Battling Cancer by Going to Work
Ruth Porat
Ruth Porat is the Chief Financial Officer of Alphabet (Google), after 22 years as Morgan Stanley's CFO. At Morgan Stanley, she advised in many of the firm's largest and high-profile IPOs, including eBay, Amazon.com and Blackstone Group. She also advised in the government bailouts of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and AIG. Previously, she served as vice chairman of investment banking and the global head of the Morgan Stanley's financial institutions group.
Question: What did you learn from your bout with cancer?
Ruth Porat: Hearing you have cancer is one of the most terrifying phone calls that one I think one can get. And I think one of the questions is: "Well, what does it even mean?" I was fortunate. I had breast cancer. Breast cancer is much more manageable than other cancers, but the ability to speak with other women who had gone through it to give me a sense of "So what is next? What does it mean? What can I expect? How do I talk to my kids? How do I talk to my colleagues?" Once you’ve been through it things that seemed so frightening and terrifying. What is chemo? Am I going to be completely debilitated? Is it really manageable? I think you get a better sense of what it is and so I would... Unfortunately, too many of us are touched by cancer. I would say very important to reach out and get an understanding of it from those who have been through it. I think the next thing is be true to yourself. For me, going to work meant that I was in control of my life. The disease did not define me. And so in many respects work was a really important part of me being healthy. And one of my bosses, a fantastic leader of business, Joe Perella said: "If you want to come to Morgan Stanley and work while you’re going through chemo do it because it’s good for you. Don’t do it for Morgan Stanley. We just want you to get healthy."
I think as a leader letting your people know that you should get treated the way you want and go through this experience the way you want is very individual. I was lucky. I would... when I went through chemo it wasn’t that debilitating, and so I could make that choice and it was great. I was running. I was working. That worked for me. For others, it doesn’t. Be true to yourself. There is no one right answer. And those are probably the main things. I think the last point is for those who know people who have cancer you don’t quite know what to say: Anything positive that says you’re there is fantastic.
Recorded November 12, 2010
Interviewed by Victoria Brown
Directed / Produced by Jonathan Fowler
In dealing with the disease, it's important to get an understanding of the process from people who have been through it. You also need to stay true to yourself.
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How tiny bioelectronic implants may someday replace pharmaceutical drugs
Scientists are using bioelectronic medicine to treat inflammatory diseases, an approach that capitalizes on the ancient "hardwiring" of the nervous system.
24 February, 2021
Credit: Adobe Stock / SetPoint Medical
Sponsored by Northwell Health
- Bioelectronic medicine is an emerging field that focuses on manipulating the nervous system to treat diseases.
- Clinical studies show that using electronic devices to stimulate the vagus nerve is effective at treating inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis.
- Although it's not yet approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, vagus nerve stimulation may also prove effective at treating other diseases like cancer, diabetes and depression.
<p>Could a tiny electronic device treat some diseases more safely and effectively than pharmaceutical medicines?</p><p>For Kelly Owens, the answer was clear. She spent more than a decade suffering from Crohn's disease, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that left her with severe arthritis in her joints. The pain forced her to use a cane, sometimes a wheelchair. She tried more than 20 medications and racked up more than $1 million in medical bills, but her condition didn't improve.</p><p>A physician told Owens and her husband that they shouldn't have children, and that she'd have to take steroids for life.</p><p>Then Owens turned to bioelectronic medicine. She reached out to Dr. Kevin Tracey, a pioneer in the field and president and CEO of the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research in New York. Soon after, Owens and her husband moved to Amsterdam to participate in a clinical trial involving a relatively new bioelectronic approach to treat inflammation.</p><p>Doctors implanted a small electronic device in her chest that stimulated her vagus nerve, the body's longest cranial nerve. After two weeks, Owens didn't need the cane or wheelchair. Soon she was jogging on a treadmill.</p><p>A growing body of research within bioelectronic medicine shows it's possible to treat diseases by manipulating the nervous system. The field is essentially a fusion of neuroscience, molecular biology and neurotechnology. Dr. Tracey and his colleagues think the field may someday replace or supplement many pharmaceutical drugs used to treat major diseases, including cancer and Alzheimer's.</p><p>But how? The answer centers on how the nervous system controls molecular processes in the body.</p>
<blockquote>...the most revolutionary aspect of bioelectronic medicine, according to Dr. Tracey, is that approaches like vagus nerve stimulation wouldn't come with harmful and potentially deadly side effects, as many pharmaceutical drugs currently do.</blockquote>
The nervous system’s ancient reflexes
<p>You accidentally place your hand on a hot stove. Almost instantaneously, your hand withdraws.</p><p>What triggered your hand to move? The answer is <em>not</em> that you consciously decided the stove was hot and you should move your hand. Rather, it was a reflex: Skin receptors on your hand sent nerve impulses to the spinal cord, which ultimately sent back motor neurons that caused your hand to move away. This all occurred before your "conscious brain" realized what happened.</p><p>Similarly, the nervous system has reflexes that protect individual cells in the body.</p><p>"The nervous system evolved because we need to respond to stimuli in the environment," said Dr. Tracey. "Neural signals don't come from the brain down first. Instead, when something happens in the environment, our peripheral nervous system senses it and sends a signal to the central nervous system, which comprises the brain and spinal cord. And then the nervous system responds to correct the problem."</p><p>So, what if scientists could "hack" into the nervous system, manipulating the electrical activity in the nervous system to control molecular processes and produce desirable outcomes? That's the chief goal of bioelectronic medicine.</p><p>"There are billions of neurons in the body that interact with almost every cell in the body, and at each of those nerve endings, molecular signals control molecular mechanisms that can be defined and mapped, and potentially put under control," Dr. Tracey said in a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJH9KsMKi5M" target="_blank">TED Talk</a>.</p><p>"Many of these mechanisms are also involved in important diseases, like cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes, hypertension and shock. It's very plausible that finding neural signals to control those mechanisms will hold promises for devices replacing some of today's medication for those diseases."</p><p>How can scientists hack the nervous system? For years, researchers in the field of bioelectronic medicine have zeroed in on the longest cranial nerve in the body: the vagus nerve.</p><blockquote>What's more, clinical trials show that vagus nerve stimulation not only "shuts off" inflammation, but also triggers the production of cells that promote healing.</blockquote>
The vagus nerve
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTYyOTM5OC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NTIwNzk0NX0.UCy-3UNpomb3DQZMhyOw_SQG4ThwACXW_rMnc9mLAe8/img.jpg?width=1245&coordinates=0%2C0%2C0%2C0&height=700" id="09add" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f38dbfbbfe470ad85a3b023dd5083557" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="1245" data-height="700" />Electrical signals, seen here in a synapse, travel along the vagus nerve to trigger an inflammatory response.
