Although this is more about medicine than psychology it is the “Movie Monday” this week for two reasons. First of all, there are references to Alzheimer’s which we have discussed in Psychology 362 (The Psychology of Learning). Secondly though, this talk represents what great things young people can do in and with their lives. Very inspiring…
Click on the link in the right hand column to view the movie/talk.
What started off to be a very awkward story about Eva’s ancestors turned out to be a successful talk about something I have often wondered about: cancer cells. I don’t have any medical background, but I read in one of my health classes that cancer is the mass reproduction of cells. I have heard of people sustaining injuries which have resulted as cancer in those injured areas. This led me to wonder if there was a connection. Eva not only confirmed my suspicions, but went so far as to say that if cancer could be controlled, it could also be used for good. I agree with her that if we can find how muscles figured out how to reproduce cells without losing control and resulting in dangerous cancer, then the medical technology can be used to purposely use cancer to benefit those with, for example, Alzheimer’s.
By: Megan Pendleton on December 1, 2008
at 6:24 pm
I thought this movie was very inspiring. Although Eva Vertes seemed a little nervous during her presentation, the information and ideas that she displayed were very interesting. The idea of manipulation vs. elimination was interesting. I always thought that eliminating diseases was the best solution, but she made good points about why manipulating these diseases and using cancer as a therapy might be better.
By: ashley moyer 362 on December 1, 2008
at 6:25 pm
This girl is like 16, I feel like maybe I could have tried a little more in high school. But really, this blew me away, it seems she has put so much time and effort into reading into things, looking for new hope. It’s people like Eva that really make me smile. Not to mention the things she talked about in this video make me really curious, is cancer really made of stem cells? It’s amazing that one day we’ll probably be happy that no one “cured” cancer.
By: Trevor on December 1, 2008
at 8:10 pm
Eva was very smart and passionate about medicine. It was very suprising how young she actually was. I felt she did a great job presenting her interests and was very informitive. I liked her introduction about her grandmother. The story of her grandmother was crazy, she must of had a reason to stay on this earth. Overall, this short movie was interesting.
By: Jaime McComas PSYC 362 on December 2, 2008
at 12:59 am
This was a very interesting talk that Eva gave and I enjoyed listening to what she had to say. She is very inspiring and I think its neat how at the age of 14 she was able to work in a lab and do something that she had so much interest in. When she started talking about how cancer could be used as therapy or that when the brain cells die they could be restored by having a tumor or cancer be put in the brain was very far fetch for me but anything is possible. She had a lot of information that was very interesting to listen too.
By: Megan Webster - psyc 414 on December 2, 2008
at 1:09 am
i was a little worried with where she was going in the beginning of the speech, but as i continued to listen i was more and more interested. i feel that what she was trying to get a across was clear even though what she was talking about was detailed. she presented a clear point that instead of fighting these cancer cells we would work with them so that they can finish their process. she made it clear that elimination is not the solution to cancer. the most interesting part is unfortunately at the end and what she may discover after this. she is unbelievably smart and really has points that are well represented.
By: stephanie insler on December 2, 2008
at 2:34 am
It was extraordinary the way she explained what cancer stem cells are. I read once about it, but didn’t get out anything of it. It would be wonderful if she one day could prove her hypothesis, so it could be applied, as she said, to cancer therapy or to cure Alzheimer’s. It was really good that someone gave her the opportunity to begin what she wanted.
By: Juana Barcenas psyc 414 on December 2, 2008
at 4:05 pm
It was easy to see how passionate Eva was in her research by seeing her talk about it. Its very impressive that she has done so much for the medical field at such a young age. I don’t know much about anatomy and cancer but her confidence in her research as well as her explanation of how she plans to research and work with cancer gives a more hopeful look towards the future of medicine.
PSYC 414
By: Brittany Tom on December 2, 2008
at 6:00 pm
ITS TRULY INSPIRING TO SEE SUCH AN AMAZING MIND SHARE HER PASSION AT SUCH A YOUNG AGE. IT MAKES ME WONDER WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF HIGH SCHOOL AGED STUDENTS WERE ALLOWED TO TAKE COURSES THAT INTERESTED THEM AND PREPARED THEM FOR SPECIALIZED CAREERS. i AM REALLY BLOWN AWAY BY EVA..WHAT A GREAT INSPIRATION TO THE YOUNG PEOPLE OF THE WORLD TO EXPLORE AND SEEK OUT THEIR DREAMS
By: JORDAN WISE on December 2, 2008
at 8:13 pm
This was one of my favorite videos yet! I thought it was so interesting that at the age of 14 Eva was able to work in the lab and make amazing discoveries. The most interesting part of the whole presentation was when she talked about how we can use cancerous tumors to help people with Alzheimer’s disease. That is just so amazing to me. Coming from a family that has a long history with cancer makes me feel kind of crazy when I think about how those tumors could have been put into someone else’s brain and used to help them. That is insane!! It fascinates me how the medical world continues to find new solutions everyday!!
PSYC 414
By: Ashley Hamilton on December 3, 2008
at 10:50 pm
Other than the obvious shakey start i thought she did a wonderful job. I mean im 22 and have not reached that height of accomplishment and never had to speak infront of numerous PHD’s and DR.’s about my work. Doubt I could do any better. The most interesting part was finding out how we can use cancerous cells to fight alzhimers. It seems odd that somehing that has the power to take everything away can be used to restore life to others.
