UCSF Synapse

Originally published in Synapse on September 13, 1990. After 10 years of planning and three years of construction, the new UCSF library opened on Monday, Sept. 10. The removal of the blue barricade on Parnassus provided instant relief —and it is hoped that the building will provide the same for everyone who endured the cramped and confusing confines of the previous facility.

Algorithms can forecast which patients are likely to return to the hospital. Whether anyone has the resources to intervene is another question. The changes were subtle. A laboratory value drifted. Another followed. A recent hospitalization joined years of clinical history already stored in the electronic health record. Alone, none of it seemed remarkable. Together, the data formed a pattern that only a machine learning model could recognize.

Synapse is the UCSF student newspaper. We seek to serve as a forum for the campus community. Articles and columns represent the views of the authors and not necessarily those of the Board of Publications or the University of California. Contact (415) 502-1484 synapse@ucsf.edu

Creativity, curiosity and extraordinary storytelling are on full display in the winners of the eighth annual Synapse Storytelling Contest, with this year’s honorees transforming experiences in medicine, science, nature, identity and everyday life into memorable works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry and photography.

Originally published in Synapse on May 25, 1989. The eyes of medical professionals and legislators throughout the nation will be trained on New York this summer as unprecedented regulations limiting resident working hours begin to take effect. Starting on July 1, New York medical residents will be allowed to work no more than 80 hours per week and no more than 24 hours in a single shift.

Health equity has become a key focus in healthcare and biomedical research. However, in clinical trials, equity is often only addressed during the recruitment phase, when clinicians discuss with patients whether to participate in studies that might provide a potential treatment or cure. These conversations are important but occur too late. By the time a patient is approached, many of the most critical decisions about who can realistically participate have already been made.

Originally published in Synapse on May 19, 1978. Immortality, Mankind’s oldest dream, that of conquering death itself to secure a place in the eternity of time. In his widely publicized book, In His Image: The Cloning of a Man, author David Rorvik claims to have witnessed the dawn of the Age of Immortality. Researchers at UCSF, however, strongly doubt Rorvik’s bold claim.

This bird paused its walk along the shoreline to drink some cool water from a tidepool using its long beak. The tidepools had been recently filled by a crashing wave. The rock was covered in moss, making it both green and slippery, but the bird had no trouble walking. The light green moss stood out amidst the brown and blue hues of the rocks and ocean. The bird’s feathers are dappled brown and white, matching the pattern of the water in the tidepool rippling in the wind.

What does it mean to practice medicine in a time of political upheaval, environmental crisis, and deepening inequality? This unsettled question anchored the 11th Biennial Conference of the Society for Humanities, Social Sciences, and Medicine, held this April 11 and 12 at UCSF Mission Bay.

“If you had but one lecture to give, what would you say?” Last month, Dr. Jennifer Cocohoba from the School of Pharmacy set out to answer this question as UCSF’s 2026 Last Lecture awardee, which was nominated by student vote. And judging by the attendance, they chose well. Hundreds gathered at Cole Hall to listen to Cocohoba’s personal talk, including her family, former Last Lecture awardees Drs.