/oss/taxonomy/term/3852/all en /oss/article/medical-critical-thinking-technology/brain-zapping-may-probably-appear-be-doing-something <p>Shocking the brain with electricity may bring to mind electroconvulsive therapy or James Whale’s seminal black-and-white adaptation of <i>Frankenstein</i>. But given that our brain cells use electricity to allow us to think, speak, and move, might there not be some way to tweak our brain’s electricity to solve our many health problems?</p> Fri, 21 Jul 2023 15:01:41 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 9572 at /oss /oss/article/medical-student-contributors-did-you-know/where-map-our-mind <p>When I moved to Montreal, it took me a while to get oriented. After a few weeks of constantly checking Google Maps, I developed a mental image of key landmarks and how to navigate between them. I can now get to Jean-Talon market from Mont-Royal, or to McGill campus from the Lachine Canal because I understand where these places are in relation to each other. This feeling of being lost and disoriented but eventually gathering our bearings is nearly universal.</p> Fri, 30 Jun 2023 16:00:52 +0000 Maya McKeown, B.Sc. 9556 at /oss /oss/article/critical-thinking-health-and-nutrition/andrew-huberman-has-bad-case-supplement-brain <p>Combining the calm delivery and pared-down wardrobe of a Sam Harris with the more imposing physique of a Joe Rogan, Andrew Huberman wants to give you science-based tips on how to optimize your biology. Neuroscientist at Stanford by day and podcaster by night, Huberman is the host of The Huberman Lab podcast. The video version of <a href="https://youtu.be/H-XfCl-HpRM">its first episode</a> published two years ago has garnered 1 million views on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@hubermanlab/featured">a YouTube channel that counts over 3 million subscribers</a>.</p> Fri, 07 Apr 2023 10:00:00 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 9466 at /oss /oss/article/medical-history/hole-head <p>Harvard University’s Warren Anatomical Museum is a must-visit for anyone interested in the history of medicine. Displays include an ether inhaler as used by dentist William Morton that allowed surgeon John Collins Warren to carry out the surgery in 1846 that introduced ether anesthesia along with the famous painting by Robert Hinckley depicting the first operation under ether. Also exhibited are historical herbals, amputation saws, early stethoscopes, and the skull of Johann Gaspar Spurzheim, a chief proponent of phrenology in the early 19<sup>th</sup> century.</p> Wed, 18 Jan 2023 17:10:40 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 9362 at /oss /oss/article/health-general-science/are-you-left-handed-science-still-yearns-know-why <p>Being left-handed can be devilishly hard. In 1937, an educational psychologist whose work was later discredited<a href="https://books.google.ca/books?redir_esc=y&id=ap9DAAAAIAAJ&focus=searchwithinvolume&q=flounder"> </a><a href="https://books.google.ca/books?redir_esc=y&id=ap9DAAAAIAAJ&focus=searchwithinvolume&q=flounder">wrote of many left-handers</a> that “they squint, they stammer, they shuffle and shamble, they flounder like seals out of water.” Beyond accusations of being gauche, left-handers have also had to deal with more sinister imputations.</p> Sat, 18 Sep 2021 08:00:00 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8852 at /oss /oss/article/health/alzheimers-breakthrough-hardly <p>Alzheimer’s is a terrifying disease. Since no new medications for this condition have been introduced for about two decades, it is certainly understandable that any new drug that receives regulatory agency approval attracts media attention. This is indeed the case for Aduhelm (aducanumab), recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. That approval, however, is riddled with controversy.</p> Sat, 12 Jun 2021 04:10:10 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8762 at /oss /oss/article/history/phineas-gage-neuroscience-and-count-dracula <p>The glass cases at the Warren Anatomical Museum in Boston are filled with a variety of fascinating items that have played a role in the history of medicine. On display is a one- meter long iron rod that doesn’t appear to have any special medicinal properties, and indeed it has none. Its fame, or one might say notoriety, rests on having passed completely through the skull of one Phineas Gage in 1848 without killing him! The dreadful injury didn’t kill him, but it did dramatically alter his personality.</p> Fri, 14 May 2021 19:32:26 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8734 at /oss