When Science Speaks

This episode of the "When Science Speaks" podcast features Ricky Patel, Ph.D., founder and CEO of Point Science Analytics, a startup that simplifies biotech information for investors and consultants. Point Science Analytics aims to filter and curate for investors and consultants in biotech, energy, and new space industries all the information they need to make informed decisions, revolutionizing due diligence in these industries.

During the interview, I refer to Ricky as a "purple unicorn" due to his ability to communicate complex scientific information to a general audience and also thrive in a science-focused environment. We discuss how being bilingual and being the first in his family to go to college helped Ricky become an effective communicator.

Key points discussed in the episode:

• Ricky realized the need for a scalable platform when working with multiple clients who required due diligence reports on biotech companies.
• The AI platform Ricky is developing with Point Science Analytics scrapes company websites, LinkedIn, Crunchbase, media releases, etc., and curates the information into one document for the user to access easily.
• Ricky emphasizes the importance of discipline and the ability to work alone without motivation, a skill honed during a Ph.D.
• Other transferrable skills from the Ph.D. include analytical reasoning, information extraction, and research skills.
• Ricky plans to expand the platform to include the energy and new space industries, which are expected to be worth trillions of dollars by 2030.
• The platform aims to give investors and consultants all the information they need to make informed decisions without having to hire a Ph.D. analyst.

Ricky earned his PhD in clinical neuroscience from King's College London, and his experience in academia includes working on ALS and dementia. He left academia due to life events that led him to focus on mental health and childhood traumas.

Resources mentioned in the episode

Ricky Patel, Ph.D.

Point Science Analytics

This episode features John Besley, Ph.D., a professor at Michigan State University, who is focused on understanding how scientists communicate complex science to the public.

Professor Besley's research includes surveys of thousands of American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) members, where he examines their goals for communication and the tactics they use to achieve them.

Professor Besley emphasizes that scientists need to identify their audience-specific behavioral goals and build strategies to achieve them. He also reminds scientists to communicate in a way that makes them perceived as smart, caring, and high in integrity rather than giving into the temptation of flaming people on social media.

Professor Besley highlights the importance of scientists communicating their work to have a real-world impact. Surveys show that scientists want to increase literacy, correct misinformation, and encourage people to take actions like wearing masks, planting pollinators, and buying electric vehicles. However, it's important to communicate in a targeted and specific way to address people's perceptions of social norms, risks and benefits, and self-efficacy.

Professor Besley advises anticipating obstacles and addressing them proactively in the message. Our discussion also touches on how to approach emotionally charged issues by focusing on evaluative beliefs rather than discrete emotions. Scientists should strive to ensure that decision-making processes are transparent, inclusive, and enable everyone to have a voice.

We discuss the importance of understanding the process behind scientific research and communication to combat rejectionism and misinformation, highlighting the need to address specific integrity issues, such as motive and competence, to build trust with audiences. We also delve into the different types of behaviors, such as non-behavioral trust, that are crucial to consider when communicating science.

Resources mentioned in the article

Strategic Science Communication by John C. Besley, Ph.D.

In this episode, we dive into the fascinating world of space exploration with our special guest, Mat Kaplan.

Mat is a seasoned radio host who recently stepped away from the mic after two decades and a thousand episodes of the Planetary Society's acclaimed podcast, Planet Radio. In this interview, Mat shares his passion for science and space, his approach to presenting complex information to the public, and his secrets to conducting engaging interviews with renowned scientists, engineers, astronauts, and authors.

Main Discussion:

• Learn about the Planetary Society, a professional home for space enthusiasts for over 22 years, and its programs and initiatives.
• Explore the origins of the Planetary Society, founded in 1980 by Carl Sagan, Bruce Murray, and Lou Friedman, with the mission to empower the world's citizens to advance space science and exploration.
• Discover how the Planetary Society has evolved over the years, with tens of thousands of members, and a new generation of talented staff dedicated to their vision of knowing our cosmos and our place within it.
• Hear about the Planetary Society's contributions to space missions, including allowing the public to share in them by putting their names on plaques or CDs, and their efforts to shepherd missions through Congress by forming a caucus for planetary science and working with the Executive Branch.
• Learn about the Planetary Society's new initiatives, such as its online member community and book club, and its passion for sharing the beauty and joy of space and science with everyone on Earth.

