Patient Encounter Note October 7, 2025Saffanat Sumra[Second place winner of the Synapse Storytelling Contest for non fiction.] S: Subjective. “June” is a 79-year-old woman with a... Medicine
At Night, the Wake (After Alice Notley) September 30, 2025Halle Young[First place winner of the Synapse Storytelling Contest for poetry.] Even now, the wake I forget the waves or I... Poetry
The Barbie Dreamhouse September 30, 2025Michelle SeelerYoung girls are seeing more Barbie dolls on shelves with careers ranging from scientists, future leaders, and astronauts, and imagining... Opinion
This Date in UCSF History: Minority Numbers Climb Dramatically September 30, 2025Synapse[Originally published in Synapse on September 25, 1986.] In a dramatic reversal of last year’s disappointing showing, the School of... Social Justice
Mary in Heaven September 23, 2025Pedro Silvestre Marra[First place winner of the Synapse Storytelling Contest Fiction category.] The experience of dying can vary greatly. Some see a... Fiction
This Date in UCSF History: The Politics of History September 23, 2025Synapse[Originally published on September 21, 1995.] Among the books that have influenced my thinking are A Handmaid’s Tale and 1984... Arts & Culture
From Mistrust to Empowerment: How Historical Medical Racism Drove Black Women Toward Midwifery and Home Births September 16, 2025Amanda Lipford[First place winner of the Synapse Storytelling Contest Non Fiction category.] America: a country that brags about its technology and... Social Justice
Life Challenges, Struggles, and Wins September 16, 2025Prativa KoiralaYou thought you’d never survive this. But, darling, a radiant sun awaits to see you rise. You felt as though... Poetry
This Date in UCSF History: State Health Corps? September 16, 2025Synapse[ Originally published in Synapse on September 19, 1985.] In the next few days, Gov. George Deukmejian will decide the... Politics
This Date in UCSF History: 10 Solid Pieces of Advice for First Year Students September 9, 2025Synapse[Originally published on September 5, 2002.] Welcome First Year (insert school here) Students! In the next week to months you... Student Life
Celebrating Creativity: Synapse Announces Storytelling Contest Winners August 25, 2025SynapseFrom magical realism to urgent calls for justice, from fog-draped skylines to lyrical meditations on the self — this year’s...
Aging and the Carbon Imaginary May 27, 2025Bri MatusovskyConsider aging as three overlapping progressions: the accumulation of risk, aging as deterioration, and aging as renewal. Aging disrupts life/non-life... Health
This Date in UCSF History: Refugees Counsel Compatriots May 27, 2025Synapse[Originally published in Synapse on May 26, 1988.] Case: A 29 year-old Salvadoran woman, mother of three, is unable to... Social Justice
This Date in UCSF History: We Finished! May 20, 2025Synapse[Originally published in Synapse on May 21, 1998.] Waking up to the annoying alarm I've used for the last four... Academic