The Longevity Guide
Our experts share their research insights on how to live a longer, happier and healthier life.
5 Ways to Give Yourself a Boost
A Tale of Two Climates
In a county divided by heat, USC Dornsife plants the seeds of change.
A Novel Approach
Narrative medicine uses humanities tools to train medical students to be better listeners — and as a result, better doctors.
Clearing the Clouds
The number of people living with Alzheimer’s is expected to triple by 2050, while a common early sign of the disease is alarmingly underdiagnosed. In the race to defeat dementia, physicists, biological scientists and psychologists are finding surprising clues to understanding the drivers of the disease and how to prevent and treat it.
Crunching Code, Crafting Cures
How USC Dornsife is writing the formula for the future of medicine.
The Pain Paradox
Our researchers are developing effecting new remedies to relieve pain — without the risk of addiction.
Cancer Detective
Revolutionary new diagnostic tools being developed by physicist Peter Kuhn may help make cancer a disease of the past.
Miracle Man
Born with a giant tumor in his neck, USC Dornsife alumnus and 2003 University Valedictorian Kevin Huoh underwent more than 60 operations by the time he was 9 years old — most performed by USC-trained doctors who became his childhood heroes. Inspired to follow in their footsteps, Huoh is now a pediatric otolaryngologist whose surgical skills provide lifesaving care to children born with similar conditions.
Past Remedies
Before regulation of medicines began in the early 20th century, quack remedies proliferated. Here we take a humorous look at some of the most striking — and frankly bizarre — advertisements used to peddle these fraudulent concoctions.
By Marcus Paulsen
“Advances in color printing, lithography and mass production raced far ahead of regulatory oversight of patent and other ‘medicines.’ But just because they looked good to the eye didn’t mean these remedies were in any way good for you.” – William Deverell, divisional dean of social sciences and professor of history, spatial sciences and environmental studies
1. RENNE’S MAGIC OIL
Sometimes straightforward and to the point works best. This late 19th-century advertisement lets the reader know simply and quickly that this isn’t just any snake oil, it’s magic snake oil — and it will take care of your pain.
2. MRS. WINSLOW’S SOOTHING SYRUP
This deadly concoction was used to relieve teething pain. Containing alcohol and 65 milligrams of morphine per ounce, it did indeed help restless infants sleep — the problem was that many never woke up. In 1911, the syrup was labeled a “baby killer” by the American Medical Association but continued to be sold as late as 1930. It is now considered to have caused significant infant mortality during the period.
3. DR. SAGE’S CATARRH REMEDY
Featuring grand vistas of Niagara Falls (talk about drainage!) and a sign painter dangling on a board flimsier than the science backing up this remedy for mucus buildup, this advertisement raises the already perilous stakes for quack medicine.
4. HAMLIN’S WIZARD OIL
Developed by former magician John Hamlin, this panacea contained roughly 60% alcohol along with chloroform, turpentine, ammonia, cloves, sassafras and camphor. Hamlin initially peddled the oil as an external liniment and topical remedy for toothache and earache, but later encouraged its ingestion to cure headaches, diphtheria, pneumonia, rabies and cancer. If you weren’t sick before taking it, chances are you would be afterward.
5. DR. D. JAYNE’S ALTERATIVE
A one-stop shop for all your disease and sickness needs, Dr. D. Jayne’s Alterative claimed to cure a smorgasbord of afflictions, from pimples and carbuncles to cancer and rheumatism — not to mention scrofula and dropsy. There’s nothing like pushing some tigers off a cliff to let the world know, “Hey! Have we got a cure for you.”
Is Technology Making Us More Or Less Healthy?
A psychology professor and a professor of biological sciences and anthropology debate the issue.
“Technology is revolutionizing our approach to health.”
– Iony Ezawa
“Technology is encouraging an epidemic of sedentary behavior that may impact our physical and mental health.”
– David Raichlen
Randy Hetrick ’87
TRX Suspension Trainers inventor Randy Hetrick’s career path to becoming a successful entrepreneur has taken several unexpected twists and turns, from earning a history degree at USC Dornsife to joining the United States Navy SEALs to being a lobbyist on Capitol Hill.
Randy Hetrick’s Path
Randy Hetrick grew up with his mother in the Southern California beach town of Corona del Mar.
