Gradcast

This episode, hosts Ariel Frame and Connor Chato speak with Megha Verma, a Master's student in the Neuroscience program, about her work on determining standards for use of anesthetics when imaging non-human primates. Megha explains how standardizing this procedure will enable researchers to conduct neuroimaging better. To discover more about Megha, you can find her on Instagram @MeghaVerma95 or check out her @MeghaVerma95.Art Produced by Gregory Robinson

This episode, hosts Nikol Posnov and Gregory Robinson interview guests Matthew Svensson and Mohammed Chamma who are part of the High Altitude Balloon initiative from the Institute for Earth and Space Exploration at Western University. Matt and Mo and the rest of the team built an apparatus to collect and study microbe particles found in the stratosphere well above the tallest buildings but within our atmosphere. Tune in to hear more about these high flying microbes. If you want to get in contact with Matt, Mo and the team to learn more about the High Altitude Balloon initiative you can go to the Western Space website: https://space.uwo.ca/research/projects/high_altitude_balloon_initiative/index.html To follow the team on social media @westernuSpace #westernuHAB   Produced by Gavin Tolometti

On this episode, Gradcast hosts Connor Chato and Nikol Posnov interview Chimira Andres, an intrepid researcher of space ice! We learn what it's like to do field work in the Canadian Arctic, what ice on Earth can tell us about its equivalent on other planets and how it's important to stay creative as a researcher, because in the words of Albert Einstein: "Creativity is Intelligence Having Fun" If you want to learn more about Chimira Andres research you can follow her on Twitter - @RocksNRockets Produced by Gavin Tolometti

On this episode, hosts Gregory Robinson and Ariel Frame interview neuroscience student, Kartik Pradeepan, about his research on Autism. Autism is a complex disease that is associated with mutations among gene clusters. Kartik's research uses stem cells differentiated into neurons to create neuronal networks in order to study the role of SHANK2, a gene associated with autism, by measuring electrical activity. To learn more, tune in to this fascinating episode.  Produced by Ariel Frame

In this special episode, hosts Jenna Schlorff and Nikol Posnov chat with students about their practicum experiences during the Master of Public Health Practicum Showcase day. Harvir Sandhu talks about the three months she spent at Bruyère Research Institute. Rachelle Roussel shares about her time with the Canadian Red Cross Society. Nour Kachouh discusses her experiences with the Public Health Association of Canada. Jessica Hill and Jenna Schlorff exchange thoughts regarding their time spent with the Health Equity Action Research Team with Western University. Feel free to reach out to any of these public health professionals via email: Harvir Sandhu: hsandh47@uwo.ca Rachelle Roussel: rrousse3@uwo.ca Nour Kachouh: nkachouh@uwo.ca Jessica Hill: jhill83@uwo.ca Jenna Schlorff: jschlorf@uwo.ca; Twitter: @j_schlorff  Produced by Connor Chato

 In this episode, hosts Monica Molinaro and Gavin Tolometti are joined by PSAC President, Katelyn Mitri! PSAC, or the Public Service Alliance 610, is the Graduate TA and Postdoctoral Union at Western University. They discuss how PSAC works, what is done behind the scenes to advocate for graduate students, and how PSAC can help when having a difficult TA experience. If you’d like to learn more about PSAC and their services, visit www.psac610.ca.   Produced by Gregory Robinson

Alex Kozlov is a PhD Student in the developmental biology collaborative program. She tells hosts Greg Robinson and Ariel Frame about her work using metabolism to reprogram skin cells into stem cells. One day her work could allow for this process to become more efficient and useful for personalized medicine. To find out more about Alex's work check out her lab's website thecumminglab.com Produced by Gregory Robinson

Have you ever wondered what undetected forces help influence whether you'll be hired or not? This week, hosts Nick Handfield-Jones and Chantal Lemire interview Natasha Ouslis about her research on organizational psychology. This is the second of a two-part episode. In the first episode, we focused on the nature of teams. This time, Natasha discussed the secrets of the hiring process and what you can do to increase your chances of landing that job!  Check out part 1 here: 180 | The Power of Working Together (Part 1) If you'd like to contact Natasha, you can contact her on Twitter (@natashaouslis), LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/natashaouslis/), or on her website (www.natashaouslis.com)  Produced by Nick Handfield-Jones 

Hosts Gavin Tolometti and Monica Molinaro talk with PhD student Alex Mayhew in the Library Catalogue Science studies department in the Faculty for Information and Media Studies. Alex wants to design a new library catalogue system for the public that does not have a Platonic view of literature, media and information. He wants to be able to semantically link information and allow readers to understand the connection between texts. If you would like to get ahold of Alex, email him at amayhew@uwo.ca Produced by Nick Handfield-Jones 

CanMoon is a Canadian Lunar Analogue Mission funded by the Canadian Space Agency, run by the CPSX program at Western in collaboration with The University of Winnipeg. Hosts Nikol and Greg chat with Cassandra Marion, the mission's "MOM", about what's it's like to simulate controlling a rover on the Moon, and more interestingly, how do you even train graduate students to do this. Tune in and hear about the team's experience working 10 hour night shifts controlling a rover from Western's control room, who knows maybe it's the perfect career for you! Produced by Gavin Tolometti

Biodiesel provides an alternative fuel option for gasoline combustion engines, reducing the output of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Usually the production of biodiesel requires the fermentation of bio-products such as soy or sugarcane, however the process is slow and cannot compete with fossil fuel production. Now with the help of bacteria, everything is about to change. In this weeks episode, hosts Gavin and Greg talk with MSc student Colin Couper from the chemical and biochemical engineering department about his research using a bacteria called Clostridium pasteurianum to intensify the fermentation process of converting glycerol to the biodiesel fuel alternative butanol. Produced by Ariel Frame  

Canadian perception of immigrant minority groups is the topic of this week’s episode, as we welcome back to the show Ilinca Olariu, MA student in the History department. This time, Ilinca discusses what it meant to be a Romanian immigrant in Canada during WWI, and why a proportion of Romanian citizens were considered “enemy aliens”. Hosted by Yimin Chen and Viki Tellios. Produced by Roger Hudson.

