Sci on the Fly

What role can the arts play in shaping scientific expression? How can scientists and artists better work together to share their insights with the general public? We sit down with Smitha Vishveshwara, a theoretical physicist, and Benny Starr, a hip-hop artist and activist, to discuss these thorny questions. In the process, we explore their creative journeys and the need for an artistic (and scient...

On a very special episode of Sci on the Fly, host and current STPF fellow Reshmina William sits down with four members of the STPF Class of 2021 as they reflect on the last year. Join Carly Champagne, Julie Snow, Bill O'Brien, and Leslie Brooks as they discuss their accomplishments and their advice for the incoming Class of 2022. This podcast does not necessarily reflect the views of AAAS, its Cou...

In this episode, we chat with Dr. Heather Spence, a marine biologist and sound artist. She's currently a marine and science advisor in the Department of Energy, where she is exploring the potential for marine renewable energy to power ocean observation systems. For her graduate research, she conducted a groundbreaking sound monitoring program on the MesoAmerican Reef. Heather also combined her aco...

On this episode, marine conservation scientist Dr . Lekelia (Kiki) Jenkins chats to Dr . Chris Parsons about reducing turtle by - catch in fishing gear and the challenges facing technological innovators that don't come from a position of privilege. They also talk about Dr . Jenkins ' career, including how she "danced her PhD" and how she was as a role model (and statue model) for the " If she can...

On this episode Dr. Joe Pesce , Program Director in the Division of Astronomical Sciences at the National Science Foundation, chats with Dr. Chris Parsons about black holes. Dr. Pesce is an a strophysicist with 30 years of experience and an expert on super massive black holes . He talks about the formation of black holes, the nature of the "event horizo n" and super massive black holes in the cent...

Our guest on this episode is Dr . Terry Quinn, the Director of the Division of Ocean Sciences at the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF). Dr. Quinn talks about his research on corals and reconstructing the historic climate record ; the role of NSF in promoting ocean science and scientis ts ; the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development ; and also the importance of dive...

The guest for this episode of Sci on the Fly is Dr. Deborah Thomson . Dr. Thomson is a veterinarian and " One Health " advocate who has served as a Science Policy Advisor in the United States Senate . In addition to practic ing clinical veterinary medicine , she founded and led a global organization that inspires children and adults to value the interconnection between human health and the health...

Secretary of the International Whaling Commission, Dr. Rebecca Lent spoke with Sci on the Fly about the history and evolution of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) – one of the oldest international marine conservation treaty organizations and one of the first to be advised by science. The organization has gone from a body of whaling nations trying to maximize their catches to one that is t...

Dr. Samuel M. Goodman is the author of  Beyond Carbon Neutral : How We Fix the Climate Crisis Now , a book about how to reverse climate change.  He is a chemical engineer by training who earned a doctorate from the University of Colorado Boulder after undergraduate studies at the University of Wisconsin Madison. Following graduate school, Dr. Goodman completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Nati...

Dr. Samuel M. Goodman is the author of Beyond Carbon Neutral : How We Fix the Climate Crisis Now , a book about how to reverse climate change. He is a chemical engineer by training who earned a doctorate from the University of Colorado Boulder after undergraduate studies at the University of Wisconsin Madison. Following graduate school, Dr. Goodman completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Nation...

The guest in this episode is Dr Bill Sullivan, the author of "Pleased to Meet Me: Genes, Germs, and the Curious Forces That Make Us Who We Are" (2019, National Geographic Books). Sullivan is a professor at the Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis, where he studies genetics and microbiology. An award-winning researcher, teacher, and science communicator, Sullivan has been featured...

In this episode, Mr. Daniel Simmons, Principal of Simmons Energy & Environmental Strategy and former Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) from 2019 to 2021, speaks to his experience as a political appointee within the DOE; advocating for affordable reliable clean energy; balancing leadership and family; and the importance AAAS Scienc...

