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

Dr. Randy Blakely is a Professor of Biomedical Science at Florida Atlantic University and Executive Director of the Florida Atlantic University Brain Institute. Randy lives in beautiful South Florida near the Everglades, so getting outside to enjoy nature and observe the local wildlife is a lot of fun there. He also spends his time reading, listening to audiobooks during his commutes, and listening to Americana and folk music. In the lab, Randy studies how chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters work. He is examining how neurons control neurotransmitter signaling, as well as how medicinal drugs and drugs of abuse impact neurotransmitters and ultimately behavior. Randy received his B.A. in Philosophy from Emory University and his Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He next conducted postdoctoral research at the Yale/Howard Hughes Medical Institute Center for Molecular Neuroscience. Randy was an investigator and faculty member at Emory University and Vanderbilt university before accepting his current position at Florida Atlantic University. Randy is the recipient of numerous awards and honors for his research and mentorship. He was awarded the Daniel Efron Award from the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, two Distinguished Investigator Awards from the Brain and Behavioral Research Foundation, a MERIT Award from the National Institute of Mental Health, a Zenith Award from the Alzheimer’s Association, the Delores C. Shockley Partnership Award in recognition of minority trainee mentorship, as well as the Astellas Award in Translational Pharmacology and the Julius Axelrod Award both from the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. In addition, he is a Fellow of the American Academy for the Advancement of Science. Randy joins us in this episode to talk more about his life and science.

Dr. Kristen Lynch is a Professor and Chair of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the University of Pennsylvania. When she’s not at work, Kristen loves being outdoors. She spends her free time kayaking, paddle boarding, biking, hiking, and doing yoga. Kristen’s research focuses on alternative splicing of genes. She is investigating how cells decide when to use an entire portion of the DNA instruction manual versus when to exclude parts of the instructions that are not useful or would be harmful. In particular, Kristen is interested in alternative splicing in the immune system and what happens when cells are faced with an immune challenge. She received her B.A. in biochemistry and her Ph.D. in biochemistry from Harvard University. Afterwards, Kristen pursued postdoctoral training at the University of California, San Francisco. She served on the faculty at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center prior to joining the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania in 2009. Kristen is the recipient of many awards and honors for her work, including a National Science Foundation CAREER Award. She joined us for an interview to talk about her experiences in life and science.

Dr. Alan Goldberg is a Professor in Environmental Health Sciences at The Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health as well as Founding Director (Emeritus) of The Johns Hopkins Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing. In addition, he is Principal of Global Food Ethics at Johns Hopkins University. In his free time, Alan enjoys traveling, going for walks, being out in nature, and visiting farms. Alan is developing a program that will allow foods that have been produced ethically to be certified. They are also creating an associated information program that will act as a template for industry to enhance their efforts related to food ethics, as well as serve as a consumer information database that will help informed consumers find out more about the ethical issues they are interested in related to different food products. These ethical issues include environmental and resource conservation, labor and small holder farms, animal welfare, and public health and well-being. They will be able to certify foods based on these categories and help people in industry understand how to meet these standards. Alan received his B.A. in pharmacy from the Brooklyn College of Pharmacy. He spent a year at the University of Wisconsin working as a predoctoral trainee in Pharmacology before beginning his Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota. Alan conducted postdoctoral research and then served on the faculty at Indiana University before joining the faculty at The Johns Hopkins University in 1969. He has received numerous awards and honors for his accomplishments including being named a Member of the ALEXANDRA Project, Monaco, as well as receipt of the Lifetime Dedication Award, Korean National Center: Patron of the 3Rs from the Alternatives Trust at the 7th World Congress , The State of Maryland Governor’s Citation, the Doerenkamp Zbinden Foundation Award, Society of Toxicology Enhancement of Animal Welfare Award, Ambassador of Toxicology Award from the Mid-Atlantic Society of Toxicology, an honorary doctorate degree from Long Island University, the Distinguished Alumni Award from Long Island University, and he was the first recipient of the Humane Society of the United States’ Russell and Burch Award. In this interview Alan shares more about his life and science.

