Future Tech: Almost Here, Round-the-corner Future Technology Podcast

Zack Abbott, PhD, Co-Founder and CEO of ZBiotics (zbiotics.com), discusses his company’s mission, acetaldehyde toxicity, and the future of probiotics for health protection. Abbott is the creative scientific mind behind the proprietary technology and foundation for ZBiotics. Abbott holds a PhD in microbiology & immunology from the University of Michigan, where he worked on bacterial gene regulation. He earned his bachelor’s degree from UC Berkeley, in immunology as well as classical art and archaeology. In his earlier years, Abbott was a researcher, studying HIV vaccines and pursuing novel antibiotics. Abbott’s company has developed ZBiotics—the planet’s first genetically engineered/modified probiotics designed to break down a toxic byproduct of alcohol known as acetaldehyde. He explains how the product works to combat the negative effects of alcohol, discussing the live bacteria aspects and the way they have engineered it to fight those negative effects. As he explains, by mimicking what our livers

Joan Diamond, Deputy Director and Senior Scenarist, Nautilus Institute for Security and Sustainability delivers an overview of her important work educating the public and assisting with the development of solutions for global crises. Diamond is Executive Director of the Millennium Alliance for Humanity and Biosphere, an advanced Stanford University initiative that addresses the chasm between current knowledge of global problems and societies’ failure to respond. Diamond is also a visiting scholar at the Center for the Advanced Studies in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford, where she actively oversees the Institute of Foresight Intelligence there. Diamond talks about her experience and background. As she states, there is a vast amount of knowledge about the world’s major problems, and that many systems are simply not working, from environmental issues such as water/drought to soil degradation, to fragile financial systems (credit/debt issues), etc. Many people are working to shift the trajectory from collap

Thomas Hartung, MD, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, delivers an insightful overview of his work studying toxicity testing improvements, organoids, and advancing technologies. Dr. Hartung has departmental affiliations with the Environmental Health and Engineering and Molecular Microbiology and Immunology departments at Johns Hopkins. Dr. Hartung’s work is heavily focused on creating a paradigm shift in toxicity testing to improve overall public health. Dr. Hartung has been an integral part of the implementation of the 2007 NRC vision document known as, “Toxicity Testing in the 21st Century – a vision and a strategy.” Dr. Hartung discusses his background, and the road he has taken to arrive at his current place as a leading voice in the discussions concerning toxicity and animal testing. He explains that the technological opportunities have advanced significantly in the last few years. Dr. Hartung discusses ‘organ on a chip’ technologies and other advanced tissue, etc. work. As he explains, t

Katie Hasson, PhD, writer, speaker, researcher, educator, talks about the political and social aspects of human genetic technologies. Hasson has an active role with the Center for Genetics and Society (geneticsandsociety.org) as their Program Director on Genetic Justice. The Center for Genetics and Society is a public interest nonprofit social justice organization that seeks to ensure a fair and impartial future in which human genetic and reproductive technologies will benefit the collective good. Hasson explains the social justice perspective they seek to cultivate through important public discourse regarding human biotechnologies. She discusses her role and her goal of bringing more important and diverse voices into the conversation regarding human gene editing. Hasson explains the current thoughts on human gene editing, and the uses of CRISPR (clustered regular interspaced short palindromic repeats). Hasson outlines the differences in the types of gene editing, discussing treatments for actual patients v

Kevin Lee, Digital Trust and Safety Architect at Sift (sift.com), talks about his company and their mission. As the Trust and Safety Architect at Sift Science, Lee is very involved in Sift’s core mission—securing trust and safety for the digital age. Lee is skilled in building high-performing teams and systems that will combat suspicious and malicious behaviors. Before bringing his expertise to Sift, Lee was a manager at Facebook, Square, and Google in roles pertaining to risk, and spam, as well as trust and safety. Lee discusses how Sift started out in the payment fraud area, using machine learning and other technologies to outsmart fraudsters. Today, they are focused heavily on digital trust and safety issues. Lee explains the mechanics of their solutions, and he cites specific examples of client work, from Airbnb, Twitter, and others, helping to stop data breaches and fraud. He explains how ‘bad actors’ take over accounts and the kinds of malicious acts they try to implement. Lee discusses some of the e

