A Nobel Prize Winner on the “Dark Matter of Biology”

On with Kara Swisher

New York Magazine

Society & Culture

4.2 • 3.2K Ratings

🗓️ 28 November 2022

⏱️ 43 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Kara interviews Dr. Carolyn Bertozzi, a Stanford University scientist who, along with Morten Meldal and K. Barry Sharpless, won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry earlier this year for developing bioorthogonal chemistry and click chemistry. Bertozzi explains what bioorthogonal chemistry actually is before breaking down how identifying different sugars in the body — which she calls “the dark matter of biology’’ — could lead to breakthroughs in treating diseases ranging from the flu to cancer. She also weighs in on the state of funding in biology, Twitter, being lesbian in STEM, and the never-ending feud between chemists and biologists. Before the interview, Kara and Nayeema briefly discuss former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan's protest march (which was called off after this episode was recorded) and Trump's dinner with white supremacist Nick Fuentes. You can find Kara and Nayeema on Twitter @karaswisher and @nayeema. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Support for this show comes from Crucible Moments, a new podcast from Sequoia Capital.
0:05.2	Throughout our lives, each of us will face pivotal choices that can forever change our trajectory.
0:10.3	In business, Sequoia Capital calls these decisions Crucible Moments.
0:14.9	Hosted by Sequoia's Rulafbota, Crucible Moments is a new show that takes you inside the critical
0:20.0	decisions made by the world's most important startups. Crucible Moments is out now and available
0:25.4	everywhere you get your podcasts and at CrucibleMoments.com.
0:42.4	Hi everyone, from New York Magazine in the Box Media Podcast Network. This is on with Cara's
0:47.0	Swisher now with 100% more Pi, actually 200% and I'm Cara's Swisher. And I'm Neymaraza.
0:54.4	Pi. Yeah, we don't have Pi where I am right now. Explain where you are for the people.
0:59.2	I'm in Pakistan. I'm in Islamabad right now. And why? We just finished celebrating my sister's
1:03.7	wedding to a great guy. And she's a great girl. And it was a multi-day celebration. You saw the
1:08.8	photo. Yeah. Why do you think? It's one color after the nicks and the backdrops and it's almost
1:13.1	like a theatrical presentation. I mean, I think weddings are that they're very performative,
1:17.0	but this is like beautiful and gorgeous with all the colors. Yeah, it's a wedding industrial complex.
1:22.0	I mean, we talk about that in the West, but here it's something else. And everyone gets married in
1:25.7	halls and lots of colors and beautiful outfits and partying. Yeah, it's exhausting. Weddings are
1:31.0	exhausting. Yeah, you kept saying day three. I was like, what? Like, huh? And I've been to an Italian
1:36.2	wedding. So day four. Day four. Oh, you're on day four now. Is it done? Are they married? Fine.
1:41.2	It's done. They're married. They've been married. Are they freaking married? Yeah, they're real,
1:46.0	really be real married after one of those things. Anyway, your sister looks beautiful. You
1:50.1	look beautiful. Your mother looks beautiful. It was it's really quite something. Thank you. You
1:54.7	seem a little weary. And now you have to fly back for 20 hours. Well, you know what's happening
	...

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