Theresa MacPhail, PhD (Dr. Theresa MacPhail)
Medical anthropologist and author; explores health systems, pharma culture, and public‑health policy.
Tech Overload Drives Me Toward Retro Simplicity
I just read about Apple's new updated AirPods with built-in AI cameras on the same day I got my old-skool wired headphones. I'm about to go full 2006. If they don't knock this shit off, I may go full 1996 and just get a dumb phone. Or maybe I'll go full 1986 and get a landline and become totally unreachable. Laura Nader, Ralph's sister, was an emeritus anthropologist in my PhD program and she only used landlines and typewriters. No computers. I used to think she was bananas, but not anymore.
Administration Slashes $8‑10 B From Global Health Funding
I can't tell if this is a good or a bad time to remind everyone that this dingdong administration has been busy crippling public health funding and making it more difficult for folks to do their jobs. An $8-10 billion drop...
Students Master Epidemic Basics, Overcome Outbreak Panic
My last Global Health session was today. None of my students were panicked about Hantavirus. Because after *16 weeks* of reading about 5143739 threats to our health, they know the basics of epi, what questions to ask, and where to find...
Bird Flu Deadly, but Far Less Contagious Than
Y'all, let me help you feel better by making you feel comparatively worse. The WHO has tracked 13 human bird flu infections so far this year. In February, it wiped out 7.4 million chickens in PA alone. Estimates for how many...
US Spends $15k, Lives Shorter than Swiss
Per my last post on the insanity of healthcare costs in the USA, we spend more than any other nation per capita (by far). We spend around $15k per person per year. Switzerland spends around $9k (which is also considered relatively...
NYC Subway Tracker Turns Nearby Trains Into Soothing Jazz
Someone built this cool site that tracks all the subways running at any time in NYC and each one has a different musical note attached to it. You can plug in your location and it will make the trains closer to...
Unexpected Twist on Delta JFK‑SFO Flight
So the Delta flight from JFK to SFO got a little bit more interesting than normal.
AI Writes 90% of English Social Media Posts Today
One of Harper's Weekly "fun facts" is that 90% of all English-language posts on Facebook and LinkedIn last year were partially or fully written by AI. What are we even doing, y'all. Do we even know anymore?
Gates Foundation Funds One Quarter of Global Health
In my lecture this week on NGOs versus government programs in public health, I focused on the Gates Foundation. Why? Because ALONE they fund around 25% of all programs in global health. They have over $80 billion in assets and their operating...
Misinformation Outpaces Truth: Social Media Needs Throttling
Brandolini’s law, also called the Bullshit Asymmetry Principle, argues that it takes an exponentially greater amount of time, effort, and energy to counter just one piece of misinformation. I'm beginning to really and truly think our society isn't going to survive...
Warmer, Nitrogen‑rich Air Fuels Stronger, More Abundant Pollen
The real reasons are: climate change has extended the growing seasons; a lot of plants love the warmer temps; plus they are getting more nitrogen in the soil from air pollution (the lack of which used to limit their growth);...
Fear of Death Fuels Anti‑Aging Craze Amid Global Turmoil
Let me be clear that when I rail against anti-aging and longevity as they are currently being defined and used by Silicon Valley types and marketers, I'm still sympathetic to people's fears around DEATH. That's what all of this is about,...
Chinese Universities Lead Global Rankings as US Funding Slashed
My students had no clue that 8 of the top 10 global research institutions are Chinese universities. And only one is in the USA (Harvard in 2nd place). I'm wondering how many normal Americans know this...or even care? But it's...
Your Rage Fuels the Algorithm—Stop Unwanted Comments
I posted something very silly about LA. After a month's social media sabbatical, the algo wasn't showing anyone my posts anymore. Then I woke up to a lot of people telling me to fuck right off (some in highly amusing ways). Checked...
Most Cancer Treatment Posts Spread Harmful Misinformation Online
Since I'm teaching misinformation today, here are some "fun" facts from a 2021 research article published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. In a review of 200 widely shared cancer treatment articles on social media (Facebook, X, Reddit, etc),...