University of California Audio Podcasts (Audio)

Examine how what we eat and how we live can promote wellness, enhance immunity, combat age-related diseases, and promote longevity. Gordon Saxe, M.D., Ph.D., and Anthony Lim, M.D., J.D., share a timeless perspective, supported by their own research and clinical experience, on how optimal nourishment, purposeful reflection, health movement, and generosity of spirit can improve age-related conditions and slow the aging process. They present evidence-based recommendations for diet and lifestyle, as well as a practical and simple framework to help foster extending healthy aging behavioral changes. Series: "Stein Institute for Research on Aging" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40049]

John Dick, Ph.D., F.R.S., explores the role of CD83, a molecule found in blood stem cells, in how these cells respond to inflammation. His team demonstrates that CD83 becomes highly active during inflammation and contributes to the loss of healthy stem cells. Using advanced gene-editing tools, they show that removing CD83 protects stem cells from inflammation-related damage. This discovery highlights CD83 as a potential marker for identifying inflamed stem cells and as a possible target for treatments to improve recovery after stem cell transplants. He also discusses early findings on potential differences in blood stem cell behavior between men and women and raises questions about how inflammation from severe illnesses, like COVID-19, could impact the blood system as we age. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 39949]

Acclaimed violinist Jeremy Kittel (formerly of the Grammy-winning Turtle Island Quartet), Kittel & Co. (“Kid-dle and Koh”) inhabits the space between classical and acoustic roots, Celtic and bluegrass aesthetics, and folk and jazz sensibilities. The members of Kittel & Co. have collaborated with Béla Fleck, Sarah Jarosz, Chris Thile, and Yo-Yo Ma. Together, Jeremy Kittel, mandolin phenom Josh Pinkham and transcendent guitarist Quinn Bachand coalesce into a singular voice that’s thrilled audiences from the Telluride Bluegrass Festival to A Prairie Home Companion. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40024]

What defines a person’s character, and how does it shape who they are? In this lecture, Susan Wolf, emeritus professor of philosophy at the University of North Carolina, challenges traditional ideas about character. She argues that character is more than just a set of traits or values an individual endorses—it can include aspects of ourselves we may not even recognize or approve of. Wolf explores how a deeper understanding of character, rooted in active intelligence and thoughtful reflection, can reshape how we view agency, moving beyond just actions and intentions. This thought-provoking talk offers fresh insights into what makes us who we are and how we navigate the complexities of identity and selfhood. Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Humanities] [Show ID: 40221]

How can a healthy microbiome prevent disease? In this program, Dr. Sean Spencer talks about the vast microbial world that lives within our guts — known as the gut microbiome — and how it supports our health. He discusses the current evidence about how to nourish your microbiome to prevent and treat disease. 

  Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40074]

Troubled interactions are moments when communication breaks down in subtle, often unnoticed ways. In this program, Waverly Duck, an urban ethnographer and professor of sociology at UC Santa Barbara, discusses these breakdowns, revealing surprising aspects of how we create meaning and self-identity. Through video and audio recordings, Duck shows how misunderstandings lead people to assign motives to each other, creating conflict. Examples from Duck's research include neighborhood poverty, food inequality, and autism assessments. These cases highlight hidden social rules and practices, demonstrating how studying these troubles can help us understand everyday interactions better. Series: "GRIT Talks" [Humanities] [Show ID: 40131]

This presentation will briefly trace 70,000 years of cultural evolution from the ancient crossing from Sunda to Sahul, via the swift continental colonization during the Ice Age, through the severe impacts on survival during the Last Glacial Maximum, and the socio-territorial reconfigurations during Holocene sea-level rise. The Australian Aboriginal world had become characterized by low environmental impact habitation, complex social organization systems anchored within constructed sacred origin histories, the persistence of relatively simple dwelling types situated within complex settlement sociospatial structures, and a high quality of life for most, with institutional dispute resolution mechanisms to contain conflicts. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 40162]

A glimpse of gospel, jazz, and soul from the great legends is what inspires the sound of pianist Theron Brown’s music. But the reason he plays is to encourage and influence people through his talents. Originally from Zanesville, Ohio, Theron currently resides in Akron, Ohio, where he is Professor of Practice at The University of Akron teaching jazz piano, and the program coordinator for Curated Storefront’s Artist Residency Program at the ‘I Promise School’. Theron also serves as an educator for the interactive piano learning app, Playground Sessions. He is heavily involved in the music community as the founder and artistic director of the Rubber City Jazz & Blues Festival, which takes place annually in Akron, Ohio’s downtown historic district. Theron performs and tours regularly with his trio that includes Zaire Darden on drums and Jordan McBride on bass. He is currently working on his second album. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40023]

Catriona Jamieson, M.D., Ph.D., discusses pioneering research on cancer and aging in space environments, highlighting how microgravity accelerates cancer cell growth and leads to stem cell exhaustion, genomic instability, and “dark genome” activation. Using innovative tools like nano-bioreactors and artificial intelligence, her team simulates these effects and tracks cellular changes, uncovering how space’s unique conditions drive mutations and alter cellular behavior. They find that stem cells rapidly proliferate but then become exhausted in space, a process tied to telomere shortening and mitochondrial stress, impacting cell longevity and regenerative potential. Through collaborations with NASA and industry partners, Jamieson’s research aims to develop therapies to counter these effects, offering potential insights for cancer treatment and stem cell health on Earth. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 39948]

The transition from Neolithic villages to early cities marked the greatest social transformation faced by our species before the Industrial Revolution. Our ancestors had to learn how to live in new settlements that had more people, higher densities, and more activities than had been known previously. The new adaptations to urban life involved changes in society and social processes, not just individual learning. Some changes came about through social interactions in a process called energized crowding; these include innovations in housing and the use of space, and the establishment of neighborhoods in cities. Other changes were driven by powerful new institutions, including formal governments and social classes. Do ancient cities—and they ways they responded to shocks—might hold useful insights for the development of urban adaptations to climate change today? Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 40165]