Molecular Podcasting with Darren Lipomi
84 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 year ago -This podcast lifts the veil on all topics related to STEM in academia: research, teaching, writing, speaking, and other professional topics.
Darren Lipomi is a professor of nanoengineering, chemical engineering, and materials science at UC San Diego. He obtained his PhD in chemistry from Harvard in 2010 (w/ George Whitesides) and was a postdoc at Stanford in chemical engineering from '10-'12 (w/ Zhenan Bao). He is a recipient of the PECASE and became full professor in 2019.
Thanks to NSF CBET-1929748 for support. Views don't necessarily reflect those of NSF or UCSD.
Cover art bkg: Sam Root
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Episodes
#76 - How to write proposals for fellowships and grants
May 25, 2023 21:00 - 1 hour - 114 MBTopics include generating ideas, finding the right funding agency, working with program managers, the grant proposal as an experiment in psychology, what goes on behind closed doors, and how to write concisely and convincingly.
#75 – Hip Hop Scientist Maynard Okereke: Engineer to Science Communicator, Musician, & Video Personality
November 09, 2022 17:43 - 45 minutes - 84.1 MBI spoke in this episode with Maynard Okereke. Maynard is a trained civil and environmental engineer who has developed a second career in scientific communication for young people and particularly young people of color. He arrived at this interest from previous careers in engineering and then acting and music. He is also a seasoned entrepreneur, forgive the pun, with his own line of flavoring salt which are vegan and number one selling brand on Amazon. He is the host of hip-hop science...
#74 – Applying to Grad School: How to write a winning Statement of Purpose & explain a lower GPA
November 08, 2022 03:43 - 33 minutes - 61.8 MBIn this video, I discuss how to write an effective and engaging statement of purpose, how to structure your essay, and how to use your writing to compensate for potentially weaker sections of your application. Thanks to the California Forum for Diversity in Graduation Education for the Invitation to give this talk. This work was supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation CMMI-2135428. The views expressed are those only of the author and do not necessarily represent those of...
#73 – How do you know when you have enough data to publish? Plus, how to manage conflict with co-authors
November 05, 2022 23:20 - 49 minutes - 40.8 MBIn this talk, I discuss strategies for research and writing, how to know how much you should put in a paper, how to manage conflicts with co-authors, and how to respond to reviewers. Darren Lipomi, PhD Professor and Associate Dean for Students Jacobs School of Engineering, UC San Diego lipomigroup.org
#72 - Should humans be modified? How about plants or animals? The Environment? Q&A on bioethics
November 04, 2022 15:45 - 20 minutes - 37.4 MBThis is an unusual episode for me. Rather than responding to questions about graduate school, in this video, I responded to an interviewer performing an ethnographic survey about how researchers in bioengineering and bioengineering-adjacent fields view certain controversial subjects like human modification. 0:50 Would you be in favor of a prenatal treatment such that it would be possible for children to live 200 years? 2:04 What if we could guarantee no inequities, and anyone that would wa...
#71 - Ask a professor: how to vet applicants, deal w/ criticism, strategy in academia, & research funding
October 18, 2022 12:00 - 15 minutes - 27.9 MB0:00 How do you get your research published in high-impact journals? 2:05 Grad students and postdocs are busy. How do you vet undergraduate researchers so that they are productive and not breaking equipment? 3:56 I noticed that you had a mini MBA on your resume. How valuable do you think business training is in academia? 6:25 Can you describe ways in which criticism from your students has landed particularly heavy and changed your approach to teaching and mentoring? 9:58 What ...
#70 – What I wish I knew before becoming a professor: How to combine research, teaching, and service
October 17, 2022 01:31 - 46 minutes - 86.6 MBThe pillars of academia--research, teaching, and service--often seem like very separate activities. However, it can be really rewarding to find ways to make connections between these areas to get more out of parts of academic life that may seem mundane. Here are some thoughts I collected and delivered at the Asian American Association for Scientists and Engineers (AAASE) in October, 2022.
#69 - How I run my lab: check ins, hiring students, and promoting good culture and climate
September 28, 2022 21:24 - 19 minutes - 36.1 MB0:00 What does your group work on? 2:20 How is your work funded? 3:25 Is there one project or grant you’re especially excited about? 4:13 How many students are in your group? 4:25 Is that typical? 4:54 How do you communicate with your lab members? 6:01 The roundtable sounds like great idea, does that work well? 7:44 How long have you been doing the shoutouts? 8:16 How have shoutouts and other cultural elements you have implemented influenced climate in the lab? 9:08...
