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

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.

Dr. Jim Trefil is the Robinson Professor of Physics at George Mason University. He received his PhD in Physics from Stanford University. Postdoc at CERN in Geneva and at MIT. Jim served on the faculty at the University of Illinois and the University of Virginia before joining the faculty at George Mason University where he is today. Jim is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the World Economic Forum. He is also the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Science Writing Award and Andrew W. Germant Award from the American Institute of Physics, as well as the Westinghouse and Subaru Awards from the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He has authored numerous books for scientists and general audiences alike, including very recently the book Exoplanets: Diamond Worlds, Super Earths, Pulsar Planets, and the New Search for Life Beyond Our Solar System with co-author Dr. Mike Summers. Jim has joined us today to talk about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Aaron T. Dossey is the President, Founder, and Owner of All Things Bugs LLC, a company developing sustainable insect-based technologies and products in agriculture, food, and medicine. He is also the Founder and President of the Invertebrate Studies Institute and editor of the book Insects as Sustainable Food Ingredients. Aaron received his B.S. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Oklahoma State University. He was awarded his PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Florida College of Medicine and conducted postdoctoral research there afterwards. Aaron worked as a Research Entomologist for the United States Department of Agriculture for two years before launching his company. Aaron is here with us today to talk a little about his research and tell us all about his experiences in life and science.

Dr. Tessa Hill is an Associate Professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the University of California, Davis. She is part of the Bodega Ocean Acidification Research group there at the Bodega Marine Laboratory. Tessa received her B.S. in Marine Science from Eckerd College and her Ph.D. in Marine Science from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Next, Tessa was awarded a University of California President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship at UC Davis before joining the faculty there. Tessa has received many awards and honors during her career, including the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, as well as an NSF CAREER Award. She is also a Fellow of the California Academy of Sciences, an American Association for the Advancement of Science Leshner Public Engagement Fellow, and a panelist on the West Coast Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia Panel. Tessa is with us today to tell us about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Chase Spurlock is CEO of IQuity, a specialty diagnostic technology company in Nashville, TN, as well as a faculty member in Medicine at Vanderbilt University. He received his B.S. in Biology at the University of the South in Sewanee, TN. Chase then completed his PhD in Microbiology and Immunology at Vanderbilt University for which he was awarded the Sidney P. Colowick award for outstanding research. Chase is here with us today to talk about his research, his company, and his life.

Dr. Mike Summers is a Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at George Mason University. He majored in Physics, Mathematics, and Russian in his undergraduate studies at Murray State University. Afterwards, Mike was awarded his M.S. in Space Physics from The University of Texas at Dallas and later his PhD in Planetary Science from the California Institute of Technology. Mike next conducted postdoctoral research at Johns Hopkins University. He worked as a Research Physicist at the Naval Research Laboratory before accepting a position as a full time faculty member at George Mason University. Mike has received many awards, including the NASA Group Achievement Award: (as a part of the ) New Horizon Mission, as well as the Alan J. Berman Research Publication award from the Naval Research Laboratory. In addition, he is co-author of the recently published book Exoplanets: Diamond Worlds, Super Earths, Pulsar Planets, and the New Search for Life Beyond Our Solar System. Today, Mike joins us to discuss his life and science.

Dr. Melissa Franklin is the Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics at Harvard University. She completed her undergraduate studies in Physics at the University of Toronto and received her PhD in Physics from Stanford University. Next, Melissa conducted research as a postdoctoral fellow at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. She served on the faculty of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and was a Junior Fellow in the Society of Fellows at Harvard before joining the faculty there. Melissa has been named a Fellow of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and a Fellow of the American Physical Society, and she has been awarded the Spark Award for Women in Science from the Women in Science at Harvard-Radcliffe, as well as a Doctorate Degree in Law from Queens University in Canada. Melissa is with us today to tell us all about her journey through life and science.

Dr. Christy Haynes is the Elmore H. Northey Professor of Chemistry at the University of Minnesota. She completed her undergraduate studies in Chemistry at Macalester College and received her MS and PhD in Chemistry from Northwestern University. Next, Christy was awarded a National Institutes of Health National Research Service Award Post-Doctoral Fellowship to conduct research at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. She joined the faculty at the University of Minnesota in 2005. Christy has received many awards and honors for her research, including the Sara Evans Faculty Woman Scholar/Leader Award, the Taylor Award for Distinguished Research from the University of Minnesota, the Kavli Foundation Emerging Leader in Chemistry Lecturship, the Pittsburgh Conference Achievement Award, the Joseph Black Award from the Royal Society of Chemistry, an Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship, the Arthur F. Findeis Award for Achievements by a Young Analytical Scientist from the American Chemical Society Division of Analytical Chemistry, the Society for Electroanalytical Chemistry Young Investigator Award, the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, the NIH New Innovator Award, the NSF CAREER Award, and the Victor K. LaMer Award from the American Chemical Society Division of Colloid and Surface Science. In addition, Christy has been recognized for her excellence in mentoring through receipt of the Advising and Mentoring Award and the Outstanding Postdoctoral Mentor Award both from the University of Minnesota. She has also been listed among the Top 100 Inspiring Women in STEM from Insight into Diversity magazine, the Analytical Scientist's “Top 40 Under 40” Power List, and one of the “Brilliant 10” chosen by Popular Science magazine. Christy is with us today to share stories from her journey through life and science.

Dr. Daniel Lewis is an Associate Professor In the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He received his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. each in Materials Science and Engineering from Lehigh University. Afterwards, he was awarded a National Research Council postdoctoral fellowship to work at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Before joining the faculty at Rensselaer, Dan conducted materials science research at GE Global Research. Dan was the recipient of an NSF CAREER Award, as well as a the International Metallographic Contest Jacquet-Lucas Award. He is here with us today to talk about his research and give us an inside look at his experiences in life and science.