Key Points:

• Mat Kaplan's inspiring body of work with Planet Mat Kaplan: Radio
• How Mat combined his twin passions for radio and space exploration
• Mat's approach to presenting complicated information in an accessible and fascinating way
• The importance of doing thorough research and homework before interviews
• The art of listening and being prepared to change directions during interviews
• Showing appreciation for the work of the guests and sharing their fascination
• Mat's passion and energy for the topic and how it engages listeners
• Elements of a good question, including finding unique nuggets of information
• Utilizing the internet to access resources and enhance interviews

Events:

• Find out about the Planetary Defense Conference in Vienna and the asteroid Hunters IMAX, and how the Planetary Society is involved in these exciting initiatives.

Overview

In this episode of When Science Speaks, Mark Bayer introduces Dr. Natalia Bielczyk, a career advisor, neuroscientist, author, and blogger, as they discuss how to find a dream career and the changing job market for PhDs.

Dr. Bielczyk shares her personal experience of transitioning from academia to entrepreneurship and provides valuable advice to PhD graduates who struggle with their career path.

From identifying natural abilities to finding a large organization with growth opportunities, Dr. Bielczyk provides actionable steps to success.

The podcast wraps up with a discussion of luck in career development and the importance of authentic connections.

Timestamps of Major Topics

[00:00:09] When Science Speaks" with Dr. Natalia Bielczyk [00:03:39] Challenges faced by PHDs outside academia [00:07:14] Navigating Money and Career Paths as a PhD Graduate [00:10:40] Ontology of Value Tests for Career Advancement [00:14:33] Career paths for PhDs after the AI revolution [00:18:09] The Role of Luck in Career Development

Resources Mentioned in the Episode:

Natalia's website: https://nataliabielczyk.com/ Ontology of Value: https://ontologyofvalue.com/ Natalia's YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@OntologyofValue

Key Quotes

[00:07:53] PhD graduates typically have a lot of general competence.

00:10:56] You have to focus on yourself and building a skill set that's more than publication records

[00:17:59] You have to be very open and vocal about what your strengths are. Offer your help to other people and that's how you build your personal brand. It will not help happen overnight. But this is exactly what your professional future will be. You have to be known for who you are.

[00:09:51] Statistics don't lie - your chances of staying in academia are so slim, that would be just very risky.

[00:17:29] I think after all, you really have to focus on yourself and what you're good at and how to communicate it on social media, in person, but also in this meso scale level, so through communities. So you have to really, more than ever, be a good networker and establish your values, establish your core competencies, and and just vocalize them.

[[00:16:11] Then I would probably choose a large organization, and I would make sure that on my career path, I open myself doors to manage people because this is something, obviously, you can build a bot to manage, but that's not the gist. That's not the core of management. That's not how it works because people really want to work with people.

In this episode of When Science Speaks, host Mark Bayer sat down with veteran journalist and author Bill Birchard to talk about his latest book, Writing For Impact, 8 Secrets From Science that will fire up your readers' brains. The book delves into the science of how the brain processes language and how writers can use this knowledge to engage their readers.

Here are three tips from the episode on how to write for impact:

1. Use vivid language: Research shows that using vivid language can create more impactful writing. As Birchard explains, "The brain loves specific sensory stimulation. The more sensory information the writer provides, the more the scene comes alive."

2. Write in a conversational tone: Writing in a conversational tone can make readers feel like they are having a conversation with the author. This can make the writing more enjoyable to read and can help to build a connection between the writer and reader.

3. Use storytelling: Using storytelling in writing can be a powerful tool for engaging readers. As Birchard says, "Stories stick in our brains because they're more vivid and more memorable than facts and data."

