The article written about Dr. Burke was published by Tony Phelan, a writer of Greys Anatomy.
Guest star David Giuntoli (Todd Vernon) went on to star in Grimm. The aunt who raised his character is played by Kate Burton, who plays Meredith's mother Ellis Grey in this show.
In a close-up of the article about Preston Burke's Harper Avery award, it is revealed that the writer of the article is Tony Phelan who is actually the co-executive producer and writer for this episode of Grey's Anatomy.
In this episode Cristina sings Madonna's "Like a Virgin" while harvesting hearts for Dr. Hahn. In season two (The Name of the Game) while playing a game, Cristina tries to get Burke to guess the answer 'Madonna' by giving him the hints "Blonde Ambition Tour" and "Vogue". He doesn't get the right answer.
Every episode is named after a song. This episode refers to Nine Inch Nails' "The Becoming".