Progress, Potential, and Possibilities

Send us a textDr. Mark Lloyd Davies, Ph.D. is the Global Head for the Strategic Partnerships and Resource Group at Johnson & Johnson ( https://www.jnj.com/ ) where he leads a global team that forges novel strategic public-private partnerships to secure collaborations that accelerate groundbreaking R&D, advances strategies that widen access to care for patients and health systems worldwide, and ultimately unlocks possibilities that transform lives.Dr. Davies has built a distinguished career at the intersection of science, policy, and global health strategy.Before taking on his current global role, Dr. Davies held a number of senior leadership positions within Johnson & Johnson, where he was instrumental in shaping external engagement strategies and guiding policy development in areas ranging from pharmaceutical innovation to public health preparedness, leading strategic initiatives such as the Johnson & Johnson Lung Cancer Initiative.Dr. Davies was previously Chair of the Med Tech Europe Research & Innovation Committee, where he worked on the evolution of the EU funded Innovative Medicines Initiative, as well as at Sanofi, involved in various External Affairs initiatives.Dr. Davies holds a Ph.D. from the University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, in Climate Change, Physical Geography and Geology, and a BSc, Biology and Geography, Earth Sciences, Climate Change, from the University of London, UK.#MarkLloydDavies #StrategicPartnershipsAndResourceGroup #JohnsonAndJohnson #PublicPrivatePartnerships #MedTechEurope #InnovativeMedicinesInitiative #InnovativeHealthInitiative #OperationWarpSpeed #LungCancerInitiative #GlobalNeurodegenerationProteomicsConsortium #Antarctica #ClimateChange #PhysicalGeography #Geology #CARBX #DrugsForNeglectedDiseasesInitiative #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #Research #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcastSupport the show

Send us a textWade Demmer is Vice President of Research & Development at Medtronic where he is responsible for the development of new generations of pacemakers ( https://www.medtronic.com/en-us/l/patients/treatments-therapies/pacemakers.html ). With extensive expertise in medical technology and innovation, he leads the company's R&D efforts to develop cutting-edge healthcare solutions and is dedicated to advancing medical advancements that improve patient outcomes and transform healthcare delivery.Wade began his career at Intel, where he gained valuable experience in technology development and engineering. Building on his technical expertise, he transitioned into the medical device industry, bringing a strong innovation-driven mindset to healthcare solutions.Wade is best known for his pioneering work on pacemakers, where he contributed to the design and development of advanced cardiac pacing technologies. His innovative approaches have helped improve the reliability, longevity, and patient comfort of pacemaker devices, significantly impacting the field of cardiac care.Wade received his Bachelor of Engineering (BEng), with a focus on Computer Engineering, from Iowa State University, and his MBA from University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management.#WadeDemmer #Medtronic #Pacemaker #MedicalDevice #Defibrillator #Bradycardia #CardiacResynchronization #RateAdaptivePacing #Micra #HeartRhythm #HeartFailure #Arrhythmias #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #Research #Podcast #PodcasterSupport the show

Send us a textProfessor Eyal Zimlichman, MD is an internal medicine physician, a health care executive and a researcher focused on assessing and improving health care quality and value, patient engagement and patient safety.Professor Zimlichman is currently Chief Transformation, Innovation and AI Officer at Sheba Medical Center ( https://www.shebaonline.org/ ), the largest hospital system in Israel and one that is routinely listed among the top 10 on Newsweek's list of best hospitals worldwide. Professor Zimlichman is also the Founder and Director of Sheba's ARC ( Accelerate, Redesign, Collaborate - https://arcinnovation.org/ ) innovation program: an open global innovation ecosystem which aims to redesign healthcare through digital health solutions by 2030, focused on connecting entrepreneurs and clinicians, identifying needs, and advancing the development and deployment of new technologies from within hospital settings. Prior to these roles Professor Zimlichman has held the position of Lead Researcher at Partners Health Care Clinical Affairs Department in Boston where he was involved in the efforts to bring about a strategic care redesign initiative. Professor Zimlichman has served on several advisory committees commissioned by the Office of the National Coordinator for health information technology at the US Department of Health and Human Services and is chairing and sitting on several committees at the Israeli Health Ministry.  Professor Zimlichman is also founding member of the International Academy of Quality and Safety in Health Care ( https://isqua.org/networks/isqua-academy.html ).Professor Zimlichman is a graduate of the Harvard School of Public Health Executive Health Care Management Master of Science program and earned his MD, specializing in internal medicine, at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel.#EyalZimlichman #InternalMedicine #HealthcareExecutive #ShebaMedicalCenter #Israel #OpenInnovation #DigitalHealth #MedicalQualityManagement #Telemedicine #DisruptiveInnovation #TelAviv #ShebaLongevityCenter #ArtificialIntelligence #VirtualReality #Telepsychiatry #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Brigitte Robertson, MD ( https://www.adial.com/team/brigette-roberston-md/ ) is Chief Medical Officer of Adial Pharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage biopharma company focused on developing therapies for the treatment of addiction and related diseases, specifically Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). In the U.S. alone, an estimated 35 million people suffer from AUD, resulting in significant health, social and financial costs. Current treatment options present significant barriers to patient adoption including abstinence and side effects which can lead to social stigmatization.Dr. Robertson has nearly 20 years of academic, clinical, and pharmaceutical industry experience. She has managed global development portfolios across multiple CNS indications, mechanisms, and in biotech, small, and large pharma. Her experience spans all phases of development, from the bench to bedside, and she has actively engaged throughout her career in advancing biomarkers to improve translation and trial outcomes (leveraging precision approaches, omics, wearables and AI). She is a scientific advisor to biotech companies, has served on industry and academic consortia and authored numerous articles published in leading peer-reviewed journals.Dr. Robertson's industry career started at GlaxoSmithKline as a physician scientist in translational medicine for the Center for Excellence in Drug Discovery. She subsequently held senior roles in clinical development at Sepracor/Sunovion, Neurovance, Euthymics, and Shire/Takeda, where she served as VP and the Therapeutic Area Head of Neuroscience. In this last role, she led global clinical development and helped drive the disease area strategy for a large portfolio of early and late-stage assets in neurological, psychiatric, and neurodegenerative disorders, resulting in successful approvals across several indications.Dr. Robertson then served as the Chief Medical Officer of Yumanity Therapeutics, and led development of novel small molecule treatments for neurodegenerative diseases. She comes to Adial from Delix Therapeutics, where she most recently served as CMO, setting the strategy and leading clinical development for their portfolio of psychedelic-related analogs targeting the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders, and psychiatric illness including Depression, Anxiety/PTSD, and Substance use.Dr. Robertson completed residency training at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, followed by a fellowship in child and adolescent psychiatry and a second post-doctoral research fellowship, sponsored by the NIH in neuroimaging and psychopharmacology at the University of California in San Diego (UCSD). In addition, she has held faculty positions at CCP Children's hospital in San Diego, USCD, and Duke University.#BrigitteRobertson #AdialPharmaceuticals #Addiction #AlcoholUseDisorder #Ondansetron #DrugRepurposing #5HT3Receptor #SingleNucleotidePolymorphisms  #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #Research #Podcast #PodcasterSupport the show

Send us a textBilu Huang ( https://biluhuang.com/ ) is a visionary scientist dedicated to finding solutions to some of the most pressing challenges facing humanity. His interdisciplinary work spans multiple fields, including biological aging, dinosaur extinction theories, geoengineering for carbon removal, and controlled nuclear fusion technology.Born in Sanming City, Fujian Province, Huang is an independent researcher whose knowledge is entirely self-taught. Driven by curiosity and a relentless pursuit of scientific exploration, he has achieved numerous research results through his dedication and passion for science.As a talented theoretical gerontologist,  he proposed the Telomere DNA and ribosomal DNA co-regulation model for cell senescence (TRCS) and he is now using this latest theory to develop biotechnology to rejuvenate cells which will be used to completely cure various age-related degenerative diseases and greatly extend human life at Fuzhuang Therapeutics ( https://lab.fuzhuangtx.com/en/ ).#Aging #Longevity #BiluHuang #FuzhuangTherapeutics #TelomereDNAAndRibosomalDNACoRegulationModelForCell #Senescence #TRCS #DinosaurExtinctionResearch #CarbonRemovalTechnology #ControlledNuclearFusion #TelomereDNA #RibosomalDNA #CellularAging #GeneticProgram #Telomere #P53#ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Karen Knudsen, MBA, PhD, is the Chief Executive Officer of The Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy ( PICI - https://www.parkerici.org/ ), a 501c3 nonprofit organization driving the next generation of cancer treatment by accelerating the development of breakthrough immune therapies to turn all cancers into curable diseases.Dr. Knudsen most recently served as the Chief Executive Officer of the American Cancer Society (ACS) and ACS Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), where she led both organizations through a period of transformative growth, significantly expanding research investments, advocacy reach, and direct patient support initiatives. Under her leadership, ACS evolved into a unified, high-performing enterprise, increasing revenue by more than 30 percent and broadening its impact to serve over 55 million lives annually. Moreover, Dr. Knudsen developed and scaled innovative programs that included joint ventures and an impact innovation arm to accelerate progress against cancer.Prior to ACS, Dr. Knudsen served as Executive Vice President of Oncology Services at Jefferson Health and Enterprise Director of the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, growing a multi-state oncology network and spearheading advancements in translational cancer research that increased early access to the most advanced cancer care. A globally recognized expert in prostate cancer, Dr. Knudsen has authored over 200 scientific publications and generated practice-changing discoveries. Dr. Knudsen held leadership roles with organizations including the National Cancer Institute Board of Scientific Advisors, the Association of American Cancer Institutes, and the American Association for Cancer Research. She currently serves on the boards of Exai Bio, Paradigm Health, and Research!America, and advises multiple biotech ventures including ArteraAI and Transcarent.Dr. Knudsen holds numerous awards for her scientific and healthcare accomplishments, and this year will be honored with the Allen Lichter Visionary Leader Award from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), recognizing her lifetime achievement of outstanding contributions to the field of oncology.Dr. Knudsen holds a PhD in Biological Sciences from the University of California, San Diego, and an MBA from Temple University's Fox School of Business. She has been recognized as one of Forbes' “50 Over 50: Women of Impact”, a CNBC Changemaker, and is a CEO Council Member for both the Wall Street Journal and CNBC.