Writing for Impact provides a fascinating look into the science of writing and how writers can use it to create more engaging content. If you're interested in improving your writing skills, be sure to check out this episode of When Science Speaks.

Main topics in the interview and when you'll find them in the audio recording

[00:03:38] The Science of Effective Writing

[00:07:01] Measuring Brain Response to Reading

[00:10:29] Simplifying Writing for Reader Engagement

[00:13:54] Writing Strategies and Chatbot Algorithms

[00:17:09] Universalizing the Podcast Message

Key quotes from the episode

[00:16:50] What's the 1 sentence that captures what you're going to say in your book? In my book, of course, I'll just emphasize here, what's the message of my book? It's reward your reader. 3 words, reward your reader.

[00:10:03] In the book, I've isolated 8 strategies that are supported by science that drive the reward circuit.

[00:02:48] Turns out there's a mountain of research when it comes to how the brain processes language.

[00:10:32] The research shows that people desire, they learn from, and they act done, things are expressed simply.

[00:08:15] So When I talk about the brain consumes words, the way it consumes just about everything else, that's the reward circuit that I'm talking about.

[00:13:02] Keep it insightful. Keep the "ah-ha's" flowing because that's what you wanna aspire to as a writer.

[00:07:46] If what you read is activating the motor circuit in the brain, and that in turn is activating the reward circuit in the brain, then you can make inferences as to what's engaging readers and what's a better way to write.

[00:03:24] And when you start looking at that, you start to see, at least as a writer, you start to see that the brain reacts in different ways to all those four kinds of writing.

[00:12:20] Readers aren't reading your writing because they like your style. They're reading your writing because they like the reward they get from your writing.

[00:09:32] And in reading, you're gonna not only start reading, you're gonna keep reading and presumably be persuaded to act on what you're reading.

[00:14:20] The arrival of Chat GPT does not mean that people are going to stop learning how to write. You could say that instead, the chat GPT is just going to raise the level of writing.

[00:11:15] The period never comes soon enough. Bring closure to thoughts in a small way as you possibly can readers are gonna comprehend that quicker and they're gonna be more engaged.

[00:06:13] And my undergraduate degree was in biology. I never happened to use that, but having written my whole life, I've often wondered what happens in the brain?

[00:12:04] Keep it simple. And there's another great phrasing you came up within the book.

[00:01:44] His newest book, which we're gonna talk about in just a moment. It's called Writing For Impact, 8 Secrets From Science that will fire up your readers' brains.

[00:04:55] Words and meaning are processed very much the same way as stimuli of other kinds.

[00:15:29] Can you get the software to say, okay, we started with clarity and we wanna leap to being engaging, can these strategies then be incorporated in the software?

[00:08:45] It's the reward circuit in the brain that's doing that.

[00:14:57] How do you raise your writing from clear and educational, informative writing to engaging and rewarding writing. And I believe the strategies in my book help you do that.

[00:15:09] You might say you could make the argument and guess I'm making the argument that you are with Chat GPT gonna start at a higher level, and then you're gonna go up up a level.

[00:05:04] The brain is looking at whether that word is worthy or not worthy. The same way it's looking at whether something or to drink is worthy or not worthy or eat or establishing a friendship.

[00:02:18] We're gonna have a link in the show notes so you can preorder Bill's book, which will be released on April 4, 2023, and also a link to an offer on Bill's website, where you can get an accompanying workbook for free by pre- ordering the book.

Resources mentioned in the book

Link to Writing for Impact: 8 Secrets from Science That Will Fire Up Your Readers' Brains by Bill Birchard

Bill's website where you can get a free workbook if you pre-order the book:

Link to the episode transcript

Link to the special 15% discount for When Science Speaks readers at OneSkin (enter SCIENCE15 at checkout)

This episode of the show features Victoria (Tory) Wobber, Ph.D., President of Victoria Wobber Coaching and Consulitng , a Harvard-trained evolutionary biologist and former data scientist and people manager at Facebook and Google.