By: jason amarena psyc 362 on December 3, 2008
at 11:17 pm
Wow, this girl was so young yet she knew so much and she used many medical terms I didn’t understand. I found it really interesting that her study of medicine started at a young age and it was fun to watch her talk because you could feel her excitement and how much she enjoys experimenting and researching. I never thought of it before, but I found it really interesting that people would not be likely to receive cancer in their skeletal system, such as cancer of the heart. Yet things like breast cancer, liver cancer, prostate cancer, cervical cancer and brain cancer, etc. you hear stories about people suffering from those types of cancers. I am also interested to see if she finds out why it is that people are not prone to getting forms of cancer within the skeletal system.
By: Amy Parshall PSYC 414 on December 4, 2008
at 1:14 am
I never thought of cancer as a form of repair, however after Eva’s talk I definitly see her point. This young woman is extremly smart and equally passionate about medicine and has and I’m sure will do a lot for the field. It really made me think of cancer differently and gave me hope that there might be a way to cure it, if the apporach is changed. Very interesting.
By: Joanna LaFrancesca on December 4, 2008
at 6:02 am
First I thought this girl was really weird. She looked very nervous and anxious. But her story turn out really well. Her presentation gives me a hope that cancer is not a threat and our body does have ability to contrain the cancer. Cancer is used to be the most horrifying disease to me because there is not a lot of information of how the cancer comes about. Her presentation is very inspiring for me to look at things and as well as life.
By: SHIH YA HUANG PSYCH 362 on December 4, 2008
at 6:23 am
PSY 404
I found this talk to be rather interesting and inspiring. It is quite intimidating to see someone so young be so intelligent and accomplished. She is also able to articulate her complex ideas very simply which also made her talk more appealing. Hopefully her research is successful and we can find another way to treat cancer. I never imagined cancer may be the body’s way of treating itself.
By: Jennifer Cissell on December 4, 2008
at 6:23 am
Eva’s take on cancer cells is so different than anything I’ve heard on the subject and it makes so much sense. She would revolutionize how we treat cancer if she could prove using manipulation rather than elimination to differentiate cancer into other cells actually works. If so the idea of using cancer on alzeimer patients or turning cancer cells into muscle tissue would just be the beginning. I’ll be interested to see if she does in fact prove her theory.
By: Ryan Prior Psych362 on December 4, 2008
at 7:24 am
When she first started to talk I found it hard pay attention because she seemed to be so nervous and all over the place with her thoughts, but after she calmed I really found what she had to say very interesting. It would really be great if we could find a way to control and modify cancer. It’s crazy to think that you body creates it with good intentions but it doesn’t work out. I also thought that for someone so young she really has a lot of ambition. I wish I had that sort of passion and motivation about what I want to do with my life!
By: Ashley McGinty (414) on December 4, 2008
at 7:51 am
Wow it is simply amazing what she has done at such a young age. You can tell how this is really her passion by how excited she is talking about it…
I think shes right we always think about “elimination” rather than “manipulation” if we thought of something that could manipulate cancer stem cells, instead of killing of the cancer with radioation. She has an extrordinary mind her idea my be far-fetched but thats how everything is to begin with. She really is onto something.
By: Daniella Galaviz Psyc 362 on December 4, 2008
at 7:38 pm
Paul Hubbard Psyc 362
Well, clearly Eva is a very gifted and bright young woman! Yes she did seem extremely nervous at first but then calmed down. Although this topic doesn’t have as much personal interest for me, it’s inspiring to see someone so enthusiastic about their work. We all have talents, it’s just up to us to discover what those are and clearly Eva is more aware of her talents.
By: paul hubbard on December 4, 2008
at 7:46 pm
I like how Eva looks at cancer from a different perspective. If cancer comes from our bodies repair cells it would be imperitive to know what is making them faulty which turns them into tumors and how its happening. She also spoke about how we can find the answer/cure in our own bodies cells where cancer cannot form. Very intriguing speech.
By: Robert Plante on December 5, 2008
at 12:38 am
WOW! This girl is going to go far in the field of science, she already has, and thank goodness. She is fresh and not afraid to take risks and look at things differently and connect different concepts even if they seem far-fetched. The way she is talking about cancer really does make sense, we have to look at the root of the problem, what weakness was there in the first place to cause the body to produce more and more cells in an attempt to repair. It makes sense to look at what purpose it is serving to see how we can work with it or manage it. And how smart to look at where cancer does not occur and see why and how that could be used elsewhere.
Just shows the benefits of thinking outside the already established box of scientific knowledge. That is the only way we are going to get to anything different than what we are already doing which isn’t necessarily working.
This also shows the benefits of incorporating young people and providing them with scientific and other knowledge at early ages, because look what we can do!!
psy362
By: Emma Schutz Fort on December 7, 2008
at 4:36 am
This was an amazing and inspiring speech. You can definitely tell how passionate Eva is about this subject and that she is going to be successful in this field. She brought up a whole new idea to me about the tumors helping people. She is very inspiring and made me hopeful for the future of cancer study.
By: Erica Brick psyc 414 on December 17, 2008
at 10:11 pm