56 minute listen
La Jolla, CA
Many of us are learning from both scientific breakthroughs and the popular media about the promise of stem cells, and what they might do for our health, from anti-aging to therapeutic applications. In this podcast I have an eye-opening conversation with Todd McAlister, PhD, the CEO of Fountain Therapeutics discussing the reality of stem cell therapy, some regenerative promise, and why it makes sense to keep our expectations realistic.
Fountain is a start up company created by three highly successful, ambitious, impatient, visionary founders whose mission is to democratize regenerative stem cell therapy and make it available world wide. Quickly. What’s it like to lead a firm like that? And how does a former world class professional cyclist like Todd even find his way into stem cell therapy? Todd describes his journey, explains the current state of play in the field of longevity, the philosophical differences of lifespan vs. healthspan, and how to adopt the ‘restore and prevent’ philosophy.
What I am Reading / Listening to
The Sandcastle by Iris Murdoch (1957)
I have previously read some of the fiction of Iris Murdoch (The Sea, The Sea and A Severed Head), but it’s been a couple of years since I last revisited her. This work The Sandcastle is dense, and it’s completely absorbing-- immediately conveying me to another world.
Nominally, the story is about the boring and tedious life of boarding school master Bill Mor which is disrupted when young artist Rain Carter arrives to paint the Headmaster’s portrait. Carter and Mor are curiously attracted to each other and fall in love. Murdoch is a master of having us actually animate the feelings of desire, love, guilt, art, envy, and ambition the characters take on. Although this work was written the year I was born, its topics and portrayal are startlingly…sometimes disturbingly…contemporary. Iris Murdoch was a genuine master of her craft and is an example of how brilliantly written fiction is transformational; it transports me like no other medium.
Entrepreneur Owner-Manager Quote
“I wasn't expecting it but this process was actually fun, meeting different investors that were interested in our company!”
-2019, Jenny Eisenman, Director of Education at Reading Plus LLC who exudes positive energy & passion into her role (like the energizer bunny!).
Energy Creation
While I was interviewing Todd I had the pleasure of speaking with David Karow, M.D., PhD, and CEO of Human Longevity, Inc. (HLI) As we were talking I thought ‘Wow, I should record this because it might be a subject matter and energy creator that others would be interested in’. This 20 minute clip picks up during a casual conversation I had with David regarding his points of view of health span, health care (as opposed to longevity & sick care) supplements, and what’s next for HLI.
