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Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture Series

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Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture Series

The Fralin Biomedical Research Institute Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture Series brings nationally renowned experts to the Roanoke community. The free public lectures are open to members of the general public as well as to Virginia Tech and Carilion Clinic faculty, students, and staff. These lectures are in-person and all people interested in science and biomedical research are  are encouraged to attend.  Read more about Maury Strauss.

View Archived Distinguished Public Lectures

2024-2025 Lectures

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    Conducting the Neuro-Symphony in the Brain — Space, Time, and Calcium
    Conducting the Neuro-Symphony in the Brain — Space, Time, and Calcium , home

    Sept. 12, 2024, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Michael Friedlander, Ph.D., Executive Director, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute Vice President for Health Sciences and Technology, Virginia Tech Senior Dean for Research, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    Mechanisms of Longevity: From Mice to Whales
    Mechanisms of Longevity: From Mice to Whales , home

    Oct. 10, 2024, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Vera Gorbunova, Ph.D., Doris Johns Cherry Professor of Biology, Co-director, Rochester Aging Research Center, University of Rochester | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    Clinical Applications of Cancer Genetics
    Clinical Applications of Cancer Genetics , home

    Nov. 21, 2024, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Luis Diaz, Jr., M.D., Head, Division of Solid Tumor Oncology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; Member, National Academy of Medicine | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    Rethinking Human Health with AI: Solving Old Mysteries with Modern Tools
    Rethinking Human Health with AI: Solving Old Mysteries with Modern Tools , home

    Jan. 23, 2025, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Regina Barzilay, Ph.D., School of Engineering Distinguished Professor for AI and Health; AI Faculty Lead, Jameel Clinic; MIT Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Lab; MacArthur Fellow; Member, National Academy of Engineering, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the National Academy of Medicine | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    How Big Med Drives Rising Healthcare Costs and What to Do About It
    How Big Med Drives Rising Healthcare Costs and What to Do About It , home

    Feb. 20, 2025, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Vivian Ho, Ph.D., James A. Baker III Institute Chair in Health Economics, Baker Institute for Public Policy, Rice University | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    Suicide by Firearm in the United States: A Collaborative Path for Prevention
    Suicide by Firearm in the United States: A Collaborative Path for Prevention , home

    March 6, 2025, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Marian Betz, M.D., M.P.H. Professor, Departments of Epidemiology and Emergency Medicine, Deputy Director, Injury & Violence Prevention Center, University of Colorado School of Public Health; Member, National Academy of Medicine | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    Bringing Precision Medicine to Psychiatry
    Bringing Precision Medicine to Psychiatry , home

    April 10, 2025, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Jordan Smoller, M.D., Sc.D., MGH Trustees Endowed Chair in Psychiatric Neuroscience; Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School; Professor of Epidemiology, T.H. Chan Harvard School of Public Health; Director, Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    Molecular and Neurobiological Studies in Rett Syndrome and Other MECP2 Disorders
    Molecular and Neurobiological Studies in Rett Syndrome and Other MECP2 Disorders , home

    May 1, 2025, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Huda Zoghbi, M.D., Professor, Pediatrics, Molecular and Human Genetics, Neuroscience, and Neurology; Director, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Baylor College of Medicine; Member, National Academy of Medicine | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

About Maury Strauss

Maury Strauss was a longtime community benefactor and businessman who supports biomedical research with the goal of energizing the local economy and improving quality of life in our neighborhoods and around the world. The founder of the Strauss Development Corp., a real estate development firm, Mr. Strauss and his family learned about the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, and the work done here. In order to ensure the continued success of Roanoke’s biomedical research enterprise, as well as the free, public seminars by the world’s leading scientists, Mr. Strauss made a generous gift to the series, which was renamed in his honor as the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture Series. He passed away in June 2024 at age 99.

Support Our Science

Fralin Biomedical Research Institute advances scientific discovery daily in our labs and promotes it in the community through lectures, seminars and talks. Any contribution carries that mission further.

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Archived Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lectures

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    Machine Learning and Human Thought - A Modern Frontier
    Machine Learning and Human Thought - A Modern Frontier , home

    Sept. 28, 2023, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Read Montague, Ph.D., Virginia Tech Carilion Vernon Mountcastle Research Professor and Director, Center for Human Neuroscience Research, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute; Professor, Department of Physics, Virginia Tech College of Science | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    Cloudy with a Chance of Science: The Intersection of Wicked Problems, Perception, Communication, and Risk
    Cloudy with a Chance of Science: The Intersection of Wicked Problems, Perception, Communication, and Risk , home

    Oct. 19, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | J. Marshall Shepherd, Ph.D., Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Sciences and Geography, Director, UGA Atmospheric Sciences Program, University of Georgia, and Member, National Academy of Engineering, National Academy of Sciences, and American Academy of Arts and Sciences | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    Learning and Relearning Movement
    Learning and Relearning Movement , home

