When Science Speaks

This week's episode features Pedro Resende, Ph.D. Pedro has successfully pivoted several times in his career journey - from his Ph.D. research to 5 years as a Postdoc and Co-Principal Investigator and, most recently, in 2018, to entrepreneur, when Pedro co-founded Chaperone, the first online marketplace of personalized career development for scientists.

On this week's episode, we discuss a range of career-related topics, such as:

Key lessons Pedro has learned as he navigated these pivots

How "Necessity is the mother of reinvention" in Pedro's case - he's reinvented himself in various professional environments again and again - and how Pedro has navigated his fascinating career journey so far

The mission that Chaperone is designed to achieve, the value it's designed to deliver, and how listeners who want to learn more can get additional information

Pedro's experience as an international student studying and working in the U.S. - far from his native Portugal - including some of the positives as well as challenges he faced and how he overcame obstacles

The thread running through Pedro's career reflecting a favorite saying - "Good news, bad news - who knows?" and how listeners might also be able to shift - or at least incorporate elements of this attitude Pedro has adopted in their own thinking - when things don't work out the way they'd planned

The "good, the bad, and the ugly" of starting a company and things about the lifestyle, culture, or skillset of the startup world Pedro thinks those on the outside looking in may not be aware of or prepared for

Knowledge, skills, and attributes Pedro thinks are particularly valuable for professional success gleaned from his experiences across academia, in industry, and as an entrepreneur

How to make effective transitions in your professional life?

Making transitions - from academia to industry, from one job role to another, from Ph.D. to Postdoc - can be challenging to navigate.

This week's episode of When Science Speaks (link in comments) features Katherine Sugarman, M.D., a physician with more than 25 years of patient care and executive pharmaceutical experience in oncology, global regulatory affairs, global medical affairs, and related areas.

During this week's epsiode, we discuss a range of career issues, such as:

- How to approach major decisions that can alter your direction in life - The first time Katie made a radical change in the course of her life as an undergrad at Harvard University.

- Why change can be so frightening and how to manage fear of the unknown and leaving behind the familar

- How Katie approaches such high-stakes decisions

- The scariest career change Katie has made in her professional trajectory

- Katie's best advice to someone wrestling with a major career choice

This week's episode of When Science Speaks features Edward Duca, Ph.D. and Amanda Mathieson, M.Sc., science communication experts who are leaders of an innovative program on the island nation of Malta called STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Arts and Math).

Ed is a Science and Innovation Communication Lecturer at the University of Malta, co-runs the science communication STEAM Summer School, is involved in several large EU funded projects, and has created and managed several science communication events through an NGO called the Malta Chamber of Scientists, the largest activity being the national science and arts festival "Science in the City", which attracting 6% of Malta's population annually.

Ed has recently been appointed as Rector's Delegate for STEM Popularisation (Engagement) and EUSEA board member. His aim is to continue developing transdisciplinary research and activities to develop evidence for the effective communication of research that will encourage a scientifically aware society leading towards an informed democracy and active citizenship. He wants to embed a culture of public engagement and research that benefits society.

Amanda Mathieson has an undergraduate degree in Plant Science and a masters in Science Communication, both from the University of Manchester. She has worked in a number of universities around Europe, engaging the public with science through the arts and currently works at BiOrbic, a bioeconomy research centre based in University College Dublin. Her speciality is theatrical STEM escape rooms that explore science through exciting puzzles.

We discuss a range of topics related to the training STEAM provides in communicating science through the arts, with a particular focus on performance skills, including:

The impetus for starting the STEAM program, which has been operating for several years now

Why Ed and Amanda believe performance skills are vital for effectively communicating science, particularly since scientists, journalists, and others involved in scientific careers may not consider themselves "performers" per se

Whether Ed and Amanda think performance skills - however you'd like to define them - can play a role in encouraging the public to follow public health guidance for stopping the spread of the COVID

Whether scientists have a particular affinity or talent when it comes to the arts generally?

What's surprised Ed and Amanda In working with participants at the STEAM Summer School over the years?

Which areas for development have they noticed participants commonly have when they are just beginning their time at the summer school

Besides registering for and attending STEAM Summer School, what's one thing listeners could do today to improve their science communication abilities through the arts

Resources mentioned in the episode:

STEAM Summer School

STEAM Summer School's special discount for listeners of When Science Speaks: STEAM is offering an exclusive €100 discount to listeners of When Science Speaks. Just put in the coupon code 'STEAMSPEAKS' when you register. This code will last all the way up until registration closes.

