People Behind the Science Podcast

Dr. Renato Polimanti is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry, and he also has appointments in Biomedical Informatics & Data Science, as well as Chronic Disease Epidemiology at the Yale University School of Medicine, the School of Public Health, and the Wu Tsai Institute. Renato completed his bachelor’s degree (BSc), Master’s degree (MSc), and PhD at […] The post 795: Dr. Renato Polimanti...

Dr. Bruce Beehler is an ornithologist and Research Associate in the Bird Division of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History. He completed his undergraduate studies in American Civilization at Williams College and received his Masters and PhD degrees in Biology from Princeton University where he studied behavioral ecology of the birds of paradise. […] The post 794: D...

Dr. Dawei “David” Han is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Biology at the University of Maryland, College Park. David received his bachelor’s degree in Biology from China Agricultural University and his master’s degree in Biology from Truman State University. He recently completed his PhD in Neuroscience at the University of Maryland, College Park […] The post 793: Dr. Dawei “...

Dr. Barbara Katzenback is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Waterloo. Barb earned her BSc with Honors in Immunology and Infection from the University of Alberta. She received her PhD in Physiology, Cell, and Developmental Biology from the University of Alberta as well. Barb was next awarded a Natural […] The post 792: Dr. Barbara Katzenback: Investigati...

Dr. Michael Middlebrooks is an Associate Professor of Biology at the University of Tampa. He received his B.S. in biology from Florida State University and his Ph. D. in Integrative biology from the University of South Florida. He remained at the University of South Florida to conduct postdoctoral research before joining the faculty at the University […] The post 791: Dr. Michael Middlebrook...

Dr. Satesh Bidaisee is a Professor of Public Health and Preventative Medicine and Assistant Dean for Graduate Studies at St. George’s University in Grenada. He is also an Adjunct Professor in the Center for Global Health at Old Dominion University and a Visiting Professor at Chitkara University in India and at Kasetsart University in Thailand. […] The post 790: Dr. Satesh Bidaisee: Investiga...

Dr. Karine Gaelle Le Roch is a Professor in the Department of Molecular, Cell and Systems Biology and Director of the Center for Infectious Disease and Vector Research at the University of California, Riverside. She received her BA in Biochemistry and Microbiology from the University Paris-Sorbonne, her MS in host-parasite interactions between Oxford University in the UK […] The post 789: Dr...

Dr. Rebecca Wattam is a Research Associate Professor in the Network Dynamics and Simulation Science Laboratory within the Biocomplexity Institute of Virginia Tech. Rebecca received her B.S. and M.S. degrees from the University of New Mexico in Biology. Next, she attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she earned a joint Ph. D. degree in Entomology and […] The post 788: Dr. Rebecca...

Dr. Catherine Emily Carr is a Distinguished University Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Maryland, College Park. Catherine received her undergraduate training in Zoology with first class honors at the University of Cape Town, and she completed her M.A. degree in biology at the State University New York at Buffalo. She […] The post 787: Dr. Catherine Carr: Examining...

Dr. Jonathan (Jony) Kipnis is a BJC Investigator and the Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Distinguished Professor of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. He is also Professor of Neurology, Neuroscience, and Neurosurgery and Director of the Brain Immunology and Glia Center there. He completed his BSc in […] The post 785: Dr. Jonathan Kipnis: Investigati...

Dr. Susan Wessler is a Distinguished Professor of Genetics at the University of California, Riverside. She is also a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor and the Home Secretary of the National Academy of Sciences. She received her PhD in Biochemistry from Cornell University. Susan then spent time as a postdoctoral fellow at the Carnegie Institute […] The post 784: Dr. Susan Wessler: In...

Dr. Ruchira Singh is an Associate Professor and the recipient of the Dean’s Professorship in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Rochester Medical Center where she also has joint appointments in the Department of Biomedical Genetics and the Center for Visual Science. Ruchira received a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Jawaharlal Nehru […] The post 783: Dr. Ruchira...