    Nov. 2, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Amy Bastian, Ph.D., Professor, Departments of Neuroscience and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; Chief Science Officer and Senior Vice President, Kennedy Krieger Institute; Member, National Academy of Sciences | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    Long COVID: the Lasting Legacy of the COVID-19 Pandemic
    Long COVID: the Lasting Legacy of the COVID-19 Pandemic , home

    Jan. 25, 2024, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Ziyad Al-Aly, M.D., FASN, Chief of Research and Development Service, Director, Clinical Epidemiology Center, VA St. Louis Health Care System | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    The Human Milk Microbiome: A Paradigm Shift for Infant Health
    The Human Milk Microbiome: A Paradigm Shift for Infant Health , home

    Feb. 15, 2024, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Michelle "Shelley" McGuire, Ph.D., Director and Professor, Margaret Ritchie School of Family and Consumer Sciences, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, University of Idaho, Member, National Academy of Medicine | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    The Impact of Climate Change on Vulnerable Populations: What Can Be Done?
    The Impact of Climate Change on Vulnerable Populations: What Can Be Done? , home

    April 4, 2024, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Zulfiqar Bhutta, Ph.D., Robert Harding Inaugural Chair in Global Child Health, Hospital for Sick Children, Professor, Department of Paediatrics, Nutritional Sciences and Public Health, University of Toronto | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    What is Alzheimer's Disease and Can We Prevent It?
    What is Alzheimer's Disease and Can We Prevent It? , home

    April 11, 2024, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Kristine Yaffe, M.D., Professor and Roy and Marie Scola Endowed Chair of Psychiatry, Neurology, and Epidemiology, Director, Center for Population Brain Health, University of California, San Francisco, Member, National Academy of Medicine | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

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    Planning the Future of Environmental Health Sciences
    Planning the Future of Environmental Health Sciences , home

    May 9, 2024, 5:30 p.m. (Reception at 5 p.m.) | Rick Woychik, Ph.D., Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health | Maury Strauss Distinguished Public Lecture

2017 - 2018 Academic Year

2016 - 2017 Academic Year

2015 - 2016 Academic Year

2014 - 2015 Academic Year

  • Dopamine Neuron Regulation and its Disruption in Schizophrenia and Depression
    Sept. 11, 2014  |  Anthony Grace, Ph.D.
  • Modern Treatment of Alcoholism
    Oct. 2, 2014  |  Charles P. O'Brien, M.D., Ph.D.
  • Influenza Epidemics and Pandemics
    Nov. 20, 2014  |  Adolfo Garcia-Sastre, Ph.D.
  • Epigenetics and the Immune System
    Dec. 4, 2014  |  Jeremy Boss, Ph.D.
  • Linking Discoveries in Developmental Biology to 3-Dimensional Printing of New Tissues and Micro-Organs
    Jan. 8, 2015  |   Roger R. Markwald, Ph.D.
  • Molecular Architecture of the Circadian Clock in Mammals
    Feb. 12, 2015  |  Joseph S. Takahashi, Ph.D.
  • Infectious Causes of Heart Failure: Viral Myocarditis
    Mar. 19, 2015  |  Kirk Knowlton, M.D.
  • Fruit Flies and the Human Heart: The Evolution and Function of Potassium Channels From the Inside Out
    April 30, 2015  |  Gail Robertson, Ph.D.
  • Fear and Fear-Related Disorders: From Pavlov to PTSD
    May 21, 2015  |  Kerry Ressler, M.D., Ph.D.

2013 - 2014 Academic Year

  • Family-Wide Impacts of Genetics: The Case of Fragile X
    Sept. 26, 2013  |  Marsha R. Mailick, Ph.D.
  • Autism: New Mutations, Genes, and Pathways
    Nov. 14, 2013  |   Evan Eichler, Ph.D.
  • Innovations in Stroke Neurorehabilitation
    Jan. 9, 2014  |  Steven L. Wolf, Ph.D.
  • What Is the BRAIN Initiative and What Will It Teach Us About Ourselves?
    Feb. 20, 2014  |  Joshua Sanes, Ph.D.
  • Charting Our Future Together: Envisioning a Diverse, Adaptive, and Networked Biomedical Science Ecosystem
    April 3, 2014  |  Gary Gibbons, M.D.
  • How Viruses Infect the Brain
    April 10, 2014  |  Terence S. Dermody, M.D.
  • What Makes the Human Brain Human?
    May 1, 2014  |  Terrence J. Sejnowski, Ph.D.
  • Cancer and Aging
    May 22, 2014  |  Ronald A. DePinho, M.D.

