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

Dr. Heather Berlin is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Visiting Scholar at the New York Psychoanalytic Society. She received her undergraduate education at the State University of New York, Stonybrook and her Master's degree in Psychology from The New School in New York. Heather was awarded a PhD in Experimental Psychology and Neuropsychology from Magdalen College within the University of Oxford and an MPH from Harvard University. Afterward, she accepted a National Institute of Mental Health postdoctoral fellowship in Psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine where she later joined the faculty. Heather has received many awards and honors during her career, including the Clifford Yorke Prize from the International Neuropsychoanalysis Society, the Phillip M. Rennick Award from the International Neuropsychological Society, and Young Investigator Awards from both the American Neuropsychiatric Association and the National Education Alliance for Borderline Personality Disorder. Heather is with us today to talk about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Nancy Mayo is the James McGill Professor in the Department of Medicine and the School of Physical and Occupational Therapy at McGill University (Division of Geriatrics and Division of Clinical Epidemiology). In addition, Nancy is a Research Scientist at the McGill University Hospital Center Research Institute where she leads a research program on Function, Disability and Quality of Life for vulnerable populations. She received her BSc in Physical Therapy from Queen's University and her MSc and PhD in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from McGill University. Nancy has received many awards and honors during her career. Among these, she was the recipient of the 2006 Paul Morley Award for Mentorship from the Canadian Stroke Network, was appointed to the McGill University Faculty of Medicine Honour List for Educational Excellence in 2009, received the 2012 Enid Graham Memorial Lecture Award, was awarded McGill University's 2014 Principal's Prize for Excellence in Teaching. Nancy is also a founding member of the Canadian Stroke Network and has served on the Board of Directors for the International Society of Quality of Life. Nancy is here with us today to tell us about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Lee Cronin is the Regius Professor of Chemistry at the University of Glasgow. He received his Bsc in Pure Chemistry with First Class Honors as well as his PhD in Inorganic Chemistry from York University. Afterward, he served as a Research Fellow at the University of Edinburgh, an Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellow, and a Lecturer at the University of Birmingham before joining the faculty at Glasgow University where he is today. Lee is an accomplished chemist who has been honored with many awards including recognition as one of the United Kingdom's top 10 Inspiring Scientists and Engineers by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council in 2014 and one of the top 100 United Kingdom practicing Scientists by the UK Science Council. He received the Royal Society of Chemistry's Corday Morgan Medal and Prize in 2012 and Tilden Prize for pure research in 2015. In addition, Lee is a member of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and recipient of the Royal Society's 2013 BP Hutton Prize for Energy Innovation for applied research. Lee is here with us today to tell us all about his journey through life and science.

Dr. Stephen Wolfram is the Founder and CEO of Wolfram Research. In addition, he is the creator of the Wolfram Language, the computational platform Mathematica, and the computational knowledge engine Wolfram Alpha, as well as the author of the bestselling book A New Kind of Science. Stephen attended Oxford University and he received his PhD in Theoretical Physics from the California Institute of Technology. Afterward, he joined the faculty at Caltech and became the youngest recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship. Later, he founded the Center for Complex Systems Research and joined the faculty at the University of Illinois. Shortly afterwards, he founded his current company Wolfram Research and has made substantial advances in mathematics, physics, and computation. Stephen is here with us today to tell us all about his experiences along the way in life and science.

Dr. Bonney is a Professor and Director of the Research Division in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at the University of Vermont. She received her Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Minnesota and went on to earn her MD from Stanford University. Afterward, Dr. Bonney completed her Residency at Harvard University followed by a Fellowship in Immunology at the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Bonney served on the faculty at Emory University before joining the faculty at the University of Vermont. She recently received her MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Bonney is a Fellow of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and has been awarded the Association of Professors of Obstetrics and Gynecology Teaching Award. Dr. Bonney is hear with us today to tell us about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Spencer Barrett is the University Professor, Canada Research Chair, and Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Toronto. He completed his Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Botany from the University of Reading in England and received his PhD in Botany from the University of California, Berkeley before joining the faculty at the University of Toronto. Spencer has received many awards and honors during his career, including being named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, a Fellow of the Royal Society of London, a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and an Extraordinary Professor by the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa. He has also received the Lawson Medal from the Canadian Botanical Association, Premier's Discovery Award for Life Sciences and Medicine from the Ontario Government, and the Sewall Wright Award from the American Society of Naturalists, among others. Spencer is here with us today to tell us all about his journey through life and science.

David is an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Biology at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He received his Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering and PhD in Mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He received a National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship to conduct research at New York University and worked afterward as an Instructor of Mathematics there before joining the faculty at Georgia Tech. David and his fascinating research have been featured in the media nationally and internationally including appearances in Discover Magazine, New York Times, USA Today, Scientific American, The Guardian, BBC, NPR, National Geographic, Cosmo and many others. David is here with us today to tell us all about his journey through life and science.

Dr. Kay Tye is an Assistant Professor of Neuroscience in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She received her undergraduate degree from MIT in Brain and Cognitive Sciences and her PhD in Neuroscience from the University of California, San Francisco. Afterward Kay conducted postdoctoral research at Stanford University before joining the faculty at MIT. Kay has received many awards and honors during her career, including the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression Young Investigator Award, the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award, and the MIT Whitehead Career Development Professorship, New York Stem Cell Foundation Robertson Investigator Award, and has just been named a McKnight Scholar, just to name a few. Kay is with us today to tell us all about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Lawrence Krauss is the Foundation Professor in the School of Earth and Space Exploration and Department of Physics and the as well as the Inaugural Director of the Origins Project at Arizona State University. He is also an accomplished author with popular books including A Universe from Nothing, Hiding in the Mirror, and The Physics of Star Trek. Lawrence received his PhD in Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and afterward served as a Junior Fellow in the Harvard University Society of Fellows. Lawrence was a member of the faculty at Yale University and Case Western Reserve University before joining the faculty at ASU where he is today. Lawrence is a distinguished scientist, and he has received many honors during his career for his exceptional research, writing, and teaching. I won't name them all today, but I will say that he is the first physicist to have been awarded the three most prestigious awards from the American Physical Society, the American Institute of Physics, and the American Association of Physics Teachers. Recently, he has also received the National Science Board 2012 Public Service Award. Lawrence is a fellow of the American Physical Society and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He has received an honorary doctorate from his undergraduate alma mater Carleton University. He has also just received the 2015 Humanist of the Year Award. Lawrence is here with us today to tell us all about his journey through life and science.

Dr. Vic Arcus is a Professor of Biological Sciences at the University of Waikato in New Zealand. He received his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Organic Chemistry from the University of Waikato and his PhD in Molecular Biology from Cambridge. Afterward, Vic became a fellow of Trinity College, and then served on the faculty at Auckland University before returning to Waikato where he is today. Vic is here with us today to tell us all about his journey through life and science.