#68 - Managing Stress, Burnout, Anxiety, & Metal Health Challenges in Grad School in Academic Research
September 27, 2022 22:47 - 22 minutes - 40.8 MBIn this episode, I collected my responses to questions I received on a panel discussion hosted by the American Chemical Society. I redacted any names and read the questions myself. Here is the list of topics with timestamps. 0:28 What is your background and how did you become interested in mental health of academic researchers? 2:00 Is there something special about researchers that make them especially susceptible to mental health challenges? 4:39 We often hear that academics are not ...
#67 – My appearance on the Teach the Geek Podcast: My Academic Path, Postdocs & Public Speaking
July 11, 2022 17:59 - 30 minutes - 56.6 MBThis episode is a crossover with the Teach the Geek Podcast, hosted by Neil Thompson, engineer, author, podcaster, and speaking coach. Here, we discuss my academic path and approaches to public speaking. You can learn more about Neil at teachthegeek.com and askuncleneilbooks.com.
#66 – Darren discusses Code Breaker (Jennifer Doudna, CRISPR)–What Walter Isaacson gets right/wrong on scientific research
July 05, 2022 17:22 - 51 minutes - 95.9 MBThis is a bit of an unusual book review for the book The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race. I'm going to focus on Walter Isaacson's portrayal of how scientific research happens in academic settings and provide some context for the comments he makes on scientists, the scientific method, the role of competition, fundamental science vs. technology, and the philosophy of science. My brief bio: I did my PhD at Harvard in chemistry and postdoc in chem...
#65 – From the Caribbean to Computation: Chemistry, Engineering, & Nanoscience. Prof. Tod Pascal, UCSD
May 24, 2022 19:28 - 54 minutes - 102 MBIn this episode, I sat down with my colleague, Prof. Tod A. Pascal, of the Department of NanoEngineering and Chemical Engineering at UC San Diego. Tod developed an interest in computational materials science at a young age while growing up on the island of Grenada in the Caribbean. During his schooling, he spent significant time in Houston, New York, Philadelphia, Pasadena, South Korea, Japan, and Berkeley, before starting his lab at UCSD. In our wide-ranging discussion, we talk about ...
#64 – Is Organic Chem Necessary for Engineering? Chemistry vs. Chemical Eng, Flipped Classrooms & Teaching
March 18, 2022 23:40 - 33 minutes - 61.4 MBIn this episode, I cover a range of topics having to do with the role of organic chemistry in chemical and engineering education. I also share my thoughts on flipped classrooms, active learning, peer instruction, and other teaching methodologies.
#63 – Mentoring undergraduate researchers
March 01, 2022 21:43 - 46 minutes - 38.9 MBStudies show that engagement in undergraduate research is one of the surest predictors of retention and success of students in science and engineering. Unfortunately, graduate students and postdoctoral scholars assigned to mentor these students rarely receive training. In this episode, I discuss strategies you can use to mentor undergraduate researchers effectively. I draw from my own history as an undergraduate researcher, and my experience mentoring undergraduates at Harvard, Stanford, and...
#62 – Raychelle Burks: Science of crime investigation, consulting for Hollywood, & inclusive teaching
January 18, 2022 23:22 - 1 hour - 50.1 MBIn this episode, I sat down with Prof. Raychelle Burks of American University to discuss her career as a crime scene investigator, new approaches to field analytics, her side gig as a script consultant for movies, and approaches to inclusive teaching and mentoring. This episode is cross-posted with IDEAs in STEM Ed. Please consider subscribing there also for faster access and exclusive content. Thanks! Darren
#61 – How to ask for letters of recommendation for grad school, research positions, scholarships, & jobs
December 03, 2021 22:41 - 38 minutes - 70.7 MBEverything I know about writing, reading, and being asked for letters of recommendation. Excuse the sound quality of this Covid-era recording. I was speaking through a mask to a group of IDEA Scholars at UC San Diego. Learn more at jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/idea.
#60 – Harvard Mechanics Prof. Zhigang Suo, master scientific storyteller
December 02, 2021 22:58 - 56 minutes - 46.3 MBThis is a bonus episode from my new podcast, IDEAs in STEM Ed. I never charge for any of my content and don't monetize (though YouTube may), so if you've found this useful, please consider subscribing to the "IDEAs in STEM Ed" podcast on Spotify or Apple (https://open.spotify.com/show/6wnj0T4yiFbehk5eTtBF50?si=8080602ae33e4952), and to the IDEA Engineering Student Center on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiY4py9Yhn4dTRzPUO53ItqQ5tRmHN-or Thanks! Darren Zhigang Suo...