Dr. Ambika Bumb is a Science and Technology Policy Fellow working in the Crisis Management and Strategy Office at the U.S. Department of State. Within this office, she was part of several tasks forces that played major roles during the coronavirus pandemic, including the Repatriation Task Force that brought home American citizens stranded abroad during the early months of the pandemic. This repatr...

Ibrahim Mohedas earned his masters and doctoral degrees from the University of Michigan. His doctoral research, supported through a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, focused on the use of ethnographic techniques during the design of medical devices for low- and middle-income countries, collecting data in healthcare settings in Ethiopia, Ghana and Rwanda. Dr. Ibrahim is curr...

In this week's episode our guest is Dr. Maryann Cairns, who talks about her career path and her studies on pathogens in water. Dr Cairns is an environmental anthropologist who uses using creative research designs and cultural understanding to safeguard the environment and human health. Her work has examined the politics of water and sanitation systems, the impacts of tourism on coastal water quali...

Dr Roberto Delgado has a doctorate in Biological Anthropology from Duke University, where he did research on the social behavior and calls of male orangutans. So how did he end up becoming the Program Director for the Arctic Observing Network (AON) in the National Science Foundation's Office of Polar Programs – as far removed from the jungle of Borneo as one could imagine? Roberto tells about the...

In this two-part episode, Dr. nature McGinn talks about how the AAAS Science & Technology Policy fellowship helped to give her skills and open doors for a permanent job in federal government and the work she does in her current position to help safeguard the environment and species in the world's last true wilderness area - Antarctica. This podcast does not necessarily reflect the views of AAAS, i...

Dr. Nature McGinn is currently the Environmental Policy Program Manager and Antarctic Conservation Act Permit Officer in the Office of Polar Programs at the National Science Foundation. Nature has been at NSF for over eight years, with her first two years as an AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow (STPF) in the Office of Polar Programs, before entering a permanent position in the agency as an E...

With so many children currently attending school virtually on laptops, tablets and other smart devices, there is concern about how the extended use of these devices affects them. While much attention has been given to the cognitive effects of extended device usage, Dr. Regina Pope-Ford has instead investigated the physical effects. In this episode, Dr. Pope-Ford, an expert in human factors and erg...

Dr. Melanie Peffer is the author of "Biology Everywhere: How the Science of Life Matters to Everyday Life", a book that reveals how biological concepts taught in the classroom are connected to the world around us. In this episode, we discuss key concepts from the book including changes to the way science is taught, how creative processes are used in scientific work, and understanding how scientifi...

STPF Fellows are great at adapting their careers to suit their personal interests and whatever life has in store, such as a global pandemic. In this episode, Dr. Vince Tedjasaputra talks about how his involvement in track and field led to his earning a PhD in Physical Education and Recreation (an official "Doctor of Gym"), and how working with patients with mild chronic obstructive pulmonary disea...

Julie Palakovich Carr is a scientist who now serves as a state legislator in the Maryland House of Delegates. We spoke to her this past June, and she discussed her transition from academic research to policymaking, her work related to COVID-19, and how the global pandemic changed her work. She also provided some advice for any scientist considering running for office or looking for other ways of g...

The Science & Technology Policy Fellowships at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) provide broad opportunities for scientists to engage in government policy, but COVID-19 has changed the way fellows work. The article " Serving as an STPF Fellow in the Era of COVID-19 ", co-authored by several current fellows, examines some of the ways that fellows have adapted – such as...

The Science & Technology Policy Fellowships at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) provide broad opportunities for scientists to engage in government policy, but COVID-19 has changed the way fellows work. The article " Serving as an STPF Fellow in the Era of COVID-19 ", co-authored by several current fellows, examines some of the ways that fellows have adapted – such as...

Understanding the science of  viral transmission  and pandemics   is now critical, especially for younger generations.  In this episode, Dr. Deborah Thomson  discusses how the One Health  framework  provides  a  holistic  understanding  of  the coronavirus SARS CoV-2 and its related disease COVID-19.  She also discusses how  One Health  informed her work as a veterinarian  and how she now  uses it...