#Oncology #Immunooncology #Cancer #KarenKnudsen #ParkerInstituteForCancerImmunotherapy #AmericanCancerSociety #JeffersonHealth #UniversityOfCalifornia #LudwigInstituteForCancerResearch #UniversityOfCincinnati #ProstateCancer #CART #CellTherapy #CheckpointInhibitors #TumorAntigenDiscovery #TumorMicroenvironment #OncolyticViruses #Pluvicto #Philadelphia #CarlJune #JamesAllison #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textAyah Hamdan is the Head of Health, at Plug and Play Tech Center ( https://www.plugandplaytechcenter.com/ ), where she spearheads strategies that bring together startups, corporations, and investors to solve some of the most pressing challenges in healthcare. Plug and Play Tech Center is one of the world's largest innovation platforms and startup accelerators, headquartered in Silicon Valley (Sunnyvale, California), with innovation hubs across North America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America and are best known for their model bringing together Startup Accelerator Programs, Corporate Innovation Partnerships and Venture Capital Investments under one roof.Ayah's role is pivotal in accelerating the development and scaling of health technologies with real-world impact. Before stepping into this leadership position, Ayah founded Fatima Connect, a digital health venture focused on serving refugee populations—a project that has been recognized in prestigious publications like the Harvard Medical Review. Ayah also has deep experience in research and public health, including roles in epidemiology, clinical studies, and community health initiatives. Ayah holds a Master of Science in Epidemiology from Harvard University, and a Bachelor of Science in Public Health from the University of California, Berkeley.#AyahHamdan #PlugAndPlayTechCenter #StartupAccelerator #CorporateInnovation #VentureCapitalInvestments #DigitalHealth #BigDataAnalytics #Diagnostics #HospitalWorkflow #MedicationAdherence #Sensors #Wearables #Telemedicine #AI #VR #AR #ArtificialIntelligence #Longevity #HealthyAging #ChronicDiseaseManagement #RegenerativeCare #Prevention #SaeedAmidi #PejmanNozad #PeterThiel #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #Research #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcastSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Stephanie Psaki, Ph.D. is a public health leader with expertise at the intersection of national security, global health, and equity who is currently both a Senior Advisor, Global Health Policy Center, Center for Strategic and International Studies ( CSIS - https://www.csis.org/people/stephanie-psaki ) and a distinguished senior fellow at Brown School of Public Health ( https://facultyaffairs.sph.brown.edu/people/stephanie-psaki ). Dr. Psaki has held leadership positions across government, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and research institutions. She previously served as special assistant to the president and the inaugural U.S. coordinator for global health security at the White House, a role that included overseeing the federal government's response to emerging global health threats such as mpox, Ebola, and Marburg. While on staff at the National Security Council, Dr. Psaki also coordinated U.S. government engagement on issues ranging from ending HIV/AIDS as a public health threat, investing in health workers, expanding access to sexual and reproductive health services, and protecting human rights. Dr. Psaki previously worked for twenty years at NGOs and research institutions, including Partners in Health, FHI 360, and the Population Council, where she led a research center focused on expanding opportunities for young people around the world. Dr. Psaki holds a PhD from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, an MS from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and a Bachelor of Science from Georgetown University Walsh School of Foreign Service.#StephaniePsaki #GlobalHealthSecurity #PandemicPreparedness #OutbreakResponse #HIV #AIDS #SexualAndReproductiveHealth #MaternalAndChildHealth #HumanRights #BrownUniversity #CenterForStrategicAndInternationalStudies #CSIS #USDevelopmentPolicy #HumanitarianAssistance #MultilateralHealthInstitutions #FamilyPlanning #Immunization #InfectiousDisease #PublicHealth #Biodefense #Countermeasures #Preparedness #Policy #Surveillance #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textAlex Haro is the Co-Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Executive Chairman of Hubble Network Inc. ( https://hubble.com/ ), a startup building the first global satellite network capable of communicating directly with standard Bluetooth devices—enabling connectivity anywhere on Earth, even without cellular coverage, creating a satellite-enabled IoT platform.Alex is also the Co-Founder of Life360 ( https://www.life360.com/ ), the information technology company that provides location-based services, including sharing and notifications, to consumers globally. He has served on the company's Board of Directors since 2010, and previously held several key leadership roles, including Chief Technology Officer and President, where he helped scale the platform from startup to global category leader. Prior to Life360, Alex worked at Orbited, an open-source project enabling real-time browser communication.Alex studied Computer Science at Pomona College and Harvey Mudd College.#AlexHaro #HubbleNetwork #BluetoothToSpace #Life360 #GlobalCoverage #BatteryLife #BluetoothLowEnergy #SmartLuggageTrackers #PetCollars #WildlifeTags #Wearables #Logistics #SupplyChain #InternetOfThings #InternetOfMedicalThings #SatelliteConstellation #RemotePatientMonitoring #Telemedicine #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #Research #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcastSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Adam Rogers, MD is Chief Executive Officer of NervGen Pharma Corp. ( https://nervgen.com/ ) a clinical-stage biotech company dedicated to developing innovative treatments to enable nervous system repair in the settings of traumatic injury and disease. NervGen's lead drug candidate, NVG-291, is being evaluated in mid stage clinical trials in an initial target indication, spinal cord injury. NervGen has initiated preclinical evaluation of a new development candidate, NVG-300, in models of ischemic stroke, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and spinal cord injury.Dr. Rogers is a board-certified ophthalmologist specializing in diseases and surgery of the retina and vitreous, and previously co-founded and served as CEO of Hemera Biosciences, a clinical stage gene therapy biotech company targeting dry age-related macular degeneration where he oversaw all aspects of the company until the Hemera assets were acquired in December 2020 by Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson.From 2001 to 2020 Dr. Rogers served as an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology at the New England Eye Center of Tufts Medical Center (Boston, MA). Dr. Rogers has published 29 articles in peer reviewed journals and co-authored two textbooks and numerous chapters in major ophthalmic textbooks. Since 2007 he has served on the board of One Family Inc., an organization whose mission is to end homelessness in Massachusetts. He is a member of the Emory University Board of Trustees. Dr. Rogers has a MD from Emory College and Emory School of Medicine.#SpinalCordInjury #SCI #IschemicStroke #AmyotrophicLateralSclerosis #ALS #NervGen #Rehabilitation #RegenerativeMedicine #RegenerativeBiology #ChondroitinSulfateProteoglycans #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #Research #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcastSupport the show

Send us a textProfessor Dragan Primorac, MD., PhD ( https://www.draganprimorac.com/ ) is a globally recognized physician-scientist whose work spans personalized medicine, regenerative therapies, and forensic genetics. From 2003 to 2009 Prof. Primorac served as the Minister of Science, Education and Sports of the Republic of Croatia.  The Ministry of Science and Education of Croatia is the ministry in the Government of Croatia which is in charge of primary, secondary and tertiary education, research institutions and sports ( https://mzom.gov.hr/en ).Prof. Primorac is the Founder of St. Catherine Specialty Hospital in Zagreb Croatia ( https://www.stcatherine.com/ ), the official hospital of the Croatian Olympic Committee as well as the official hospital of the Croatian Football Federation. St. Catherine Hospital is affiliated with four medical schools and the Ministry of Science and Education recently announced that the St. Catherine Hospital became “Scientific Center of Excellence for the Personalized Medicine" in the Republic of Croatia. Prof. Primorac is also Co-Founder of the International Society for Applied Biological Sciences ( ISABS https://isabs.hr/ ), a global scientific platform organized with Mayo Clinic that brings together Nobel laureates and researchers from over 75 countries. A pioneer in applying DNA technology to identify war victims, he helped establish international standards in clinical and forensic genetics. Prof. Primorac has authored nearly 300 scientific papers, received over 20 international honors including Croatia's highest state awards, and was recently named among the top 2% of global scientists by Elsevier for career impact. Prof. Primorac also serves as professor at Penn State, the University of New Haven, and several European medical schools.Prof. Primorac is an inductee of the Taekwondo Hall of Fame, based in the United States.Prof. Primorac received his medical degree and PhD at University of Zagreb School of Medicine, and did post-doctoral work in Molecular Medicine at The University of Connecticut Health Center.#DraganPrimorac #MinisterOfScienceEducationAndSports #Croatia #InternationalSocietyForAppliedBiologicalSciences #OsteogenesisImperfecta #AdministrationForDetainedAndMissingPersons #ForensicGenetics #RegenerativeMedicine #PrecisionMedicine #PersonalizedMedicine #Genomics #Glycome #CancersOfUnknownPrimary #StCatherineSpecialtyHospital #ClinicalDiagnostics #OncoOriginAI #LiquidBiopsy #MedicalTourism #Nutrigenomics #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Juho Jalkanen, M.D., Ph.D. is CEO and Founder of Faron Pharmaceuticals ( https://faron.com/ ), is a global, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focused on creating innovative cancer treatments that leverage the patient's own immune system. The Company's lead asset bexmarilimab is currently being investigated in clinical trials as a potential therapy for patients with hematological cancers, with an initial focus on higher-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (HR MDS), in combination with other standard treatments.Dr. Jalkanen an experienced biopharmaceutical industry executive with extensive leadership experience across key functional areas including operations, business development, clinical development, medical and regulatory affairs.   Dr. Jalkanen earned a Master´s degree in economics and business administration from the Turku School of Economics and both his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Turku. He is a fully licensed general practitioner and specialist in vascular surgery.#JuhoJalkanen #FaronPharmaceuticals #Bexmarilimab #MyelodysplasticSyndrome #HematologicalCancers #HematologicalMalignancies #BloodCancer #AcuteMyeloidLeukemia #Clever1 #Macrophages #Oncology #Immunooncology #Cancer #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Torkil Færø, MD ( https://thepulsecure.com/ ) is a Norwegian medical doctor, author, documentary filmmaker and photographer whose work sits at the intersection of frontline medicine and practical preventive health. As a clinician who received his Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) from University of Oslo, he's served as both a general practitioner and emergency-room physician, and in 1996 was among the first Norwegian medics to work with Doctors Without Borders in Angola. Over more than two decades as a travelling, freelance physician around Norway, he has conducted tens of thousands of consultations — an experience that shaped his conviction that many modern diseases are rooted in chronic stress and lifestyle mismatches. His debut English-language book, The Pulse Cure ( https://www.amazon.com/Pulse-Cure-revolutionary-balance-optimise/dp/1529437334 - original Norwegian title Pulskuren ), became a national bestseller and has been published internationally. In the book Dr. Færø explains heart-rate variability (HRV) — the tiny variations in the time between heartbeats — and how readily available wearables (smartwatches, rings, chest straps) can give people a real-time window into their autonomic nervous system, sleep, recovery and inflammation. He combines clinical case stories, accessible physiology and hands-on protocols so readers can personalize sleep, exercise, alcohol and relaxation practices based on measurable feedback rather than guesswork. Beyond the book, Dr. Færø translates his ideas through podcasts, public talks and the online community pulskuren.no. His personal health work — applying the same monitoring and behavioral changes he recommends — has driven measurable results: significant weight loss, markedly improved sleep and dramatic reductions in alcohol and fatigue for himself and many of his clients and readers. He frames wearables and HRV as tools to catch problems early, prevent chronic disease and extend healthy, functional years of life.#TorkilFærø #ThePulseCure #HeartRateVariability #Wearables #AutonomicNervousSystem #ParasympatheticNervousSystem #SympatheticNervousSystem #Electrocardiogram #Longevity #Healthspan #Aging #Innovation #Science #Technology #Research #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcastSupport the show