Luke Osborn, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, discusses the lab’s exciting work in modern prosthetics and biomedical engineering. Osborn is a postdoctoral researcher in the Intelligent Systems Group in the Research and Exploratory Development Department at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. Osborn’s expertise lies in multiple scientific areas, specifically concentrated on neuroengineering and applied neuroscience. His intensive work explores the groundbreaking new areas of advancement in tactile sensing and feedback for sensory augmentation. Osborn often works with upper limb amputees. He discusses the problem known as phantom limb, which is the sensation that an amputated limb is still actually attached. Statistically speaking, 80 to 100% of people who have had an amputation report experiencing ‘phantom’ sensations/feelings in their amputated limb, and unfortunately, most of these types of sensations are painful. He explains how the muscles that still exist in partial

Dr. Theodore S. Piliszek, founder and medical director of the Advanced Health and Wellness Center in Houston, Texas, delivers an interesting overview of his life’s work in health, wellness, and genetics research. Dr. Piliszek has over 30 years of experience in preventive medicine that has taken him to multiple continents. Dr. Piliszek is a nutritional specialist who has dedicated his life to the study and advancement of Functional Longevity Medicine and Clinical Nutrition for the prevention and reversal of vascular, metabolic, and degenerative diseases. Dr. Piliszek has extensive experience in Hematopathology research and has studied with some of the world’s greatest geneticists, including the celebrated geneticist, Sir David Weatherall at Oxford University in the United Kingdom. Dr. Piliszek has been certified by the American Board of Anti-Aging and Regenerative Medicine, and today he continues to share his vast knowledge with the medical community and public. Dr. Piliszek talks about his interest in anti

Nicola Beer, internationally-recognized and award-winning expert in relationship psychology and transformation, provides an interesting overview of her work with individuals—helping people improve relationships, heal trauma, and live fuller lives. She is a leading authority on save your marriage techniques. Beer has dedicated her life to helping people repair, renew, and reinvigorate their relationships. For more than ten years, Beer has assisted thousands of men and women from many corners of the world to live more vibrant lives by healing their damaged relationships and traumas. Her popular empowered love program has helped countless people and she is dedicated to helping bring positivity into lives. Beer discusses her background and her path toward her current career and focus. She talks about the difference between her male and female clients, and the areas that are of most importance to each, on average. From separations to divorces, emotional issues and distance between partners, Beer works with many

Peter H. Raven, internationally celebrated Botanist, and Conservationist provides an interesting overview of his life’s work in the life sciences. Raven has spent the better part of his life advocating for conservation, educating the public about the grave threats to Earth’s biodiversity. His work and research are so significant that Time magazine hailed him as a “Hero for the Planet.” For four decades, Raven headed the Missouri Botanical Garden, a distinguished institution and world-class center for the advancement of conservation, botanical research, and education, and known worldwide for its horticulture display. Raven is currently President Emeritus of the Missouri Botanical Garden. Raven discusses his long background and current work promoting major scientific projects, from plant observation and study to conservation efforts. Raven discusses his decades of work and interest in the tropical rainforests, which house more species than anywhere else on Earth. He states that there are incredibly important

Charlotte Reznick, Ph.D., child educational psychologist, and author of the Los Angeles Times bestselling book, The Power of Your Child’s Imagination: How to Transform Stress and Anxiety into Joy and Success, provides an overview of her work in meditation and mindfulness practices. For three decades, Dr. Reznick has had a meditation practice, and she is the creator of positive coping skills, mindful program, Imagery For Kids: Breakthrough for Learning, Creativity, and Empowerment. Dr. Reznick is a noted authority on mindfulness, imagination creation, and meditation, and is a leader in her field. Dr. Reznick talks about her background and education, and what pushed her to develop her programs and write about her work. As a specialist in child and teen mindfulness and meditation, she talks about how she combined imagination and mediation to help those she worked with. A primary goal is to help kids access their inner wisdom through their own imagination. She talks about some specific case studies and the

