Free Associations

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**Free Associations**

Mad musings from the messy world of science

Latest Episodes:

Episode 157: Hippocampal Encoding of Memories in Human Infants Oct 30, 2025

Show notes

Jess, Matt, and guest host Marcia discuss a study that sheds light on how babies may form and retain memories.

Study link: Hippocampal encoding of memories in human infants

Episode 156: Analgesic Effects of Non-surgical Treatments for Back Pain Oct 30, 2025

Show notes

Jess, Matt, and guest Marcia discuss the efficacy of various methods of treating low back pain.

Study link: Analgesic effects of non-surgical and non-interventional treatments for low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of placebo-controlled randomised trials

Episode 155: Probiotics and AI Chatbots Apr 28, 2025

Show notes

Matt and Jess discuss the ethics of probiotics for children and whether AI chatbots can help reduce misinformation.

Study link: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-03971-5

Episode 154: Gun Violence and Maternal Morbidity Apr 11, 2025

Show notes

Matt, Jess and guest host Jon discuss a study of the effect of experiencing gun violence and maternal morbidity.

Study link: Fatal Police Violence and Maternal Morbidity Study

Episode 153: Time Waits for No One Mar 27, 2025

Show notes

Matt and Jess and guest host Harold discuss the ways that we experience time (with a slight diversion into our dental traumas) and Matt explains why we can’t have nice things.

Study link: Memorability Study

Episode 152: Is Dark Chocolate Good for You? Really? Mar 13, 2025

Show notes

Matt and Jess and guest host Harold discuss whether dark chocolate is really good for preventing type II diabetes, or if the research isn’t there yet, and we discuss the challenges of turning research into practice and how we communicate research to policy makers.

Study link: Dark Chocolate Study

Episode 151: The Role of Advocacy and Activism in Public Health Jan 17, 2025

Show notes

In an expansive, thought-provoking discussion ahead of the pivotal changes in Washington, DC, Matt, Jess and guest host Michael Stein discuss the role of advocacy and activism in public health and the changing views on the role of public health in society.

(This discussion was originally part of the December episode, but we felt the subject matter was both timely and relevant enough to highlight on its own.)

Episode 150: Menopausal Hormone Replacement Therapy and the Role of Activism Dec 23, 2024

Show notes

Matt, Jess and guest host Michael Stein discuss a paper that reviews the results of a series of trials that were highly influential in a move away from use of menopausal hormone replacement therapy, but newer analyses suggest the implications maybe be more nuanced than that.

Study Link: Women’s Health Initiative Reviews

In the second segment (29:30), Matt, Jess and guest host Michael Stein discuss the role of advocacy and activism in public health and what the future holds for both as the administration changes and views on the role of public health in society are changing.

Episode 149 - Outdoor Light Pollution and Alzheimer’s disease Nov 19, 2024

Show notes

In a new format for the “Free Associations” podcast, we split our usual podcast into two bite-sized morsels. In the first segment, Jess, Matt and guest host Salma discuss an article that examines the effect of nighttime ambient light on risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

Journal club article:

Alzheimer’s Disease Study

In the second segment, Jess, Matt and Salma discuss what attending a predatory conference is like and Salma explains why we should (or maybe shouldn’t) care about a rehabilitated beaver.

Episode 146 - The effects of early cessation of oxytocin May 21, 2024

Show notes

Matt, Jess, and guest host Salma Abdalla discuss a study of early discontinuation of oxytocin during delivery, they try to predict the future of journals alongside a mass editorial board resignation, and Matt and Salma reveal their love for octopuses.

Journal club article:

Oxytocin discontinuation study

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