#59 – Eric Mazur: Flipped Classrooms, Peer & Active Learning, Textbooks vs Videos, & Remote Education
November 11, 2021 21:25 - 52 minutes - 97.9 MBMy guest today is Eric Mazur, professor of physics and applied physics at Harvard University. He is also a creator and entrepreneur in the area of technological resources for classroom teaching. He is known for his research in ultrafast optics and condensed matter physics, and also for his extensive work in the teaching methodology known as Peer Instruction. Attending one of his lectures on teaching as a graduate student was one of the formative experiences of my professional life. He i...
#58 – Bonus: Malika Jeffries-EL on being an insider, outsider, and improving access to STEM education
October 26, 2021 18:39 - 48 minutes - 90.4 MBThis is a bonus crossover episode to get some visibility for my new interview podcast, IDEAs in STEM Ed. If you've reached this episode, please do me a big favor and search for "IDEAs in STEM Ed" and subscribe! Everything I put up I do for free, and this will help me a ton. Thanks! Malika Jeffries-EL is a professor of chemistry and Materials Science and Engineering, and associate Dean of the graduate school, at Boston University. She is an organic materials chemist and polymer engineer ...
#57 – Bonus episode: Andrea Armani on Role Models, Effective Teaching, Grad Student Recruiting, & Project Selection
October 19, 2021 22:53 - 57 minutes - 106 MBThis is a bonus crossover episode to get some visibility for my new interview podcast, IDEAs in STEM Ed. If you've reached this episode, please do me a big favor and search for "IDEAs in STEM Ed" and subscribe! Everything I put up I do for free, and this will help me a ton. Thanks! In this episode of IDEAs in STEM Ed, Darren Lipomi sits down with Professor Andrea Armani. Andrea is the Ray Irani chair in Engineering and Materials Science and Professor of Chemical Engineering and Materials...
#57 – Bonus episode: Andrea Armani on teaching, mentoring, applying to grad school, & rethinking tenure
October 19, 2021 22:53 - 57 minutes - 106 MBThis is a bonus crossover episode to get some visibility for my new interview podcast, IDEAs in STEM Ed. If you've reached this episode, please do me a big favor and search for "IDEAs in STEM Ed" and subscribe! Everything I put up I do for free, and this will help me a ton. Thanks! In this episode of IDEAs in STEM Ed, Darren Lipomi sits down with Professor Andrea Armani. Andrea is the Ray Irani chair in Engineering and Materials Science and Professor of Chemical Engineering and Materials...
#56 – Thinking Like a Nobel Prize Winner: Into the Impossible with physicist Brian Keating
October 13, 2021 00:29 - 59 minutes - 53.9 MBMy guest in this episode--my first ever livestream--is my UCSD colleague, Professor Brian Keating. Brian is a Chancellor’s distinguished professor of physics at UC San Diego, co-director of the Arthur C Clarke Center for the imagination, host of the Into the impossible podcast, YouTuber with 30k subscribers, and writer of the scientific memoir “Losing the Nobel Prize.” Brian is joining me today to discuss his new book, Into the impossible, thinking like a Nobel prize winner. Lessons from Lau...
#55 – Why do professors travel so much? And, why I am trying to give most of it up (hint: baby and Covid).
September 14, 2021 23:05 - 20 minutes - 38.8 MBIn this episode, I discuss the reasons why science and engineering professors always seem to be on the road, including the good and bad aspects. For example, the joy and excitement of meeting old friends in new places and sharing scientific discoveries, as well as the sacrifices that one makes in terms of time with one's students and family. I'll also discuss why I believe most of this travel is gratuitous and hard to justify after the birth of a child and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
#54 – Frustrations of scientific publication & peer review & why we do it anyway: 100th paper spectacular
July 20, 2021 16:46 - 39 minutes - 72.9 MBThis is a highly personal, idiosyncratic, unrehearsed talk I gave to my own research group on scientific publication and peer review, when I was on the verge of 100 papers. I hesitated a long time in posting this, but I think it accurately represents my thinking on society vs. for-profit journals, the value-add of publishing, the harm done by careless referee reports, alternatives to traditional publication, and some thoughts on patents vs. publications.
