Author Archives: Caroline Sferrazza

May 16

Why Do I Care So Damn Much About Game of Thrones?

posted by

Spoiler Alert. Although the neuroscientific, psychological, and cinematic concepts explored in this piece are relevant to all kinds of fiction beyond Game of Thrones, this post will be examining these concepts through the lens of the global obsession surrounding the final season of Game of Thrones, which wraps up in just a few days. So […]

»»
September 27

Close Encounters of the Robotic Kind: A Glimpse of Autonomy

posted by

Earlier this summer, people around the world were gripped by the story of the young boys from a Thai soccer team who had been trapped inside of a cave after a flood. We watched with fascination – and a healthy dose of apprehension – as plans were formulated to rescue the boys, whose situation was […]

»»
November 30

CRISPR and the Real World

posted by

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal…” So begins our country’s Declaration of Independence. While we have learned that this preamble is all too simple in the context of wider society, consider the most basic interpretation of this sentiment; at the precise moment of a child’s birth, broader circumstances […]

»»
August 10

It’s a Fine Line Between Utopia and Gattaca

posted by

In a previous piece, we talked about why scientists and innovators around the world are so excited about CRISPR, a powerful new gene editing technology. The tool was first published 2012, but it still regularly makes headlines. Less than a month ago researchers in Portland, Oregon announced the first successful use of CRISPR in human […]

»»
April 20

A Crisp(r) Explanation of Biology’s Coolest New Tool

posted by

[En español] If perusing the headlines is a regular part of your daily routine, you’ve probably noticed that one acronym has been exceedingly popular in the Science and Technology section for last couple of years: CRISPR. Even once you figure out what CRISPR stands for – Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats – it’s not […]

»»
November 03

Get Over It: Discrimination and Mental Health

posted by

Prologue: This fall quarter at UC San Diego, the School of Medicine began its first elective course in mental health outreach for clinicians. I consider myself a rather fierce advocate for mental health care and illness awareness, so naturally I jumped at registering despite my already pretty full schedule. On October 11, 2016, I had […]

»»
July 14

#TriggerWarning: Life After Trauma

posted by

At 2:09 am on June 12, 2016, Pulse had a message for its patrons: It’s only eight words, but it gives me chills whenever I read it. Have you ever been anywhere and found yourself with that imperative? Run. Keep running. Or you may die. The shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando claimed the […]

»»
April 21

Heavy on my Mind: Lead Poisoning (Part II)

posted by

When I first heard about the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, I didn’t have the slightest idea how serious the problem was. Sure, I’d heard that lead was no good for you. I thought back to the day I moved into my first apartment in New York City and the superintendent handed me a pamphlet […]

»»