Credit: Adobe Stock via solvod
<p>The vagus nerve ("vagus" meaning "wandering" in Latin) comprises two nerve branches that stretch from the brainstem down to the chest and abdomen, where nerve fibers connect to organs. Electrical signals constantly travel up and down the vagus nerve, facilitating communication between the brain and other parts of the body.</p><p>One aspect of this back-and-forth communication is inflammation. When the immune system detects injury or attack, it automatically triggers an inflammatory response, which helps heal injuries and fend off invaders. But when not deployed properly, inflammation can become excessive, exacerbating the original problem and potentially contributing to diseases.</p><p>In 2002, Dr. Tracey and his colleagues discovered that the nervous system plays a key role in monitoring and modifying inflammation. This occurs through a process called the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nature01321" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">inflammatory reflex</a>. In simple terms, it works like this: When the nervous system detects inflammatory stimuli, it reflexively (and subconsciously) deploys electrical signals through the vagus nerve that trigger anti-inflammatory molecular processes.</p><p>In rodent experiments, Dr. Tracey and his colleagues observed that electrical signals traveling through the vagus nerve control TNF, a protein that, in excess, causes inflammation. These electrical signals travel through the vagus nerve to the spleen. There, electrical signals are converted to chemical signals, triggering a molecular process that ultimately makes TNF, which exacerbates conditions like rheumatoid arthritis.</p><p>The incredible chain reaction of the inflammatory reflex was observed by Dr. Tracey and his colleagues in greater detail through rodent experiments. When inflammatory stimuli are detected, the nervous system sends electrical signals that travel through the vagus nerve to the spleen. There, the electrical signals are converted to chemical signals, which trigger the spleen to create a white blood cell called a T cell, which then creates a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine. The acetylcholine interacts with macrophages, which are a specific type of white blood cell that creates TNF, a protein that, in excess, causes inflammation. At that point, the acetylcholine triggers the macrophages to stop overproducing TNF – or inflammation.</p><p>Experiments showed that when a specific part of the body is inflamed, specific fibers within the vagus nerve start firing. Dr. Tracey and his colleagues were able to map these relationships. More importantly, they were able to stimulate specific parts of the vagus nerve to "shut off" inflammation.</p><p>What's more, clinical trials show that vagus nerve stimulation not only "shuts off" inflammation, but also triggers the production of cells that promote healing.</p><p>"In animal experiments, we understand how this works," Dr. Tracey said. "And now we have clinical trials showing that the human response is what's predicted by the lab experiments. Many scientific thresholds have been crossed in the clinic and the lab. We're literally at the point of regulatory steps and stages, and then marketing and distribution before this idea takes off."<br></p>The future of bioelectronic medicine
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTYxMDYxMy9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzNjQwOTExNH0.uBY1TnEs_kv9Dal7zmA_i9L7T0wnIuf9gGtdRXcNNxo/img.jpg?width=980" id="8b5b2" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="c005e615e5f23c2817483862354d2cc4" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="2000" data-height="1125" />Vagus nerve stimulation can already treat Crohn's disease and other inflammatory diseases. In the future, it may also be used to treat cancer, diabetes, and depression.
Credit: Adobe Stock via Maridav
<p>Vagus nerve stimulation is currently awaiting approval by the US Food and Drug Administration, but so far, it's proven safe and effective in clinical trials on humans. Dr. Tracey said vagus nerve stimulation could become a common treatment for a wide range of diseases, including cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes, hypertension, shock, depression and diabetes.</p><p>"To the extent that inflammation is the problem in the disease, then stopping inflammation or suppressing the inflammation with vagus nerve stimulation or bioelectronic approaches will be beneficial and therapeutic," he said.</p><p>Receiving vagus nerve stimulation would require having an electronic device, about the size of lima bean, surgically implanted in your neck during a 30-minute procedure. A couple of weeks later, you'd visit, say, your rheumatologist, who would activate the device and determine the right dosage. The stimulation would take a few minutes each day, and it'd likely be unnoticeable.</p><p>But the most revolutionary aspect of bioelectronic medicine, according to Dr. Tracey, is that approaches like vagus nerve stimulation wouldn't come with harmful and potentially deadly side effects, as many pharmaceutical drugs currently do.</p><p>"A device on a nerve is not going to have systemic side effects on the body like taking a steroid does," Dr. Tracey said. "It's a powerful concept that, frankly, scientists are quite accepting of—it's actually quite amazing. But the idea of adopting this into practice is going to take another 10 or 20 years, because it's hard for physicians, who've spent their lives writing prescriptions for pills or injections, that a computer chip can replace the drug."</p><p>But patients could also play a role in advancing bioelectronic medicine.</p><p>"There's a huge demand in this patient cohort for something better than they're taking now," Dr. Tracey said. "Patients don't want to take a drug with a black-box warning, costs $100,000 a year and works half the time."</p><p>Michael Dowling, president and CEO of Northwell Health, elaborated:</p><p>"Why would patients pursue a drug regimen when they could opt for a few electronic pulses? Is it possible that treatments like this, pulses through electronic devices, could replace some drugs in the coming years as preferred treatments? Tracey believes it is, and that is perhaps why the pharmaceutical industry closely follows his work."</p><p>Over the long term, bioelectronic approaches are unlikely to completely replace pharmaceutical drugs, but they could replace many, or at least be used as supplemental treatments.</p><p>Dr. Tracey is optimistic about the future of the field.</p><p>"It's going to spawn a huge new industry that will rival the pharmaceutical industry in the next 50 years," he said. "This is no longer just a startup industry. [...] It's going to be very interesting to see the explosive growth that's going to occur."</p>
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Best. Science. Fiction. Show. Ever.
