Crack/Cocaine, heroine, marijuana, and alcohol are just a few drugs that can be abused by an addict and set someone up to have a self-destructive lifestyle. Substance abuse is a disease that is discussed in various sectors of the science world and impacts millions of people. World Science Fair and TEDx are just two science platforms that have addressed the issues of substance abuse. Both platforms are targeted towards an audience who are educated, but not experts in a scientific field.
In general, the World Science Fair’s target audience includes people whom are interested in science, but are not necessarily scientist. The specific panel discussion that I looked at was The Craving Brain: The Neuroscience of Uncontrollable Urges, which took place on May 31st, 2014 at Hunter College. Amongst the panelist were a neuroscientist, Eric Nestler, and Psychiatrist and director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, Nora D. Volkow. Generally the panelist did an excellent job of simplifying the neurobiology and overall impact of substance abuse coupled causation and defense. When specifically asked whether addictive behavior was linked to genetics, panelist explained that genes are linked to addiction; however, the genetic correlation associated with substance abusers, or addicts, is not just one specific gene, or even genetics alone. Environment also plays a role.
The moderator of the panel was, ABC News anchor, Elizabeth Vargas. This improved the flow of conversation between panelists and swayed the dialogue towards language that can be understood by the everyday person. The dialogue, holistically, was very informative and invited the audience to learn about addiction, from expert in the field. Panelist also provided animations to further understand the biology of drug addiction; helping to further understanding. Developments and research into the disease was thoroughly discussed. Correlations between nicotine and other drug addictions, vaccines, and brain cell recovery rates were a few topics discussed in the 90 min conversation. The research was presented at a level that can be understood by the general population. To someone who knows little to no information on this topic, it was very captivating and informative. I was not previously aware of that improvements were continually being made on the treatment of addiction, nor did I know that your brain cells can repair themselves over time. The panel was well formatted and I would recommend World Science in the future to someone looking to seek understanding on a science issue.
Gabor Maté is a physician who specializes n terminal illnesses, chemical dependents, and HIV positive patients. Maté is the speaker of the TEDx talk entitled The Power of Addiction and the Addiction of Power. Maté had a different reasoning for speaking on addiction. His goal was to help the audience psychologically addictive behavior. He normalized addiction and made it a relatable topic. In the 19 minute talk makes it easier to understand the power behind addiction and tried to put addiction in such a light that is not an addict can understand how someone can fall into addiction. In the talk Maté states, “You can’t look at what is wrong with addiction you have to look at what is right.” By analyzing why someone is an addict, he looks at the pain that the person goes through and dissects the need to escape themselves and their own mind.
A commendable technique used in this TEDx Talk was explaining sustains abuse to someone who is “addicted” to working to hard. The entire presentation was set up with terms, analogies, and situations that are relatable and understandable to almost anyone. I was able to get into the mind of an addict on a less serve level but in a way that I could understand their struggle. By understanding the disease, it helps to see the victims of the disease as a person to help.
Both videos were incredibly informative and showed different aspects of the disease. A combination of both videos creates a holistic picture of addictive behavior and addiction. Abusers are in need of help and combined these two talk portray to the public, not only what research and advancements are in progress, but also why this is something that needs to be looked into, giving hope to those who are affected.
