Breaking Silos

Marc "Marky" Mason (B.S. Chemical engineering, Ph. D. student in Environmental Engineering) discusses harmful PFAS chemicals, their proliferation in our drinking water, and how he is on the frontline to end them!

Embark on a journey into the realm of science communication with Erin Welsh, co-host of the highly acclaimed "This Podcast Will Kill You." Join hosts Prakrit & Scott for a Quarantini and Placeborita as they delve into Erin's transition from epidemiologist to passionate science communicator. Uncover the intriguing origin story of "The Erins" and their mission to demystif...

What is gravity? How was it explained by Newton, and how did Einstein improve our understanding of it with his theory of General Relativity? Peyton Stewart (Masters in Physics, Clemson University) joins us to explore the strange relationship between shape, matter, and energy. Peyton Stewart on LinkedIn Follow us on Instagram and Twitter Paper on black holes and dark energy here If any glaring erro...

Self-described lizard biologist and evolution enthusiast, Matt McTernan has been awarded numerous grants and proposals while pursuing his Ph. D. at Clemson University. We sit down and discuss crazy beers, his research, and how you can improve the way you write your grants! Enjoy! Get the Ghost pepper stout here ! Breaking SilosTwitter: @SilosBreaking (link)Instagram: Interdisciplinarysilos Matt Mc...

In this week's episode, we delve into the world of first-generation graduate students. In this thought-provoking conversation, Scott and Prakrit engage with Misty Stewart, Director of Student Success at the Clemson Graduate School, and Melanie Garcia, a PhD student in Biological Sciences. Discover the challenges faced by first-generation students in higher education, from financial constraints...

In this week's episode, Prakrit discusses with Dr. Chelsea Murdock, the Director of the Clemson Writing Lab and Lecturer in the English Department at Clemson University, about the struggles of teaching undergraduates how to write well. We also discuss Dr. Murdock's "process-driven pedagogy" in teaching undergraduate and graduate writing. If you are a graduate student in writing m...

Jack Carson (genetics/computer science) joins us to discuss his company geneTunes, a computer software program that converts genetic nucleotides into art and music. geneTunes won the 2022 Clemson College of Science inaugural Catalyst competition, an entrepreneurship program where students pitch ideas for seed funding, and then develop their ideas into a minimum viable product. Enjoy! Don't forget...

Matt McTernan, a PhD student in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology in the Biological Sciences program at Clemson University, joins us for a conversation to discuss the anatomy of a winning travel grant! In this episode, we refer to the Graduate Student Travel Grants from the Clemson University Graduate Student Government, but these tips are applicable to any travel grant. We hope you find this episode...

Kyle Christenson (Industrial and Organizational Psychology) joins us for an amazing conversation about  how to operationalize something like trust, whether fewer disruptive papers is good or bad for science, and how to incorporate interdisciplinary problem solving in graduate school. Enjoy! Don't forget to check us, and Kyle, out on social media Breaking Silos Twitter: @ SilosBreaking Instagr...

Dr. William McCoy (history, English, education) joins us to discuss having an egg on pizza, ethics, morality, and his long history of making wonderful acronyms. Enjoy! Dr.  McCoy's Clemson Bio: https://www.clemson.edu/ethics/about/staff.html Rutland Institute for Ethics: https://ethics.sites.clemson.edu Clemson Global Black Studies: https://www.clemson.edu/degrees/global-black-studies STAR me...

Dr. Alex Feltus of Clemson University's Department of Genomics and Biochemistry joins us to discuss his diverse career background, his company, academia, and the varied projects he has worked on which involved bringing together a team of people with very different areas of expertise. Enjoy! See Dr. Feltus' Company Website and Podcast here:  Praxis AI: https://www.prxai.com Biohackers Podcast:...

Randa Johnson, Clemson University's Assistant Director of Graduate Programs and Off-Campus Internships, and Prakrit discuss applying to graduate school, co-ops, internships, and jobs from the perspective of an administrator. Randa is also excited to promote Clemson University's spring Career Fair happening February 6th, in Littlejohn Coliseum. Hope to see you there! Grad Student Resources:  h...

We are joined by two freshly minted Ph. D.s: Ricardo (sustainable agriculture) and Victoria (neurobiology). Cory (atmospheric physics), a first semester student in the physics department also joins us. The first two share their experience and wisdom (which you magically get at the end of your time in grad school) and the latter shares advice, as well as the hopes he has for his own Ph. D. journey....

We are joined by David Sanders (physics) and discuss application to graduate school: the process, the pain, and lessons learned along the way. For an inside look into the first step on the path to graduate school, tune in and enjoy! DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this podcast are only held by those who say them and do not reflect those held by Clemson University.