Send us a textAnnalee Kruger is the President of Care Right Inc. ( https://carerightinc.com/ ), a consultancy providing corporate training and consulting services for organizations wanting to learn more about aging, family caregiving, dementia, end-of-life, as well as direct to consumer family caregivers who are realizing caregiving without a plan is not safe, nor sustainable.Annalee has spent over 28 years helping more than 20,000 families navigate the emotional, financial, and logistical complexities of aging, caregiving, dementia, and long-term care planning. She is the founder of Care Right Inc., a global virtual consultancy that develops fully customized Aging Strategies for high-achieving, high-net-worth families. Her white-glove approach guides families through difficult transitions with clarity and compassion. To ensure accessibility, Care Right also offers scalable hybrid and DIY planning options for families with more modest means.In addition to her work with families, Annalee provides workforce solutions for employers who want to support employees dealing with aging loved ones. Options include white-glove Aging Strategy consulting for leadership, product bundles like the Grab and Go e-Binder and The Aging Guide, or the 8-week DIY Aging Plan Hybrid Program, complete with weekly office hours with Annalee to help employees complete their plans. These services help reduce absenteeism, stress, and turnover caused by caregiving crises—preserving employee well-being and workplace productivity. Annalee is also the co-founder of Plan4Life ( https://plan4lifenow.com/ ), home of the Certified Elder Planning Specialist Program, a training and credentialing program that equips financial advisors to better serve aging clients. It teaches advisors how to build deeper relationships and deliver more holistic, aging-informed guidance through a collaborative, team-based approach. She is also the creator of the Aging Strategy Coaching Academy ( ASCA - https://www.joinasca.com/ ), a 150-hour training and certification program for professionals entering the senior care consulting field. As a keynote speaker, Annalee has delivered more than 500 live events and 2,000 webinars on topics including aging planning, dementia care, family dynamics, and caregiver burnout. Her powerful personal stories—like surviving being hit by a bus—resonate deeply with audiences. Her clients include financial firms, healthcare systems, associations, government agencies, and Fortune 500 companies seeking to humanize aging in the workplace and improve morale and retention.Annalee is the author of The Invisible Patient: The Emotional, Financial, and Physical Toll on Family Caregivers, a practical guide to navigating caregiving challenges with clarity and compassion ( https://www.amazon.com/Invisible-Patient-Emotional-Financial-Caregivers-ebook/dp/B09J64RGJW ).Annalee has her Bachelor of Science in Social Work, from University of Northern Iowa, and an MBA from Cardinal Stritch University in Wisconsin.#AnnaleeKruger #CareRightInc #Aging #FamilyCaregiving #DementiaCare #EndOfLife #LongTermCare #Plan4Life #AgingStrategyCoachingAcademy #TheInvisiblePatient #SandwichGeneration #SilverTsunami #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Neal Baer, MD ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neal_Baer ) is an award-winning showrunner, television writer/producer, physician, author, and a public health advocate and expert.Dr. Baer lectures on Global Health and Social Medicine and is the Co-Director of the master's degree program in Media, Medicine, and Health at Harvard Medical School ( https://ghsm.hms.harvard.edu/faculty-staff/neal-baer ). Previously, Dr. Baer was Clinical Professor of Preventive Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Community Health at the Fielding School of Public Health at UCLA where he established the Global Media Center for Social Impact using new media to promote global health.Dr. Baer  was an Executive Producer and showrunner for Designated Survivor, Under the Dome, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and a writer and producer on ER ( https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0046371/ ). Dr. Baer is an accomplished author with both fictional novels, including Kill Switch and Kill Again, and non-fiction titles, including The Promise and Peril of CRISPR ( https://www.amazon.com/Promise-Peril-CRISPR-Neal-Baer/dp/1421449307 ), a timely collection of essays on the pressing possibilities and risks of gene-editing technology, available at major booksellers.Dr. Baer graduated from Harvard Medical School and completed his internship in Pediatrics at Children's Hospital, Los Angeles. He received the Jerry L. Pettis Memorial Scholarship from the American Medical Association as the most outstanding medical student who has contributed to promoting a better understanding of medicine in the media.  The American Association for the Advancement of Science selected him as a Mass Media Fellow.#NealBaer #HarvardMedicalSchool #CRISPR #GeneEditing #Pediatrics #DesignatedSurvivor #UnderTheDome #LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit #ER #SocialImpact #PublicHealth #GlobalHealth #JenniferDoudna #EmmanuelleCharpentier #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Michael Lebenstein-Gumovski, Ph.D. is Senior Scientific Officer and Neurosurgeon, in the Neurosurgery Department, of the Sklifosovsky Clinical and Research Institute for Emergency Medicine, Moscow, Russian Federation ( https://sklif.mos.ru/ ), where his team is engaged in both neurosurgical and experimental practice, conducting advanced research in the field of spinal cord injury restoration, spinal cord transplantation and head transplantation.The Sklifosovsky Institute for Emergency Medicine is a large multidisciplinary scientific and practical center dealing with problems of emergency medical care, emergency surgery, resuscitation, combined and burn trauma, emergency cardiology and acute poisoning.Since 2013, Dr. Lebenstein-Gumovski has been studying spinal cord injury, and also developing methods for restoring the full functional and morphological repair of the spinal cord.Dr. Lebenstein-Gumovski's work is aimed at studying the effect of fusogens on nervous tissue, developing new methods and techniques for treating spinal cord injury, developing methods for its resection and transplantation. The lab develops and studies various methods of neuroprotection, combining methods to achieve better results and the current focus is the study of combination fusogen-induced (PEG-chitosan, Neuro-PEG) axonal restoration of the spinal cord after its complete transection.Dr. Lebenstein-Gumovski did his doctoral studies in the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery of the Stavropol State Medical University of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation.Dr. Lebenstein-Gumovski is also a Scientific Advisor to Dowell Bio, Inc. ( https://dowell.bio/ ), a start-up company developing his various technologies.Andrei Panferov is the Chief Executive Officer of Dowell Bio, Inc.  Andrei is a deep-tech entrepreneur and does the Russian-English / English-Russian translations during this episode.#MichaelLebensteinGumovski #DowellBio #SklifosovskyClinicalAndResearchInstituteForEmergencyMedicine #Neurosurgery #SpinalCordInjuryRestoration #SpinalCordTransplantation #HeadTransplantation #EmergencyMedicalCare #EmergencySurgery #Resuscitation #Trauma #SpinalCordInjury #Fusogens #PEGChitosan #Neuroscience #SergioCanavero #Chitosan #PolyethyleneGlycol #EyeTransplant #BrainTransplant #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textCristina Durán is President of Evinova ( https://evinova.com/ ), a healthtech company empowering global life sciences organizations to accelerate better health outcomes with a suite of globally scaled digital health solutions, empowering sites, sponsors and contract research organizations to optimize the entire clinical development lifecycle.Prior to launching Evinova in November 2023, Cristina led AstraZeneca's Digital Health function in Research & Development (R&D) across key therapy areas: Oncology; Cardiovascular, Renal and Metabolism; and Respiratory and Immunology.Cristina previously held senior leadership roles at AstraZeneca across global commercial, in-country commercial, finance and R&D, and led a global transformation in clinical development across R&D functions, focusing on patients' experiences and outcomes with benefits delivered globally.Before joining AstraZeneca, Cristina was a senior management consultant at Accenture, leading large transformation programs, including the set up, from scratch, of a new joint venture between two technology companies, which is now a major business for a top retailer, as well as guiding business transformation strategy reviews and implementing global change initiatives for large telecoms.Cristina is passionate about innovation and increasing enterprise value by inspiring organizations to change for the future and has spoken about using innovative technologies to transform patients' lives at conferences, including the Digital Health World Congress, HLTH EU, BiotechX EU, and the Financial Times Global Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Conference. Cristina is a chartered accountant (CIMA) and has completed the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Leading Enterprise Transformation program.#CristinaDuran #Evinova #AstraZeneca #DigitalHealth #ClinicalTrials #PatientExperience #RemoteMonitoring #DecentralizedClinicalTrials #MachineLearning #ArtificialIntelligence #Innovation #Science #Technology #Research #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcastSupport the show

Send us a textProfessor Dr. Anders Hviid ( https://en.ssi.dk/about-us/contact/employees/a/anders-peter-hviid-aii ) is Head of Department and Professor of Epidemiology at the Statens Serum Institut in Copenhagen, Denmark — one of the world's foremost public health and infectious disease research centers.Professor Dr. Hviid has dedicated his career to using large-scale population data to answer critical questions in medicine and public health. His expertise lies in pharmacoepidemiology, vaccine safety, and the long-term health outcomes of medical interventions. Over the years, he has become internationally recognized for his rigorous, evidence-based research that directly informs vaccine policy and clinical practice around the world.Perhaps most notably, Professor Dr. Hviid has led groundbreaking studies using Denmark's unique nationwide health registries to investigate the safety of childhood vaccines. His work has been pivotal in debunking claims of links between vaccines and autism, as well as reassuring the global public about the safety of vaccines against influenza, HPV, and COVID-19. These studies are widely cited and have influenced not only European but also global vaccination guidelines.In addition to his research, Professor Dr. Hviid is a frequent contributor to the scientific literature, with over 200 peer-reviewed publications in top journals, and he is often called upon to advise governments, health agencies, and international organizations on vaccine safety and public health monitoring.Beyond his professional accomplishments, Professor Dr. Hviid represents a new generation of epidemiologists who bridge data science, medicine, and public trust — ensuring that scientific evidence can serve as a guide for both policy and individual health decisions.Professor Dr. Hviid received his of Doctor of Medical Science in Epidemiology, from University of Copenhagen and his Master of Science (M.Sc.), in Mathematics and Statistics from Aalborg University.