Fall 2015
Picknic: Tech & Entrepreneurship in Nutrition & Health
PH 98/198 2 Units
Course Facilitators: Lochan Shah, Nazlie Taheri, Jennifer Shearer
Location: 174 Barrows, Thursday 5-7 pm
Email: lochanshah@berkeley.edu
Faculty Sponsor: Abby Rincón
- Course Description:
Chronic disease is the leading cause of death and disability in the United States. In fact, more than ¼ of health care costs are now related to obesity, and poor nutrition is linked to a variety of health problems including hypertension, obesity, stroke, and some cancers.
At Project Nutrition, we believe that an interdisciplinary approach is needed to solve many of the problems related to chronic illness and poor health, and that technology has a role in mediating this change. However, technology and public health are still being taught in silos. We want to disrupt this paradigm. Ultimately, we hope that by providing students with knowledge, tools, and guidance in health and entrepreneurship, we can get the brightest minds on this problem.
Goal of this course:
Throughout the semester, we feature weekly guest speakers from academia, the tech industry, non-profit organizations, hospitals, and the government who share their perspectives on entrepreneurship and technology in nutrition and health. We will also be holding workshops on business plan creation, survey development, and applying to the Big Ideas and Clinton Health Global Initiative conferences. Through this, we hope to inspire and guide students in designing innovative projects that tackle challenges related to poor nutrition, fitness, and health.
III. Required Reading Materials
- Various Articles: Required weekly readings will be announced via email.
- Final: Design of Innovative Project for Social Change
In teams, students must design and write a business plan for a project, idea, or intervention related to poor nutrition and/or health. The class will culminate in a pitch competition (5-minute pitch) with a prize.
- Grading Basis:
- Attendance* / Participation:(10%)Students are expected to be engaged in the topic of discussion and pay attention to their peers and guest lecturers.
- Reading Discussion-(15%)Students will be assigned a weekly reading, podcast, or video as HW. As there will be NO writing assignments, we ask that the students complete these reading, etc. and prepare to discuss the assignment during the first 15 mins of each class.
- In-Class Work (25%)- Students will be given in-class time to work on their final project and presentation. Students will be asked to present their progress to the class at the end of each work period.
- Final Project: (50%)-See above.
*More than two unexcused absences will result in a NP.
VII. Course Policies
Please arrive on time and be prepared. Attendance is mandatory and the reading is your responsibility. Students who must miss class due to a required university activity or unavoidable situation should inform the facilitator via email ahead of time in order to receive an excused absence. If you miss a class for these reasons or due to illness, please email Lochan Shah (lochanshah@berkeley.edu) PRIOR to class. Failure to do so will result in an unexcused absence.
While laptops are allowed during class time, they are prohibited during classes with guest speakers. The guest speakers are offering their time to talk to us, so it’s the least we could do to give them our undivided attention.
VIII. Weekly Schedule
IMPORTANT: This is a tentative schedule for general reference only. The order of topics may change. Assigned readings and other information may also change during the semester (ie: a current event article/other news). Although we do not anticipate any changes, any revisions or updates will be emailed by the course facilitator.
9/3 Get to Know the Group and Project Nutrition: What are you interested in? Discuss Final Project, Intro to Nutrition By Abby Rincon
Due: None
9/10 Whitney Hischier: Haas Business Model Canvas Workshop
Due: Ted talk: Dan Ariely: Are we in Control of our own Decisions?
9/17-Fed Up – Movie Part I
Due: https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/does-the-movie-fed-up-make-sense/
9/24-David Lindeman and James Robinson: Health, Tech, and Entrepreneurship
Due:
Extra: Aging Conference after class…
10/1 Michelle Azurin: Social Enterprise and Cooking (Example social enterprise)
Due: None
10/8 Joanna Strober: Kurbo (example social enterprise)
Due: Reading: http://time.com/3048707/the-kurbo-app-for-weight-loss/
If possible, download the Kurbo App (It’s Free!!!) and play around. Be ready to ask questions!
10/15 Laura Nixon: Marketing practices in the food industry & using media to create change
Due:None
10/22 Simone Saldanha: Hunger Simulation Activity and Food Insecurity
Due:http://www.worldhunger.org/articles/Learn/us_hunger_facts.htm
10/29 FAQ with an exec from Catalyst Health Tech Accelerator & Fed Up– Movie Part II
Due: Ted talk: Malcolm Gladwell: Choice, Happiness, and Spaghetti Sauce
11/5 Damini: Free ventures brief talk
Due:Freakonomics: How many doctors does it take to start a healthcare revolution
11/12 Work Day!!!!
Due:Tim Ferriss: The Evolutionary Angel, Naval Ravikant
11/19 Final Presentations: PITCH COMPETITION 5-8 PM
Due: Presentation
11/26 Thanksgiving
12/3 Last Class! Taking your idea off the ground: your future with Project Nutrition, Berkeley, and entrepreneurship
Project Nutrition @ Berkeley 