This week's episode features Sheril Kirshenbaum, a scientist and author working to enhance public understanding of science and improve communication between scientists, policymakers and the public.

Sheril currently hosts "Serving Up Science" at PBS Digital Studios and is executive director of Science Debate, a nonprofit nonpartisan organization working to get every candidate on record on science policy.

Sheril co-authored "Unscientific America: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens Our Future" with Chris Mooney, which was chosen by Library Journal as one of the Best Sci-Tech Books of 2009 and was named by President Obama's science advisor John Holdren as a top recommended read.

Sheril has been featured in documentary films about science and society and her writing appears in publications such as Bloomberg and The Atlantic as well as in scientific journals including Science and Nature. Sheril has been a 2015 Presidential Leadership Scholar, a Marshall Memorial Fellow, and a legislative NOAA Sea Grant Knauss Fellow in the U.S. Senate with Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL).

Sheril holds MSc degrees in marine biology and policy and is currently working toward a PhD in community sustainability. Her research focuses on how we make decisions about science and policy.

During this week's episode, Sheril and I discussed a range of topics related to life as a scientist and science policy, including:

Sheril's experience as the first in her immediate family to go to grad school, some of the challenges she faced, and how she successfully navigated in sometimes unfamiliar territory

Unscientific America, the excellent book Sheril co-authored with Chris Mooney more than 10 years ago highlighting anti-intellectual tendencies of the American public and what Sheril thinks is going wrong and what can be done to reverse this trend

Science Debate, which Sheril founded with colleagues during the 2008 U.S. election in response to the absence of science and technology topics in the presidential debates and in the campaigns, and the changes in the science policy landscape over the past 15 years or so

As a scientist, what surprised Sheril when she began her Knauss Fellowship in Sen. Bill Nelson's office and what recommendations she has for listeners interested in getting into policymaking

Lessons Sheril has learned, as an international speaker about science communication, about presenting scientific information in an engaging, memorable way accessible to general audiences

Sheril's book - The Science of Kissing - which explores everything you always wanted to know about kissing but either haven't asked, couldn't find out, or didn't realize you should understand.

Looking to the rest of 2022 and beyond, how Sheril sees science communication evolving and resonating more with the general public, orr are we in for increased obstacles ahead, in terms of public attitudes towards science

This week's special double episode features two interviews: my conversation with Jim Papa, who runs the Washington, D.C. office of Global Strategy Group (GSG), where he guides operations and strategy for GSG's public affairs, communications, and research practices, and Jim's interview of me for GSG's podcast, STAFFER.

As Partner at GSC, Jim advises CEOs and other C-suite executives grappling with public affairs challenges and opportunities across multiple industries.

Prior to joining GSG, Jim was Special Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs in the Obama White House from 2009-2012, where played an important role in the enactment of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the Affordable Care Act, and other landmark laws.

Former Chicago Mayor and current U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel had this to say about Jim: "Papa is someone you want in the trenches with you."

Prior to serving in the White House, Jim earned a reputation as a top flight communications and political strategist on Capitol Hill. He served as a senior advisor to Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel and Chief of Staff to Rep. Rush Holt, one of only three scientists serving in Congress at that time, among other key senior roles.

Jim is an experienced spokesman and media trainer who has prepared clients for broadcast appearances ranging from "Meet the Press" to "60 Minutes". He has guest lectured at Georgetown University, George Washington University, and American University.

Jim earned his J.D. from Georgetown Law and an undergraduate degree from Cornell University.

Topics covered in the double episode include:

- Some of the common missteps Jim encounters as he guides and counsels clients and Members of Congress in effective communication and how he addresses and remedies them

Lessons Jim learned from U.S. Congressman Rush Holt (D-NJ) when Jim served as Holt's Chief of Staff, including the role of data and information as a persuasive lever in moving public policy forward.

The communication tools Jim brings to the table when advising clients or directly advocating, including those JIm feels are often overlooked or underutilized.

Examples of particularly powerful communications that moved an audience or listeners when Jim was working at the WHite House

What role - in terms of persuasive power or influence-building - does Jim think the delivery of the message plays in the ability to hit the mark as well as characteristics of the messenger.

A book Jim recommends to listeners interested in improving the way they communicate their research, priorities, or policy issues.

This week's episode features Donna Gerardi Riordan, a nonprofit leader and innovator with more than three decades of experience bridging the gap between science and policy at the national and state levels.

Donna's most recent role is as Executive Director of the Washington State Academy of Sciences (WSAS). She previously served in similar roles in California at the California Council on Science & Technology, where she was the co-architect of the first state-level Science & Technology Fellows Program, and at the US National Academy of Sciences, where she founded and directed its Office of Public Understanding of Science.