Dr. Alex Spyropoulos (“Dr. Spy”) is a Professor of Medicine at the Hofstra Northwell School of Medicine as well as System Director of Anticoagulation and Clinical Thrombosis Services for the multi-hospital Northwell Health System. In addition, Dr. Spy is a Professor of the Merinoff Center for Patient-Oriented Research as part of the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. Dr. Spy loves spending time with his wife and his young kids. Lately, they’ve been enjoying apple picking, hay rides, pumpkin carving, and apple carving. His other hobbies include sailing, snowboarding and mountain biking. As a thrombologist, Dr. Spy studies blood clots. Many people worldwide are either at risk for blood clots or have existing clots. He focuses on venous thromboembolism primarily in the lungs and legs. These blood clots could cause morbidity or mortality, and many people are not familiar with the risks, common symptoms, or the situations in which clots may occur. He received his MD from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and he completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center. Dr. Spy is a recipient of the Lovelace Clinic Foundation Excellence in Education Award, as well as a Fellow of the American College of Physicians, the American College of Chest Physicians, the International Academy of Clinical and Applied Thrombosis/Haemostasis, and the Royal College of Physicians in Canada. In this interview, he speaks with us about his life and science.

Dr. Ellen Arruda is the Maria Comninou Collegiate Professor of Mechanical Engineering with joint appointments as Professor of Biomedical Engineering, as well as Macromolecular Science and Engineering at the University of Michigan. Ellen’s hobbies include running, cooking, and knitting. Running is one of her favorite ways to get exercise and generate great ideas for her work. She is a skilled sweater knitter who learned how to crochet from her mother and picked up knitting from her mother-in-law. Ellen studies the mechanical behavior of soft materials, including polymers, plastics, and soft tissues of the body. Her research group focuses on understanding how to design with soft materials so the materials don’t break in different applications, as well as how to design replacements for soft tissues in our bodies when they are damaged. She received her B.S. with Honors in Engineering Science and her M.S. in Engineering Mechanics from Pennsylvania State University. Ellen was awarded her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She joined the faculty at the University of Michigan afterwards in 1992. Ellen has received numerous awards and honors for her outstanding research, teaching, and service, including the Ann Arbor Spark Best of Boot Camp award, the Excellence in Research Award from the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, the Ted Kennedy Family Team Excellence Award from the University of Michigan College of Engineering, the Research Excellence Award from the College of Engineering at the University of Michigan, the Cadell Memorial Award, the Outstanding Engineering Alumnus Award from the Pennsylvania State University, the Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award from the University of Michigan, and the Trudy Huebner Service Excellence Award from the College of Engineering at the University of Michigan. Ellen is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the American Academy of Mechanics, and the Society of Engineering Science. She was also named a Centennial Fellow of the Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics at Pennsylvania State University. She was also recently named a Member of the National Academy of Engineering. Ellen joined us for an interview to discuss her experiences in her career, her life, and her engineering research.

