People Behind the Science Podcast - Stories from Scientists about Science, Life, Research, and Science Careers (general)

Dr. Zach Eilon is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth Science at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and he is also conducting research at Brown University. He hails from the United Kingdom where he completed his undergraduate and masters degrees in Natural Sciences at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. Afterwards, he was awarded the Herchel Smith Scholarship to attend Harvard University for a year for a Special Studentship. Zach was next received his MPhil and PhD in Seismology from Columbia University. He recently completed his position as a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Brown University. Zach has joined us today to talk about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Jennifer Wilcox is an Associate Professor in Chemical and Biological Engineering at the Colorado School of Mines and an Investigator within the Clean Energy Conversions Laboratory there. She received her bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Wellesley College and her PhD in chemical engineering from the University of Arizona. She served on the faculty at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute and at Stanford University before joining the faculty at the Colorado School of Mines. Jen has received numerous awards and honors, including an Army Research Office Young Investigator Award, an American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund Young Investigator Award, and an NSF CAREER Award. She also was awarded the Stern Award for Distinguished Paper from the Journal of the Air and Waste Management Association. Jen is with us today to tell us all about her life and science.

Dr. Andrew Alleyne is the Ralph and Catherine Fisher Professor in the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, as well as the Director of the National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center on Power Optimization for Electro-Thermal Systems (POETS) headquartered there. Andrew grew up in Jamaica and came to the United States when he was in high school. He received his B.S. in Engineering degree in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Princeton University. He went on to study Mechanical Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley where he was awarded his M.S. in Engineering and Ph.D. degrees. In 1994, Andrew joined the faculty at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he remains today. Andrew has received many awards and honors throughout his career, including an NSF CAREER award, the Xerox Award for Faculty Research, a Fulbright Fellowship, and the SAE International Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award. In addition, Andrew was also named a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and he has received their Gustus Larson Award, Charles Stark Draper Award for Innovative Practice, and Henry Paynter Outstanding Investigator Award. Andrew has joined us today to talk about his experiences in life and research.

Dr. James Landers is a Jefferson Scholars Fellow and Commonwealth Professor of Chemistry, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, and Associate Professor of Pathology at the University of Virginia. He is also Director of the Center for Nano-Biosystems Integration. He received his B.S. and Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Guelph in Canada. Afterwards, James conducted postdoctoral research at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, the University of Toronto School of Medicine, and the Mayo Clinic. He served on the faculty at the University of Pittsburgh before joining the faculty at the University of Virginia where he is today. James has been awarded the University of Virginia’s Jefferson Scholars Award for Excellence in Teaching, and he has been named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry. He has joined us today to talk about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Richard M. Myers is the President, Science Director, and a Faculty Investigator at HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology. In addition, Rick is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Genetics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He received is B.S. in biochemistry from the University of Alabama and his Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of California, Berkeley. Afterwards, Rick conducted postdoctoral research at Harvard University. He served on the faculty at the University of California, San Francisco as well as at Stanford University where he contributed substantially to the efforts to sequence the human genome as part of the Human Genome Project. Rick accepted his current position at HudsonAlpha in 2008. He has received many awards and honors throughout his career including an Honorary Doctorate Degree from the University of Alabama, the Blount Initiative Award from the University of Alabama, the Pritzker Foundation Award from the University of Michigan, and the Darden Lecture Award from the University of Alabama. He has also been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Rick has joined us today to talk about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Marcie Harris-Hayes is an Associate Professor in the Program in Physical Therapy and Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine. She received her Bachelor's degree in biology from Missouri State University and was awarded her Master’s degree in Physical Therapy from Northwestern University. Marcie then worked as a physical therapist at Barnes-Jewish Hospital before joining the faculty at Washington University in St. Louis. While serving on the faculty at Washington University, she completed her doctoral degree in Physical Therapy (DPT) as well as a Master’s degree in Clinical Investigation (MSCI). Marcie is with us today to tell us all about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Young-Hui Chang is a Professor of Biological Sciences at Georgia Institute of Technology where he directs research in the Comparative Neuromechanics Laboratory. Young-Hui received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and his M.S. in Animal Physiology from Cornell University. Next, he conducted his doctoral studies at the University of California, Berkeley, earning his PhD in Integrative Biology in 2000. Prior to joining the faculty at Georgia Tech, Young-Hui was a postdoctoral researcher at Emory University. While at Emory, he was awarded the Association of Korean Neuroscientists President Outstanding Research Hanwha Award. Young-Hui has also been awarded an NSF CAREER Award. He has joined us today to talk about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Joshua Z. Rappoport is Director of the Center for Advanced Microscopy and Nikon Imaging Center as well as Research Associate Professor of Cell and Molecular Biology at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. In addition, he is the author of the recently published book The Cell: Discovering the microscopic world that determines our health, consciousness, and our future. Josh completed his undergraduate studies in Biology at Brown University, and he received his PhD from the Mount Sinai Graduate School of Biological Sciences of New York University. Afterwards, Josh conducted an NIH National Research Service Award postdoctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University and subsequently served on the faculty at the University of Birmingham before coming to Northwestern University. Josh was the recipient of a Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) New Investigator Award, and his research has also been supported by the EU and other UK Research Councils. Josh has joined us to talk about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Dominic D’Agostino is an Associate Professor in the Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology at the University of South Florida. He is also a Research Scientist Institute for Human and Machine Cognition. Dominic received his B.S. in Nutritional Sciences and Biological Sciences as well as his Ph.D. in Neuroscience and Physiology at Rutgers University. Afterwards, Dom conducted postdoctoral research at Wright State University and at the University of South Florida before joining the faculty at the University of South Florida. Dom is here with us today to talk about his research and tell us about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Debbie G. Senesky is an Assistant Professor in the Aeronautics and Astronautics Department at Stanford University. She received her B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southern California. Debbie was next awarded her M.S. and PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. Before joining the faculty at Stanford, Debbie held positions at GE Sensing, the Berkeley Sensor and Actuator Center, GE Global Research Center, Hewlett Packard, and Delphi Automotive Systems. In recognition for her excellence in research, Debbie has received many awards and honors, including an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Ph.D. Fellowship, a Galiban Faculty Fellowship at Stanford University, the Frederick E. Terman Faculty Fellowship at Stanford University, and the Space Technology Early Faculty Award from NASA. Debbie is with us today to tell us about her life and science.