BrynStorming Podcast

(En: 0:00-8:30; Fr: 8:31-18:35) Volunteer work that goes above and beyond our professional responsibilities can be important and meaningful; but it can also be an additional source of stress. So, we need to ask ourselves: Do I have the time, energy and skills for this volunteer work, given all those other things for which I’m already responsible? Le travail bénévole qui va au-delà de nos responsab...

(En: 0:00-4:55; Fr: 4:55-10:56) Academia is a creative exercise, so we often work best where and when the moment is right, when the creative juices are flowing - and that may not be 9-to-5. Your body will talk to you if you listen, telling you when you need a break. The trick is not to feel guilty. Le monde universitaire est un exercice créatif, c'est pourquoi nous travaillons souvent mieux lorsqu...

(En: 0:00-4:43; Fr: 4:44-10:25) Academia can be an important force to counter intolerance, misinformation, and injustice by sharing publicly the best research, conducted with intellectual rigour, and articulated with strong and transparent arguments. So why be a public academic? Because we can, and so we must. Le monde universitaire peut jouer un rôle important dans la lutte contre l'intolérance,...

(En: 0:00-2:16; Fr: 2:17-4:49) There are a wealth of academic resources to inform research and teaching in bioethics, but it can be a challenge navigating this sea of information, of finding the right tools. The following list is a starting point of general resources to grow your personal Bioethics toolbox. Il existe une multitude de ressources académiques pour informer la recherche et l'enseignem...

(En: 0:00-8:14; Fr: 8:15-18:19) Academics wanting to reach non-academic publics or to engage differently with students and colleagues should explore various approaches to knowledge transfer. Choose those platforms with which you’re comfortable, for which you have the energy and talent - and have fun sharing your ideas! Les universitaires qui souhaitent atteindre des publics non universitaires ou s...

(En: 0:00-4:54; Fr: 4:55-10:43) An academic CV - whether a PDF or in online platforms - is an important means to showcase yourself as an expert in the field, or as an emerging expert if still a student. It must document your successes and showcase your productivity, and it should be easy to read, engaging... and pretty! Un CV académique - qu'il s'agisse d'un PDF ou de plateformes en ligne - est un...

(En: 0:00-8:25; Fr: 8:26-18:44) Committee work is often seen as a necessary evil, something through which we have to suffer before getting back to what's important. But committees can actually be rewarding learning opportunities and means to contribute to our organizations: the challenge is figuring out which to accept to make this a positive experience...or at least not too painful. Le travail en...

(En: 0:00-7:35; Fr: 7:36-17:04) A free and vibrant media is fundamental to a healthy democracy, and as academics, we can help by sharing our expertise with journalists, who translate these ideas into the public space. But we need to accept that journalists are not academics, and they work with different objectives and time constraints. Acknowledge this, and you will have a rewarding media experien...

(En: 0:00-5:32; Fr: 5:33-12:23) A CV is a marketing tool to convince others that you merit a scholarship, a grant, a job. But it doesn't show what didn't work, nor help one reflect on why. If you accept that failure is an often-necessary prerequisite to success, then a "CV of failures" can be an important tool for honest and constructive self-critique. Un CV est un outil de marketing pour convainc...

(En: 0:00-4:26; Fr: 4:27-10:09) Time is a limited resource that must be shared between work and personal responsibilities. Think about both time and projects, and how much of the former is actually needed for the latter, and then plan when the latter can best be done. Experimentation can help identify the solution that works for you and supports finding balance between work and personal life. Le t...

(En: 0:00-1:56; Fr: 1:57-4:17) In the Fall, the academic year is starting and full of exciting possibilities, and we’re not yet exhausted. But there will also be unplanned requests (letters of reference, new grants, writing projects, etc.) and numerous obligatory meetings (and family responsibilities) that each use up our limited time and energy. So, remind yourself not take on new projects, becau...

(En: 0:00-3:32; Fr: 3:33-7:35) The optimist sees the glass as half full, the pessimist the glass half empty, while the pragmatist is having a drink... and the cynic sees the glass as broken. In a world that seems to be ever more on the edge of disaster, bioethicists and other academics can push for change by telling critical and even negative stories. But we also need to tell positive stories that...