"The Expanse" is the best vision I've ever seen of a space-faring future that may be just a few generations away.
26 February, 2021
Credit: "The Expanse" / Syfy
13-8
- Want three reasons why that headline is justified? Characters and acting, universe building, and science.
- For those who don't know, "The Expanse" is a series that's run on SyFy and Amazon Prime set about 200 years in the future in a mostly settled solar system with three waring factions: Earth, Mars, and Belters.
- No other show I know of manages to use real science so adeptly in the service of its story and its grand universe building.
<div><br></div>
<p>Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know: <em>Best science fiction show ever. </em>That is a pretty audacious claim and it means I've got some explaining to do. But with 58.5 years of nerdom behind me, including years of watching "Star Trek", "UFO", "Space 1999", "Battlestar Galactica" (the original one that sucked except for the special effects), "Stargate", "The X-Files", "Farscape", "Battlestar Galactica" (the new one that didn't suck) and Firefly I have seen a thing or two concerning science fiction on TV. That's why I'm here ready to stand my ground and proclaim for all nerdom to hear…</p>
<p>"<a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08MMJTJSH" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Expanse</a>" is the greatest science fiction TV show ever. EVER!</p>
<p>For those of you who don't know, "The Expanse" is a series that's run on SyFy and Amazon Prime set about 200 years in the future in a mostly settled solar system (slight spoiler alerts follow). Based on an <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/56399-the-expanse" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">amazing book series</a> by <a href="https://twitter.com/AbrahamHanover" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">SA Corey</a>, in this future there are three major political factions in constant conflict with each other. First, there is Earth which remains powerful but is stretched thin by climate change and overpopulation. Then there is Mars, a former colony of Earth, that's now an independent militaristic republic whose technology generally outpaces that of humanity's homeworld. The final faction is "The Belt" which refers to the asteroids and moons of the giant planets. Belters are resource extractors, and they are the oppressed underclass. After generations living on ships and in low-gravity environments, their bodies have changed, making it impossible for many of them to handle the crush of gravity on the inner planets. </p>
<p>The story begins with all three factions at each other's throats. Mars and Earth are in the midst of a long cold war that, occasionally, turns <a href="https://expanse.fandom.com/wiki/Vesta_Blockade" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">hot</a>. What Earth and Mars have in common, however, is keeping their boot on the neck of the Belters who are, themselves, poised for bloody rebellion. This simmering political, social and military conflict would be enough for a hundred episodes but it's into this pile of dynamite "The Expanse" drops an alien artifact that changes everything and propels the narrative.</p><p>Now, the individual elements in what I described above are not really that original. You can find many versions of them in many TV shows across many decades. So, what does "The Expanse" do with these elements that makes it so special? For me the excellence of the show manifests in three distinct ways: characters and acting; universe building; science.</p>
<blockquote>The level of attempted scientific realism in the show is wonderful, extending even to little details like how whiskey spirals out of its bottle due to the <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/coriolis-effect/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Coriolis effect</a> when poured on a rotating space station.</blockquote>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTY5MTc0OC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0ODc0NzIyMn0.h3G9wanrr1lmk3itUpVAyj-fw_iuUkUvyFa7Oum86-M/img.jpg?width=980" id="d6dcc" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2e1eacc6a1afa879c5c199aec589c06b" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="1000" data-height="200" /><p>Let's start with characters and acting. No matter how good your science fiction ideas may be, you have to tell your stories through actors pretending to be characters interacting with each other. By its nature, science fiction shows can ask a lot of actors. They have to stare at green screens, pretending to be in awe of an alien mothership that won't get added till post-production CGI; or they dangle from wires emoting through a screen set in the weightlessness of space. It takes serious acting chops to maintain the gravity (or levity) that makes it all believable or better yet <em>relatable</em>. That's why the depth of performances in <em>The Expanse</em> is its best surprise. The recent season, for example, had actor <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4625680/" target="_blank">Dominique Tipper</a> killing it across three episodes as Belter engineer Naomi Nagata. Nagata is caught alone on a booby-trapped ship, exhausting herself trying to signal her friends to <em>not</em> attempt a rescue. It's a solo performance reminiscent of Tom Hanks' great work in "Castaway".<br></p><br>Across the seasons, other actors have also filled out their characters with an empathy that's comparable to anything else in any other genre on TV. <a href="https://twitter.com/ThomasJane" target="_blank">Thomas Jane's</a> detective Josephus Miller was an epic noir depiction of a man broken by circumstance but still moving towards something better. <a href="https://twitter.com/SAghdashloo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Shohreh Aghdashloo's</a> foul-mouthed UN leader Chrisjen Avasarala is a skilled politician who will kick your ass and save your world at the same time. And, perhaps best of all, is <a href="https://twitter.com/weschatham" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Wes Chatham</a>'s Amos Burton. Born in the worst the streets can offer he became a killer then escaped to become a spaceship mechanic. Chatham plays Burton as simultaneously dangerous, kind, and slightly bewildered, always wanting to do the right thing if he just knew what that was. And don't even get me started on how good <a href="https://twitter.com/CaraGeeeee" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Cara Gee</a> is as Belter captain Camina Drummer.
