At this moment, you probably think of yourself as an I. As in, “I’m going to the grocery store to get some bread.” Or, “I’m running a slight fever.” Maybe even, “I’m so excited to read this new issue of Findings!” But what if you’re using the wrong pronoun? What if, despite your conscious perception, […]
Dear Dr. Prescott, When I have difficulty falling asleep, I am torn about using over-the-counter sleep medications. Are there any long-term health effects associated with the use of sleep aids? In particular, I was wondering whether the use of these drugs might increase the risk of dementia? Mary Schneeberger, Oklahoma City Before we talk […]
For Scott and Kendra Plafker, medical research is a team sport Scott and Kendra Plafker have been married for 17 years. But this spring marked a milestone that precious few couples ever celebrate: Their first scientific paper co-authored solely by the pair. “We’ve had plenty of papers with both our names on them, but it […]
The dark suit and a tie the hue of lime sherbet offered little in the way of disguise. Ditto for the salt-and-pepper beard and the rimless reading glasses perched on the bridge of his nose. No, one glimpse at the jacket stretched thin in a futile struggle to contain his grapefruit-sized biceps, and you could […]
Brad Pazoureck almost never takes an elevator. A systems administrator who joined OMRF in 2001, he has good reason to avoid mechanized lifts: “Every flight of stairs I climb is training.” He is the 28th-ranked tower runner among U.S. amateur men, according to Stairsport.com. The site ranks more than 34,000 Americans who, like Pazoureck, compete […]
When Dr. J. Donald Capra died in February following a year-long battle with brain cancer, a bright light in the scientific world went out. Capra was born in Barre, Vermont,in 1937 to Italian emigrant parents. He didn’t speak English until he entered elementary school, but he proved to be a quick study in the classroom, […]
From its natural lighting to its native landscaping, OMRF’s eight-story research tower showcases an array of attractive and useful green features. “Plain and simple, we made our design decisions based on our commitment to maintaining a healthy environment,” says OMRF’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Mike D. “Chip” Morgan. “The awards are just […]
As a Johns Hopkins University medical student, Eliza Chakravarty heard the name Mary Betty Stevens on a near-daily basis. Although she never met Stevens, Chakravarty’s professors often spoke of their late colleague with great respect and deep admiration. Decades later, Stevens’ name is again shaping the OMRF physician-scientist’s career. In November, Chakravarty received the Mary Betty […]
Putting a man on the moon was a pretty big deal. Ditto for splitting the atom. But in the eyes of biologists, both of these scientific milestones pale in comparison to a more recent landmark: the sequencing of the human genome. Scientists first produced a complete map of the genome (the technical term for all […]
Welcome to the OMRF’s Biorepository, Oklahoma’s very own north pole Parkas, heavy-duty gloves and boots. It’s not the standard uniform for scientists. But for the researchers who staff OMRF’s ultra-cold biorepository, every day is much like a trip to the Arctic Circle. OMRF built the facility in 2011 to house more than 1 million […]
Dear Dr. Prescott, My grocery store now has an entire section devoted to gluten-free foods. As I watch the number of products increasing, it makes me wonder: Do I need to worry about the gluten in my diet? -Janet Puckett, Edmond Short answer Probably not, unless you have celiac disease Long Answer Gluten is […]
Dave Jones has a flat. He pumps the handbrakes, bringing his bicycle—a sleek, black number—to a stop and hops off. His bike shoes clatter against the asphalt. Above him, the setting sun paints the sky the color of watermelon flesh. But Jones doesn’t seem to notice. He’s removed the front wheel from the bike […]
Wilma McElmurry quietly saved millions–and then left it all to charity Things don’t change much in Custer County. To passersby, Clinton, Okla., is little more than an Interstate 40 pit stop with an affinity for Red Tornado football and the fall harvest. But there is more to this town of 9,000 than pigskin and […]
As a child growing up during China’s Cultural Revolution, Xiao-Hong Sun’s world turned upside down when the government sent her parents to the countryside to work the land. Meanwhile, young Xiao-Hong was forced to stay behind with her grandmother in Beijing. Following high school, the government assigned her a job as a laboratory technician. But […]