In this episode, we discuss an array of career development issues, including:

- Did Tory have mentors, teachers or family members during her early years in school who influenced or nurtured her interest in science

- What sparked Tory's interest in evolutionary biology and how Tory describes the field to someone unfamiliar with it

- With Tory going to work as a data scientist at Facebook after earning her Ph.D., why Tory believes a Ph.D. program is good training for work in data science, including knowledge, skills, and attributes helpful for being successful in data science

- What it was like to work at Facebook back in the early twenty teens?

- Working at Google after Facebook, what Tory liked about the high-tech culture and what was lacking from her perspective

- Now empowering tech leaders and Ph.Ds to capitalize on their unique skills to propel their careers to the next level. details about Tory's consulting business, including how she helps her clients and the types of clients she's worked with so listeners can get a sense of whether they may be a good fit to work with Tory

Resources mentioned in the episode

Victoria Wobber Coaching and Consulting

This werek's episode features best-selling author, Wharton Business School professor, and world-reknown business advisor Jonah Berger, Ph.D.

We discuss Prof. Berger's latest book, Magic Words: What to Say to Get Your Way and specific topics in the book such as:

- How the focus of Dr. Berger's latest book, Magic Words, (to be releaseed Tuesday, March 7, 2023) relates to his most recent book, The Catalyst

- Why and how asking for advice actually can have a positive impact on how the asker is viewed by the advice-giver

- Effective strategies for asking better questions

- Why it's not enough to just listen - we need to signal to the person speaking that we are actually paying attention in ways that don't seem forced or formulaic

- The persuasive benefits of using concrete, specific language, and also when it's better to be abstract

- Storytelling and guidance on how to develop and deliver a high-impact story

Resources mentioned in the episode - other books by Jonah Berger, Ph.D.

Magic Words: What to Say to Get Your Way

The Catalyst: How to Change Anyone's Mind

Contagious: Why Things Catch On

Invisible Influence: The Hidden Forces That Shape Human Behavior

This week's episode features Alessandra Zonari, Ph.D., Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of ONE SKIN, an innovative skincare company that addresses skin health at the molecular level, targeting the root causes of aging so skin functions, feels, and looks younger.

Listeners get a special offer when they go to OneSkin.co:

On this week's show, we discuss a range of issues related to entrepreneurship and the science of skin care, including:

What initially sparked Alessandra's interest in science:

03:19 Alessandra Zonari, Ph.D.: On all the news, when I was seeing the news, they were cloning Dolly, the sheep. They were cloning the first mammal, animal. And that I thought to myself, Oh my God, maybe I can one day clone my family and they will always be around. I will not be, I don't need to be afraid of losing one day my dad. I can bring back my grandfather. And that sparked me the idea of going into science and this whole knowledge of not liking to see losing others for diseases was what started bringing me. Maybe one day I can find the cure of a disease. Maybe one day I can work with something that will help me not lose my family. That was the first when I was still very young that we were made me science and as I was studying all my biology teachers, I was always very interested in cell biology. And that's why I decided in college to continue researching and studying biology.

Alessandra's career journey, including when she decided she wanted to be an entrepreneur:

06:08 Alessandra Zonari, Ph.D.: When I went to college, I had this notion that I wanted to do science, but it was still very obscure how I will get there, if I would really be able to bring something into reality and get some of the science. In college, I was already focused on research that was translational. When I started college, I was already completely passionate about the idea of working with stem cells and the potential of stem cells to differentiate into any cell type of your body and be able to regenerate different tissues. So when I was in college, I looked for an internship in a lab that was researching stem cells. I knew that I wanted to translate. I didn't know how would be the path that one day I would start the company, that was not clear. I knew that I needed to learn how to do science, so I would need to do a master and a PhD.