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTY5MTc0OS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2NTgzOTgwMX0.7RtmTVSHBVO7lpWbIa3qx9bmpBi_qG58b6J_L-nGO0s/img.jpg?width=980" id="e8c48" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2b0f8459f35eb2073d4ed2347f667a6d" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="1000" data-height="200" /><p>Next, we come to what's called 'universe building' in science fiction. All the great acting needs a fully fleshed out, lived-in world to ground it. How, for example, do the trams work on a hollowed out, spinning asteroid like <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceres_(dwarf_planet)" target="_blank">Ceres</a> that's used as a space settlement? This isn't a physics question. Instead, it means if you arrived on Ceres, where would you find the tram station? What do the maps look like that would help you get around? These are the kind of details that fall both to the writers and the art department. Getting these details wrong means the world your show inhabits will either look cheesy or, worse, sterile, as if all your expensive sets never had anyone live in them.</p>
<p>Happily, everything in "The Expanse" looks lived in. Everything looks like part of an organic whole. The sets and scenes give us a world built by humans for human purposes even if it's a city built into the side of a Martian cliff. From visions of New York City under siege from climate change to the claustrophobic interiors of Belter ships (all webbing, ductwork and grimy computer screens), the universe of "The Expanse" is endlessly rich, interesting, and believable (<a href="https://twitter.com/donttrythis" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Adam Savage</a> has a great set of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2ICDTv3VJA" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">videos</a> on production design in "The Expanse").</p>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTY5MTc1MS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NDEyNDg2Nn0.b7YJNl900W-P531IJDBt-a3sxieX3VdjuyhOVJU19PY/img.jpg?width=980" id="90aec" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7630d221c2eadd637411ac089fb7c652" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="1000" data-height="200" /><p>Finally, we come to the science, because, after all, this is science fiction. I am not one who demands that my science fiction always get the science right. What matters is that the writers create a self-consistent universe where whatever "science" is invoked remains constant as constraints imposed to provide obstacles and make the story work. But, to my joy, for the most part the "science" used in "The Expanse" is the science I teach in my <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/12/how-real-world-science-sets-expanse-apart-other-sci-fi-shows" target="_blank">physics</a> classes. For example, there is no imaginary "artificial gravity" babble. Instead, there is thrust gravity when the engines are on, accelerating spaceships. There is also spin gravity when you're on the inside of something rotating. Other than that, you are "on the float." Just like what will happen in real spaceships and space stations in the future.</p>
<p>The level of attempted scientific realism in the show is wonderful, extending even to little details like how whiskey spirals out of its bottle due to the <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/coriolis-effect/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Coriolis effect</a> when poured on a rotating space station. Most importantly, the writers use the real physics real people will really encounter in real space travel as a kind of extra character in the show. During space battles, as ships roll and pivot, Newton's first law (inertia) means unsecured tools are sent flying across the cabin. That makes them dangerous projectiles our brave heroes must dodge while fighting evil and advancing the storyline. It all makes my physicist's heart weep in gratitude.</p>
<p>Of course, not all the science in "The Expanse" is valid or accurate or correct. But that's OK. No other show I know of manages to use real science so adeptly in the service of its story and its grand universe building. I often rewatch episodes of "The Expanse" just to get a sense of "Oh yeah, that's how it might look." In a way, the show is the best vision I've ever seen of a space-faring future that may be just a few generations away.</p>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTY5MTc1OC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzNTc0OTQ1OX0.Enwz2n8tuWTiTJCUGhNZyKdFFMpIluc_gMiF81syppo/img.jpg?width=980" id="58949" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="19881167238be86e0db2bcae4e79f249" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="970" data-height="546" />
Credit: "The Expanse" / Syfy
<p>Now, I get it if you don't agree with me. I love "Star Trek" and I thought "Battlestar Galactica" (the new one) was amazing and I do adore "The Mandalorian". They are all fun and important and worth watching and thinking about. And maybe you love them more than anything else. But when you sum up the acting, the universe building, and the use of real science where it matters, I think nothing can beat "The Expanse". And with a <a href="https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_expanse" target="_blank">Rotten Tomato</a> average rating of 93%, I'm clearly not the only one who feels this way.</p><p>Best.</p><p>Show.</p><p>Ever. </p>
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How exercise changes your brain biology and protects your mental health
Contrary to what some might think, the brain is a very plastic organ.
26 February, 2021
PRAKASH MATHEMA/AFP via Getty Images
Mind & Brain
As with many other physicians, recommending physical activity to patients was just a doctor chore for me – until a few years ago. That was because I myself was not very active.