Dr. Philip Moriarty is a Professor of Physics in the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Nottingham. In addition, he is an avid contributor to the Sixty Symbols YouTube video project and author of the book When the Uncertainty Principle Goes to 11: Or How to Explain Quantum Physics with Heavy Metal. […] The post 782: Dr. Philip Moriarty: Nanoscientist and Physicist Studying...

Dr. Patrick Schloss is an Associate Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Michigan. After completing his undergraduate studies at Cornell University, Pat stayed on to receive his PhD. Both degrees were in Biological & Environmental Engineering. He went on to do his postdoctoral training at the University of Wisconsin […] The post 781: Dr. Patrick...

Dr. Allison Okamura is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University. She also holds a courtesy appointment in Computer science there. Allison received her B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, and she was awarded her M.S. and Ph. D. both in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University. Before joining the faculty at […] The post 780: Dr...

Dr. Sterling Nesbitt is an Assistant Professor of Geosciences at Virginia Tech, as well as a  research associate/affiliate of the American Museum of Natural History, the Vertebrate Paleontology Lab at The University of Texas at Austin, the Virginia Museum of Natural History, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, and the National Museum of Natural History. He […] The post 779: Dr. Sterli...

Dr. Rachel Bennett is an Assistant Professor in Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. She received her B.S. in Molecular Biology from Arizona State University and her Ph. D. in Neuroscience from Washington University in St. Louis. Afterwards, she conducted postdoctoral research at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital before joining the [&#8230...

Dr. Jamie Voyles is an Assistant Professor of Biology at the University of Nevada, Reno. She received her B.A. in Zoology and Anthropology from the University of Washington, her M.S. in Integrative Physiology from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and her Ph. D. in Public Health from James Cook University in Australia. Afterwards, she conducted postdoctoral […] The post 777: Dr. Jamie Voy...

Dr. Richard M. Myers is the President, Science Director, and a Faculty Investigator at HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology. In addition, Rick is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Genetics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He received is B.S. in biochemistry from the University of Alabama and his Ph. D. in biochemistry from the […] The post 776: Dr. Rick Myers: Expr...

Dr. Carly Anne York is an Associate Professor in the Biology Department at Lenoir-Rhyne University. There, she is also the founder and faculty advisor of the student organization SEEDS, which is focused on promoting diversity and accessibility in the life sciences. Carly received her B.S. in Exercise Physiology from Elon University, her M.S. in Ecological […] The post 775: Dr. Carly Anne Yor...

Dr. Alain Cuerrier is an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Montreal, as well as a Botanist and Researcher at the Montreal Botanical Garden. He received his M.Sc. and Ph. D. in Biological Sciences from the University of Montreal. He worked at Harvard University during his PhD and this helped […] The post 774: Dr. Alain Cuerrier: Continuing the Tra...

Dr. Amy Mainzer is a Senior Research Scientist and the Principle Investigator for the Near Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (NEOWISE) mission at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. She is also the Principal Investigator for the Near Earth Object Camera mission proposal and the Deputy Project Scientist for the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer mission. […] The post 773: Dr....

Dr. Bryan G. Fry is an Associate Professor in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Queensland in Australia. He completed his undergraduate training in Molecular Biology, Scientific Philosophy, and Psychology at Portland State University and received his PhD from the University of Queensland. Afterwards, Bryan worked as a research assistant at the […] The post 772: Dr. Bryan...

Dr. Samantha Maragh is Leader of the Genome Editing Program and Co-Leader of the Biomarker and Genomic Sciences Group at the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). She also represents the U.S. as a technical expert on nucleic acid measurements for the International Standards Organization (ISO) Technical Committee on Biotechnology (ISO TC 276). […] The post 771: Dr. Saman...

Dr. Erin Conwell is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology and Coordinator for the PhD program in Visual and Cognitive Neuroscience at North Dakota State University. She received her undergraduate degree in Brain and Cognitive Sciences from MIT and her PhD in Cognitive and Linguistic Science from Brown University. Her dissertation research received […] The post 770: Dr. Erin...