#AndersHviid #StatensSerumInstitut #Pharmacoepidemiology #VaccineSafety #ChildhoodVaccines #Debunking #RfkJr #Epidemiology #UniversityOfCopenhagen #ChildhoodVaccination #Thimerosal #AluminumAdsorbedVaccines #InfectiousDisease #PublicHealth #AntimicrobialResistance #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textCourtney Barriger ( https://www.courtneybarriger.com/ ) is a fashion expert, sustainability advocate, writer, and entrepreneur who has dedicated her career to reimagining the way we create and consume clothing. After building a successful career in the fashion world, Courtney shifted her focus to tackling the urgent environmental and ethical issues caused by fast fashion. She has since launched several sustainability-driven initiatives that combine style with conscious design, helping brands and consumers alike make choices that respect both people and the planet.Courtney's work spans across consulting, content creation, and advocacy, where she educates global audiences about the hidden costs of fashion and the innovations leading us toward a more sustainable future. Through her voice and vision, she has become a leading figure in the movement to transform fashion from one of the world's most polluting industries into one of its greatest opportunities for positive change.Courtney's apparel line Holding Court ( https://holdingcourtinc.com/ ) was featured in Vanity Fair and GQ and won the Sustainability Award at iHollywood Film Festival and the prize of Americas It Girl on the eponymous TV Show on Oprah's WE TV network.Courtney has written investigative pieces and deep dives into culture and power dynamics for the LA Times and has been honored as "The Future of Fashion" by United Nations non-profit, Fashion Fights Poverty.Courtney is also the producer and host of Environmental Style Now, a leading international information hub on sustainable and ethical fashion, where she and contributors explain the science and sustainability of fashion to shoppers and industry pros alike with prominent guests like Adrian Grenier and Fair Trade.Courtney frequently serves as a guest lecturer at universities in the United States and internationally and conducts art exhibitions, films and literature that push the conversation for sustainability in fashion.Courtney is an accomplished author with her book ReFashion Workshop: The Planet Healing Mindset ( https://www.amazon.com/ReFashion-Workshop-Planet-Healing-Courtney-Barriger/dp/1803414227 ) which just came out in April 2025.Courtney studied Communications, International Relations, Broadcasting and Broadcast Journalism at the University of North Florida.#CourtneyBarriger #Clothing #Fashion #Sustainability #FastFashion #HoldingCourt #FutureOfFashion #EnvironmentalStyle #ReFashionWorkshop #CircularManufacturing #SustainableDesign #CircularOffsets #OrganicTextiles #EthicalManufacturing #SustainableClothingCare #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textKurt Avery is the Founder and Owner of Sawyer Products  ( https://www.sawyer.com/) and currently serves as President. Sawyer is a leading provider of high-performance outdoor protection products, specializing in water filtration, insect repellents, sunscreens, and first aid solutions. Founded in 1984 and headquartered in Safety Harbor, Florida, Sawyer is committed to safeguarding individuals from microscopic threats in both wilderness and everyday settings. Their innovative products utilize advanced technologies, such as time-released liposome insect repellents, to ensure effective and long-lasting protection. Beyond product development, Sawyer is deeply invested in social responsibility, partnering with over 140 nonprofits across more than 80 countries to provide clean water solutions to underserved communities.Kurt is also the founder of the Sawyer Foundation ( https://www.sawyerfoundation.org/ ) and through initiatives like the installation of Sawyer filters and wells, the company has positively impacted over 28 million lives globally.Before founding Sawyer, Kurt served as a marketer for several globally known brands. Kurt is passionate about and committed to creating disease-free water for life in communities throughout the world. He is a graduate of Hope College and Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management.Kurt is also an accomplished author with his book Sawyer Think: How a Small Company Disrupts Markets and Changes the World ( https://www.amazon.com/Sawyer-Think-Company-Disrupts-Markets-ebook/dp/B0DNKDRYD5 ) available at all major book sellers.#KurtAvery #SawyerProducts #SawyerFoundation #OutdoorProtectionProducts #WaterFiltration #InsectRepellents #Sunscreens #FirstAidSolutions #GlobalWaterCrisis #WaterborneIllness #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textWarren Roberts is CEO and Founder of Living Legacy Forest ( https://livinglegacyforest.com/ ), an innovative profit-for-purpose company and leader in green memorialization reforestation, which is creating urban memorial forests by turning human (and pet) ashes into trees and living memorial forests, instead of cemeteries, with the ultimate goal of reforesting the planet.With the Living Legacy treatment protocols, the company is focusing on return human ashes to the earth without causing harm to the eco-system, and as human ashes have the same pH as bleach or oven cleaner, and contain 200-2,000 times the amount of salt normally used to fertilize most trees, their organic processes gradually detoxify ashes so they are not harmful to soil and tree health.Living Legacy Forest was founded in Melbourne, Australia and they have successfully created multiple dedicated Living memorial forests, including at sites in Altona, Lillydale and Fawkner. Warren has a Bachelor degree of business in Property from RMIT University. #WarrenRoberts #LivingLegacyForest #GreenMemorialization #Reforestation #UrbanMemorialForests #Cemeteries #Cremation #Burial #LivingLegacyTree #TreeBurial #Taphophile #Funerals #Tombstone  #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Jacob Lalezari, MD is the Chief Executive Officer of CytoDyn ( https://www.cytodyn.com/ ), a biopharma company committed to enhancing the lives of patients through target specific medicine and a next generation of monoclonal antibody therapeutics. CytoDyn's team is focused on developing leronlimab, a monoclonal antibody CCR5 receptor antagonist, to be used as a platform drug for a variety of indications. Dr. Lalezari brings over 34 years of industry experience to CytoDyn, including nearly 20 years of experience with leronlimab, also known as PRO 140, and he previously served as interim CEO and Chief Medical Officer and has been a member of the Company's scientific advisory board for the past several years.  Dr. Lalezari has previously served as the CEO and Medical Director of Quest Clinical Research and served as the Chief Medical Officer of Virion Therapeutics. Dr. Lalezari has served as Principal Investigator for Phase I, II, and III clinical studies of new therapies for such viral diseases as HIV/AIDS, CMV, HPV, HSV, Hepatitis B and C, influenza, RSV, and COVID-19, including clinical trials conducted by the Company. His work has been published extensively and he is a well-regarded international speaker and patient advocate. Dr. Lalezari received his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, his M.A. from the University of Virginia, and his B.A. from the University of Rochester. He also holds a board certification from the American Board of Internal Medicine.#JacobLalezari #Cytodyn #MonoclonalAntibody #Leronlimab #CCR5Receptor #CCR5Antagonist #ChemokineReceptor5 #HIV #AutoimmuneDisorders #HIVCoReceptor #Macrophages #DendriticCells #TripleNegativeBreastCancer #TLymphocytes #MetastaticColorectalCancer #PD1 #ProgrammedCellDeathProtein1 #Oncology #Immunooncology #Cancer #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Reynold A. Panettieri, Jr, MD ( https://ritms.rutgers.edu/faculty/reynold-panettieri/ ) is the inaugural Director of the Institute for Translational Medicine and Science, and Vice Chancellor for Translational Medicine and Science, at Rutgers University, and previously served as the Director of the Airways Biology Initiative at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Panettieri's interests include the cellular and molecular mechanisms that regulate airway smooth muscle cell growth and the immunobiology of airway smooth muscle, which lead to the irreversible airflow obstruction and airway remodeling seen in patients with chronic severe asthma. Dr. Panettieri's lab also focuses on cytosolic signaling pathways that mediate gene expression and alter myocyte growth.Dr. Panettieri also served as the Deputy Director of the Center of Excellence in Environmental Toxicology at the University of Pennsylvania. He directed the human exposure chamber that defines the molecular mechanisms regulating ozone- and particulate matter-induced airway hyperresponsiveness.In addition to his research and clinical interests, Dr. Panettieri served as chairperson of the NIH Lung Cellular, Molecular, and Immunobiology Study Section, is a member of the NIH Distinguished Editorial Panel, and is a member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation and Association of American Physicians.Dr. Panettieri has an M.D. from University of Pennsylvania, and completed hisResidency and Fellowship at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.Important Episode Links - As-Needed Albuterol–Budesonide in Mild AsthmaPublished May 19, 2025New England Journal Of Medicine -https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2504544BATURA Study Press Release - https://www.astrazeneca.com/media-centre/press-releases/2025/statistically-significant-clinically-meaningful-batura-phase-iii-trial-provide-evidence-airsupra-standard-care-as-needed-rescue-treatment-asthma.htmlAIRSUPRA (albuterol/budesonide) is a prescription medication used as a rescue inhaler for adults with asthma -https://www.airsupra.com/#ReynoldPanettieri #InstituteForTranslationalMedicineAndScience #RutgersUniversity #Asthma #COPD #ChronicObstructivePulmonaryDisease #AirwaysBiology #UniversityOfPennsylvania #Immunobiology #EnvironmentalHealth #Bronchiectasis #IdiopathicPulmonaryFibrosis #InterstitialLungDiseases #RescueInhalers #Albuterol #AIRSUPRA #Budesonide #Corticosteroid #BATURA #AstraZeneca #Exposome #RespiratoryDiseases #InflammatoryResponse   #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textAlex Reed is a Co-founder, President and CCO of Yokogawa Fluence Analytics ( https://www.fluenceanalytics.com/ ), a manufacturer of systems that produce continuous data streams enabling real-time optimization of manufacturing and R&D processes. The company, formerly known as Fluence Analytics, is a division of the Yokogawa Electric Corporation ( https://www.yokogawa.com/ ).Prior to founding Fluence Analytics, Alex worked as the Associate Director for Operations and Strategy at Tulane-PolyRMC (Center for Polymer Reaction Monitoring and Characterization), an R&D center which is active in fundamental and applied polymer research.​Alex co-founded Advanced Polymer Monitoring Technologies (APMT) in 2012 to commercialize technologies developed at Tulane-PolyRMC. His vision and leadership took the University spin-out from patented laboratory concepts to a company delivering innovative products for process monitoring and optimization for chemical and biopharmaceutical manufacturers.​In 2017 APMT became Fluence Analytics to emphasize its focus on continuous process analytics and better reflect the company's vision for the future of polymer and biopharmaceutical manufacturing. As the CEO of Fluence Analytics, Alex works with customers, team members and other stakeholders to develop and execute the strategic vision of the company. Alex serves on the boards for the Smart Manufacturing Leadership Coalition and the Applied Polymer Technology Extension Consortium. Alex holds a B.A. in Economics and Latin American Studies and a minor in Business Administration from Tulane University. In 2016 Forbes recognized Alex as a 30 under 30 recipient, and he has been recognized with several local entrepreneur and innovation awards.