Issue date: 3/26/09 Section: Campus News

Media Credit: Lydia Gantert Robert M. Sapolsky speaks at the Forum Wednesday evening in Zorn Arena. His lecture, "Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers," explained the human response to stress and its effects. Sapolsky is a neurobiologist at Stanford University. The forum also included a question and answer session and reception afterwards.

Zebras experience limited amounts of stress due to the physical crisis of death generated by predators chasing them. Lions experience limited amounts of stress due to the physical crisis of starving to death if they don't catch their prey.

Zebras generate stress from lions and lions from zebras - humans, however, are another story.

The Forum hosted Stanford University biology professor and neurobiologist Robert M. Sapolsky Wednesday in Zorn Arena.

Based off of his book, "Why Zebra's Don't Get Ulcers," Sapolsky's lecture addressed the physiological responses of stress experienced by humans and animals, how the prevalent human diseases of today are linked with stress and why it's the psychosocial stressors that cause humans to get stressed.

UW-Eau Claire's arts and events coordinator Jennifer Brockpahler said the forum committee picked Sapolsky because he tied nicely into the biology department, while also relating to stress and delivery using a humorous style.

"I think he'll be really intriguing because we create our own stresses due to our biological makeup and offers a viewpoint that even non-scientists can get," Brockpahler said beforehand.

Freshman Christina Anderson read the book for a wellness class.

"The part I found interesting was people perceive stress before it happens and that's why people gets stressed … unlike the zebra who don't get stressed until the lion is chasing it," she said.

Animals experience a short stress response when in a moment of crisis. Sapolsky said the stress response is supposed to be a three-minute crisis, while in humans it tends to last much longer.

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