Women Decode STEM

Dr. Shawna Pandya is a scientist-astronaut candidate with Project PoSSUM, physician, aquanaut, speaker, martial artist, advanced diver, skydiver, pilot-in-training, VP Immersive Medicine with Luxsonic Technologies and Fellow of the Explorers’ Club.

Dr. Shawna has proved this multiple times that,n if you believe in your dreams and work hard to attend them, anything is possible. I’m sure each one of you will be inspired by her and get to learn about space medicine and more.

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Twitter @shawnapandya

Instagram @shawnapandya

Personal website

Project PoSSUM

Luxsonic Technologies

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Dr. Kilan C. Ashad-Bishop is a Biomedical Scientist and advocate for social change. After she earned a PhD in Cancer Biology, she was able to carve out the perfect career as a postdoctoral researcher at University of Miami School of Education and Human Development and the Director of College Access for Breakthrough Miami. 

She volunteers with K-12 and collegiate STEM programs to provide students with access to STEM education, she also serves as the Vice Chair of the City of Miami Climate Resilience Committee. 

She has also confounded STEMnoire - a research conference and holistic wellness retreat for women of the African diaspora in the STEM fields. 

I’m sure all of you are going to be inspired by her story!

Connect with Kilan
Kilan Bishop 

STEMnoire 

Instagram @kilanbishop 

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To tell us about Immunology, we are joined by Shivalee Duduskar, a trained Biotechnologist. She is pursuing her Doctorate in Immunology from Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany. She is going to take us through her journey of getting into the field of Immunology. 
Following her passion for art, Shivalee has found a way to bridge the gap between science and art with her scientific illustration service - Biotale Illustration. It helps scientists, researchers and biotech companies demonstrate their offerings in the form of art.
Listen to know more about Shivalee's venture!

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Instagram @Shivalee

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The role of Product Manager is key in the success of a product. They overlook the development process of a product, from ideation to getting the finished product to the end users and beyond. 

The role of product managers has so many definitions, that some of us are still trying to understand what exactly they do. 

We are joined by Richu Channakeshava today, who will take us through her journey of becoming a product manager and what her job entails.

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Twitter @Richu 

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Ayurveda is a medical practice that originated in India and has been practiced since ancient times. I'm sure a lot of us have presumptions and questions about what Ayurveda is. How does one study Ayurveda today, how is it different from modern medicine, does it treat all ailments and much more. 

So to answer all these questions we have Dr. Ranjani Deshpande with us today. She is a Specialist Ayurvedic Surgical Consultant and in addition to her practice, she is also involved in academics and mentoring. Listen to know more!

Here are some resources for further reading -

What is Ayurveda

Scripture of Ayurveda - Sushruta Samhita & Kashyapa Samhita

Science of Ophthalmology - Nimi Tantra

Science of Surgery - Dhanvantari sampradaya

Appendix -

Shalya Tantra - Surgery

Siddhanta - Established and accepted view of any particular school within Indian philosophy

Acharya - Teacher

Prakruthi - Nature

Connect with Dr. Ranjani via email

Email Dr.Ranjani Deshpande

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I’m extremely passionate about data Engineering. Before starting the podcast I worked as a Data Engineering consultant and I still get excited to discuss it. 

When I was thinking about doing an episode on it, the first person who came to mind was  a former colleague of mine, Yasneen Ashroff. She’s extremely knowledgeable in this field and has extensive experience. 

Currently she works as a Solution Principle for Data Engineering at Slalom Build. 

If you're looking to find a job in the Data Engineering field or you're curious to learn what Data engineers do then keep listening!

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LinkedIn Yasneen Ashroff

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Anisha Kulkarni is a Software Engineer at Intel. She has a Master’s degree in Computer Science from Cornell University and currently works in the Deep Learning field.

In today’s episode Anisha talks to us about navigating her career path as an experienced mid-career engineer. She takes us through the process she followed to transition into a new role within her organization with the help of a mentor.

Anisha gives us pointers to find the right mentor, build a trusting relationship with them.

The highlight of today's conversation is what a successful mentorship looks like and how it can transform your career.

If you are on a lookout for mentorship, this episode can help you get started.

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LinkedIn Anisha Kulkarni

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Lakshmi Sudheer, Senior Security Partner at Netflix talks to us about the different roles in the cybersecurity space. 

Cybersecurity is one of the fastest growing fields today, which means we will need more trained professionals taking up jobs in this space in the coming years. 

 She explains how security is integrated in every step of a software development life cycle.

She also tells us the importance of bug bounty programs for both companies and professionals in the community.

And since we are all working remotely and using the internet now more than ever, we will be discussing important steps to managing personal security. 

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Twitter @lakshmi.sudheer

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Hiranmayi Shankavaram, is assistant professor at R.V College of Architecture. She holds a bachelor's degree in Architecture and a Master's degree in Urban Development and Management.

Architecture is more than just designing skyscrapers and fascinating structures. In today's episode, Hiranmayi talks about her non-traditional path towards Urban Development.

We discuss Hiranmayi’s research during her master's course at IHS - institute of housing and urban studies in Rotterdam. She also takes us through her journey of moving back to India to pursue a collaborative research program named BInUCom - Building Inclusive Urban Communities.

Listen to the show to learn more about her research and case studies.

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LinkedIn Hiranmayi Shankavaram

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Dr.Isabel Torres is a Science Editor, Writer and Communicator. She holds a PhD in genetics from the University of Cambridge and is a mother of 4 kids. 

In today's episode she shares insights into what it is to be a science communicator. She tells us about her projects Pretty Smart Science which uses illustration to make science appealing to the general public and Mothers in Science that support and connect mothers in science and raise awareness of the challenges they face in their careers and personal lives. 

We also talked about challenges faced by women and mothers in the workplace and how a supportive community can help have a successful career.

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Instagram @prettysmartsci
Twitter @prettysmartsci

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Instagram @womendecode
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