AI, Technology & Innovation | Issue 3 / 2023 Where is ‘I’ The physical sense of self has been localized By Bruce Goldman Image by Siarhei November 10, 2023 Ever wonder where in your brain that interesting character called “I” lives? Stanford Medicine physician-scientist Josef Parvizi, MD, PhD, has ways of peeking into people’s heads and finding out what makes us tick. Parvizi’s most recent sighting, described in a June 8 paper in Neuron, unveils the surprising role of a small structure sandwiched between the brain’s two hemispheres. The structure, called the anterior precuneus, is th ..read more

Autism | Issue 3 / 2023 Poor memory linked to autism Findings suggest broad memory impairment plays a part in disorder By Erin Digitale Image by sderbane / Adobe Stock Images November 10, 2023 Children with autism not only have difficulty remembering faces but also recalling other kinds of information, a recent study reports. Stanford Medicine scientists conducted the research and reported the findings July 10, 2023 in Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging. Social challenges are a core feature of autism, and it’s possible that memory impairments signifi ..read more

Depression | Issue 3 / 2023 Reversing depression Magnetic stimulation redirects brain signals By Nina Bai Illustration by Juan Bernabeu November 10, 2023 A study led by Stanford Medicine scientists has revealed that transcranial magnetic stimulation treats depression by correcting the abnormal flow of brain signals. Previously, it was a mystery why the therapy, in which magnetic pulses are used to stimulate neurons, was effective in people with the mental illness. In the brain, the anterior insula, a region that integrates bodily sensations, typically sends signals to a region that gover ..read more

Wellness | Issue 2 / 2023 Self-compassion A night shift doctor explains how he finds mental fortitude By Emily Moskal Photography by Timothy Archibald Al’ai Alvarez, MD, an emergency medicine doctor and physician well-being expert, urges medical professionals to be kinder to themselves. June 2, 2023 In the middle of a recent overnight shift, Al’ai Alvarez, MD, got goose bumps after resuscitating a patient involved in a motor vehicle crash. He reminded his team during the debrief, “This feeling you’re having right now, this is what it feels like to save a life.” He pointed this out becaus ..read more

Psychiatry & Mental Health | Issue 2 / 2023 Breathing anxiety away A few minutes of sighing can relax you quickly and keep you feeling better all day long By Hadley Leggett (Image by Marco/Adobe Stock Images) June 2, 2023 What’s your go-to way to relieve anxiety? Take a walk? Have a cup of tea? Scream? What about simply taking a breath? Turns out if you do the latter for about five minutes using a technique called cyclic sighing, you’ll likely calm down quickly. When worry starts, your heart rate speeds, you breathe faster, your muscles tighten, your armpits get sweaty, and you feel ..read more

Neurology & Neurosurgery | Issue 2 / 2023 Mirroring aggression Watching counterparts brawl fires fighting neurons in mice By Nina Bai Illustration by Paul Wearing June 2, 2023 In nature, two animals fighting are seldom without an audience. Stanford Medicine researchers wondered how animals watching from the sidelines perceive aggressive interactions. “Aggression is usually not only to defeat the other animal but also to tell others in the vicinity, ‘Hey, I’m the boss.’ It’s a public display,” said Nirao Shah, PhD, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and senior author of ..read more

Pediatrics | Issue 1 / 2023 The kids are all right No connection found between a child's phone ownership and well-being By Erin Digitale (Image by Dionisio/Adobe Stock Images) January 23, 2023 Surprise! A Stanford School of Medicine study showed no meaningful links between children’s well-being and the age at which they received their own mobile phone, a result researchers credit, in part, to parents being thoughtful about timing. “One possible explanation for these results is that parents are doing a good job matching their decisions to give their kids phones to their child’s and family ..read more

Aging & Geriatrics | Issue 1 / 2023 Longevity’s secret sauce A way of life that keeps cells young in one region of Costa Rica By Hanae Armitage Illustration by Michael Paraskevas Photography by Leslie Williamson January 23, 2023 In Nicoya, Costa Rica, where average incomes are among the nation’s lowest, the average lifespan is 85 — among the world’s highest. By comparison, a person in the United States can reasonably expect to live to just 77, according to federal census data. So why is it that the people of Nicoya outlive so many others? For a long time, scientists and demographers ..read more

Addiction | Issue 1 / 2022 Putting patients first in prescription opioid regulation Chief of commission on North America’s opioid crisis reflects on the importance of consensus Keith Humphreys, PhD, the Esther Ting Memorial Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford Medicine, chairs the Stanford- Lancet  Commission on the North American Opioid Crisis. (Photograph by Timothy Archibald) July 27, 2022 When I agreed to lead the Stanford-Lancet Commission on the North American Opioid Crisis, I knew I was striding into a combat zone. For the past quarter ..read more

Psychiatry & Mental Health | Issue 1 / 2022 Here come the assembloids A new type of brain model reveals the organ’s workings in unparalleled detail, providing insights into development and disease By Bruce Goldman Photography by Timothy Archibald Sergiu Pasca is pioneering the culturing of cells to make models of parts of the brain. July 27, 2022 Sergiu Pasca was nervous. Let us count the reasons why. Because of a pandemic-enforced hiatus, he hadn’t spoken publicly — and indeed, like many of us, had greatly curtailed public contact — for two years. Now, on the morning of April 12, Pa ..read more