceremony. Secretary Albright shattered the glass ceiling to become the first woman to serve as Secretary of State and is an icon of American diplomacy. She shares her insight as a strong leader and dedicated public servant who inspires making a positive impact on the globe, a theme echoed by Michaela Juels. [Public Affairs] [Education] [Show ID: 34545]

Dr. Alan Zhang is an orthopedic surgeon at UCSF specializing in sports medicine and minimally invasive arthroscopic surgery of the hip, knee and shoulder. He explores conservative (non-surgical) treatment of the hip and also looks at hip arthroscopy surgery. Series: "Mini Medical School for the Public" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34794]

The human brain is composed of billions of cells that communicate through chemical and electrical signals. LLNL microelectrodes can interface directly with the brain to allow us to monitor and manipulate the dynamics of these brain signals. LLNL microelectrodes are flexible and microfabricated in dense arrays that allow them to collect large amounts of information over long periods of time in the body. Scientists Anna Belle and Allison Yorita go over how these arrays are microfabricated and their diagnostic and therapeutic applications. Series: "Field Trip at the Lab: Science on Saturday" [Science] [Show ID: 34464]

Steven Schick leads a sharply varied program. Pulitzer Prize-winner Julia Wolfe has taken particular pleasure in writing music with film, and we hear her "Fuel," with a film by Bill Morrison. Young Artist Winner Anne Liu performs Camille Saint-Saens’ witty "Second Piano Concerto," which has been described as “beginning with Bach and ending with Offenbach.” The concert concludes with Jean Sibelius’ mighty "Symphony No. 5," which drives to its triumphant conclusion on six shattering chords for full orchestra. Series: "La Jolla Symphony & Chorus" [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 34006]