(En: 0:00-8:33; Fr: 8:34-19:45) You can never be too paranoid when it comes to protecting your information systems. Now integral to our daily lives, these systems unfortunately still require individual responsibility, which is a major risk. To mitigate the risks from human laziness, we need systems that remove the responsibility from individuals: and good start is to demand and implement best prac...

(En: 0:00-5:18; Fr: 5:19-11:50) Graduation ceremonies are important for students and their families to mark notable accomplishments and key moments in life. When done badly - e.g., poor organization, with overly long speeches full of platitudes - these events are boring and simply a rite of passage to be endured. But when done well, they are uplifting and rewarding celebrations. Les cérémonies de...

(En: 0:00-4:41; Fr: 4:42-10:25) Most “normal” professors don’t want to be director – they do it because someone has to manage the department. But some people enjoy academic management, which is surprising when you consider these are not skills for which we are trained. To be able to spend 3-4 days/week doing mediation, problem solving, counselling, and being cheerleader (all of which I love!), I h...

(En: 0:00-4:34; Fr: 4:35-10:29) The university is an incredibly demanding environment, with a never-ending race for grants and publications, more teaching and committees, etc. It will take all the time and energy we give it, to our own detriment. So, it’s not surprising that burnout has reached a crisis point in universities. But the problem is not one of individuals who can't cope, who aren't str...

(En: 0:00-4:17; Fr: 4:18-9:44) One of the hardest lessons in academia is learning to say "No" to invitations to collaborate in research (grants, publications) or take on administrative or leadership responsibilities. Some are easy to refuse, but others are difficult to decline because they're exciting and rewarding opportunities. Saying "Yes" when already busy leads to overload and disappointment....

(En: 0:00-7:17; Fr: 7:18-16:13) The office is an important work space, but one where the quality (individual & windowed vs shared with no window) is often associated with seniority or institutional hierarchy. In the post-COVID reality of work from home, use and access to the office needs to be re-calibrated. People (and teams) will have different needs and preferences that cannot all be accommodat...

(En: 0:00-5:14; Fr: 5:15-11:35) Stepping outside the general theme of academic life, I reflect here on my internalization of social and cultural norms about acceptable dress, about the challenges of boundary crossing, and how what we wear can be a means of identity construction and (r)evolution. The case in point is how I've come to love wearing kilts, why I had to work up the courage to wear them...

(En: 0:00-3:31; Fr: 3:32-7:46) Bioethics has a long history of reflexivity and has shown an ability to continually reinvent itself. A meeting space for people from many different disciplines and interests, the field has expanded from an early focus on clinical and research ethics to include a panoply of specialties: genetics and ethics, health policy ethics, public health ethics, neuroethics, etc....

(En: 0:00-5:30; Fr: 5:31-12:15) While watching the news last weekend (May 6), I was struck by the incongruence of the extreme wealth on show at the Coronation of King Charles III, and the news ticker streaming below stories about wildfires, floods and the war in Ukraine. The dramatic disconnect with the realities of people suffering dramatic losses highlighted striking and depressing inequalities....

(En: 0:00-9:36; Fr: 9:37-21:23) Applying for highly competitive faculty positions is time consuming, stressful and depressing. Unfortunately, many candidates are not competitive because they've not been trained in how to apply or interview, and that's unfair. Drawing on my experience both applying for jobs and now sitting on selection committees, I’ve laid out some general Do and Don’t principles...

(En: 0:00-2:30; Fr: 2:31-5:35) It surprising how few people in academia take real vacations, even when they know it’s good for them. The summer or winter “vacation” periods get used for much needed catch-up. But academic life is a marathon and so we have to learn to pace ourselves. Focus on your mental health, completely disconnect for weeks at a time, and when you come back you’ll be energized an...

(En: 0:00-6:32; Fr: 6:33-14:55) The COVID isolation and enforced work-from-home (WFH) was extremely challenging... and it has changed how many of us now imagine what is a meaningful work experience. Differences in personality and life story mean that some (like me!) will love WFH, while others will hate it. But it is increasingly the new reality. Having a constructive WFH experience requires payin...

(En: 0:00-1:55; Fr: 1:56-4:23) The Fall academic term is always incredibly busy, and there will invariably be unexpected work that you cannot refuse. So as the spring term is ending, and time is finally opening up for our own projects (and vacation plans!), be very wary of accepting additional commitments for the Fall, which seems to far away. The Fall term will fill-up all by itself. Le trimestre...