Thinking Out Loud

How does rethinking laboratory research support cancer research? It’s all about microfluidics — also known as lab-on-chip technology - or hand-held biology/chemistry labs. Researcher Steve Shih, an engineer with a background in biology, tells us about what it means to develop new technologies that could one day cure cancer and end fuel shortages.

The heart is at once of the most personal of organs, and yet it is transferrable. Every year, about 5,000 people worldwide receive someone else’s heart. What does it mean to have another person’s heartbeat keeping you alive? Will heart transplants be even more common 50 years from now?

In this episode, artist Ingrid Bachmann tells us about the art of the heart transplant.

The heart - a giant pump, the most machine-like and yet the most human of organs. Every minute, it pumps about five litres of blood through a system of blood vessels nearly 100,000 kilometres long - that's about 7,500 litres of blood every day. But could a mechanical device do the job just as well? In this episode, Lyes Kadem tells us about what it means to engineer mechanical hearts, and about what might replace the pacemaker of the future.

Kimberley Manning studies social movements, policy reform and gender politics, drawing on research in rural Chinese villages and county archives. Among her findings is the critical role of family networks of support – of what she calls filial ties – to political life. But there is more to the story of family ties…..In this episode, she tells us about the complexity and importance of filial ties and the unexpected connection she found between transgender politics and Chinese political history.

We can't save everything - biologist Dylan Fraser tells us why and how eco-evo-gen (an combination of ecology, evolution and genetics) helps us rationalize where to focus conservation, for more effective conservation and management of natural populations and species. Is this a new Noah's Ark?

Physics can save lives - Francine Pelletier talks to researcher Claudine Gauthier about her work on vascular systems, and how the data she gathers can help us live healthier lives now and in our older age.

Climate researcher Damon Matthews tracks the rise in greenhouse gases, measuring the impact of global warming and trying to get people to listen to hard science. The time for debate has passed, now we have to figure out how we can avoid the nightmare scenarios presented in Hollywood movies by changing our habits. Matthews believes our future, in 2067 and beyond, depends on taking action ... now.

Universities play a key role in the economy and life of many cities - Edward Greenspon (CEO & President, Public Policy Forum) and Alan Shepard (President, Concordia University) talk about the changing landscape of learning and the role of universities in the city.

District 3 is one of the largest innovation hubs in Montreal – Xavier-Henri Hervé (Executive Director, D3) talks with Edward Greenspon (Public Policy Forum) about the role of incubators, accelerated business development and getting stuff done.

What makes a city liveable? Carmela Cucuzzella (Research Chair in Integreated Design, Ecology and Sustainability for the Build Environment) talks with Edward Greenspon (Public Policy Forum) about the role of design and Collaboratoire – a design competition that engages the community, and the impact of design on a city's livability.