#AlexReed #YokogawaFluenceAnalytics #Polymers #Polymerization #Biophysics #Macromolecules #TechTransfer #SmartManufacturing #Biopharmaceuticals #Entrepreneurship #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Paul Jaffe, Ph.D. ( https://www.darpa.mil/about/people/paul-jaffe ) is a Program Manager in DARPA's Tactical Technology Office, where he oversees the Persistent Optical Wireless Energy Relay ( POWER - https://www.darpa.mil/research/programs/power ) project, which aims to revolutionize energy distribution through airborne wireless power transfer, enabling high power beaming, radically reshape society's relationship with energy, and unlocking power opportunities everywhere, from energy-starved communities to space colonies and everything in between.Prior to joining DARPA, Dr. Jaffe spent 30 years as an engineer and researcher at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). At the NRL, he led or held major roles on dozens of space missions and breakthrough technology development programs for NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), the military services, and other sponsors. These include the Special Sensor Ultraviolet Limb Imager (SSULI), the Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory (STEREO), TacSat-1, TacSat-4, Operationally Responsive Space (ORS), the Photovoltaic Radiofrequency Antenna Module (PRAM), the Microwave Imager/Sounder (MIS), CARINA, Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites (RSGS), Power TRansmitted Over Laser (PTROL), Space Solar for Forward Operating Bases and Remote Installations (S2FOBs), the Light-Emitting Rectenna STEM demonstration on the International Space Station (LEctenna), and the Space Wireless Energy Laser Link (SWELL) which was the first demonstration of optical power beaming in space.Dr. Jaffe served as a coordinator of the NRL's seminal studies of the military applications of space solar, and as an editor of the study groups' acclaimed final reports. He was the principal investigator for a ground-breaking research effort involving the development and testing of modules for conversion of sunlight into microwaves. The modules have a number of potential applications, including satellites for space solar, and have been launched and tested in space via the Department of Defense's (DoD) Space Test Program (STP) and have returned valuable data to inform future efforts. He was also the champion for the first power beaming STEM demonstration in space, conducted on the International Space Station by Astronaut Jessica Meir. Dr. Jaffe is the lead author of a 2024 book, "Power Beaming: History, Theory, and Practice", a textbook covering various methods of power beaming, including both RF (microwave) and optical (laser) technologies.Dr. Jaffe received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Maryland College Park and a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering at Johns Hopkins University, graduating with honors. He earned a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park.Important Episode Links - - DARPA Connect - https://www.darpa.mil/about/darpaconnect- DARPA breaks power beaming record - https://www.darpa.mil/news/2025/darpa-program-distance-record-power-beaming- Short video explaining the record-breaking effort - https://youtube.com/shorts/l94FsFATQZI?si=Vr29mNBYglP2GnIo- Dissertation on conversion modules for space solar - https://drum.lib.umd.edu/items/dcb3d60d-55bb-4044-9b41-edca792caa4c- How to build a LEctenna - https://www.nrl.navy.mil/STEM/LEctenna-Challenge/- Power beaming book - https://www.amazon.com/Power-Beaming-Scientific-Technologies-Bar-Cohen/dp/9811243107- 2016 space solar pitch - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9dQsRv1XDg- More about SWELL - https://www.navy.mil/DesktopModules/ArticleCS/Print.aspx?PortalIdSupport the show

Send us a textMartin Burns is the CEO of Bruin Biometrics, a platform company focused on digital solutions for pressure injury prevention and management, where since 2012 he has designed and led the successful journey of Bruin Biometrics' Provizio SEM Scanner ( https://sem-scanner.com/) through the company's concept-to-commercialization “formulas strategy”. Significant milestones along the way that Martin has presided over include FDA de novo Marketing Authorization (2018), CE Marking (2013) and in 2020 he negotiated a global distribution arrangement and investment with Arjo. Martin also has extensive experience in management consulting with prominent firms such as Deloitte and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). In these roles, he led corporate strategy and business transformation projects for medical device and life sciences companies.Martin earned his MBA from UCLA's Anderson School of Management, where he is a guest speaker on healthcare strategy and medical device marketing courses, and his BA from the London School of Economics.#MartinBurns #BruinBiometrics #PressureInjury #Provizio #BedSores #PressureUlcers #SubEpidermalMoisture #Biocapacitance #MedicalTechnology#ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Ashwin Gopinath, Ph.D. ( https://ashwingopinath.com/ ) is Co-Founder and CTO of Biostate AI ( https://biostate.ai/ ), a startup building generative AI that predicts the evolution of human disease and drug response based on RNA sequencing data. Its patented wet lab technologies, including BIRT (Barcode-Integrated Reverse Transcription), allow affordable and scalable collection of massive amounts of transcriptomic and genomic data. With sites in Houston, TX, Palo Alto, CA, Bangalore, India, and Shanghai, China, Biostate AI is an international company with collaborations with top hospitals, academic researchers, and biotech/biopharma companies. Dr. Gopinath was an Assistant Professor at MIT, working at the intersection of CMOS nanofabrication, molecular self-assembly, biology, and machine learning.Dr. Gopinath earned his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Boston University, and subsequently worked as a research scientist at Caltech and Google [X].Dr. Gopinath has co-authored over 21 papers in journals including Nature, Science, and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).Dr. Gopinath was awarded the 2017 Robert Dirk Prize in Molecular programming for his contributions to merging DND nanotechnology with conventional semiconductor processing.#AshwinGopinath #BiostateAI #GenerativeAI #RNASequencing #OpticalPhysics #DNANanotechnology #DNAOrigami #MolecularDiagnostics #RNAseq #GenAI #Leukemia #MultipleSclerosis #Reactome #TranscriptomicAgePrediction #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Luis Pizarro, MD is Executive Director of the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative ( DNDi - https://dndi.org/ ), the international, not-for-profit research and development organization focused on discovering, developing, and delivering affordable and patient-friendly treatments for neglected patients around the world.Dr. Pizarro is a medical doctor and global health leader. He also serves as founder and member of the Global Health 2030 think tank ( https://santemondiale2030.fr/en/qui-sommes-nous-english/ ), as scientific advisor for Global Health at Sciences Po Paris, and as board member of Sidaction, a major French public event that started in 1994 in France for raising awareness and collecting charitable funds for AIDS. Having led medical projects for several years in West Africa, Dr. Pizarro became the first CEO of Solthis, from 2007 to 2019, successfully developing the international health and solidarity organization to become one of the leaders in health in West and Central Africa. In 2020, Dr. Pizarro joined Unitaid's leadership team during the COVID crisis to lead the international organization's HIV portfolio and related access programs. Born in Chile, and trained as a medical doctor at the University of Paris, Dr. Pizarro also holds a masters' degree in Political Sciences from Sciences Po and an executive health MBA from a joint program of EHESP School of Public Health, the London School of Economics, and the ESCP European Management School.#LuisPizarro #DNDi #DrugsForNeglectedDiseasesInitiative #GlobalHealth #HIV #ResourceLimitedSetting #PEPFAR #PandemicPreparedness #AntimicrobialResistance #Dengue #Chagas #Leischmaniasis #RiverBlindness #SleepingSickness #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textJason Matuszewski is Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of BioStem Technologies ( https://biostemtechnologies.com/ ), a leading innovator focused on harnessing the natural properties of perinatal tissue in the development, manufacture, and commercialization of allografts for regenerative therapies. Jason brings a wealth of experience in strategic operations planning and technical projects management from his rigorous technical background. His diverse expertise includes continuous process improvement, training and development programs, regulatory compliance and best practices implementation, and advanced problem solving. Jason began his career as a technical engineer working for Adecco at SC Johnson in 2009, where he developed comprehensive maintenance plans to support manufacturing processes at scale. He then transitioned to manufacturing and quality engineering for major organizations, including ATI Ladish Forging, Nemak, and HUSCO International, where he spearheaded process design and implementation, solved complex supply-chain and manufacturing problems, and improved product sourcing and purchasing. Jason's philanthropic work with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation sparked an interest in biotech, leading him to co-found Biostem Technologies in 2014. As CEO he has leveraged his expertise to optimize tissue sourcing, strategically build out a 6,000 square foot tissue processing facility that is fully compliant with FDA 210, 211, 1271, and AATB standards, and put together an expert team of professionals to support the company's continued growth. Jason holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering Technology and a minor in Mathematics from the Milwaukee School of Engineering and is Six Sigma Black Belt certified. He also serves as a Processing and Distribution Council Member for the American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB), as well as serves as a member of the Government Affairs committee for BioFlorida.#JasonMatuszewski #BioStemTechnologies #PerinatalTissue #RegenerativeTherapies #ChronicWounds #DiabeticFootUlcers #VenousUlcers #PressureUlcers #AmnioticTissue #TissueAllografts #ExtracellularMatrix #ECM #GrowthFactors #Cytokines #Collagen  #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textBill Taranto is President of the Merck Global Health Innovation Fund ( MGHIF - https://www.msdghifund.com/ ).The Merck Global Health Innovation Fund was established in late 2010 as a strategic response to the challenges surrounding Merck's core business of discovering, developing and marketing innovative drugs and vaccines.Bill has more than three decades of experience in the healthcare industry. MGHIF is a $750m evergreen fund focused on identifying opportunities that are adjacent to Merck's core business of pharmaceuticals and vaccines. Under Bill's leadership, MGHIF has invested more than $1bn in 70 companies, with more than $7bn in exits.Prior to joining Merck, Bill spent 18 years at Johnson & Johnson (J&J) in various roles. As VP of healthcare strategy and venture at J&J, he was responsible for evaluating and creating new healthcare business models through venture capital and acquisitions. Prior to joining J&J, Bill spent eight years in investment banking.#BillTaranto #MerckGlobalHealthInnovationFund #Scale #Impact #InvestmentBanking #DrugDiscovery #ClinicalDevelopment #Manufacturing #SupplyChain #RealWorldEvidence #CorporateVentureCapital #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #Research #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcastSupport the show

Send us a textDr. On-Yee (Amy) Lo, Ph.D. is Assistant Scientist II at the Marcus Institute for Aging Research ( https://www.marcusinstituteforaging.org/who-we-are/profiles/yee-amy-lo-phd ) and Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center ( https://connects.catalyst.harvard.edu/Profiles/display/Person/147630 ).Dr. Lo is a physical therapist and research scientist who aims to prevent functional decline and enhance functional independence for older adults with mobility impairments by conducting experimental and translational research. She has expertise and experience in physical therapy, biomechanics, neuroimaging, and neuromodulation.Dr. Lo has dedicated her career to enhancing functional independence and quality of life in older adults. Her specific research objectives are:  - To investigate connections between the brain and body that enable safe navigation throughout daily environments.- To innovate rehabilitative interventions that target these brain and body connections to preserve and restore the control of mobility.- To implement the experimental findings into the clinical setting.Dr. Lo's clinical and scientific training in physical therapy, biomechanics, neurophysiology, neuroimaging, neuromodulation, and gerontology have enabled her to cultivate her passions in conducting translational research to help older adults walk and move safely in real life. She incorporates cognitive, brain, and movement sciences to understand the complex control of gait and mobility, and develop individualized, multi-modal, and patient-centered interventions that can both stand alone and be combined with current evidence-based geriatric rehabilitation programming to improve mobility and mitigate fall risks in older adults. Dr. Lo has a Master of Arts (M.A.) in Pathokinesiology from New York University and a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Human Physiology from University of Oregon.