Following his parents’ divorce, Randy Hetrick grew up with his mother in the Southern California beach town of Corona del Mar. Money was tight, but her job as a flight attendant allowed them to travel for free to the United Kingdom, where they visited the castles that sparked Hetrick’s lifelong love of history.
Hetrick started wrestling in high school.
Hetrick started wrestling in high school. Unwittingly, he was already laying down the ideal groundwork for acceptance into the U.S. Navy SEALs: “I discovered later that sports that do the best at SEAL selection are endurance sports with a high misery quotient and low crowd approval.”
Hetrick graduated from USC Dornsife in 1987 with a BA in history.
Hetrick graduated from USC Dornsife in 1987 with a BA in history. “I pledged a fraternity, participated in everything and had an incredible mentor: USC President Emeritus John Hubbard, a WWII U.S. Navy bomber pilot and recipient of a Distinguished Flying Cross.” At USC, Hetrick learned teamwork by practicing another “hard and thankless” sport — rowing.
Hetrick achieved his dream of joining the U.S. Navy SEALs in 1987.
Following a family tradition of military service that stretches back to the Civil War, Hetrick achieved his dream of joining the U.S. Navy SEALs in 1987. Of the notorious training known as “Hell Week” (attrition rate: 85%) he says, “You’ve got to be thick-skinned, lucky not to get hurt, and determined not to let your mind fail you. That was my specialty and still is as an entrepreneur. It’s a propensity for biting down on your mouthpiece and grinding through.”
The idea for Hetrick’s TRX Suspension Trainers was born of necessity.
The idea for Hetrick’s TRX Suspension Trainers was born of necessity. Deployed without training equipment on a counter-piracy operation in Southeast Asia. Hetrick resorted to using his jujutsu belt. “I tied a knot in it, threw it over a door, leaned back against gravity and lifted my body. The possibilities opened up like a flower.”
Hetrick was selected to join an elite counterterror unit
After earning a master’s degree in national security affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School in 1994, Hetrick was selected to join an elite counterterror unit. From 1997 to 1999, he served as the principal lobbyist on Capitol Hill for U.S. Special Operations Command, representing a portfolio of more than $1.3 billion in active programs. Returning to active service, he finished his 14-year military career as squadron commander.
TRX Training was launched from Hetrick’s garage in 2004
TRX Training was launched from Hetrick’s garage in 2004, one year after finishing his MBA at Stanford University. It has grown from a bootstrap start-up to a leading, global physical training brand. He launched his second start-up, Outfit Training, a technology-enabled outdoor mobile fitness franchise, in 2021.
And the Winner Is…
Congratulations to the winner of the third USC Dornsife Magazine Creative Writing Contest — Azka Sattar.
A junior majoring in psychology, her winning entry, “Persist,” was the unanimous choice of the contest’s judges: Dana Johnson, chair and professor of English and director of the USC Dornsife PhD in Creative Writing & Literature program; David Ulin, professor of the practice of English and editor-in-chief of USC Dornsife’s online literary magazine Air/Light; and Susan Bell, editor-in-chief of USC Dornsife Magazine.
The contest, open to USC Dornsife alumni and students, attracted entries across a diverse range of majors. The brief was to write a maximum of 500 words inspired by the theme of this issue, “Health and Well-being,” in any of the following genres: fiction, poetry, memoir or essay.
The judges were impressed by the high quality of work submitted and would like to thank everyone who participated.
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USC Dornsife Magazine
c/o Crisann Smith
1150 S. Olive St
SCT-2400
Los Angeles, CA 90015
Editor-in-Chief
Susan Bell
Creative Director
Letty Avila
Senior Associate Dean for Communication and Marketing
Jim Key
Writers and Editors
Margaret Crable
Darrin S. Joy
Ileana Wachtel
Multimedia News Director
Katie Kim Scott
Videographer and Photographer
Mike Glier
Senior Web Specialist
Michael Liu
Audience Engagement Editor
Christelle Snow
Administrative Assistant
Crisann Smith
Contributors
Jai Battle, Olga Burymska, Katharine Gammon, Stephen Koenig, Rachel B. Levin, Meredith McGroarty, Markos Mendez, Marcus Paulsen, Vanessa Roveto, Aaron Tilley, Tomas Weber