#53 – Choosing a grad school and a lab + Q&A
July 16, 2021 21:02 - 49 minutes - 91.8 MBThis is the full version of my thoughts on choosing a grad school and a PI/lab. I gave this talk for the American Chemical Society East Bay California Section and the American Women in Science virtual seminar series, and the organizer was kind enough to let me repost my side of the presentation, here. The Q&A topics are as follows: 26:56 If the chances of getting a faculty position is only 5%, should I even bother if I don’t get into a top-10 school? 30:49 If we indicate diverse research i...
#52 – My best advice on writing: the "garlic, shallots, and butter" of effective scientific prose
June 22, 2021 18:13 - 14 minutes - 26.6 MBIn this episode, I read a short essay I wrote on effective scientific writing, with references to Strunk and White, Steven Pinker, and George Whitesides. The original article was published in Chemistry of Materials, 2021, 33, 11, 3865–3867, original publication date, June 8, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemmater... This reading was done with permission from the American Chemical Society.
#51 – Travel Stories from Hell - "Professor Unscripted" event at UCSD
June 21, 2021 18:57 - 50 minutes - 92.4 MBThis is my combination of travel diary plus comedy routine at the Loft at UC San Diego. Warning: this episode contains explicit language. The episode works without the slides, but if you're interested, there is also a YouTube version, located here https://youtu.be/RtLRrp7Gd9w
#50 – Primer on science startups, patents, and financing
June 01, 2021 18:35 - 48 minutes - 89.5 MBThis episode is a distillation of everything I learned being close to the founding of a few research-based startups and also my experience from Stanford Ignite (mini MBA program). This is a talk I gave to an undergraduate audience made up of students majoring in nanoengineering, chemical engineering, and bioengineering. I hope it serves as a primer on the language of startups that someone who has never heard of, e.g., "venture capital," can use to learn more.
#49 – Teaching, research, and podcasting – My interview on The Soft Matter Show with Amal Narayanan
May 31, 2021 21:38 - 1 hour - 132 MBThis episode is a cross-posting from The Soft Matter Show, hosted by Amal Narayanan. We covered many topics, including my responses to the following questions: You have worked in the Northeast and West Coast of the United States. Have you ever noticed any differences in the work culture across them? What were some of the deciding factors that inspired you to pursue a career in academia? How did you develop an interest in chemistry/chemical engineering? What was your experience working in...
#48 – Do I regret going into academia? Financing a lab, and can a lab go bankrupt?
May 27, 2021 22:22 - 29 minutes - 54.1 MBTopics covered in this episode: 0:00 The life of a professor sounds really stressful. Knowing what you know now, would you still go into academia? 4:21 Professors spend a lot of time writing grants and doing administration. Do you ever want to go into the lab and do experiments on the bench? 9:30 Where does a public university get its money and how is it distributed? 13:35 How much money does it cost to hire a graduate student, and how does this investment affect who you hire? 20:04 How...
#47 – What does a professor do? What is nanoscience? Introduction for high-schoolers
May 13, 2021 17:47 - 13 minutes - 24.3 MBIn this episode, I address the following questions. For a short video tour, see the accompanying video on YouTube "What does a professor do?" 0:05 What does a professor do? 1:29 Why did I want to be a professor? 2:57 What is a typical day like? 5:51 What is nanoscience? 8:56 What do you need to know to be a nonscientist? 10:12 What do you work on?
#46 – Ask a Prof. Anything 5: Public speaking, giving talks, Zoom vs live, and fidget items
May 10, 2021 07:00 - 26 minutes - 49.2 MBTopics addressed: 0:00 What’s easier, giving talks with slides or talks with no slides? 0:51 What are some strategies for avoiding non-words, like um, like, and so? 4:00 Is it calming to hold onto an object when giving a presentation? 5:42 What’s the best way to prepare for a Q&A session? 9:00 What level of complexity should you prepare your spoken remarks? 12:15 How do you get better at giving talks? 15:06 Is it possible to be too polished in your presentation style? 16:19 Are there...
#45 – Ask a Prof Anything 4: Thoughts on Writing and coming up with new ideas in research
May 07, 2021 07:00 - 27 minutes - 50.3 MBIn this episode, I respond to questions related to scientific writing, and coming up with new ideas in scientific research. To what extent should we minimize jargon in scientific writing? Is it acceptable to use literary techniques like metaphor in scientific writing? If I have a lot of data for a single figure, how do I organize it so that the figure isn’t overwhelming? Different readers are expecting to get different things from a paper. How do you organize the content, and what do you...