<p> Over the years, as I picked up boxing and became more active, I got firsthand experience of positive impacts on my mind. I also started researching the <a href="https://theconversation.com/syrian-refugees-in-america-the-forgotten-psychological-wounds-of-the-stress-of-migration-96155">effects of dance and movement therapies</a> on trauma and anxiety in refugee children, and I learned a lot more about the neurobiology of exercise. </p><p>I am a <a href="https://www.starclab.org/members/arash-javanbakht">psychiatrist and neuroscientist </a>researching the neurobiology of anxiety and how our interventions change the brain. I have begun to think of prescribing exercise as telling patients to take their “exercise pills." Now knowing the importance of exercising, almost all my patients commit to some level of exercise, and I have seen how it benefits several areas of their life and livelihood. </p><p>We all have heard details on how exercise improves musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, metabolic and other aspects of health. What you may not know is how this happens within the brain.</p><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BHY0FxzoKZE?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440"></iframe><p> How exercise improves the brain.</p>
<h2>Brain biology and growth</h2><p>Working out regularly <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/genes10090720" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">really does change the brain biology</a>, and it is not just "go walk and you will just feel better." Regular exercise, especially cardio, does change the brain. Contrary to what some may think, the brain is a very plastic organ. Not only are new neuronal connections formed every day, but also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.093008.100359" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">new cells are generated</a> in important areas of the brain. One key area is the <a href="https://doi.org/10.4103/0972-2327.104323" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">hippocampus</a>, which is involved in learning and memory and regulating negative emotions.</p><p>A molecule called <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fncel.2019.00363" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">brain-derived neurotrophic factor</a> helps the brain produce neurons, or brain cells. A variety of aerobic and high-intensity interval training exercises <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/genes10090720" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">significantly increase BDNF levels</a>. There is evidence from animal research that these changes are at <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-9568.2010.07508.x" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">epigenetic level</a>, which means these behaviors affect how genes are expressed, leading to changes in the neuronal connections and function.</p><p>Moderate exercise also seems to have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.00164.2004" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">anti-inflammatory effects</a>, regulating the immune system and excessive inflammation. This is important, given the new insight neuroscience is gaining into the potential <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/npp.2016.146" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">role of inflammation in anxiety and depression</a>.</p><p>Finally, there is evidence for the positive effects of exercise on the neurotransmitters – brain chemicals that send signals between neurons – dopamine and endorphins. Both of these are involved in <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/genes10090720" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">positive mood and motivation</a>.</p>
<h2>Exercise improves clinical symptoms of anxiety and depression</h2><p>Researchers also have examined the effects of exercise on measurable brain function and symptoms of depression and anxiety. Exercise improves <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/1744-9081-10-24" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">memory function</a>, cognitive performance and academic achievement. Studies also suggest regular exercise has a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD004366.pub5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">moderate effect on depressive symptoms even comparable to psychotherapy</a>. For anxiety disorders, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-018-3313-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">this effect is mild to moderate in reducing anxiety symptoms</a>. In a study that I conducted with others among refugee children, we found a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2019.07.007" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reduction in symptoms of anxiety and PTSD among children</a> who attended eight to 12 weeks of dance and movement therapies.</p><p>Exercise could even potentially desensitize people to physical symptoms of anxiety. That is because of the similarity between bodily effects of exercise, specifically high-intensity exercise, and those of anxiety, including shortness of breath, heart palpitation and chest tightness. Also, by reducing baseline heart rate, exercise might lead to signaling of a <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31382769/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">calmer internal physical environment</a> to the brain.</p><p>It is important to note that the majority of studies examined the effects of exercise in isolation and not in combination with other effective treatments of clinical anxiety and depression, such as psychotherapy and medication. For the same reason, I am not suggesting exercise as a replacement for necessary mental health care of depression or anxiety, but as part of it, and for prevention.</p><p>There are other perks besides the neurobiological impacts of exercise. When going out for a walk, one gets more exposure to sunlight, fresh air and nature. One of my patients befriended a neighbor during her regular walks, leading to regular taco Tuesdays with that new friend. I have made some great friends at my boxing gym, who are not only my motivators, but also a great supporting social network. One might pick a dog as their running mate, and another might meet a new date, or enjoy the high energy at the gym. Exercise can also function as a mindfulness practice and a respite from common daily stressors, and from our electronic devices and TV.</p><p>By increasing energy and fitness level, exercise can also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2011-090185" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">improve self-image and self-esteem</a> .</p>
<h2>Practical ways for a busy life</h2><p>So how can you find time to exercise, especially with all the additional time demands of the pandemic, and the limitations imposed by the pandemic such as limited access to the gyms?</p><ul><li><strong>Pick something you can love.</strong> Not all of us have to run on a treadmill (I actually hate it). What works for one person might not work for another. Try a diverse group of activities and see which one you will like more: running, walking, dancing, biking, kayaking, boxing, weights, swimming. You can even rotate between some or make seasonal changes to avoid boredom. It does not even have to be called an exercise. Whatever ups your heartbeat, even dancing with the TV ads or playing with the kids.</li><li><strong>Use positive peer pressure to your advantage.</strong> I have created a group messaging for the boxing gym because at 5:30 p.m., after a busy day at the clinic, I might have trouble finding the motivation to go to the gym or do an online workout. It is easier when friends send a message they are going and motivate you. And even if you do not feel comfortable going to a gym during the pandemic, you can join an online workout together.</li><li><strong>Do not see it as all or none.</strong> It does not have to be a one-hour drive to and from the gym or biking trail for a one-hour workout vs. staying on the couch. I always say to my patients: "One more step is better than none, and three squats are better than no squats." When less motivated, or in the beginning, just be nice to yourself. Do as much as possible. Three minutes of dancing with your favorite music still counts.</li><li><strong>Merge it with other activities: </strong>15 minutes of walking while on the phone with a friend, even around the house, is still being active.</li><li><strong>When hesitant or low on motivation, ask yourself:</strong> "When was the last time I regretted doing it?"</li><li><strong>Although it can help, exercise is not the ultimate weight loss strategy; diet is.</strong> One large brownie might be more calories than one hour of running. Don't give up on exercise if you are not losing weight. It is still providing all the benefits we discussed.</li></ul><p>Even if you do not feel anxious or depressed, still take the exercise pills. Use them for protecting your brain.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/155848/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation"></p><p><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/arash-javanbakht-416594" target="_blank">Arash Javanbakht</a>, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/wayne-state-university-989" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Wayne State University</a></em></p><p>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-exercise-pill-how-exercise-keeps-your-brain-healthy-and-protects-it-against-depression-and-anxiety-155848" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">original article</a>.</p>
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"Forced empathy" is a powerful negotiation tool. Here's how to do it.
