GradCast

In this installment of the #TheScoopOnSOGS miniseries, host Maris Schneider is joined by Anthony Cruz, a PhD Candidate in Western's Department of Psychology who currently serves as the Vice-President Academic at the Society of Graduate Students (SOGS). Listen to this episode to learn about Anthony's research, background, and roles at SOGS. Recorded on September 16, 2025.  Produced by Anthony Cruz....

What's a better way to start off the school year than with a brand new mini-series! GradCast is teaming up with Learning, Development and Success , out of Western Student Experience, to talk to experts on campus who support graduate students in doing research, writing theses, and have all the tips and tricks to succeed in grad school!  In our first episode, hosts Chrishma Perera and Ryan Baxter ch...

Join us for the 7th episode of our collaboration with Inspiring Minds, which is a campus-wide partnership between  Western Research , the  School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies , the  Writing Support Centre ,  Western Libraries ,  Student Experience , and Western's  11 faculties . Inspiring Minds seeks to broaden awareness and impact of graduate student research while enhancing transferable...

Hosts Anthony Cruz and Scott Walters chat with Anemily Machina, a PHD candidate in Computer Sciences. Anemily puts our hosts on the spot with a word association game as part of summarizing their work on explainable AI, the limits of large language models (LLMs), and the risks of the ongoing AI bubble. For even more from Anemily on this topic, consider watching their two part series, available on Y...

In this week’s episode, hosts Krishna Pereira and Anthony Cruz interview Sydney Holland, a second-year PhD student in Anthropology at Western University. Sydney’s research focuses on bioarchaeology, using human remains such as teeth and bones to study life in the past. Sydney Holland explores the lives of past communities through the lens of bioarchaeology. Her research focuses on how infant feedi...

In this week's episode, hosts Riya Sidhu and Ryan Baxter interview Sarah Park, a student in the combined  MScOT/PhD program in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences.  Parkinson's disease can have a deleterious effect on walking, or gait. Left untreated, worsening gait (such as uneven pacing, or irregular steps) can lead to negative outcomes, such as falls. Sarah discusses her research in non-pharmaco...

In this week's episode, hosts Bruno Mesquita and Garth Casbourn interview Ben Pilling a Master’s student in Psychology.  Ben shares how he plans to build on the classic motor homunculus model using video games in the fMRI throughout his Master's. He also discusses the benefits and considerations of making research more ecologically valid. Recorded on Tuesday, August 12, 2025. Produced by Riya Sidh...

Hosts Ryan Baxter and Chrishma Perera chat with Caitlin Fitzpatrick, a MSc student about to defend her master's in Neuroscience. Caitlin returns to GradCast to discuss her findings into the emotional connection between music and memory, specifically in older adults experiencing "normal" forgetting or mild cognitive impairment. If you'd like to register as a prospective research participant with Ou...

Hosts Ryan Baxter and Maris Schneider chat with Geneva Herold, a MSc student in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology. Geneva studies patients who are at high risk of developing osteoarthritis in their knees due to a previous injury, like an ACL tear. She is studying the cells in a special tissue in the joint called the synovium, which she hopes will help us better understand why some pati...

In this week's episode, hosts Anthony Cruz and Riya Sidhu interview Anthony Tannous, an incoming PhD student in Physical Therapy. Anthony is going to study whether robotic surgical assistants can improve patient satisfaction while saving healthcare dollars. Tune in for a look at how technology might reshape recovery—and the healthcare system. Recorded on Tuesday, July 22, 2025. Produced by Riya Si...

In this episode, hosts Ryan Baxter and Mark Ambrogio interview Dima Kassem, a PhD student in Anthropology on her research in the field of Sociocultural Anthropology.  More specifically, Dima is studying the assistance provided for People Living with a Rare Disease (PLWRD).  Entering the second year of her PhD, Dima is furthering her research on this subject, continuing work she did in her Master's...

In this week's episode, hosts Chrishma Perera and kirstyn seanor interview Ian O'Donnell, a PhD student in Economics. Ian discusses how he's analyzing tax records available through Statistics Canada to better understand income trajectories over time, especially of immigrant workers in Canada. Recorded on Tuesday, July 08, 2025. Produced by kirstyn seanor. Theme song provided by  FreeBeats.io  (Pro...

This week on GradCast, hosts Maris Schneider and Mark Ambrogio sit down with Linda Rosbach, a visiting research student from the University of Regensburg . Linda studies how the brain controls everyday actions, such as reaching and grasping. Her research explores whether our brains function the same way in the real world as they do in virtual reality. Tune in to learn more about her fascinating wo...

