Cavin and Alek Interview Dr. Peggy Mason to understand what’s going on inside the brain after head trauma, and how to use that information to facilitate healing and better injury prevention. 

(You can also hear this episode on YouTube, iTunes, Stitcher, and almost every other podcast network!)

From her website:

“Peggy Mason grew up in the Washington DC area and worked in taxidermy at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History under the direction of the late Dr Charles O Handley Jr. She went to college at Harvard, graduating with a degree in Biology in 1983. She received her PhD in Neuroscience from Harvard in 1987. After postdoctoral work at the University of California – San Francisco under the direction of Dr Howard Fields, she joined the faculty at the University of Chicago in 1992. Dr Mason is now Professor of Neurobiology.

Dr Mason is committed to teaching neurobiology to anyone that will listen. She has taught medical students since her arrival at UChicago, with the exception of a 2 year hiatus during which she wrote a textbook, Medical Neurobiology (Oxford University Press, 2011). Dr Mason also teaches undergraduates both on the Chicago campus and in Paris! She is a sought after mentor. Dr Mason is now offering a massively open on-line course, Understanding the Brain: The Neurobiology of Everyday Life. It is not too late to join an enthusiastic group of NeuroMOOCers that number 41,000 and counting (https://www.coursera.org/course/neurobio). Dr Mason has won several awards for her teaching and mentoring.

For more than 20 years, Dr Mason’s research was focused on the cellular mechanisms of pain modulation. In the last 5 years, she has turned her gaze to the biology of empathy and pro-social behavior. For a lively discussion of her empathic helping work, see her Reddit AMA ”

Links from this episode:

• More about Dr. Omalu and CTE
• Cavin’s Article: Biology, Evolution, and the Brain
• Dr. Bennet Omalu on FRONTLINE
• “Head Games” (film)

• Cavin’s December “Teach Believe Inspire” award! from the Brain Injury law Center

• Dr. Peggy Mason’s Website: TheBrainIsSoCool.com
• Dr. Mason’s Free Online Course (MOOC): Understanding the Brain: The Neurobiology of Everyday Life
• Dr. Mason’s TV interview on “Chicago Tonight“
• Dr. Mason’s article: “The Naked Concussion Emperor“
• Dr. Mason’s Reddit AMA interview

 

Points of Interest:

• 1:00 – A Thank You to our Supporters!
• 3:35 –Cavin’s December “Teach Believe Inspire” award!
• 6:25 – Cavin’s experience with Dr. Mason’s Online Course
• 9:30 – Preview of interview
• 10:10 – Introduction of Dr. Peggy Mason
• 14:40 – What do you think about the value of the word “Concussion?”
• 18:20 – Rotational vs. Linear force – What kinds of motion cause brain injury? Can jumping on a trampoline?
• 22:20 – Head trauma more likely for women?
• 25:50 – What’s happening at a cellular level after head trauma?
• 31:00 – The brain as a busy city analogy
• 34:25 – What are Tao proteins we hear about with brain disease?
• 39:55 – What causes the “plaques” that we hear about with CTE and brain disease?
• 42:40 – Is society better-recognizing head injury? How do we hold those responsible with brain disease?
• 47:15 – What’s your opinion on helmets? Why do some players seemingly not develop CTE?
• 52:00 – Philosophy on healthy living and brain health?
• 56:00 – Music therapy?
• 1:02:00 – Rest as major treatment for head trauma?
• 1:10:45 – Would you let your children play football?

 

Read Dr. Peggy Mason’s Book:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Mason recommended “Head Games”: