People Behind The Science Podcast - Stories From Scientists About Science, Life, Research, And Science Careers

Dr. Christine McCarthy is the Lamont Assistant Research Professor at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia University. She received her B.S. in Geophysics from the University of Oregon and went on to receive her M.Sc. and PhD in Geological Science from Brown University. Afterward, Christine conducted postdoctoral research at the Earthquake Research Institute at the University of Tokyo in Japan. She was awarded a Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Postdoctoral Fellowship, followed by a NASA Early Career Fellowship, before joining the faculty at Columbia where she is today. Christine is with us today to tell us all about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Rob Johns is a Research Scientist and Forest Insect Ecologist for the Natural Resources Canada Atlantic Forestry Centre. He is also an Adjunct Professor in Biology at the University of New Brunswick and St. Francis Xavier University. Rob received his undergraduate training in biology from St. Francis Xavier University and PhD in Biology from the University of New Brunswick. He was then was awarded a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship from the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science before joining the Canadian Forest Service where he is today. Rob is here with us today to tell us all about his journey through life and science.

Dr. Laurie Santos is a Professor of Psychology and Director of the Comparative Cognition Laboratory at Yale University. She received her B.A. in Psychology and Biology from Harvard and Radcliffe College, and went on to complete her M.A. and Ph.D. in Psychology from Harvard University. Among Laurie’s many awards and honors, she has received the American Psychological Association’s Distinguished Scientific Award for Early Career Contributions to Psychology, the Lex Hixton Prize for Teaching Excellence in the Social Sciences, the Arthur Greer Memorial Prize for Outstanding Junior Faculty at Yale, the Stanton Prize from the Society for Philosophy and Psychology, and she has been named one of TIME Magazine’s “Leading Campus Celebrities”. Laurie and her research have been featured by The Today Show, BBC News, NPR News, NBC News, The New York Times, and many other media outlets. She is with us today to tell us all about her journey through life and science.

Dr. David C. Weindorf is the Associate Dean for Research in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, as well as Professor and BL Allen Endowed Chair of Pedology in the Department of Plant and Soil Science at Texas Tech University. He received his B.S. in Range Management, M.S. in Soil Science, and Ph.D. in Agronomy all from Texas Tech. David next accepted a faculty position at Tarleton State University, followed by a faculty position at Louisiana State University, before joining the faculty at Texas Tech. David is the recipient of numerous awards and honors including the Texas Tech Faculty International Scholarship Award, the USDA-NRCS National Cooperative Soil Survey’s Eagle Award, and a Fulbright Scholarship where he spent time at the University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of ClujNapoca, Romania. He is also a member of the Soil Science Society of America and chair elect of the Pedology Section of the Soil Science Society of America. David is here with us today to tell

Dr. Stephen Heard is Professor of Biology at the University of New Brunswick. He received his B.Sc. in Biology from the University of Waterloo and his PhD in Biology from the University of Pennsylvania. Afterwards, Steve conducted postdoctoral research at the University of British Columbia and served on the faculty at the University of Iowa before joining the faculty at New Brunswick where he is today. Steve also writes a blog called Scientist Sees Squirrel, and he is the author of a new book, hot-off-the presses this April, called The Scientist’s Guide to Writing: How to write more easily and effectively throughout your scientific career. Steve is here with us today to talk about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Matt O'Neal is an Associate Professor of Entomology at Iowa State University. He received his B.S. in Biology and M.S. in Entomology from the University of Illinois. Matt served as a Peace Corps Volunteer between those two degrees. After his masters he went on to receive his PhD in Entomology from Michigan State University. Next, Matt conducted postdoctoral research at Michigan State before joining the Faculty at the Iowa State where he is today. Matt’s honors and awards include the Team Achievement Award for the Crop Advantage Series from Iowa State University Extension, the National Excellence In Multistate Research Award from the American Public Land-Grant Universities, and the Integrated Pest Management Team Award from the Entomological Foundation. He has also received various awards from the Entomological Society of America, the American Society of Agronomy, and the Board Certified Entomologists of Mid-America for his educational and outreach efforts. In addition, Matt is co-host of the Soybean Pest

Dr. Lewis Cantley is the Director of the Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medical College as well as the Stanton Clinical Cancer Program at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. He is also Professor of Cancer Biology in Medicine and Professor in Oncology Research at Weill Cornell Medical College. In addition, Lewis is Co-Founder of Petra Pharma and Agios Pharmaceuticals. He received his B.S. in Chemistry from West Virginia Wesleyan College and his Ph.D. in Biophysical Chemistry from Cornell University. Lewis conducted postdoctoral research at Harvard University, and served on the faculty at Harvard University, as well as Tufts University before joining the faculty at Cornell. Lewis has received many awards and honors during his career, including the 2005 Pezcoller Foundation-American Association for Cancer Research International Award for Cancer Research, the 2013 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences, the 2015 Ross Prize in Molecular Medicine, the 2015 Wolf Prize, the 2015 Association of American Cancer Institute

Dr. Blake Meyers is a Member Principal Investigator at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and a Professor in the Division of Plant Sciences at the University of Missouri. He received a B.A. in Biology from the University of Chicago, and went on to receive his MS and PhD in Genetics from the University of California, Davis. Afterwards, Blake completed postdoctoral fellowships at Dupont Genomics and at the University of California, Davis. Before accepting his current positions, Blake was the Edward F. and Elizabeth Goodman Rosenberg Professor and Chair of the Department Plant and Soil Sciences of the University of Delaware. Blake is here with us today to tell us all about his journey through life and science.

Dr. Dave Messina is the Chief Operating Officer at Cofactor Genomics. He completed his undergraduate training in biology at the University of Illinois at Chicago and received his MA in Genetics from Washington University School of Medicine. Dave worked as a Senior Programmer Analyst at the Genome Sequencing Center at Washington University for a few years before going back to school to get his PhD in Computational Biology from Stockholm University. Dave joined the team at Cofactor in 2012. Dave is here with us today to tell us all about his journey through life and science.

Dr. Denise Herzing is Director and Founder of a non-profit scientific research organization called The Wild Dolphin Project, as well as an Affiliate Assistant Professor of Biological and Psychological Sciences at Florida Atlantic University. She received her B.S. in Marine Zoology from Oregon State University, her M.A. in Behavioral Biology from San Francisco State University, and her Ph.D. in Behavioral Biology and Environmental Studies from the Union Institute Graduate School. Denise is author of the book Dolphin Diaries which details her experiences studying dolphins, and she recently co-edited a book called Dolphin Communication and Cognition. Denise is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and is a fellow of the Explorers Club. She is with us today to tell us all about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Franck Polleux is a Professor of Neuroscience and member of the Zuckerman Mind, Brain, Behavior Institute at Columbia University. He completed his undergraduate degree as well as his PhD in Neuroscience at the University of Claude Bernard in Lyon, France. Afterward, he travelled to Johns Hopkins University for his postdoctoral fellowship. Franck served on the faculty at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, CA before joining the faculty at Columbia University where he is today. Franck is here with us today to tell us all about his journey through life and science.

Dr. Russell Foster is Professor and Chair of Circadian Neuroscience, Supernumerary Fellow in Circadian Neuroscience, Head of the Department of Ophthalmology, a Nicholas Kurti Senior Fellow, Head of the Nuffield Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Head of The Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute at Brasenose college at the University of Oxford. Russell received his PhD in Neuroscience from the University of Bristol. He worked at the National Science Foundation Center for Biological Timing at the University of Virginia, and afterward served on the faculty at Imperial College before accepting a position at the University of Oxford where he has been for 10 years. Russell is a Fellow of the Royal Society, and in 2015, he received the honor of an appointment of Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Russell has received many other national and international awards for his accomplishments in science including Japan’s Honma Prize, the USA’s Cogan Award, Harvard University's Farrell Prize in Sleep Medicine, a

Dr. Brendan Frey is the President and CEO of Deep Genomics. He is also Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the Banting and Best Department of Medical Research, and the Department of Computer Science at the University of Toronto. In addition, Brendan is the Canada Research Chair in Information Processing and Machine Learning. Brendan received his PhD from the University of Toronto, both in Electrical and Computer Engineering. Afterwards, Brendan was was awarded a Beckman Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. He served on the faculty at the University of Waterloo before joining the faculty at the University of Toronto where he is today. Brendan has received many awards and honors during his career, including being named a Fellow of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research and a recipient of the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada John C. Polanyi Award. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, Ameri