#PhysicalTherapy #Biomechanics #Neurophysiology #Neuroimaging #Neuromodulation #Gerontology #TranscranialDirectCurrentStimulation #Gait #Mobility #GeriatricRehabilitation #Cognition #Pathokinesiology #HumanPhysiology #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textGeorge Vradenburg is Founding Chairman of the Davos Alzheimer's Collaborative ( DAC - https://www.davosalzheimerscollaborative.org/ ), a pioneering worldwide initiative to prevent Alzheimer's disease, seeking to mirror the success of global efforts against infectious diseases.DAC is extending global research beyond its current focus on traditional Western European ethnic populations into the highly diversified populations of the Global South, where the vast majority of those with Alzheimer's live. By introducing lower-cost screening and diagnostic tools as well as new treatment and prevention modalities in primary care and community health settings, DAC is driving implementation of health system solutions that are appropriate for worldwide application. DAC also promotes the vital importance of brain health throughout the lifespan by addressing cardiometabolic and lifestyle factors, especially in early and mid-life. Absent effective action at scale around the world, by 2050, more than 150 million families and half a billion people will be personally impacted by dementia, creating a social, financial, economic, and global security disaster of historic proportions. DAC was launched in Davos in 2021 by the World Economic Forum and the Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer's Disease. Mr. Vradenburg is also Chairman and Co-Founder of UsAgainstAlzheimer's ( https://www.usagainstalzheimers.org/ ), which he co-founded in October 2010 with his late wife, Trish, which is a non-profit organization dedicated to ending Alzheimer's disease. The organization advocates for increased research funding, policy changes, and provides resources for individuals and families affected by the disease. The organization emphasizes the importance of prevention, early detection, and access to treatment. Mr. Vradenburg was named by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to serve as a founding member of the Advisory Council on Research, Care, and Services established by the National Alzheimer's Project Act (NAPA Council) and has testified before Congress about the global Alzheimer's pandemic. Under Mr. Vradenburg's leadership, UsAgainstAlzheimer's co-convenes both the Leaders Engaged on Alzheimer's Disease ( LEAD - https://www.leadcoalition.org/ ) Coalition and the Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer's Disease. Mr. Vradenburg is also a founding member of the World Dementia Council ( https://www.worlddementiacouncil.org/ ). Mr. Vradenburg has long been a dedicated member of Washington's civic and philanthropic community, serving as Chairman of the Phillips Collection for 13 years.Mr. Vradenburg is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Economic Club of Washington. He has served in senior executive and legal positions at CBS, FOX, and AOL/Time Warner.Important Episode Link - The Davos Brain House Video: A global call to prioritize brain health - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azKVS6SxBy4#GeorgeVradenburg #UsAgainstAlzheimers #AlzheimersDisease #Prevention #EarlyDetection #Brainspan #Healthspan #BrainHouse #BrainEconomy #BrainCapital #WorkplaceBrainHealth #MentalWealth #SocialProduction #Advocacy #Philanthropy #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #Research #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcastSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Lara Nyman, Ph.D. is the Vice President of Research & Discovery at AG1 ( https://drinkag1.com/learn/research/scientific-research ), responsible for leading the company's innovative research efforts to develop cutting-edge nutritional products. In this role, she oversees the research and development of new formulations, ensures the scientific integrity of product claims, and collaborates with cross-functional teams to drive product innovation. Dr. Nyman previously served as the Chief Scientific Officer at Weo, a water augmentation company, providing strategic guidance and scientific oversight to the company's product development and research initiatives, working closely with their R&D team to identify emerging trends, evaluate new technologies, and translate scientific insights into compelling consumer offerings.Prior to Weo, Dr. Nyman served as Senior Principal Scientist in the Claims Center of Excellence for Consumer Health & Wellness at PepsiCo, leveraging her deep understanding of consumer needs and scientific principles to develop innovative, evidence-based claims for the company's health and wellness products. Dr. Nyman holds a Master of Science (MS) in Exercise Physiology from Southern Connecticut State University, a Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Physiology from University of Alabama at Birmingham, and was a Post-Doctoral Fellow, Department of Medicine, Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.#LaraNyman #AG1 #AthleticGreens #ExercisePhysiology #Endocrinology #Metabolism #FoundationalNutrition #Wellness #NutrientGaps #NutrientSynergy #Nutrigenomics #Synbiotics #Microbiome #WholeFood #Superfoods #Probiotics #Adaptogens  #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textPedro Sanchez de Lozada is Co-Founder and CEO of Canid ( https://www.canid.io/ ), a company which is modernizing every aspect of providing vaccines in pediatrics, from operations, to finances, to maximizing care. Canid focuses the details of executing a vaccine program so that pediatricians can instead focus on the children. Pedro is a seasoned CEO with a background in early-stage startup development, operations, and marketing at prominent venture-backed companies, including roles as: Director Of Marketing at Merlin, Head of Launch in Washington DC at Rinse, Growth Engineer at Koding, Business Development and Marketing professional at Udemy, and Vice-president of Marketing at Road to Innovative Social Entrepreneurship.Pedro has also served as a Curator at TEDxUChicago, Founder of LogiMD, and was a Fellow at On Deck. Pedro has a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Chicago.#PedroSanchezDeLozada #Canid #Vaccines #Vaccination #Pediatrics #VaccineAcquisitionCosts #ReimbursementRates #Overhead #InventoryManagement #ImmunizationInformationSystems #StateImmunizationRegistries #AdvisoryCommitteeOnImmunizationPractices #ACIP #PatientEligibility #Procurement #Pediatricians #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Marc Salzberg, MD is President, Chief Executive Officer & Chief Medical Officer of Airway Therapeutics ( https://www.airwaytherapeutics.com/ ), a biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of biologics to break the cycle of injury and inflammation for patients with respiratory and inflammatory diseases.Dr. Salzberg has more than 25 years of academic and pharmaceutical experience in the management of drug development and clinical research, including medical management of anti-viral drugs clinical development and market introduction including saquinavir and ganciclovir. He spent several years at Roche's headquarters in Basel, Switzerland as well as its affiliate in Toronto, Canada. As Head of Clinical Cancer Research at the Basel University, he co-founded and managed a clinical research network in Switzerland (CCRC).During his career, Dr. Salzberg has successfully managed the growth and acquisition of two contract research organizations benefitting shareholders. He was a founder and President of Pharma Brains, a European boutique CRO, which has been acquired by Medpace, a US based global CRO, after 10 years of successful growth under his leadership. He then served as Vice President of Medical Affairs at Medpace.Dr. Salzberg earned his Medical Doctorate degree from the University of Basel, Switzerland. His medical training and practice include pediatrics/ neonatology and oncology.#MarcSalzberg #AirwayTherapeutics #HumanSurfactantProteinD #Collectin #PathogenRecognition #RespiratoryDiseases  #InflammatoryResponse #BronchopulmonaryDysplasia #ZelpultideAlfa #Covid #Asthma #COPD #Influenza #RSV #ARDS #AcuteRespiratoryDistressSyndrome #ChronicObstructivePulmonaryDisease #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textPaul Keable is Chief Strategy Officer at Ashley Madison ( https://www.ashleymadison.com/ ) - the global online dating and social networking platform, specifically catering to individuals in committed relationships seeking discreet connections.As Chief Strategy Officer, Paul oversees the strategic direction of Ashley Madison, emphasizing discretion, authenticity, and innovation within the dating industry. Under his leadership, the platform has implemented initiatives such as user verification through government IDs to combat fraudulent activity and build trust among members. Paul has become a prominent figure at the intersection of technology, culture, and societal norms, offering insights on shifting dynamics in relationships and online dating.Prior to Ashley Madison, Paul spent the past two decades in communications, public relations and branding, at agencies including Ketchum and MSL, working with a lot of tier-one brands across both the technology and consumer goods sectors.Paul studied Corporate Communications at Centennial College and English at York University.Important Episode Links - Decoding Gen Z: A global report on non-monogamy, sex, and the desire for discretion - https://www.ashley.date/wp-content/uploads/Gen-Z-Report-USA.pdfYouGov Survey: Relationships, April 2025 - https://ygo-assets-websites-editorial-emea.yougov.net/documents/Relationships_poll_results.pdf#PaulKeable #AshleyMadison #OnlineDating #CommittedRelationships #DiscreetConnections  #SocietalNorms #DatingTrends #RelationshipNorms #MarriedDating #Discretion #Privacy #Authenticity #Trust #Culture #Polyamorous #Monogamy #MatchingAlgorithms #DigitalIntimacy #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textWilliam Ho is a Co-Founder, and has served as the President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director of IN8bio ( https://in8bio.com/ ), a biotech company with a mission of developing next-generation therapies for treating cancer, with a focus on gamma-delta T cells, since its inception.  Mr. Ho has worked in the biotechnology industry for nearly 24 years. Prior to the founding of IN8bio, from 2014 to 2017, Mr. Ho was the Founder and Managing Partner at AlephPoint Capital, a private healthcare investment fund. Prior to that, Mr. Ho was at New Leaf Venture Partners, a leading healthcare venture capital firm, where he launched and managed the public investments and cross-over portfolio and served as its Public Investment Director from 2010 to 2014. Previously, Mr. Ho served as a Senior Equity Research Analyst at Bank of America from 2006 to 2009 and an Equity Research Analyst at Piper Jaffray & Co. from 2003 to 2006, covering the biotechnology and life-science tools sectors. Earlier in his career, Mr. Ho was responsible for FP&A and operational analysis at CuraGen Corporation and worked as an Associate on the Healthcare Investment Banking team at Cowen, Inc. Mr. Ho was an inductee into the McMaster University Alumni Gallery in 2020 and previously served as a member of their Dean's Advisory Board for the Faculty of Science. Mr. Ho received an MBA from the University of Notre Dame and a B.S. in Biochemistry from McMaster University.#WilliamHo #IN8bio #GammaDeltaTCells #ImmuneSystem #Glioblastoma #AcuteMyeloidLeukemia #NonSignalingCART #InducedPluripotentStemCells#Oncology #Immunooncology #Cancer #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Thomas Ehmer, Ph.D.  ( https://www.linkedin.com/in/tehmer/ ) is a seasoned technology strategist with over two decades of experience in IT innovation, business development, and R&D within the pharmaceutical industry, and co-founder of the Quantum Interest Group, at Merck KGaA Darmstadt, Germany ( https://www.emdgroup.com/en ). Dr. Ehmer currently is in the Sector Data Office - AI Governance and Innovation Incubator at Merck KGaA Darmstadt, Germany, where he scouts emerging and disruptive technologies, demonstrating their potential value for R&D applications, with a focus on quantum technologies. Throughout his career at Merck KGaA Darmstadt, Germany, Dr. Ehmer has played a pivotal role in shaping IT strategy, business process optimization, and digital transformation across the entire pharmaceutical value chain, currently focusing on transparent AI and how and where emerging technology can help patients live a better life. His expertise spans technology scouting, business analysis, and IT program leadership, having successfully driven major global projects. Beyond his corporate career, Dr. Ehmer is an active private seed investor and has contributed to quantum computing research and applications in drug discovery, authoring publications on the potential of quantum computing and machine learning in pharmaceutical R&D ( https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9783527840748.ch26 ). Dr. Ehmer holds a Ph.D. in Physics, Biophysics, and Physiology from Heidelberg University and continues to mentor within the German Physical Society / Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft (DPG). His forward-thinking approach, combined with deep technical expertise, has earned him multiple innovation awards, and he remains dedicated to bridging the gap between emerging technologies and real-world industry applications.Important Episode Link - Entangled Health Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/entangled-health/id1819364423#ThomasEhmer #MerckKGaADarmstadt #Physics #Biophysics #Physiology #GermanPhysicalSociety #QuantumComputing #QuantumSensing #MolecularImaging #Spectroscopy #DrugScreening #Diagnostics #QuantumSensors #QuantumMagnetometers #QuantumGravimeters #Biomanufacturing #QualityControl #Neuroscience #BrainDrugInterface #ReservoirComputing #QuantumMachineLearning #Bioconvergence  #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textJosh Haimson is Co-Founder and CEO of Inductive Bio ( https://www.inductive.bio/about ), a technology company focused on democratizing artificial intelligence (AI) models to transform small molecule drug discovery, eliminating Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion and Toxicology (ADMET) bottlenecks with state-of-the-art AI models and generative chemistry, powered by a unique pre-competitive data consortium.Josh has spent his career focused on the intersection of machine learning, product, and life sciences/healthcare.Prior to Inductive, Josh was the Director of Product for the ML and data curation organizations at Flatiron Health, where his teams worked to generate real-world evidence (RWE) at scale across Flatiron's network of over 2 million active cancer patients for use by researchers in pharma, academia, and government.Prior to Flatiron, Josh was at MIT studying computer science and working with researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital to use ML and NLP to predict patient response to cardiac resynchronization therapy.