Master negotiator Chris Voss breaks down how to get what you want during negotiations.
15 July, 2020
Credit: Paul Craft / Shutterstock
Personal Growth
- Former FBI negotiator Chris Voss explains how forced empathy is a powerful negotiating tactic.
- The key is starting a sentence with "What" or "How," causing the other person to look at the situation through your eyes.
- What appears to signal weakness is turned into a strength when using this tactic.
<p>How am I supposed to do that?</p><p>There's a lot wrapped up in that seemingly simple question. First off, it's an admission of ignorance—it invites further explanation. Questions often hold more power than declarations. </p><p>More importantly, it provokes what <a href="https://www.blackswanltd.com/our-team/chris-voss" target="_blank">Chris Voss</a> calls "forced empathy." Voss's resume includes a stint as the lead international kidnapping negotiator for the FB1 and 14 years in the New York City Joint Terrorist Task Force. He knows how to have a conversation in difficult situations.</p><p>Voss now <a href="https://bigthink.com/videos/chris-voss-on-how-to-gain-the-upper-hand-in-negotiations" target="_blank">teaches negotiation skills</a> to business leaders as the CEO and founder of the Black Swan Group. Whether chatting with terrorists or corporate heads, his main tactic is similar: Make the other person empathize with you. </p><p>His seven-word question accomplishes this. What seems to be an admission of uncertainty or weakness is actually a show of strength. In jujitsu, sometimes being on your back is an advantage; in business, the same rule applies. Chris Voss explains in an interview with Big Think:</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"You conveyed to them you have a problem. It's something that we also referred to as <em>forced empathy</em>. One of the reasons why we exercise tactical empathy is because we want the other side to see us fairly. We want them to see our position; we want them to see the issues we have; we want them to see the constraints that we have."</p>
<p>This question forces a response, and—this is the key—the other person has to consider your side of the argument. They have to look at the situation from your perspective if they hope to offer a solution.</p><p>Offering a real-world example, Voss mentions coaching a high-end real estate agent. They were leasing an expensive home in the Hollywood Hills. The first time the negotiators asked the "how" question, the leasing agent relented on a number of terms. A little while later, they asked again. This time, the agent said, "If you want the house you're going to have to do it," signaling that the end of negotiations had been reached. That kind of response tells you something useful: You've gotten as much as you can from the deal.</p><p>Voss says that "how" is not the only word that works. "What" is also a powerful entry into negotiations, such as "What am I supposed to do?" Again, you're forcing the other person to empathize. </p><p>This is a particularly tricky skill during a time when most conversations are online. Nuance is impossible without the immediacy of pantomimes and vocal fluctuations. Whataboutism is too easy an escape. This particular forced empathy tactic might be one that's best employed face-to-face or on the phone.</p>
Choose your battles
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMzQ1OTQ2NC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxNDgwMTA5OH0.BP2vZe7gZdiaE_KA5Otr4pzYmAqpFQUGSRSVr28Bipo/img.jpg?width=1245&coordinates=0%2C90%2C0%2C32&height=700" id="46a4d" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="912a183929345986b45c3455a6f369f5" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="Aikido Morihei Ueshiba" data-width="1245" data-height="700" />Aikido Morihei Ueshiba (1883 - 1969, standing, centre left), founder of the Japanese martial art of aikido, demonstrating his art with a follower, at the opening ceremony of the newly-opened aikido headquarters, Hombu Dojo, in Shinjuku, Tokyo, 1967.
Credit: Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
<p>Online debates often amount to little more than frustrated individuals pulling out their hair. In his book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/0062339346?tag=bigthink00-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1" target="_blank">"Against Empathy,"</a> Yale psychology professor Paul Bloom writes that effective altruists are able to focus on what really matters in everyday life.</p><p>For example, he compares politics to sports. Rooting for your favorite team isn't based in rationality. If you're a Red Sox fan, Yankees stats don't matter. You just want to destroy them. This, he believes, is how most people treat politics. "They don't care about truth because, for them, it's not really about truth."</p><p>Bloom writes that if his son believed our ancestors rode dinosaurs, it would horrify him, but "I can't think of a view that matters less for everyday life." We have to strive for rationality when the stakes are high. When involved in real decision-making processes that will affect their life, people are better able to express ideas and make arguments, and are more receptive to opposing ideas. </p><p>Because we "become inured to problems that seem unrelenting," it's imperative to make the problem seem immediate. As Voss says, giving the other side "the illusion of control" is one way of accomplishing this, as it forces them to take action. When people feel out of control, negotiations are impossible. People dig their heels in and refuse to budge. </p><p>What seems to be weakness is actually a strength. To borrow another martial arts metaphor, negotiations are like aikido: using your opponent's force against them while also protecting them from injury. Forcing empathy is one way to accomplish this task. You may get more than you ask for without the other side ever realizing they surrendered anything.</p><p>--</p><p><em>Stay in touch with Derek on <a href="http://www.twitter.com/derekberes" target="_blank">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DerekBeresdotcom" target="_blank">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://derekberes.substack.com/" target="_blank">Substack</a>. His next book is</em> "<em>Hero's Dose: The Case For Psychedelics in Ritual and Therapy."</em></p>3 Tips on Negotiations, with FBI Negotiator Chris Voss
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="b86d518e9f0c9f9d7a7c686e07798152"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-FLlBchonwM?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
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Here's a 10-step plan to save our oceans
By 2050, there may be more plastic than fish in the sea.