In this week's episode, hosts Anthony Cruz and Ryan Baxter interview Ince Husain, a PhD student in Neuroscience. Ince discusses  her research on mapping the actions and impacts of the cerebellum, as well as her contributions to the London community as a local journalist. Recorded on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. Produced by kirstyn seanor. Theme song provided by FreeBeats.io (Produced by WhiteHot)  

In this week's episode, hosts Bruno Mesquita and Anthony Cruz interview Rebekka Lagacé-Cusiac, a PhD candidate in Psychology. Rebekka discusses her PhD research on ratio processing, her passion projects, and how music and math may have more in common than you think. Recorded on Tuesday, June 10, 2025 Produced by Riya Sidhu Theme song provided by FreeBeats.io (Produced by White Hot)

In this week's episode, hosts Garth Casbourn and Mark Ambrogio interview Zoltan Richter-Bisson, a PhD candidate in Chemistry.  Zoltan is studying the interaction between proteins, abundant in the human body, and the breakdown of implanted medical devices.  While there are a large number of such devices, Zoltan is specifically interested in hip and knee implants.  Tune in to learn about efforts to...

Hosts Garth Casbourn and Kirstyn Seanor are joined by Rawan El Moghrabi, a student in the master's program in computer science. How can human attitudes, behaviors, and expectations influence the internal representation and behaviors of AI? In this quite topical episode, Rawan offers some insight into the behind-the-scenes of large language models, as well as discussing her research project on AI s...

Hosts Maris Schneider and Mark Ambrogio interview Taylor Northwood, a Master's student in Public History.  Taylor is interested in exploring the experience of teens in the past, particularly teens living in Windsor, Ontario, during the 1950s.  Taylor shares her insights into how teens navigated a postwar world shaped by shifting cultural values, emerging youth identities, and the growing influence...

In this week's episode, hosts Riya Sidhu and Ryan Baxter interview Catherine Birt, a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) candidate in Performance and Literature.  Catherine is studying collaborative piano -- this, though, is just the tip of the iceberg!  In addition to her interest in piano, Catherine explores the emerging interplay between climate activism and classical music.  Intriguingly, Catherine p...

In this week's episode, Maddie Hertz, a PhD candidate in Anthropology, is interviewed by hosts Garth Casbourn and Mark Ambrogio.  Maddie's research touches upon the intersection of aging and physical activity.  More specifically, her research looks at bone loss in menopausal women, to see how physical activity may mitigate bone loss, comparing the effects of swimming and running.  Garth, Mark, and...

In this week’s episode, hosts Maris Schneider and Meghan Voll interview Carly Charron, a PhD candidate in Biology, and previous GradCast host!  Carly breaks the news about the dangers of eating raw chicken and eggs (say goodbye to that cookie dough batter!) as she researches how to make food safer for consumption, starting at the source – chickens.  She is designing a plant-based vaccine to admini...

This follows up on a previous “Chairs Chat” from March 2021 Special Episode: Chairs Chat | GradCast , which commemorated 500 episodes. This “Chairs Chat” commemorates another milestone; namely, over 600 episodes, with specials, and hitting 500 regular episodes, wherein we interview individual graduate students about their research. In this episode, Amalie Hutchinson, Anthony Cruz, and Mark Ambrogi...

Hosts Anthony Cruz and Garth Casbourn sit down with Jenny Richmond-Bravo , an EdD candidate and coordinator of Western’s Own Your Future program, to discuss how she is helping PhD students identify, build, and market their skills for career success beyond academia. Recorded on Tuesday, April 22, 2025 Produced by Riya Sidhu Theme song provided by  FreeBeats.io  (Produced by White Hot).

GradCast heads to the Western Research Forum ! Get a glimpse into Western's largest multidisciplinary graduate research conference as hosts Liam Clifford, Mohammad Zeraati, Riya Sidhu, & Mark Ambrogio conduct short interviews with attendees, presenters, and organizers. This year's conference featured over 60 different presentations from across Western's 11 faculties. See below for interview qu...

In his fourth time with us, Alex Mayhew joins his fellow office-mates in Western's Faculty of Information and Media Studies (FIMS), hosts Mark Ambrogio and Meghan Voll, as he rapidly approaches the finish line. By the time this episode airs, Alex may officially have his PhD in Library and Information Science! Alex discusses what is involved in the final weeks of one's PhD, such as his forthcoming...