We’ve got some awesome speakers for our next event on Thursday, June 5. Tickets still available here.
Nicole Torosin
Title: “From field fiascos to fitness frenzies: a misanthropologist’s guide to genetics”
First, I’ll dive into the trials and tribulations of doing field work in Argentina, while sprinkling in real facts about yellow fever virus resistance genetic evolution across primates. I had to work with the Argentinian government and park rangers to obtain permits to find and collect feces from a group of howler monkeys that hadn’t been seen in 5 years and were presumed … dead. All of this hard work did pay off though; I found the howler monkeys and discovered a genetic variant that might be the key to yellow fever virus resistance.
Second, I’ll talk about how my background led me to my current career starting a genetically informed personal training company and how your genes can tell you about the most effective way you should be working out!
Dr. Torosin has a PhD in genetic anthropology from the University of Utah where she studied the evolution of yellow fever virus resistance. After doing her postdoc at Rutgers University, she worked at a startup studying epigenetics and longevity. Finally, being too burned out to function, she spent 6 weeks in Thailand and came back with the crazy idea to start a genetically informed personal training business. Trying to make this work now takes the majority of her time.
Danielle Hiestand
Title: “Navigating the Neural Woods: EMDR, Trauma and the Adaptive Brain”
This talk uses the metaphor of trees and a forest to explain how the brain clusters together big traumas and smaller negative life experiences into connected memory networks. According to the Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model, these memory networks are key to understanding how EMDR therapy helps the brain process stuck negative memories so the individual suffers less in the present. EMDR uses bilateral eye movements or tapping to target a memory and support the brain’s natural healing process. As this happens, the memory starts to lose its emotional intensity and vividness, making it feel less upsetting. Eventually, the memory connects to healthier, more helpful thoughts and beliefs, so the individual can think about it without distress or negative beliefs.
Dr. Hiestand has been passionate about learning and helping others most of her life. After graduating from UCSD with a Bachelors of Science in Cognitive Science, Neuroscience and Psychology she stayed in San Diego to complete her PsyD in Marital and Family Therapy at Alliant International University and become a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT #48529). To be honest, she couldn’t leave the ocean or the beautiful weather of San Diego and wanted to keep learning!
Dr. Hiestand has a private practice in Mission Valley where she provides telehealth and in-person treatment and specializes in eating disorders and complex PTSD treatment. She is a Certified EMDR Therapist, EMDRIA Approved EMDR Consultant and an EMDR Facilitator for EMDR Basic Trainings.
In her free time she enjoys spending time with her husband and two daughters, volunteering with Girl Scouts, hiking and paddle boarding.
Corey Jones-Weinert
Title: “Telomeres, aging, and cancer: does size really matter?”
The age-old question “does size really matter?”, often uttered by those that got the short end of things, has different answers depending on the context in which it is asked. Telomeres protect our chromosomes – our cells’ instruction manual that guides cell activities. Telomeres sit at the very end of our chromosomes, and get shorter as we grow old. Telomere shortening is responsible for part of aging, and individuals that have very short telomeres prematurely age. So, bigger is better, right? Not necessarily. Every time a cell grows, telomeres get shorter. When telomeres are too short, cells cannot grow anymore and may die. A commonality among cancers is unlimited cell growth, which requires a mechanism that elongates telomeres to counterbalance their constant shortening. During my talk I hope to shed some light on the big and small details of telomere biology to help everyone decide for themselves whether size really matters, and why – telomere size, that is.
Dr. Corey Jones-Weinert got his PhD in Molecular Oncology at IFOM, a research institute in Milan, Italy, in 2020. He has been studying telomeres for the past decade, encompassing his PhD and now his postdoctoral research at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. He first worked on how a certain type of cancer, Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres, lengthens its telomeres, and now focuses on how cells die when their telomeres get very short. His love for science has led to a love for science communication, which he is now in the process of making his main focus. He writes articles aimed at the general population describing how cancer works for a cancer patient advocacy web page called Within Oncology, and is creating a podcast on Telomere Biology Disorders, a set of rare diseases, in collaboration with the non-profit group Team Telomere that advocates for afflicted individuals.