#JoshHaimson #InductiveBio #SmallMolecule #DrugDiscovery #Absorption #Distribution #Metabolism #Excretion #Toxicology #ADMET #AI #GenerativeChemistry #MachineLearning #CardiacResynchronizationTherapy #MolecularGlue #FlatironHealth #PreCompetitiveDataConsortium #RealWorldEvidence #RealWorldData #RWE #ArtificialIntelligence  #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Shai Melcer, Ph.D. is Head of the National Bioconvergence Program ( https://bioconvergence.org.il/ ) at the Israel Innovation Authority ( https://innovationisrael.org.il/en/ ).In this role, Dr. Melcer, who brings 15 years of experience and entrepreneurship in the bio-medical ecosystem, leads the implementation of the bioconvergence goals for TELEM – the National Infrastructure Forum for Research and Development ( https://innovationisrael.org.il/en/programs/telem-the-national-infrastructure-forum-for-research-and-development/ ). Dr. Melcer has both an LLM in Law and Ph.D. in genetics from the Hebrew University, and has collaborated with various entities such as the Hebrew University, Hadassah Medical Center, IBM, the Jerusalem Development Authority (Bio-Jerusalem), and others to establish numerous innovative bio-med ventures, including BioGiv, BIOHOUSE, and Hadassah Accelerator.In his public and private sector activities, Dr. Melcer has worked with hundreds of biomedical companies in Israel and around the world in the fields of pharma-biotech, medical devices, and digital health, many of which are in the bioconvergence sector. He also served as the Chief Business Officer at Minovia, a company in the liquid biopsy consortium established by the Israel Innovation Authority as part of the bio-convergence program.#Bioconvergence #IsraelInnovationAuthority #ShaiMelcer #BugEra #Biotic #ClimateTech #Biomanufacturing #Biofuel #Biodiesel #SustainableAviationFuel #BlackSoldierFly #BiodegradablePolymers #BioBased #Microplastics #CarbonFootprint #Renewable #Sustainable #TechnologicalIncubators #InnovationCenters #AngelInvestors  #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Robert Schwab, MD is a Resident Physician, Research Specialist, and Hematology-Oncology Fellow at Penn Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Health System ( https://www3.pennmedicine.org/departments-and-centers/department-of-medicine/divisions/hematology-and-oncology/education-and-training/hematology-oncology-fellowship/fellows ).Dr. Schwab's work to date has focused on leukemia and bone marrow transplantation, and previously, he worked as a research specialist in Dr. Carl June's laboratory, investigating cancer immunotherapy and CAR-T cell treatments. More recently Dr. Schwab's research is centered on studying novel CAR-T cell therapy applications for addressing inflammation and atherosclerosis related to malignancies. In 2019, he founded Cartio Therapeutics, a biotech startup dedicated to developing cellular immunotherapy for cardiovascular disease. Dr. Schwab received his Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) and Master of Science - MS, Translational Research, from the University of Pennsylvania and Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Biophysics and Biochemistry from Amherst.#RobertSchwab #PennMedicine #UniversityOfPennsylvaniaHealthSystem #CART #CarlJune #CancerImmunotherapy #CardiovascularDisease #AtheroscleroticPlaques #Atherosclerosis #Macrophages #OxidizedLDL #FoamCells #CARTregs #ChimericAntigenReceptor #TRegulatoryCells #ClonalHematopoiesisOfIndeterminatePotential #CVD #CheckpointInhibitors #Autoimmune  #Cancer #Oncology #HematologyOncology #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDaniel Schmitt is President & Chief Executive Officer of Actuate Therapeutics, Inc. ( https://actuatetherapeutics.com/ ), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies for the treatment of high-impact, difficult-to-treat cancers through the inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta (GSK-3β).Mr. Schmitt brings over 30 years of successful industry experience in operations management, new product development, and business development, having held senior executive positions in both large pharmaceutical and small biotechnology companies, including Fujisawa, Searle / Pharmacia, and Ilex Oncology. During his career, Daniel has led and contributed to the successful development and launch of multiple pharmaceutical products, and has constructed and executed numerous high value licensing, acquisition, and development deals for biotech and pharmaceutical companies, totaling nearly $1 billion in upfront and potential milestone payments.Mr. Schmitt received his M.B.A and a B.S. in Chemistry from West Virginia University, and has held research positions affiliated with the National Foundation for Cancer Research and at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. He has served as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Northwestern University, and as an external expert consultant for the University of Chicago and the University of Illinois-Chicago. Mr. Schmitt is also a founding member of Chicago Innovation Mentors.#ActuateTherapeutics #GlycogenSynthaseKinase3Beta #GSK3β #Oncology #Cancer #Elraglusib #PancreaticDuctalAdenocarcinoma #PDAC #EwingSarcoma #Melanoma #ProgressionFreeSurvival #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Frank Bedu-Addo, Ph.D. has served as a director, president and CEO of PDS Biotech ( https://pdsbiotech.com/ ) since its inception in 2005, a biotech company focused on transforming how the immune system targets and fights disease by developing a new generation of targeted cancer treatments.Dr. Bedu-Addo is a veteran biotech executive with experience successfully starting and growing biotechnology organizations. He has been responsible for the development and implementation of both operational and drug development strategies, supervising and managing both large organizations and emerging biotechnology companies.Dr. Bedu-Addo was a founding and senior executive at KBI BioPharma, Inc. As Vice President of Drug Development, he oversaw all business and drug development operations. Before his tenure at KBI, he successfully started and managed Cardinal Health's East Coast biotechnology drug development operations. Prior to Cardinal Health, Dr. Bedu-Addo was an Associate Director at Akzo-Nobel, Senior Scientist at Elan (The Liposome Co.), and Principal Scientist at Schering-Plough. In these positions, he contributed to the development of numerous drugs, including antiviral and anticancer products. Dr. Bedu-Addo obtained his M.S. in Chemical Engineering and Ph.D. in Pharmaceutics from the University of Pittsburgh.#FrankBeduAddo #PDSBiotech #ChemicalEngineering #Pharmaceutics #Liposomes #EnantiospecificCationicLipidNanoparticles #Versamune #IL12 #AntibodyDrugConjugate #HumanPapillomavirus #HPV #HeadAndNeckCancer #UniversalFluVaccines #TumorAssociatedProteins #Oncology #ProgressionFreeSurvival #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textFiona Cauley ( https://www.fionacauley.com ) is a Nashville-based comedy superstar who uses her comedy for a greater purpose – to raise awareness about her rare, genetic disease, Friedreich's Ataxia (FA), that progressively damages the nervous system, causing loss of muscle control over time, and is found in approximately one in 50,000 people worldwide (5,000 individuals in the United States and 15,000 worldwide).  Diagnosed at just 18 with this degenerative neurological condition, Fiona transformed adversity not just into an amazing career in comedy, but also beyond the stage, as an extremely powerful voice for disability visibility—sharing her story in conversations on podcasts and shows, and using comedy to foster understanding and empathy.Fiona's style has been defined as both fearless and impactful. She tackles everything from dating while in a wheelchair, to confronting audience discomfort and all sorts of stigma head-on. Dr. David Lynch, MD, PhD, ( https://www.research.chop.edu/people/david-r-lynch ) is an attending neurologist in the Division of Neurology at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and Director of the Friedreich's Ataxia Program ( https://www.chop.edu/centers-programs/friedreichs-ataxia-program ).Dr. Lynch maintains a dynamic program focused on the Friedreich's Ataxia, which spans clinical, translational, and basic science research efforts on FA that include conducting double-blind clinical trials, identifying biomarkers, and leading mechanistic studies in animal and cellular models of FA.The research conducted by Dr. Lynch and his lab team have led to a greater understanding of the metabolic dysfunction underlying FA. Their work has led to the creation of a patient database as well as a pipeline of more than 20 drug candidates that represent potential new therapies. Dr. Lynch is currently working with pharmaceutical industry partners to develop drug candidates as well as biomarkers for FA.Dr. Lynch has a Medical Degree, and a Ph.D. in Neuroscience, from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore.Important Episode Links - SKYCLARYS (omaveloxolone) - Patient Site - https://www.skyclarys.com/"Friedreich's Back" - https://adage.com/video/viatris-friedreichs-back-6m38s/#FionaCauley #FriedreichsAtaxia #RareDisease #Comedy #Comedian #DavidLynch #ChildrensHospitalOfPhiladelphia #Neurology #Biogen #Omaveloxolone #CannesLions #Humor #Laughter #Skyclarys #NikkiGlaser #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Forrest Ringold, MD of Surgical Association of Mobile ( https://sampadocs.com/about-us/dr-forrest-ringold/ ), is a leading expert in bariatric and robotic surgery and is renowned for his expertise in transforming lives through weight loss surgery and innovative abdominal treatments.With an advanced understanding of both traditional laparoscopic techniques and cutting-edge robotic technology, Dr. Ringold specializes in a wide range of surgical procedures aimed at improving the health and quality of life of his patients, including life-changing weight loss surgeries such as sleeve gastrectomy, gastric bypass, duodenal switch, SADI, and lap band, as well as pioneering advancements in reflux surgery and esophageal and stomach diseases.As a leading authority in his field, Dr. Ringold serves as a key opinion leader for both Intuitive Surgical and Teleflex Medical ( https://www.teleflex.com/usa/en/index.html ), two of the most respected names in medical devices. His innovative approach extends to the latest in gastrointestinal surgery, where he is actively pursuing groundbreaking advancements in magnetic anastomotic technology.Dr. Ringold's commitment to excellence extends beyond patient care. He is a clinical instructor at the University of South Alabama's Department of Surgery, where he shares his wealth of knowledge with the next generation of surgeons. His dedication to his craft is also reflected in his leadership roles, including his current position as President of the Alabama State Chapter of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.Since 2018, Dr. Ringold has led the Epicenter at Mobile Infirmary Medical Center, a distinguished program designed to train surgeons nationwide in the fields of robotic and bariatric surgery.Dr. Ringold attended medical school at University of South Alabama Medical School and did his residency in general surgery at University of South Alabama Medical Center.