26 February, 2021
Credit: Cameron Venti on Unsplash
Surprising Science
- 2050 is predicted to be a bleak milestone for the oceans - but it's not too late to avert disaster.
- Here are 10 actions the world can take to strengthen and preserve our oceans for generations to come.
<p>The year 2050 has been predicted by some to be a bleak year for the ocean. Experts say that by 2050 there may be <a href="https://www.weforum.org/press/2016/01/more-plastic-than-fish-in-the-ocean-by-2050-report-offers-blueprint-for-change/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">more plastic than fish in the sea</a>, or perhaps <a href="https://news.stanford.edu/news/2006/november8/ocean-110806.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">only plastic left</a>. Others say <a href="https://www.wri.org/publication/reefs-risk-revisited" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">90% of our coral reefs</a> may be dead, waves of <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/353/6305/1284" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mass marine extinction</a> may be unleashed, and our seas may be left <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms14682" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">overheated, acidified and lacking oxygen</a>.</p><p>It is easy to forget that 2050 is not that far off. Kids we see building sandcastles on the beach today might be gaining traction in their jobs and perhaps starting their own families. The possibility that our children may inherit from us such a broken and diminished ocean is hard to accept.</p><p>Such a future, however, is not yet written in stone. A healthier, more whole, and maybe even more profitable future ocean may still be within reach – at least for a little while.</p><p>Here are 10 steps that could take us towards a more desirable ocean future:</p><p><strong>1. Freeze the warming. </strong>Stopping climate change is the hardest but most important step we can take for ocean health. It is good news to have the US back in the Paris Agreement. However, we now need ambitious national commitments to achieve carbon neutrality from all signatories of the Agreement. <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/clima/policies/strategies/2050_en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Recent actions</a> by <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/23/world/asia/china-climate-change.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">China</a>, the EU, <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/10/japan-zero-emissions-carbon-neutral-society-2050/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Japan</a> and the <a href="https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainers/net-zero-target" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">UK</a> are also positive.</p><p><strong>2. Walk the talk.</strong> We need to make these carbon neutrality commitments real. This will require massive new investment in renewable energy sources, including some more experimental solutions (such as <a href="https://news.mit.edu/2020/physics-fusion-studies-0929" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">fusion</a>), plus potentially looking with open minds into making older low-carbon energy solutions safer and more viable (such as traditional nuclear). We need to fast-track the development of <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/the-race-to-crack-battery-recycling-before-its-too-late/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">sustainable next-generation batteries</a> to store this energy intelligently across our grids. This includes major needs for marine energy infrastructure. A future, for example, with electrified ports and <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/12/swedish-firm-wind-powered-cargo-ships" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">low-emission ships</a> would help eliminate the epidemic of deafening ocean noise, address environmental injustices associated with pollution in ports, make oil spills a thing of the past, and <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/10/shipping-industry-carbon-emissions-climate-change-environment-ocean/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">significantly reduce global emissions</a>.</p><a href="https://climate.nasa.gov/climate_resources/142/video-super-hd-view-of-global-carbon-dioxide/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><img alt="A NASA model showing CO2 (the yellow/red swirls) moving across the globe" src="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/5H5yt8QXfixQwD_h5PyNy0XhvCwhh38XoRcaUYd6XPU.gif"></a><p style="display: inline !important;"><em>A NASA model showing CO2 (the yellow/red swirls) moving across the globe. Image: NASA</em></p>
<p><strong></strong><strong>3. Blue revolution</strong>. The 'green revolution' – a massive ramping up of food production on land in the 1950s – has belatedly reached the sea. Ocean farming, or aquaculture, <a href="https://www.mba.ac.uk/two-views-revolution-aquaculture" target="_blank">has increased by more than 1,000%</a> in the ocean recently. The green revolution was sloppily executed, and the first baby steps of the blue revolution have included similar stumbles: chemical pollution, genetic pollution and habitat destruction. But the blue revolution can still clean up its act. Farming in the right places, with the right species, and the right practices could make aquaculture a <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23308249.2020.1782342" target="_blank">win for human and environmental health</a>. Ocean food research (into <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariellasimke/2020/10/21/everything-you-need-to-know-about-plant-based-seafood/#57b520dc7655" target="_blank">plant-based</a> and<a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2019.00043/full" target="_blank"> cell-based</a> seafood, for example) could also help us meet growing demand for seafood sustainably.</p><img alt="We still haven't met the 2020 goal of protecting 10% of the ocean. Can we hit 30% by 2030?" src="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/GT4CAGznK0npmI31lAq3UNOKGM7J1x4meILoRJK2w2s.png"><em>We still haven't met the 2020 goal of protecting 10% of the ocean. Can we hit 30% by 2030? Image: Protected Planet</em><p><strong>4. 30 x 30.</strong> Parks protect some of our most important chunks of nature on land – our Yellowstones and Serengetis. <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/11/national-parks-transformed-conservation-now-we-need-underwater-parks/" target="_blank">We are vastly behind</a> setting up parks in the sea. We need to follow through on calls to protect <a href="https://www.campaignfornature.org/cbd-intervention" target="_blank">30% of our ocean by 2030</a>. This must be as much about quality as quantity. We need to use <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/05/protect-ocean-biodiversity-hotspots/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">intelligent planning algorithms</a> and the intelligence of local and indigenous people to select the very best 30% of the sea to protect. Then the hard work begins. We must develop and deploy <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/351/6278/1148" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">new technology</a> to monitor and protect the living assets we put in these ocean savings accounts.