Stanford Mini Med School: Medicine, Human Health, and the Frontiers of Science

(SCI 28)

This year, Stanford Continuing Studies is proud to present the Stanford Mini Med School, a series arranged and directed by Stanford’s School of Medicine. Featuring more than thirty distinguished faculty, scientists, and physicians from Stanford’s prestigious medical school, this series of courses will offer students a dynamic introduction to the world of human biology, health and disease, and the groundbreaking changes taking place in medical research and health care. The three-course sequence began in the Fall with an overview of how the human body works. The Winter quarter will continue to build on this base, setting the stage for more detailed talks by experts on such topics as genetics, aging, regenerative medicine, cancer research, and imaging technology. The Stanford Mini Med School will also feature discussions on timely topics, including health care reform and the prevention of pandemics. Each course will focus on the recent advances in the biomedical and clinical sciences that are radically changing the way we confront human disease. Directed by Philip A. Pizzo, Dean of the School of Medicine, this series commemorates the 50th anniversary of the School of Medicine’s move from San Francisco to Palo Alto. While these three courses build upon one another, each course can be taken independently.

Medicine, Human Health, and the Frontiers of Science

This quarter, the Stanford Mini Med School will focus on our bodies and the organ systems that comprise them, seeing how they work, what goes awry, and what scientists and physicians are learning every day about healing them. We will start with a look at imaging technology that offers a window into human anatomy and disease. We will then delve into our nervous and cardiovascular systems, seeing how our hearts develop, what heart disease is and what can be done to prevent it, what causes a stroke, and what physicians can do when one occurs. We will also explore the inner workings of other vital systems — for example, our lungs, gastrointestinal system, and kidneys. And we will look at how our eyes and ears function, and how they become impaired. Finally, we will conclude this quarter with an inquiry into the fascinating topic of mind-body interactions and discover what scientists are learning about how our thought affects how we feel.