Samantha Gladish, author and holistic wellness coach (holisticwellness.ca) delivers a wealth of information about holistic health and holistic wellness. As a longtime sufferer of various health issues, Gladish battled blood sugar levels, mood swings, poor digestion, and troublesome gut health, as well as tremendous PMS cramping and bloating. She endured numerous bouts with devastating migraines and day to day headaches, and she set out on a path to heal herself. Currently, Gladish is healing from autoimmune Hashimoto’s, and sharing her success path with others so they can also find healing solutions. Gladish discusses her background and her early love for nutritious foods, exercise, and healthy living. But in spite of her early knowledge, she found her health was suffering. By taking things into her own hands, she studied nutrition in detail, and ditched unnatural pills in an effort to find a path back to great health. She discusses the problems with birth control pills, and the health issues and side effec

Ryan Lewis, Chief Business Developer of Global Cannabinoids, talks about the emerging markets for CBD and hemp-derived products. Global Cannabinoids is a high volume producer and distributor of bulk and wholesale phytocannabinoid-rich (PCR) industrial hemp—naturally high in CBD, CBG, CBC, CBN, CBDA, and terpenes. Additionally, Global Cannabinoids is a large manufacturer of private- label CBD products, one of the biggest in the US. They are a serious CBD oil distributor that is changing the marketplace. Lewis talks about his background, starting with the building of the very first bulk and wholesale B2B distribution platform for American-grown hemp and cannabinoids derived from hemp. He discusses some of the challenges, and some of the advances that were enabled after the passing of the US Farm Bill. Lewis explains that hemp is excellent with phytoremediation, a form of bioremediation that applies to all the chemical or physical processes that involve plants for immobilizing or degrading contaminants within

  Most of us value our health, and we know that exercise can help us achieve and maintain it, but it can still be a challenge to get to the gym on a regular basis. The team at SportsArt is trying to change that by giving us one more reason to work out: we can help improve the planet by doing so. The fitness equipment manufacturer has created a product that's like nothing else on the market: a line of cardio equipment that actually generates electricity when it’s used. On today’s episode, CTO of SportsArt, Ruben Mejia, explains the technology behind the product, the reduction in electricity use (and bills) resulting from it, and how the product has been received in general. The equipment can be found in nearly every large city in the world, but it’s just starting to gain traction in the U.S. Tune in and check out gosportsart.com for more info. Podcast Transcript Richard Jacobs: Hello, this is Richard Jacobs with the future tech podcast. I have Ruben Mejia, he's the CTO of Sports Art. The website i

Robin Arnott, CEO of Andromeda Entertainment (enterandromeda.com), discusses his work with the next wave of gaming and the ever-expanding world of entertainment technologies. Andromeda Entertainment is the first publisher to serve the advancing interest in mindfulness and wellness with truly transformative content and amazing virtual entertainment experiences for users. Arnott talks about his background as an audio engineer and game designer. Through working in games in the entertainment technologies space, he came to truly understand how games capture our minds perhaps better than anything else. It’s about practicing and being, and can really bring people into a specific environment. He talks about how games can play an important role in people’s introspective journeys, hitting deep states of consciousness. With video games, we can package practices that are good for us, in a fun, engaging, deeply involved game environment. Arnott explains that video games can become addictive, but most games can actually

Professor Jeffrey M Karp, Principal Investigator, Karp Lab (karplab.net), provides an overview of the current state of diabetes treatment. Dr. Karp is a celebrated Professor of Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School. Additionally, Dr. Karp is a principal faculty member at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, as well as an affiliate faculty member at the Broad Institute and with the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology. Dr. Karp specializes in the fields pertaining to drug delivery, stem cell therapeutics, medical devices, and tissue adhesives. Dr. Karp discusses his background, from his early undergrad training as a chemical engineer at McGill University, a public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, to his PhD work at the University of Toronto, continuing with a postdoc at MIT. The research doctor discusses diabetes in detail, and the incredible resources that are needed for this one medical condition. He talks about some amazing discoveries made through