#ForrestRingold #SurgicalAssociationOfMobile #Bariatric #RoboticSurgery #WeightLossSurgery #SleeveGastrectomy #GastricBypass #DuodenalSwitch #LapBand #MagneticAnastomoticTechnology #TeleflexMedical #SouthAlabamaMedicalSchool #ObesitySurgery #PostoperativeReflux #DeNovoGastroesophagealRefluxDisease #GERD #TitanSGSStapler #SurgicalStaplers #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textSarah Mastrorocco is Vice President and General Manager of Health at Instacart ( https://www.instacart.com/company/health ), the leading grocery technology company in North America, partnering with more than 1,800 retailers, covering nearly 100,000 stores, and serving over 7,000 consumer packaged goods brands.An innovative leader with extensive expertise in business development and strategy, Sarah spearheaded the creation of Instacart Health and continues to oversee the initiative designed to support consumers, businesses, and nonprofits across three key areas: increasing nutrition security, inspiring healthier choices, and scaling food and nutrition programs within healthcare. In her role, she is focused on expanding consumer health tools and empowering organizations with technology to help improve access to nutritious food and nutrition education. A longtime Instacart veteran, Sarah has played an integral role at the company since joining as the first member of the company's business development team in 2014. During her tenure, she has held various leadership positions across business development and operations including building relationships with North America's largest retailers, leading Instacart's catalog, developing strategic partnerships, and scaling new businesses.Previous to Instacart, Sarah held roles in other CPG companies, including at PepsiCo, in strategy, business innovation, and mergers and acquisitions, as well as at Hershey's and in the consulting segment.Sarah has an MBA from Northwestern University - Kellogg School of Management and a BS from the McIntire School of Commerce, at University of Virginia.#SarahMastrorocco #Instacart #Health #NutritionSecurity #FoodDesert #SupplementalNutritionAssistanceProgram #MaternalHealth #MaternalOutcomes #FoodAsMedicine #HealthyLabel #Access #SocialDeterminantsOfHealth #HealthOutcomes#ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Sunita Satyapal, Ph.D. is an internationally known subject matter expert and leader in the field of hydrogen and fuel cells with three decades of experience in government, industry, and academia. Dr. Satyapal has had diverse roles including as a researcher, a visiting assistant professor, as Chief Engineer and Director for the U.S. Department of Energy's Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office ( https://www.energy.gov/eere/person/sunita-satyapal ), and as a manager in industry at United Technologies, overseeing research and development (R&D) as well as business development and stakeholder collaboration.  She has been responsible for R&D in industry as well as developing national hydrogen strategies, coordinating over $10 billion in hydrogen funding over the years, and collaborating across more than 25 countries through global hydrogen partnerships.Dr. Satyapal received her Ph.D. from Columbia University and completed postdoctoral work in Applied and Engineering Physics at Cornell University. She has also served in business development, management, and deployment related roles in industry. She has numerous publications, including in Scientific American, 10 patents, and various recognitions including a Meritorious and a Distinguished Presidential Rank Award.#Hydrogen #FuelCell #SunitaSatyapal #DepartmentOfEnergy #PhysicalChemistry #Photodissociation #Electrolysis #EnergySecurity #GreenhouseGasEmissions #RenewableEnergy #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textAarti Holla-Maini is Director of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs ( UNOOSA - https://www.unoosa.org/oosa/de/aboutus/director.html ) in Vienna, part of the UN organization ( https://www.un.org/ ) that works to promote international cooperation in the peaceful use and exploration of space, and in the utilization of space science and technology for sustainable economic and social development.Ms. Holla-Maini brings to this position over 25 years of professional experience in the space sector including in managerial and advocacy functions.  Most recently, she has held the role of Executive Vice-President Sustainability, Policy & Impact at NorthStar Earth & Space; prior to which she spent over 18 years as Secretary-General of the Global Satellite Operators Association.Ms. Holla-Maini's experience includes service as a member of the World Economic Forum's Global Future Council on Space; member of the Advisory Group of the Space Sustainability Rating managed by eSpace at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Space Center; member of the Advisory Board of the Satellite Industry Association of India; Senior Space Policy Adviser to Forum Europe and as Expert Adviser on Space Traffic Management for European Union studies 2021-2023.  She was also one of the chief architects of the Crisis Connectivity Charter established in 2015 for emergency telecommunications via satellite with the UN World Food Program's Emergency Telecommunications Cluster.Ms. Holla-Maini holds a bachelor's degree in law with German law from Kings College London, UK, a master's degree in business administration from HEC Paris, France, and she is also an alumna of the International Space University. #AartiHollaMaini #UnitedNationsOfficeForOuterSpaceAffairs #UN #Airbus #GlobalSatelliteOperatorsAssociation #UNOOSA #SpaceObjectRegister #SpaceLaw #SustainableDevelopmentGoals #SDG #CommitteeOnThePeacefulUsesOfOuterSpace #COPUOS #PlanetaryDefense #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #Research #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcastSupport the show

Send us a textColonel Dr. Tanja Roy is Commander, U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense ( https://usamricd.health.mil/ ), a subsidiary of United States Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (USAMRMC) and is the leading science and technology laboratory of the Department of Defense for the development, testing, and evaluation of medical chemical warfare countermeasures, including therapies and materials to treat casualties of chemical warfare agents, as well as biochemical and other emerging non-kinetic acute battlefield injuries.Colonel Dr. Roy received her commission from the University of Notre Dame Reserve Officer Training Corps as a Distinguished Military Graduate in 2000 into the Army Medical Specialist Corps. Colonel Dr. Roy holds a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Pittsburgh (Rehabilitation Sciences/Epidemiology), Doctor and Master of Physical Therapy from Baylor University, Master of Science from the University of Pittsburgh (Epidemiology), and Master of Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College.Colonel Dr. Roy recently served as the Director of Occupational Health Sciences at the Defense Centers for Public Health. Previously, Colonel Dr. Roy created and served as Director of the Soldier Performance, Health, and Readiness Database at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine (USARIEM). Previous assignments include executive officer for the Clinical Public Health and Epidemiology Directorate, Army Public Health Center; Physical Therapy Researcher, University of Pittsburgh; Physical Therapy Researcher at USARIEM; Chief, Physical Therapy Troop Medical Clinic, Fort Drum; Chief, Physical Therapy, 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Fort Drum and Afghanistan; Assistant Chief, Baumholder Physical Therapy Clinic; Chief, Physical Therapy, 701st Main Support Battalion, 1st Infantry Division, Iraq; Physical Therapist, 31st Combat Support Hospital, Iraq; Chief, Baumholder Physical Therapy Clinic; and Physical Therapist, Landstuhl Regional Medical Center. She has 29 medical research publications. Colonel Dr. Roy is a graduate of the U.S. Army Medical Department (AMEDD) Officer Basic Course, the AMEDD Captains Career Course, Intermediate Level Education, the Defense Strategy Course, and U.S. Army War College. She is Airborne Qualified (5P); a Strategic Studies Graduate (6Z); an Army Medical Department Acquisitions Officer (8X); a certified Medical Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation Officer (8Z); and holds the Medical Proficiency Designator (9A). Colonel Dr. Roy's awards and decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal (4 oakleaf clusters), Army Commendation Medal (2 oakleaf clusters), Army Achievement Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and Soldier Medal, Military Outstanding Volunteer Medal, Humanitarian Service Medal, Overseas Service Medal (1 oakleaf cluster), Joint Meritorious Unit Award, Army Superior Unit Award (3 oakleaf clusters), Meritorious Unit Award (1 oakleaf cluster), Parachutist Badge, German Sports Badge (Gold), and Combat Medic Badge. She is a member of the Order of Military Medical Merit. #TanjaRoy #USArmyMedicalResearchInstituteOfChemicalDefense #BattlefieldInjuries #ClinicalTraining #MedicalResearch #Warfighter #MedicalCountermeasures #NerveAgents #Vesicants #SulfurMustard #MetabolicPoisons #Cyanide #PulmonaryToxicants #Phosgene #MRICD #DepartmentOfDefense #AberdeenProvingGround #Toxin #Toxicant #PharmaceuticalSciences #ChemicalWarfare #CBRN #Epidemiology #PhysicalTherapy #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textPaurvi Bhatt is the Interim CEO of the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers ( https://rosalynncarter.org/ ), an organization that drives transformative systems change to improve the strength, health, and resilience of family caregivers.Paurvi is also the Founder and CEO of ThirdEyeFocus, a consultancy for  private companies & nonprofits focused on the care economy.Paurvi is a global healthcare executive known for creating strategies that optimize public, private, and philanthropic capital to expand more equitable decisions, resources, and care outcomes in communities around the world. She's known for creating unique solutions that bring together nonprofits, government and companies to pilot, pivot, and scale health care and social services. As a second generation, Indian immigrant, and family caregiver, Paurvi focuses on culturally responsive solutions in the care economy by integrating community-led voices, solutions, and organizations to shape the referral pathway that brings care into the home. As a board director, leader and advisor on several private company, foundation, institution and nonprofit boards, Paurvi combines her lived experience with her seasoned focus on outcomes and deep knowledge of financing. Paurvi has focused much of her career on HIV/AIDS; women's health and health equity worldwide and is trained in health systems and economics with a B.A. in Neuroscience from Northwestern University, an M.P.H from Yale University (Health Management and Population Economics), and a PhD (ABD - Global Health Systems and Economics) from Johns Hopkins University. Paurvi is an active spokesperson, author, podcast guest and presenter on issues ranging from women's leadership, Asian American and immigrant issues, health systems and economics, philanthropy, HIV and women's health, and the role of women as working daughters and family caregivers.#PaurviBhatt #TheRosalynnCarterInstituteForCaregivers #Caregivers #CareEconomy #Caregiving #Dementia #Cancer #CorporateSocialResponsibility #Philanthropy #WomensHealth #HIV #AIDS #MedtronicFoundation #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Mark Jacobs is the Director of Pacific Technical Support and WHO Representative to the South Pacific. He was appointed in this position in August 2021. Prior to this, he has held a series of senior public health leadership roles.Dr. Jacobs was previously the WHO Representative to Lao People's Democratic Republic from November 2018 to August 2021. From May to October 2018, Dr Jacobs was Acting Director of Programme Management for WHO in the Western Pacific Region. He was also previously the Director of Communicable Diseases in the Region for 5 years.Before joining WHO, Dr. Jacobs was New Zealand's Director of Public Health for 9 years and managed the Public Health Programme at the Secretariat of the Pacific Community for 3 years. He also spent several years in Director of Public Health roles for state health authorities in Australia.Dr. Jacobs' interests include developing healthy public policy, strengthening disease surveillance, strengthening all hazards emergency preparedness, and working across sectors to improve health. Dr. Jacobs holds a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery, a Graduate Diploma in Health Services Management and a Master of Public Health.#MarkJacobs #WHO #WorldHealthOrganization #SouthPacific #CommunicableDiseases #PublicHealth #DiseaseSurveillance #AllHazardsEmergencyPreparedness #InfectiousDisease #Fiji #NoncommunicableDiseases #WesternPacificRegion #HealthSecurity #AntimicrobialResistance #OneHealth #Aging #Ageing #Healthspan #Anxiety #Loneliness #Depression #ClimateChange #AirPollution #EnvironmentalHazards #PacificIslands #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show