The Armen Show 228: Bill Sullivan | Genes, Germs, And Curious Forces Within Humans In “Pleased To Meet Me”
Professor Bill Sullivan of Indiana University School of Medicine joins on episode 228 of the show, and we discuss his book Pleased To Meet Me: Genes, Germs, And The Curious Forces That Make Us Who We Are, along with related topics.
He is a Professor with a Ph.D. in Molecular & Cell Biology from the University of Pennsylvania, who had focused on genes for drug-resistance in a parasite called Toxoplasma gondii. He has experience with epigenetics, parasites, germs, gene expression, and more. Professor Sullivan also has written for numerous outlets like Scientific American and What Is Epigenetics.
I enjoyed speaking with Bill here, and we covered a variety of topics from the book, as well as some extended questions I had from the book’s framework.
Show notes:
- how taste can be different in different people based on ability to be a “super taster”
- why your gut bacteria is so important in assisting regulation of your mood and well-being
- what makes some people more prone to addiction, and the percentages associated with some levels of addiction
- what type of environments contribute to drug use, versus the ones that make drug use seem less appealing
- how mood requires a balance of many different parameters
- why a polygenic trait like height is desired, and what it represents of the person who has it
- what epigenetics has to do with adverse childhood experiences and their lasting impact on an individual
Professor Sullivan’s material is available on his website, and his new book is available on Amazon.