If you’ve ever experienced chronic pain, odds are that you’ve tried various solutions to mitigate that pain. Maybe you’ve found something that works. Great! If not, you may be looking for an alternative to your current therapy.  One of the latest technologies in pain management utilizes painless electromagnetic pulse therapy to provide long-term pain relief. Dr. Jeff Marksberry, Chief Medical Officer of medical technology company Oska Wellness, discusses the Pulsed Electromagnetic Field Technology that is utilized in the Oska Pulse. This device emits precise frequencies of pulsed electromagnetic fields to provide pain relief on virtually any area of the body that may be painful. Dr. Marksberry discusses the many benefits of using the Oska Pulse (of note – there are no known side effects), and how patients have achieved significant pain reduction – some patients have been able to manage their pain exclusively with the Oska Pulse. For more information, visit https://www.oskawellness.com and find the device on

Many of us have heard of the numerous benefits of meditation, yet many of us have also faced numerous challenges in adopting this practice into our daily lives. Maybe we are too busy. Maybe we don’t know what we’re doing. Maybe it’s a combination of the two. Without judgment, Andrew Feinstein, founder and CEO of Find Your Mind Meditation joins us today to discuss his meditation journey as a busy young professional. He discusses how he overcame the barriers that many of us face while learning how to meditate and how and why how he incorporates meditation into his daily life. Andrew advocates that we can find the time in our day to practice meditation­­—no matter how busy we are­­­­­­—and explains why and how it will benefit us in the long run. For more information, visit https://www.fymmeditation.com/.

Smart cities, personal assistants, and human longevity; what do each of these things have in common? They’re all—in one technical way or another—possible only by virtue of the fact that neural networks and other models for AI processing exist. Alexey Potapov, PhD, is a researcher in the area of AI at SingularityNET, and he joins the podcast to talk about a number of topics, including the limitations of neural networks and how natural symbolic networks can compensate for them, areas of research in AI that are continuing to grow, the demand for improved AI presented by the rise of smart cities, and the current popularity of natural language processing models. Tune in for the details and learn more at https://singularitynet.io/.

Robin Eric Weiner, author, The Geography of Genius, talks about his book, his interests, and why geniuses are the way they are. In The Geography of Genius, the New York Times bestselling author, Weiner, author of The Geography of Bliss, journeys from Athens to Silicon Valley—and takes a look back at history to show how truly creative geniuses flourished in very specific places at very specific times. Weiner explains how we have been looking at geniuses all wrong. He talks about the myths of geniuses. Weiner states that myth number one is that geniuses are ‘born.’ He provides the example of Mozart, who was certainly born with amazing talent, but Weiner states that we must also consider that he was born into a very musical family in area that was musically-oriented, in an extremely musical period in history. Myth number two, he states, is that genius is made through hard work. Weiner states that hard work does play a role, but that’s not enough. Thus, Weiner proposes that geniuses are actually grown, cultivat

Josep Bassaganya-Riera, DVM, PhD, founder, Chairman and CEO of Landos Biopharma, delivers a fact-filled overview of his company’s work, developing safer therapeutics for autoimmune disease. Dr. Bassaganya-Riera has received numerous research grants from a wide variety of science and health institutions, including the National Institutes of Health, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), as well as many industrial corporations. Dr. Bassaganya-Riera holds the title of Principal Investigator and Director for the Modeling Immunity to Enteric Pathogens (MIEP) project, which investigates the various immunoregulatory mechanisms underlying infections with certain gut pathogens by introducing mathematical systems to current mucosal immunology. Dr. Bassaganya-Riera discusses his work with Landos Biopharma, an emerging biotech company that is already an integral player in the development of groundbreaking oral treatments for patients who suffer from autoimmune diseases. He discusses the unmet needs in Croh