This week, hosts Roger Hudson and Nicholas Handfield Jones interview PhD Candidate Andrew Roebuck from the University of Saskatchewan via Skype for another #GradCastOnTour episode! Roger and Andrew recently attended the Gordon Research Conference in Spain for Cannabinoids in the Central Nervous System where they had a chance to discuss all things cannabis-related. Andrew is using cutting edge neuroscience tools to explore aspects of the endocannabinoid system using compounds known as 'Positive Allosteric Modulators' (PAMs) that bind to the Cannabinoid Type 1 Receptor (CB1R) in the brain under the supervision of Dr. John Howland. Unlike THC, which binds to 'orthosteric' sites of the CB1R to elicit intoxication, the PAMs that Andrew uses in his laboratory do not produce a feeling of being 'high'. Through his research, he hopes that these compounds may someday be a therapy for various forms of pediatric epilepsy. you can also check out the video recording of this episode by clicking here

On this episode, hosts Gavin and Greg discuss game theory with a PhD Candidate in Economics, Adam Rooney. From childhood, Adam has been an avid poker fanatic often hosting poker tournaments with his friends. When he came to university, he started with $50 in his bank account, which he used as a buy in for online poker tournaments. After winning many tournaments, he cashed out with an undergraduate degree education. Now he is in his PhD studying what he loves most, poker. And most importantly, he has many poker tips and tricks. Tune in to unlock the secrets of how you can become a poker pro too! Produced by Gavin Tolometti

Second year biology master's student Rosie Savage is passionate about plankton! From the Pacific coast of Western Canada to the genetics lab at the University of Western Ontario, hosts Yimin Chen and Ariel Frame hear all about Rosie's adventures collecting, sequencing, and studying tiny marine zooplankton and their even tinier parasites. Produced by Gavin Tolometti

Hosts Ariel Frame and Roger Hudson welcome our first Visual Arts Department student to the show, Ellen Moffat. After 20 years of working as a professional artist, Ellen tells us how she is now doing both theoretical and practical work towards getting a PhD in Studio. In this episode, find out how Ellen makes art from her creative research on acoustic properties of various materials. To hear a sample of the sound produced in a few of Ellen’s art pieces you can listen on SoundCloud. To find out more about Ellen, check out her website www.ellenmoffat.ca Produced by Gavin Tolometti

We’re bringing you another #Gradlife episode with a special guest - Demetri Pananos! Demetri is co-host of the podcast Two Broke Grads and is currently completing his PhD here at Western in Biostatistics. In this episode, Monica, Demetri and Viki talk about finances - conferences, grocery shopping, and stresses related to money. They also share some of their tips for saving money! Like this episode? Let us know! We barely covered the tip of the iceberg for finances and are always willing to discuss what our listeners are interested in. You can follow Demetri @PhDemetri and his podcast Two Broke Grads @2BrokeGradsPod on Twitter - find Two Broke Grads on Apple Podcasts or anywhere else you listen to podcasts!

In this episode, hosts Connor Chato and Monica Molinaro speak to Amy Lewis, a qualitative researcher completing her MScN! They discuss the development of competencies for health care providers to engage in teaching policy advocacy and engage in policy activities. The benefits of listening to stories and personal experience, as well as the importance of qualitative methods in health research are also discussed. Produced by Gregory Robinson  

The world is a crappy place. That is, according to Arthur Schopenhauer. On this week’s Gradcast, hosts Nick Handfield-Jones and Connor Chato interview Ignacio Moya, who tells us about this famous German philosopher’s arguments for philosophical pessimism. We talk about why Schopenhauer thought the world is this way and what he proposed to do about that. Plus, we ask Ignacio what his own thoughts are about philosophical pessimism. To get in contact with Ignacio, message him on Twitter @ignaciomoyaa Hosts: Nick Handfield-Jones & Connor Chato Produced by Connor Chato

On tour in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, GradCast hosts Roger Hudson and Ariel Frame attended Canada's largest neuroscience conference and had an insightful chat with Bryan Jenkins, a PhD candidate in the Neurobiology of Dual Disorders Lab at the Ontario Veterinary College and the University of Guelph in Canada. Bryan tells us about his work in Dr. Jibran Khokhar's lab on the effects of cannabis in animal models that are paving the way for the rest of the world looking to Canada for answers about cannabis in light of recent legalization for both medicinal and recreational use. To find out more about Bryan you can follow him on Twitter @bjenkin27, follow Dr. Khokhar on Twitter @DrJKhokhar or check out Bryan's website bryanjenkins.ca. Hosts: Ariel Frame & Roger Hudson Produced by: Roger Hudson