Dr. John Kress is a Distinguished Scientist and Curator of Botany at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History. Not only does John enjoy investigating the natural world at work, he also enjoys spending his free time outside exploring nature. John often goes on walks or hikes with his wife and dog to see nature in action. In addition, John is an avid gardener. Among the plants he cultivates in his own yard are some of the ginger and banana plants that he studies. John’s research involves exploring the natural world and all the organisms that make up the natural world. Since graduate school, he has been exploring different areas, particularly tropical areas, to determine what grows there now, what grew there in the past, and how the plants and animals there interact. John received his B.A. in biology from Harvard University and his Ph.D. in botany from Duke University. John formerly served as the Interim Undersecretary for Science for the Smithsonian Institution, Executive Director of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation, and Director of the Consortium for Understanding and Sustaining a Biodiverse Planet, which is one of the four grand challenges of the Smithsonian Institution’s strategic plan. He is also Chairman of the Board of the Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS) and an Affiliate Faculty member at George Mason University. He has previously served as an Adjunct Professor at George Washington University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Among John’s awards and honors are receipt of the Parker-Gentry Award for Biodiversity and Conservation from the Field Museum of Natural History, the Lifetime Achievement Award from Heliconia Society International, and the Edward O. Wilson Biodiversity Technology Pioneer Award for Co-Development of Leafsnap - the First Mobile App for Plant Identification. John is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and an honorary Fellow of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation. He joined us in this interview to discuss his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Mark Saffman is a Professor in the Department of Physics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. For Mark, physics is a hobby as well as his job. When he’s not thinking about physics, Mark likes spending time with his family, including his young kids. Getting outside and spending time in nature is a great way for Mark to relax and unwind. Mark’s research focuses on quantum computing. He and his colleagues are trying to build a new kind of computer called a quantum computer that can solve some kinds of problems that are unreachable for current supercomputers. A quantum computer uses individual atoms and has power that exceeds what you can do with known classical computing approaches. Mark received is B.Sc. with honors in Applied Physics from the California Institute of Technology. Mark worked as a Technical Staff Member at TRW Defense and Space systems and subsequently an Optical Engineer at Dantec Electronics Inc. in Denmark before going back to graduate school to earn his Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Next, Mark worked as a Senior Scientist at Riso National Laboratory in Denmark before joining the faculty at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Mark has received many honors and awards during his career including the Vilas Associate Award from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, an Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship, as well as the Research and Creative Work and the William Walter Jr. Awards from the University of Colorado. In addition, he has been named a Fellow of the Optical Society of America and a Fellow of the American Physical Society. Mark has joined us in this interview to talk about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Erica Golemis is a Professor, Deputy Chief Science Officer, Co-Leader of the Molecular Therapeutics Program, and Director of the High Throughput Facility at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. In addition, Erica is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University School of Medicine, and the Temple University Lewis Katz School of Medicine. When Erica finds free time, one thing she loves to do is read. She reads broadly and has been an avid reader since her early childhood. Erica also has fun attending theatre performances. There are multiple excellent theaters in her home city of Philadelphia, and she especially enjoys shows by British playwright Tom Stoppard. For most of her scientific career, Erica has been conducting cancer research. Her recent work investigates why some cancers are particularly malignant. She completed her undergraduate studies in biology and English at Bryn Mawr College and was awarded her PhD in biology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Afterwards, Erica conducted postdoctoral research at the Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Molecular Biology and Harvard Medical School department of Genetics before joining the Fox Chase Cancer Center. In this interview, Erica speaks about her experiences in both life and science.

Dr. Gary May is the Chancellor of the University of California, Davis. When he’s not focusing on his own research, Gary helps facilitate and support the work of others at the University of California, Davis through his role as Chancellor. In his personal life, Gary enjoys spending time with his wife and two kids. As a researcher, Gary is an electrical engineer, and his work focuses on semiconductor manufacturing. Integrated circuits or computer chips are in a lot of the technology we interact with on a daily basis including our phones, cars, and TVs. He is working to make the manufacturing of these integrated circuits more reliable, repeatable, affordable, and efficient. He received his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and was awarded his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of California at Berkeley. Gary was a National Science Foundation and an AT&T Bell Laboratories graduate fellow, and he worked as a member of the technical staff at AT&T Bell Laboratories. He subsequently served as a faculty member in Electrical and computer Engineering at Georgia Tech, Executive Assistant to Georgia Tech President, and later the Steve W. Chaddick School Chair of the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Before coming to the University of California, Davis, Gary held the position of Dean of the Georgia Tech College of Engineering. He has received numerous awards and honors throughout his career including the Presidential Award for Excellence in STEM Mentoring, Outstanding Alumni Award in Electrical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, the American Association for the Advancement of Science Mentor Award, the National Society of Black Engineers Golden Torch Award: Janice A. Lumpkin Educator of the Year, the Motorola Foundation Professorship at Georgia Tech, an honorary doctorate degree from the Latin University of Panama, and many others. Gary has also been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and an IEEE Fellow. Gary has joined us today to talk about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Sarah Bergbreiter is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering with a joint appointment in the Institute for Systems Research at the University of Maryland. Spending time with her family is a big part of Sarah’s life outside of work. She has two kids who are two and four years old, and they enjoy swimming, playing with legos, and building things. Sarah also spends her free time swimming and playing water polo. Sarah’s research involves building and conducting experiments with tiny mobile robots that are about the size of ants. They also use the same technologies in their tiny robots to build better sensors and actuators for bigger robots to help improve performance of these robots. She received her B.S.E. degree in electrical engineering from Princeton University and was awarded her M.S. and Ph.D degrees in electrical engineering from the University of California at Berkeley where she focused on microrobotics. Sarah has been the recipient of multiple awards for her outstanding work including the DARPA Young Faculty Award, an NSF CAREER Award, the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, and Sarah gave a TED Talk in 2015. Sarah joins us for an interview to discuss her life and work.