2012 - 2013 Academic Year

  • Children’s Right to Thrive: The Promise and Barriers to Putting Science into Action
    Oct. 4, 2012   |  Craig Ramey, Ph.D. and Sharon Ramey, Ph.D.
  • GABA Neurons in Schizophrenia
    Oct. 25, 2012  |  Francine Benes, M.D., Ph.D.
  • The Brain and the Law
    Nov. 12, 2012  |  David Eagleman, Ph.D.
  • Personalized Cancer Medicine: Are We There Yet?
    Dec. 6, 2012  |  Eileen Dolan, Ph.D.
  • The Power of Singing: Implications for Brain Plasticity and Recovery of Function
    Jan. 10, 2013  |  Gottfried Schlaug, M.D., Ph.D.
  • Denial of Service Attacks: Network Hyperexcitability in Alzheimer’s Dementia 
    Jan. 17, 2013  |  Jeffrey Noebels, M.D., Ph.D.
  • Exciting New Ways to Stimulate the Brain to Treat Depression or Pain
    Feb. 14, 2013  |  Mark George, M.D.
  • Understanding Biological Systems: Mission Impossible?
  • March 28, 2013  |  Peter Kohl, M.D., Ph.D.
  • Visualizing Molecular Machines and Cells
    April 11, 2013  |  Wah Chiu, Ph.D.
  • Changing Fear
    April 18, 2013  |  Elizabeth Phelps, Ph.D.
    Engaging the Public in Biomedical Research
    Aug. 15, 2013  |  Yvonne Maddox, Ph.D.

2011 - 2012 Academic Year

  • The Molecular Biology of Memory Formation
    Sept. 9, 2011  |  Ron Davis, Ph.D.
  • What Do We Know About Addiction?
    Sept. 29, 2011  |  Nora Volkow, M.D.
  • Seeing What the Nose Tells the Brain
    Sept. 30, 2011  |  Matt Wachowiak, Ph.D.
  • How the Mind Makes Morals
    Oct. 13, 2011  |  Patricia Churchland, Ph.D. 
  • Parallel Universes
    Oct. 20, 2011  |  Robert Kimberly, M.D.
  • How Electron Crytomography is Opening a Window into Bacterial Ultrastructure
    Oct. 27, 2011  |  Grant Jensen, Ph.D.
  • Bacterial Toxins: Structural Studies of Molecular Trojan Horses
    Nov. 3, 2011  |  Melanie Ohi, Ph.D. 
  • Why Tools of the Mind and Montessory Educational Approaches Help Executive Function Skills
    Dec. 1, 2011  |  Adele Diamond, Ph.D. 
  • Steroid Hormones and Cancer
    Dec. 8, 2011  |  Jan-Ake Gustafsson, M.D., Ph.D. 
  • Neurotransmitter Transporters
    Jan. 12, 2012  |  Susan Amara, Ph.D.
  • Evolution of an Adaptive Immune System of Defense
    Jan. 19, 2012  |  Max Cooper, M.D.
  • New Approaches to Treating Chronic Pain
    Jan. 26, 2012  |  Robert Gereau, Ph.D.
  • What Therapeutic Drugs Do
    Feb. 2, 2012  |  John Scott, Ph.D. 
  • How Does a Frog Egg Solve Geometry Problems?
    Feb. 9, 2012  |  Timothy Mitchison, Ph.D.
  • Behavioral Choice Theory and Obesity
    Feb. 23, 2012  | Leonard Epstein, Ph.D.
  • The Violent Brain: Ethical and Legal Implications
    March 8, 2012  |  Afrian Raine, D.Phil.
  • The Functional Architecture of Face Processing
    Mar. 15, 2012  |  Lesie Ungerleider, Ph.D. 
  • Back to the Future: Brain Stimulation in Psychiatry
    Mar. 29, 2012  |  Sarah Lisanby, M.D.
  • Your Genome and Your Health
    April 5, 2012  |  Richard Gibbs, Ph.D. 
  • Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine
    May 10, 2012  |  Amy Wagers, Ph.D.
  • How the Brain Develops the Ability to Integrate Information from Different Senses
    May 24, 2012  |  Barry Stein, Ph.D.

2010 - 2011 Academic Year

  • Risk, Resilience, and Gene-Environment Interplay
    Mar. 24, 2011  |  Stephen Suomi, Ph.D.
  • Glial Derived Brain Tumors
    April 7, 2011  |  Harald Sontheimer, Ph.D.
  • Synaptic Plasticity - The Brain's Response to Experience
    May 6, 2011  |  Robert Malenka, Ph.D., M.D.
  • Developing Pharmacotherapies for Cognitive Impairment in Down Syndrome
    May 19, 2011  |  Craig C. Garner, Ph.D.