#44 – Conversation about stretchable polymer electronics and scientific legacies
May 04, 2021 21:37 - 18 minutes - 34.5 MBThis episode is a short conversation between me and my senior PhD student, Andrew Kleinschmidt, who had recently suffered a brain injury. As part of his rehabilitation, one of his assignments was to conduct an interview about science. We covered some pretty existential topics as well, including the question "if you got hit by a bus tomorrow, would you have done enough?"
#43 – Ask a Professor Anything III: Research values, advice from George Whitesides & Zhenan Bao, & Should you follow your passion?
April 30, 2021 01:10 - 41 minutes - 76.8 MBOne of my students interviewed me for a class on leadership. I was honored he chose me for this assignment. Here are some of the topics we covered: What were some formative experiences that influenced your career trajectory? Is it better to seek a range of experiences or to focus in a single area? What are the values that underlie effective leadership in research? Do you have a mentor or role model? What advice would you give to a college undergraduate about to enter the job market, esp...
#42 – Ask a Professor Anything II – Getting letters of rec, choosing a lab, dealing with frustration
April 29, 2021 16:18 - 24 minutes - 46.2 MBIn this episode, I share my thoughts on a variety of topics related to starting out in an undergraduate or graduate research lab. Whom should you ask for a letter of recommendation? How can you spot bad work environments? What are the red flags? How do you identify a positive fit? When do you know if you should drop a bad project? When applying to grad school, should I stay in the same field or try something different? How can you figure out what a lab is working on when you don’t ye...
#41 – Ching W. Tang, inventor of the first efficient OLED and OPV; reflections on industrial and academic innovation & advice for young researchers
April 06, 2021 01:57 - 15 minutes - 29.1 MBI did this introduction and interview with Prof. Ching W. Tang as part of the 2019 Kyoto Prize Symposium at UC San Diego, delayed until 2021 because of COVID-19. It was a real honor to chat with him about industrial research, the invention of the OLED, science in an international context, and advice for rising scientists.
#40 – Why I started Molecular Podcasting, its effects on my research, & advice for would-be science podcasters
April 03, 2021 22:28 - 21 minutes - 40.3 MBThis is the full-length interview I did for an article in Chemistry World on science podcasts.
#39 – JAWS: Providing a platform for the researchers who actually did the work
March 28, 2021 03:46 - 53 minutes - 99.4 MBIn this episode, I sat down with Prof. Daniela (Dani) Arias-Rotondo, Dr. Madison Fletcher, and Dr. Craig Fraser (absent: Dr. Monica Gill) on their creation, JAWS: Just Another [Chemistry] Webinar Series (https://jawschem.wixsite.com/home). Dani, Madison, and Craig discuss the origin of JAWS, its name, its mission, and the need for diverse voices to be heard among up-and-coming scientists.
#38 – Ask a professor anything: Virtual coffee hour with students
February 11, 2021 04:25 - 38 minutes - 71.2 MBNanoengineering students peppered me with questions of all types, and I responded with my wisdom, such as it is. Identities of the questioners have been redacted. We covered the following topics. How did you know you wanted to be a scientist? Why chemistry in particular? How are you trying to generate an inclusive community in the classroom during Covid? What aspects of remote work would you keep once life returns to normal? Did you develop any “Covid hobbies”? Are you working from home o...
#37 – Brandon Marin (II): What do Chemical Engineers and NanoEngineers do at Intel / semiconductor R&D
January 31, 2021 21:46 - 51 minutes - 95.6 MBIn his second appearance on the podcast, Brandon Marin (BS, Chemical Engineering, USC; MS/PhD Chemical Engineering & Nanoengineering, UCSD) describes his role as an R&D engineer at Intel. I learned a lot from this very wide ranging interview.
#36 – Alex Zaretski: co-founder & CTO of GrollTex on starting a company & quest for a real-life tricorder
January 25, 2021 19:03 - 54 minutes - 101 MBAliaksandr (Alex) Zaretski, PhD (UC San Diego, Nanoengineering, '16), is the Co-Founder and CTO of GrollTex, Inc., a leading supplier of graphene and other nanomaterials to the R&D market and developer of graphene-based electronic sensors. He has had a fascinating educational trajectory from studying linguistics in Belarus in the early 2000s to biomedical engineering and nanoengineering. He offers his insights here on entrepreneurship in the physical sciences, the importance of busines...