Dr. Erin Hodgson is an Associate Professor and Extension Entomologist at Iowa State University. She received her undergraduate training in Biology and Botany and her M.S. in Entomology from North Dakota State University. Erin was awarded her Ph.D. in Entomology from the University of Minnesota, followed by a postdoctoral research position also at the University of Minnesota. Erin served on the faculty at Utah State University before joining the faculty at Iowa State where she is today. Erin has received many awards and honors in her career, including the Editor’s Choice Award from the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, the Iowa State University Outreach and Extension New Professional Award, and multiple awards from the Entomological Society of America for her educational and outreach efforts. In addition, Erin is co-host of the "Soybean Pest Podcast" with her colleague Matt O’Neal. Erin is with us today to tell us all about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Roger Smith is the Chief Technology Officer for the Nicholson Center for Surgical Advancement at Florida Hospital. He is also Graduate Faculty at the University of Central Florida, and President of Simulation First. Roger received his B.S. in Applied Mathematics, a M.S. in Statistics, a Master’s and Ph.D. in Business Administration, and a Ph.D. in Computer Science. In addition to his current appointments, Roger has held a number of exciting positions in academia, industry, and government sectors, including serving as an Instructor at Texas Tech University, Senior Engineer at General Dynamics, Technical Director of Mystech Associates, Technical Director of STAC, Professor at Florida Institute of Technology, Vice President of BTG Corporation, Vice President and Group Chief Technology Officer of Titan Corporation, Professor at Full Sail University, Chief Engineer at SPARTA Inc., Chief Technology Officer for U.S. Army Simulation, Training, and Instrumentation, Research Scientist for Texas A and M University,

Dr. Jill Pruetz is a Professor of Anthropology at Iowa State University and a National Geographic Society Emerging Explorer. In addition, Jill is the founder of the non-profit organization NeighborApe that she founded in 2008. She received her BA in Anthropology from Texas State University and her PhD in Anthropology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Jill then conducted postdoctoral research at Miami University before joining the faculty at Iowa State where she is today. Jill and her excellent research have been featured by NPR, BBC, CBC, National Geographic, New Scientist Magazine, The Today Show, and others. She is with us today to tell us all about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Jim Tour is the T.T. and W.F. Chao Professor of Chemistry, Professor of Computer Science, and Professor of Materials Science and NanoEngineering at Rice University. He is also the founder and principal of NanoJtech Consultants, LLC, which performs technology assessments for prospective investors. He received his B.S. in Chemistry from Syracuse University and his Ph.D. in Synthetic Organic and Organometallic Chemistry from Purdue University. Jim went on to conduct postdoctoral research at the University of Wisconsin and Stanford University. He served on the faculty of the University of South Carolina for 11 years before joining the faculty at Rice where he is today. Jim has received many awards and distinctions in his career. He was named among the 50 Most Influential Scientists in the World Today by TheBestSchools.org in 2014, among The World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds by Thomson Reuters ScienceWatch.com in 2014, and Scientist of the Year by R and D Magazine in 2013. Jim is the recipient of the N

Dr. Maria Marco is an Associate Professor in The Department of Food Science & Technology at The University of California, Davis. She received her BS at The Pennsylvania State University and her PhD in Microbiology at the University of California, Berkeley. She went on to work as a postdoc and then as a project scientist at NIZO food research and TI Food & Nutrition in The Netherlands before accepting a faculty position at UC, Davis where she is today. Maria is with us today to tell us all about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Eric Green is the Director of the National Human Genome Research Institute at the National Institutes of Health. He received his B.S. in Bacteriology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and his M.D. and Ph.D. in Cell Biology from Washington University in St. Louis. Afterward, Eric completed his residency at Washington University in Laboratory Medicine and as part of his residency he did a postdoctoral research in genetics. Eric served on the faculty and as co-investigator in the Human Genome Center at Washington University School of Medicine before accepting a position at the National Institutes of Health where he has been now for over 20 years. Eric has been the recipient of many awards and honors during his career, including the NIH Director’s Award (multiple times), the Alumni Achievement and the Distinguished Alumni Awards from Washington University School of Medicine, as well as a Ladue Horton Watkins High School Distinguished Alumni Award. He is also a member of the American Society for Clinic

Dr. Mina Bissell is a Distinguished Scientist in the Life Sciences Division of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. She received her B.A. in Chemistry from Radcliffe College and a M.Sc. in Bacteriology and Biochemistry as well as a Ph.D. in Microbiology and Molecular Genetics from Harvard University. Afterward, Mina was awarded a Milton Postdoctoral Fellowship at Harvard University followed by an American Cancer Society Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of California, Berkeley. She started off at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory to study cell biology and cancer viruses and has dedicated over 40 years of her career to exceptional research there, rising through the ranks to her current position. Mina has received many awards and honors during her career. Just to name a few, she was awarded the highest award of the Department of Energy called the Lawrence Award, the Lifetime Achievement Prize from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the American Cancer Society's Medal of Honor, the Susan G.