Even when I finished my PhD, I had not a clear idea. I still went for a postdoc in Portugal where I continue learning and learning different biomaterials to use different ways of associating with stem cells to promote wound healing. And at that point, when I was already in my postdoc that I was doing research for ready eight years in total, if I count when I started my internship, my master, my PhD, I started to get a little bit frustrated. I was doing a lot of good research. I was learning a lot and I was being involved in different projects that was all very challenging, was teaching me a lot, but I was not seeing the next phase. What I would do next, how I will fulfill that desire of seeing science being translated. So still in Portugal, I tried to start a startup there that was using stem cells, but cell therapy, it's very regulated. It's hard to go to humans.

So I have some, had some colleagues that were veterinarians. So together we start the company that would provide stem cell treatment for dogs, cat and horses. But we didn't know what we were doing. And at the beginning was everything super hard to get to the path of what was a startup and how you get funds and how you create this product. So basically we started the idea, but that never went very far, but I was already okay, I want to translate.

And then eventually my friends from Brazil that also did PhD in the same lab that me, Carolina had just moved to San Francisco to join an accelerator program where they were also wanting to translate some of the research into a product or into a company. And it was interesting because then she was starting this year, I was starting that company in Portugal, getting a little bit frustrated. And then after the program, they decided they would be focusing this new company on skin research.

And then eventually she called me and she said to me, Alessandra, I'm here in San Francisco. I have some ideas on understanding skin aging and validating efficacy of product. And I cannot think of anyone better than you to come to join this project. We had no guarantee of what we were doing or where we would go, but there was a new opportunity there for me. And I just said, okay, I'm packing, I'm moving to the US. Let's start this company. Let's see where we can go.

Alessandra's research and ONE SKIN's scientific advancements in skin care:

13:41 Alessandra Zonari, Ph.D.: I can even make the connection of my PhD and the company, how we started. And it's interesting because when you start a company, you need to be open-minded. Things change. I was doing this research on skin regeneration, building 3D skin models. And the goal really was to promote a better wound healing. But in that process, I learned how to culture skin cells. I learned how to build 3D skin models. When I was on my postdoc also, I was helping on another project that was doing high throughput screening of micro RNAs. So I started learning high throughput screening as well. And when I was learning all those skills, I had no idea that eventually I would use those skills in my own startup. But what I always tell myself and I tell others is it doesn't matter, even if you are like completely happy or unhappy with what you're doing at the moment, if you are lost a little bit of what path you would take, show up every day and try your best and learn what you have to learn because eventually what you learn, you can use later on.

So when I was there in Portugal, a little bit frustrated, still doing research and not seeing how I would translate that to research, I was still showing up at the lab and learning things, new things. And those skills that I was learning there, eventually they were the ones they needed to one skin.

When I came to One Skin, the first idea when Carolina called me was let's build 3D skin models to understand the aging process and validate products that are on the market. So we had already the knowledge of building 3D models, but sometimes we use very young skins because it's easier to build 3D models of skin using young cells. So the goal now was, okay, let's understand the aging process because the products that are aimed to promote rejuvenation, they will be applied on a more mature skin. So we need to see the effect on this skin and what's the difference.

So we started building this platform. One Skin then, just to go back a little bit, One Skin has always has the mission of target root causes of aging to promote skin health. So we are really looking to ways that we can connect the health of your skin with your overall health, promote a younger state of your skin, and that will result in a better appearance as well as you bring a product that's cosmetic, but with the goal that will also help your whole body to be aging better. So we started with this platform.

Alessandra's approach to science communication as a bilingual scientist:

21:13 Alessandra Zonari, Ph.D.: I would say that's still a challenge. It is super hard because especially when you're passionate as I am about the science, I always tend to go into too many details and then when we start to having to communicate this to others, at the beginning I was going very deep on the details and then I was seeing on people's face that they were not understanding what I was saying.

So the first thing I feel to start developing that skill is just talk to people that have no science background. That they understand what you're saying. If they're not understanding, you need to clarify your message. And then it was hard for me because when I simplified the message and I don't give all the details, it feels that I'm not giving all the science that is there. I always had that challenge with me because I wanted to explain more, but at the end, we need first to educate and have the interest of people.