#35 – Materials Science in Haptics (part 2): Panel discussion, Darren Lipomi, Moderator
January 22, 2021 08:00 - 49 minutes - 91.6 MB(Part 2) This is a panel discussion on the topic of materials for haptics – technologies that interface with the sense of touch. We touch (pun intended) on a lot of topics, from the philosophy of haptics, the need for interdisciplinary collaboration, and future applications. The moderators are Darren Lipomi (UC San Diego), Benjamin Tee (National University of Singapore), and Yigit Menguc (Facebook). Panelists are Ed Colgate (Northwestern), Tania Moriomoto (UC San Diego), Charles ...
#34 – My experience as a volunteer in a COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial – Darren Lipomi, PhD
January 18, 2021 20:55 - 35 minutes - 65.8 MBIn this episode, I describe my experiences as a participant in the Oxford/AstraZeneca phase III clinical trial for the COVID-19 candidate vaccine, AZD1222. I discuss my motivation for volunteering, the process of enrolling, what it was like at the test site, side effects (not very serious) and issues surrounding blinding (i.e., vaccine vs. placebo) in vaccine trials.
#33 – Materials Science in Haptics: Panel discussion part 1 of 2, Darren Lipomi, Moderator
January 15, 2021 08:00 - 53 minutes - 98.2 MBThis is a panel discussion on the topic of materials for haptics – technologies that interface with the sense of touch. We touch (pun intended) on a lot of topics, from the philosophy of haptics, the need for interdisciplinary collaboration, and future applications. The moderators are Darren Lipomi (UC San Diego), Benjamin Tee (National University of Singapore), and Yigit Menguc (Facebook). Panelists are Ed Colgate (Northwestern), Tania Moriomoto (UC San Diego), Charles Dhong, Fabrizi...
#32 – Victoria Fu: Nanoengineer, Chemical Engineer, Entrepreneur, and co-founder of Chemist Confessions
January 08, 2021 08:00 - 50 minutes - 93.8 MBI sat down for an educational and inspiring conversation with Victoria Fu (UCSD BS in chemical engineering '12, MS in nanoengineering '13). Our wide-ranging conversation covered her upbringing and education, trajectory in the chemical and beautycare industries, the stories behind the founding of Chemist Confessions, and advice for young scientists and engineers headed out into the world on their own.
#31 – Olivia Graeve & Carlos Coimbra: Inclusion, Diversity, Excellence, & Achievement (IDEA Center) at UC San Diego
January 01, 2021 08:00 - 52 minutes - 97.1 MBAs part of the 10-year anniversary celebration of the IDEA Center in the Jacobs School of Engineering at UC San Diego, I sat down with its current and former Directors, Profs. Olivia Graeve and Carlos Coimbra. We discussed the founding of the center, its role in creating a culture of inclusion, and advice for individuals wishing to create something similar at their institutions. I have the distinct honor of taking over as Director in July of 2021, and thus really enjoyed this discussion! Yo...
#30 – How to get a paper accepted & some comments on peer review
December 22, 2020 18:20 - 54 minutes - 102 MBThese are my personal reflections on publishing papers, good practices, and the peer-review process in general. These opinions are my own and do not reflect those of UC San Diego or any organization but me. When I list my "career ratio" of reviews done to scientific papers published of 5:1, that is since starting my independent career, since almost half of my scientific output was as a student or postdoc, and I am not counting the reviews I did then.
#29 – Chemjobber: The chemical job market, effects of COVID, chemistry blogging, & connecting with an audience
December 08, 2020 03:13 - 51 minutes - 94.5 MBIn this conversation, I sat down with the enigmatic Chemjobber, one of chemistry's most prolific bloggers and commentators. Since 2008, CJ has amplified job postings to his readers and twitter followers, identified trends in the chemical job market, and provided commentary on a range of practical issues of interest to chemists and chemical engineers. He has nearly 30 thousand followers on Twitter and is the first resource to whom all it many of us in chemistry or chemistry-adjacent fie...
#28 - Tyler Cowen and I discuss innovation, directionality in history, art, music, touch & textiles, interviewing, and Star Trek
November 30, 2020 14:13 - 1 hour - 122 MBI was honored to get to spend an hour chatting with Prof. Tyler Cowen of George Mason University. Tyler is the author of several books on topics ranging from the value of commercial culture to economic stagnation in the US. Tyler is remarkable in his breadth of learning, intense curiosity, and freshness of his ideas. While he does not come from a background in the physical sciences and engineering, I nevertheless think he has a great deal to offer my audience, as I have learned an inestimabl...