You’ve probably heard that Banting and Best gave away the patent for Insulin for one dollar. But why did they do that? And did it achieve what they wanted?

We often associate being successful with being profitable. And for a lot of enterprises that is true. But what if your goal is to win the second world war, and you do, but you go bankrupt in the process… is that a ‘success?’

What if your goal is to save a lot of people’s lives, and the only way to do that is to also make a lot of money? Does that sound like a contradiction?

The truth is the relationship between ‘social good,’ and ‘good business’ is messy. We dig deep into this idea of morality, profits and what it really means to ‘do the right thing.’

These science stories from history shed light on the modern research being done on Type 2 Diabetes. Specifically, we highlight the work of SciMar as they examine the hormone HISS - Hepatic Insulin Sensitizing Substance - and the effect it has on glucose levels in people who are insulin resistant. www.SciMar.ca
Learn more about SciMar at https://scimar.ca/

You’ve probably heard that Banting and Best gave away the patent for Insulin for one dollar. But why did they do that? And did it achieve what they wanted? We often associate being successful with being profitable. And for a lot of enterprises that is true. But what if your goal is to win the second world war, and you do, but you go bankrupt in the process… is that a ‘success?’ What if your goal is to save a lot of people’s lives, and the only way to do that is to also make a lot of money? Does that sound like a contradiction? The truth is the relationship between ‘social good,’ and ‘good business’ is messy. We dig deep into this idea of morality, profits and what it really means to ‘do the right thing.’ These science stories from history shed light on the modern research being done on Type 2 Diabetes. Specifically, we highlight the work of SciMar as they examine the hormone HISS - Hepatic Insulin Sensitizing Substance - and the effect it has on glucose levels in people who are insulin resistant. www.SciMar.ca Learn more about SciMar at https://scimar.ca/

Why Giving It All Away Doesn’t Always Work

In Season 2 of the series we will share a new collection of surprising and unusual stories from the history of science.
In each episode we will feature two seemingly unrelated stories from the past. Then, Dan Riskin will connect the dots between those stories and offer insight into how that history impacts modern medical research.

We are learning from the past so we can understand the present, and inform the future.

Along the way we will learn how a professor at Stanford turned mild mannered young men into cruel vicious prison guards, and how the Irish Potato Famine really had nothing to do with potatoes.

We will ask questions such as: “Did we learn the wrong lesson from the sinking of the Titanic?” “How many people did Orson Wells actually fool?” and “What exactly is Maple Syrup Urine Disease?”

In these ten episodes we will also follow along with SciMar as they take their breakthrough science into the testing phase. Will the things they discovered in a row of test tubes in the lab be repeatable in real people? And will that prove to be the final cure for type 2 diabetes?

So, if you are intrigued by science, get excited about the process of discovery, and want to have the best stories at your next dinner party, this is the show for you. We promise a season full of guinea pigs, Corona beer, shipwrecks, and cobras.

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The series is produced by SciMar, a medical research company developing a new way to detect, treat and cure type 2 diabetes. Rather than insulin from the pancreas, they are focused on hepatalin, a hormone that comes from the liver. We will use historical stories to shine a light on where this modern company is headed.

Society & Culture

Documentary

Science

History

In Season 2 of the series we will share a new collection of surprising and unusual stories from the history of science. In each episode we will feature two seemingly unrelated stories from the past. Then, Dan Riskin will connect the dots between those stories and offer insight into how that history impacts modern medical research. We are learning from the past so we can understand the present, and inform the future. Along the way we will learn how a professor at Stanford turned mild mannered young men into cruel vicious prison guards, and how the Irish Potato Famine really had nothing to do with potatoes. We will ask questions such as: “Did we learn the wrong lesson from the sinking of the Titanic?” “How many people did Orson Wells actually fool?” and “What exactly is Maple Syrup Urine Disease?” In these ten episodes we will also follow along with SciMar as they take their breakthrough science into the testing phase. Will the things they discovered in a row of test tubes in the lab be repeatable in real people? And will that prove to be the final cure for type 2 diabetes? So, if you are intrigued by science, get excited about the process of discovery, and want to have the best stories at your next dinner party, this is the show for you. We promise a season full of guinea pigs, Corona beer, shipwrecks, and cobras. -- The series is produced by SciMar, a medical research company developing a new way to detect, treat and cure type 2 diabetes. Rather than insulin from the pancreas, they are focused on hepatalin, a hormone that comes from the liver. We will use historical stories to shine a light on where this modern company is headed.

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Why Giving It All Away Doesn’t Always Work

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