Donna also has consulted with national and state level organizations on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education, she founded Research Northwest, a non-profit organization devoted to generating the best available science for policy decisions.

Donna is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and lives in Seattle.

On this week's episode, Donna shares insights about similarities and differences between working in science policy at the state and federal levels. We discuss topics such as:

- How Donna recommends people interested in science policy approach opportunities at the state and federal level

- Donna's role and responsibilities at the WSAS well as the organization's mission and goals

- What Donna means by the "pull" and "push" modes the WSAS employs in its interactions within the policymaking process in Washington State

- How scientists and engineers can have an impact at the state level and a specific example of how Donna and the WSAS operated within a particular policymaking process

- How scientists can remain objective when it comes to the science while still advising elected officials on policy issues involving scientific topics

- Donna's approach to storytelling as a tool for communicating complex information to policymakers

On this week's episode, I speak with Martin Zaumanis, Ph.D., a scientist-project manager at Empa, an interdisciplinary research institute in Zurich, Switzerland that conducts cutting-edge materials and technology research.

In Martins' research, he strives to bring sustainability to the core of road construction - studying asphalt recycling, the use of waste materials in road construction and application warm mix asphalt technologies.

Martins has research experience in four countries. Since 2011, he has authored more than 50 publications. Martins believes implementation of new technologies also depends on their acceptance in society and in the industry, which has led him to communicate his findings actively through videos and at a TED conference.

In 2016, Martins received the International Road Federation award for the best research project of the year. He's a strong believer in knowing how to communicate your research, which, he says, can mean the difference between being invited to apply for a tenure track position and sending out CVs to random people on LinkedIn, for example.

Martins' "Peer Recognized" book series holds practical advice for writing impactful research papers, delivering powerful academic presentations, attracting research funding and making your name known.

Martins earned his Ph.D. at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in the U.S.

We discuss a range of topics related to Martins work, including:

How Martins first became interested in a scientific career

Whether he embraced the importance of being able to effectively engage general audiences early in his research career or did this realization happen later? How?

How Martin prepared for his TEDx talk

Why none of the slides he used during his TEDx talk had graphs, tables, or data of any kind

How listeners can learn from Martin's approach as they prepare to participate in conferences - both as a featured speaker or panelists and also as a presenter during a poster session

Why, as he writed in his new book "Scientific Presentation Skills", effective presentations to the public and other general audiences can produce tangible benefits, including for your scientific career

This week's guest is Michael Port, best-selling author, actor, and co-founder of Heroic Public Speaking. We discuss a range of communidation and career topics, such as: - How to effectively manage transitions in your professional life

- As an author, actor, and professional speaker, the weaknesses Michael has noticed in public health communications about COVID

- How to communicate complexity so even someone without any background in the topic can understand, enjoy, and remember the speech

- Michael's thoughts on embracing the importance of skilled communication for scientists

- What led Michael to write "The Referable Speaker', its major themes and take-aways, and how it fits in the "Port Pantheon" of best-selling books?

- As an author of 9 best-selling books, what Michael has learned about the writing process that would be useful for other writers aiming to get their research published

This week's guest is Michael Port, best-selling author, actor, and co-founder of Heroic Public Speaking. We discuss a range of communidation and career topics, such as:

- How to effectively manage transitions in your professional life

- As an author, actor, and professional speaker, the weaknesses Michael has noticed in public health communications about COVID

- How to communicate complexity so even someone without any background in the topic can understand, enjoy, and remember the speech 

- Michael's thoughts on embracing the importance of skilled communication for scientists

- What led Michael to write "The Referable Speaker', its major themes and take-aways, and how it fits in the “Port Pantheon” of best-selling books?

- As an author of 9 best-selling books, what Michael has learned about the writing process that would be useful for other writers aiming to get their research published

On this week's episode, Gwen Acton, Ph.D. shares insights and stories from her long career in science, communication, and leadership, including:

- How even short, encouraging recognition of excellent job performance can energize and motivate your team

- Lessons about leadership she employed when she was an undergrad in college and serving as Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Pennsylvanian

- As a Biology major in college, in addition to being Editor-in-Chief, how her work in science informed her approach to communication, and how her work in communication informed her approach to science

How to strengthen your communication skills

Her fascinating research at the Functional Genomics Program, which was related to the Human Genome Project, and what it was like to lead in that environment

Guidance she has for listeners considering a a professional transition from academia into industry