So we need to get simple, even though I don't say all the science, I need to be able to show the difference. For instance, we have developed an algorithm that in the beginning, I would say that measures epigenetic changes inside the cell through methylation profile, and it's able to determine and correlate with the chronological age of the skin, and I say that no one understands. But if I just tell you that we have an algorithm that's able to measure the real biological age of your DNA, and then I can tell you by measuring the biological age of a product that's really rejuvenating, reducing the biological age of the skin. Now people can understand and get interested about it.

And a lot of that comes from speaking and talking with non-scientists. We have several documents where we write what is the science and now let's cut all this "epigenetic methylation" and let's simplify the message. And we focus a lot on educational content on our Instagram and all on our website. There is a blog section where we talk a lot about science and I started and I still struggle a little bit with that. I'm still in the learning process, but we are always trying the best.

23:38 Mark Bayer: Right. And it is difficult. It's really hard to do. There's so much information and it is an iterative process. So the more you're doing this, the better you're getting at it. And then of course you're seeing the reaction of people. They actually do get what you're talking about rather than when you're talking, using these scientific terms and they're just bewildered because it's the first time they're hearing that. 25:13Mark Bayer: really interesting and so true. Let me ask you, many listeners are interested in entrepreneurship, but they don't really have an idea of what it's all about, whether it's to start a company or work for a startup and understanding that there is no typical day in your work experience, I'm wondering if you could share some of the mainstays of your work schedule, things that you often see on your calendar as things that you need to do just to give listeners a sense about what it is to work for a startup or a startup company.

An insider's description of life as an enterpreneur at a start-up

25:43 Alessandra Zonari, Ph.D.: For both sides, if you're working for a startup or if you're starting your company, you need to know that you will be wearing several hats. But to be very honest, in the very beginning, a lot of the daily basic tasks will be very similar to what you were doing in the academia. You will still be working in a lab doing the research. So the part of research, it's very similar to the academia. What it adds, it adds other layers.

So the research usually in the startup environment is more focused. So you have very clear objectives that you need to respond. You're doing experiments, looking to proof of concept and looking more objectively while when you're in academia, if you do one experiment and something show up, you just start digging and you just go to a completely different project and that's not a problem because you're just reaching and learning. So this is a big difference. But on the beginning, the daily base inside the research lab, it's very similar.

What it changed then, like when you're starting a company, is that you have other tasks as well. Pitching your company all the time to investors. You're also hiring new employees. In the beginning, for the first three years, ONE SKIN was only scientists. We were seven scientists doing research with this platform. When we start moving to create the product and create the brand, then now other pieces start to show up. I needed to start thinking about the communication, the content that we are creating to blogs or even Instagram, talking more to investors. And then eventually when you go to having a product in the market, you have operational sales and marketing and all different things.

Today, as a chief scientific officer at ONE SKIN, I still lead the science that we are researching, the new research, the development of new products that we are doing at the company. I also do a lot of collaboration with the universities that are researching some of our active peptides that we have to other applications beyond the skin. I do a lot of work reviewing documents that share the data that we get in the lab to the marketing side, so it's accurate and being sure that anything that's going out there is very accurate on the science side. I lead with hiring process and also other fun things as well, because we have products, we are deciding which packaging will be for the new products. So we have meetings with the designers.

And for instance, today, some of the things that I will be doing, I'm recording this podcast now. Then I need to analyze some data of a clinical study that we are running. I need to oversee the experiments that was run this week and check some that we'll do next week, need to go over some documents of scientific communication and also using one of the packages and some things that are going for our next product, so it goes a little bit around several things you need just when you're in a startup, multitasking, it will be also very important to be able to wear different hats and being creative because not always you have funds to do everything on the perfect way. So we need to be very creative on how we can be different, how we can even do our research with the resource that we have available.