</p><p><strong>5. The other 70%.</strong> An <a href="https://news.stanford.edu/news/2015/january/oceans-extinction-cycle-011615.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ocean industrial revolution</a> is beginning. Human industry is growing at <a href="https://www.stockholmresilience.org/research/research-news/2020-01-26-human-pressure-on-worlds-ocean-shows-no-sign-of-slowing.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">exponential rates</a> in the sea. Even if we succeed in protecting 30% of the ocean, we must still intelligently zone and manage this accelerated anthropogenic growth in the majority of our unprotected ocean. We largely missed that boat on land. Proactive steps to sustainably onboard an ocean industrial revolution include responsibly managing wild capture fisheries (and<a href="https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/2596" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> making more money</a> in the process),<a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/109/12/4696" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> carefully zoning</a> what marine industries go where,<a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/09/harmful-fisheries-subsidies-wto/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> eliminating harmful fisheries subsidies</a>, and coming to grips with the fact that some new marine industries,<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/14/opinion/deep-ocean-mining-pollution.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> like ocean mining</a>, are simply too dangerous to be allowed into the ocean.</p><ul></ul><p><strong>6. Big cracks in the sea.</strong> Most of the ocean belongs to us all. This includes the two-thirds of the ocean in the high seas that lies beyond all nations' ocean borders and the marine regions surrounding Antarctica. Protection of biodiversity and equitable sharing of resources has slipped through antiquated governance gaps in these international ocean spaces. But<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/14/opinion/deep-ocean-mining-pollution.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> a proposed new UN Treaty for high seas biodiversity</a> – and<a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/11/once-again-new-antarctic-reserves-fail-win-backing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> negotiations to sustainably manage and protect Antarctic waters</a> could help.<span></span></p><a href="https://phys.org/news/2018-05-dead-zones-global-pollution-sustained.html" target="_blank"><img alt="An algal bloom seen in Lake St. Clair, between Michigan and Ontario, in 2015" src="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/7QPs9GzJG7NOf62qhCJQZd5GQ-HNqQU3Mv1DzjvpPJ8.jpg"></a><em>An algal bloom seen in Lake St. Clair, between Michigan and Ontario, in 2015. Image: NASA</em>
<p><strong></strong><strong>7. End plastic pollution.</strong> <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2020/07/23/breaking-the-plastic-wave-top-findings" target="_blank">Plastic pollution</a> is the ocean's new cancer. We need to ban unnecessary plastics and tax other single use plastics, finally making them valuable materials we want to recover and helping to pay for the full cost of their environmental impacts. We need <a href="https://cleancurrentscoalition.org/" target="_blank">research and tech</a> to prevent plastics from leaking into the sea, to overhaul our recycling systems, and to design economically viable alternatives to plastics. This progress may be accelerated by a proposed international <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/nov/19/uk-to-support-plans-for-new-global-treaty-to-turn-tide-on-plastic-pollution" target="_blank">'Paris Agreement' for plastic pollution</a>.</p><p><strong>8. Land. </strong>We can help the ocean by first setting a few things right on land. We must massively increase our ambition to <a href="https://www.1t.org/" target="_blank">save our forests</a>, thus locking up a huge chunk of carbon dioxide. We need to stop wastefully spilling megatons of costly fertilizers into rivers that are <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/321/5891/926" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">creating hundreds of marine dead zones</a>. Precision agriculture that optimizes fertilizer use, coupled with other <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/03/this-is-how-china-cut-fertilizer-use-and-boosted-crop-yields/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">farming reform practices</a> can help.</p>
<p><strong>9. Wired ocean</strong>. We need more ocean data. This includes new tech to <a href="https://globalfishingwatch.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">detect illegal fishing</a> and connect sustainable fishers to consumers. We need <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/09/this-new-technology-can-save-whales-from-ship-collisions/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">tech to help endangered marine wildlife</a> co-exist with ocean industry and fleets of environmental sensors <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/08/shark-conservation-drones-artificial-intelligence/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">above</a> and <a href="https://www.wired.com/video/watch/robots-that-swim-around-solving-mysteries" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">below</a> the water to better study our rapidly changing ocean.</p><p><strong>10. Ocean equity. </strong>To build a healthy ocean, we must ensure all people have a <a href="https://vimeo.com/462717055" target="_blank">fair stake in its success</a> and that they are no longer unevenly harmed by ocean health risks. The fate of the ocean will affect people in all communities. Thus, we need people from all communities in ocean science, management, and policy.</p><p>Fulfilling the apocalyptic predictions for a 2050 ocean will be all too easy. Altering that ocean future may be one of the hardest things we've ever collectively achieved. But the consequences of inaction will be even harder to shoulder – for us and our ocean.</p><p>Reprinted with permission of the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.weforum.org/">World Economic Forum</a>. Read the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/02/a-10-step-plan-to-save-our-oceans/" rel="noopener noreferrer">original article</a>.</p>
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