UC Berkeley (Audio)

Disinformation - the intentional dissemination of false information to shape political and social outcomes - is an increasingly pernicious feature of the US political landscape. In just the past 18 months, disinformation has had direct, harmful effects on efforts to check the spread of COVID-19, on initiatives for racial justice and on the 2020 election and its aftermath. Clearly, disinformation costs lives and erodes democracy. This Berkeley Conversation convenes eminent scholars to explore one of the most critical questions facing US democracy: How can we counter disinformation to protect our communities without compromising America’s core principles? This event is sponsored by the Goldman School of Public Policy, Berkeley Law and the Office of Communications and Public Affairs. Series: "Richard and Rhoda Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley" [Public Affairs] [Show ID: 37462]

UC Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner discusses the benefits of compassion for others and ourselves. Keltner, who is co-founder of the campus’s Greater Good Science Center, has studied stress, relationships and well-being for 25 years. Drawing on insights from the center’s Science of Happiness online course, podcast series and magazine, Keltner shares tips on how to manage stress and find meaningful connections while social distancing. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37392]

In December 2020, Jennifer Doudna received her Nobel Prize in Chemistry during a small, socially-distanced ceremony at her home - followed by takeout. The traditional celebration will have to wait until next year. A videographer and photographer captured the intimate gathering and presentation of the gold medal by Barbro Osher, Sweden’s Honorary Consul General in San Francisco, with Anna Sjöström Douagi representing the Nobel Foundation. Doudna, the Li Ka Shing Chancellor’s Chair in Biomedical and Health Sciences at UC Berkeley, was joined by her husband, Jamie Cate, UC Berkeley professor of molecular and cell biology, son, Andrew, and sister Ellen Doudna of Berkeley. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 37398]

UC Berkeley clinical social worker, Amber Jaiza Jones, LCSW, describes her hand-washing ritual that incorporates a meditation mantra. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37397]

In touching every aspect of our lives, the COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly disrupted our sense of well-being and produced uncertainty and anxiety. How do we find resilience while remaining productive and caring family members, friends, professionals and citizens in these unprecedented times? UC Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner, who has studied stress, relationships and well-being for 25 years and is co-founder of the campus’s Greater Good Science Center, shares ideas and practices for cultivating resilience and connection as we face the challenges of the coming months. Drawing on insights from the center’s Science of Happiness online course, podcast series and magazine, Keltner shares tips on how to manage stress and find meaningful connections while social distancing, completing each video with simple, science-tested practices useful for this moment in time. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37390]

UC Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner talks about the benefits of practicing gratitude. Expressing appreciation is a key component of Keltner’s Science of Happiness course, which he has taught to inmates at San Quentin State Prison, among thousands of other students. Keltner, who is the faculty director of the campus’s Greater Good Science Center, has studied stress, relationships and well-being for 25 years. His videos are designed to keep people feeling calm and resilient in the face of COVID-19, a pandemic that has touched every aspect of our lives and profoundly disrupted our sense of well-being and produced uncertainty and anxiety. Keltner shares tips on how to manage stress and find meaningful connections while social distancing, completing each video with simple, science-tested practices useful for this moment in time. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37393]

UC Berkeley psychologist Cynthia Media, PhD, gives tips for self-care during stressful times. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 37396]

UC Berkeley researchers found that travel restrictions, business and school closures, shelter-in-place orders and other non-pharmaceutical interventions averted roughly 530 million COVID-19 infections across the six countries and has likely avoided many millions more infections. Continuation of these policies after the study period has likely avoided many millions more infections. The findings come as leaders worldwide struggle to balance the enormous and highly visible economic costs of emergency health measures against their public health benefits, which are difficult to see. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Public Affairs] [Show ID: 37389]

UC Berkeley researchers have developed a unique, easy, and effective method for testing the presence of the Coronavirus in the wastewater flowing through municipal sewer systems. Testing of wastewater will help guide public policy-makers on where and how to implement COVID-19 prevention and treatment plans. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Public Affairs] [Show ID: 37372]

Just another YouTube video documenting the crazy antics of squirrels hell-bent on reaching peanuts? No, these videos are part of a study to understand the split-second decisions squirrels make routinely as they race through the tree canopy, jumping from branch to branch, using skills honed to elude deadly predators. How do they decide whether or not to take a leap? How do they assess their biomechanical abilities to know whether they can stick the landing? Understanding how squirrels learn the limits of their agility could lead to robots with better control to nimbly move through varied landscapes, such as the rubble of a collapsed building in search of survivors. It could also lead to a better understanding of movement problems that come with age. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 37367]