A special disount offer for listeners of When Science Speaks

30:35 Alessandra Zonari, Ph.D.: We are very excited to launch it. So it's a product that has as an active ingredient the peptide that we discovered and developed here in the lab. And it was specifically designed for the skin of your eye region. So we received skin samples from the eyelid, leftover of plastic surgery. So we were using very specific eyelid skin to be testing and validating this formula to promote a better appearance, a more firm skin for a specific for this eye area. And we're very excited. We optimized the formula using our platform as well. We use our platform to test all the active ingredients that goes together with our peptide and in the final formula to ensure that there is no toxicity. There's no side effects that can be used in sensitive skin. And then we were able to do this specifically using skin from the eye area, which is something very new and unique. And this product is coming up at the end of this month. So we are very excited about it.

31:40 Mark Bayer: All right. So cool. Yeah. Listeners look out for that and also the promotional code that you'll have as well.

Alessandra's advice for listeners thinking about getting involved in startups

32:26 Alessandra Zonari, Ph.D.: Yeah, sure. To make the jump going out of academia and jumping to start a company, you have two options. You can either join an early stage startup, or if you have an idea, or if you have already research coming from your PhD, you can start your own company. What I would say it's what we did a little bit was for starting to find accelerator programs that can help you on the start point. So we joined IndieBio - it's an accelerator program specifically for biotech companies, specific for scientists that want to become entrepreneurs. So this is very helpful because there are mentorships. You meet different founders that are on the same stage as you and you start creating this network. And a lot of times you learn with other founders how to do things, how to get off the ground.

My advice would be to try to find an accelerator program. Try to find people that complement your skills, that are also passionate about what you're looking or trying to solve. And there will be ups and downs. Don't give up on the first down and always remember that you never fail because you're always learning something and what you learn, no one will take from you. So you will use this next. So just do the best and good luck in any journey that anyone decides.

This week's episode features Ashley Ruba, Ph.D., developmental psychologist and UX researcher. We discuss a range of career-related, life experience, and transition-from-academia issues, including:

- Growing up, did Ashley have mentors, teachers or family members who influenced or nurtured her interest in science

- As a first generation college student, Ashley's comments on my hypothesis - after 200-plus episodes of the show - that first-generation scientists in their families tend to be highly-skilled science communicators overall

- Ashley's research on how humans communicate and highlights and themes Ashley found from her research

- Common writing challenges Ashley helped her students address and overcome as a writing tutor during grad school

- Writing extensively about her own professional transition from academia to industry - and quickly attracting a large and growing following on social media - Ashley's advice for listeners who may be thinking about leaving academia, either during their program or after graduating, particularly when it comes to navigating the emotional and logistical issues involved in the transition

- Ashley's work as a UX researcher at Meta

- Ashley's recent selection by AAAS as the inaugural representative of psychologists with non-academic careers, a position created to help improve professional development for non-academic careers at national and international levels

- Looking ahead, Ashley's goals for 2023

Resources mentioned in the episode

Connecting with Ashley on LinkedIn

Beyond the Professoriate

This week's episode of When Science Speaks features academic, entrepreneur and data scientist Fabricio Costa, Ph.D.. We discuss a range of topics, including:

- How Fabricio has navigated his diverse, multinational career path

- As a bilingual scientist (Portuguese native speaker and English speaker) with extensive experience in industry, how Fabricio serves as a "linguistic bridge" between the scientific and technical team and the business development, business intelligence, and related staff who may not have scientific training

- What Fabricio sees are some of the common pitfalls he's observed scientists falling into when they communicate their work to business audiences or the public

- How Fabricio found his way into the data science field and how others with an interest in data science might break into the industry

- Fabricio's current role at the data science company Modak, and how long Modak has been around, its mission and market, and how Fabricio is helping to accelerate the company's growth

- Information about one of Modak's areas of focus - "data fabric" - what it is and how it is different than traditional data architecture

- Looking ahead from January of 2023, when AI and Machine Learning are becoming more commonly used and understood, to an extent, by the general public, at least in the U.S., what predictions Fabricio has regarding AI and Machine Learning moving forward

Resources mentioned in the episode

Modak Analytics

Current Openings at Modak