1
00:00:01,520 --> 00:00:03,080
Speaker 1: Can you believe it has been a year.

2
00:00:03,279 --> 00:00:06,120
Speaker 2: I can't. It makes me emotional. I can't believe we've

3
00:00:06,120 --> 00:00:07,160
Speaker 2: been doing this for a year.

4
00:00:07,400 --> 00:00:08,480
Speaker 1: Don't try to make me cry.

5
00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:10,120
Speaker 2: Our baby is one year old.

6
00:00:10,320 --> 00:00:13,720
Speaker 1: Dope Labs is one year old, and it feels just right,

7
00:00:13,800 --> 00:00:17,799
Speaker 1: you know, on this anniversary in Black History Month, it

8
00:00:17,840 --> 00:00:21,040
Speaker 1: feels right for us to really highlight some of our

9
00:00:21,079 --> 00:00:26,840
Speaker 1: favorites y'all. Yes, some of our favorites in Stem.

10
00:00:26,920 --> 00:00:30,000
Speaker 2: Yes, all the black folks in Stem that are all

11
00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:32,120
Speaker 2: over the world. We wanted to hear all about the

12
00:00:32,159 --> 00:00:32,879
Speaker 2: work that you do.

13
00:00:33,159 --> 00:00:36,320
Speaker 1: So if you listen to the end of the last episode.

14
00:00:35,880 --> 00:00:38,839
Speaker 2: Or if you follow us on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook, you.

15
00:00:38,800 --> 00:00:41,159
Speaker 1: Would have heard a call where we said, hey, if

16
00:00:41,200 --> 00:00:44,360
Speaker 1: you're black and you're in Stem, we want to hear

17
00:00:44,360 --> 00:00:47,159
Speaker 1: from you. We said to record yourself kind of explaining

18
00:00:47,200 --> 00:00:49,560
Speaker 1: what you do, what your field is, where you affiliated,

19
00:00:49,640 --> 00:00:51,360
Speaker 1: what you like to do in your spare time. We

20
00:00:51,360 --> 00:00:52,360
Speaker 1: wanted to hear all about.

21
00:00:52,120 --> 00:00:56,000
Speaker 2: It, and y'all responded a lot.

22
00:00:56,520 --> 00:00:58,720
Speaker 1: Yes. Now before we even get started, I want to

23
00:00:58,720 --> 00:01:01,440
Speaker 1: tell y'all will thirty minutes. So we had to cut

24
00:01:01,440 --> 00:01:02,000
Speaker 1: some clips.

25
00:01:02,200 --> 00:01:05,360
Speaker 2: I'm sorry. We could not put everybody if we did,

26
00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:08,640
Speaker 2: we would need hours and hours and hours of space.

27
00:01:08,840 --> 00:01:13,120
Speaker 1: But we have a couple of your fellow Dope Labs

28
00:01:13,160 --> 00:01:15,440
Speaker 1: listeners who are black in stem that we really want

29
00:01:15,440 --> 00:01:18,679
Speaker 1: to highlight and I can't wait. I'm Tt and I'm.

30
00:01:18,640 --> 00:01:36,600
Speaker 2: Zakijah and from Spotify Studios. This is Dope Labs.

31
00:01:36,959 --> 00:01:39,319
Speaker 1: So first we're going to give you a few little

32
00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:41,399
Speaker 1: tidbits about Black History Months. Yeah.

33
00:01:41,400 --> 00:01:44,000
Speaker 2: So Black History Month is celebrated here in the US,

34
00:01:44,480 --> 00:01:46,679
Speaker 2: in the UK, Canada, and Ireland.

35
00:01:46,800 --> 00:01:49,920
Speaker 1: Wow, Ireland, right, I.

36
00:01:49,840 --> 00:01:53,080
Speaker 2: Was thinking the same thing. And it started with Black

37
00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:57,040
Speaker 2: History Week back in nineteen twenty six. Cartigie Woodson wanted

38
00:01:57,040 --> 00:02:01,920
Speaker 2: to celebrate Black history and so he designated the second

39
00:02:01,960 --> 00:02:05,880
Speaker 2: week in February as Negro History Week, Okay, And so

40
00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:08,960
Speaker 2: he chose the second week because it was the birthdays

41
00:02:09,000 --> 00:02:13,080
Speaker 2: of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglas. And so then Black

42
00:02:13,160 --> 00:02:16,320
Speaker 2: History Month, So we're expanding out from Negro History Week

43
00:02:16,360 --> 00:02:18,760
Speaker 2: to Black History Month. That was in nineteen sixty nine,

44
00:02:19,200 --> 00:02:22,919
Speaker 2: and it was first celebrated at Kent State in Ohio

45
00:02:23,240 --> 00:02:25,959
Speaker 2: in nineteen seventy. Yes, and then when you fast forward

46
00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:29,399
Speaker 2: six years, Black History Month is being celebrated all over

47
00:02:29,400 --> 00:02:31,880
Speaker 2: the country in all different types of communities.

48
00:02:32,080 --> 00:02:36,720
Speaker 1: Yeah, and then President Gerald Ford formally recognized Black History

49
00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:38,560
Speaker 1: Month and we've been rocking with it ever since.

50
00:02:38,680 --> 00:02:39,760
Speaker 2: Black Power fitth sign.

51
00:02:41,919 --> 00:02:46,040
Speaker 1: So, like we said, this episode, we reached out to you,

52
00:02:46,120 --> 00:02:48,480
Speaker 1: and you guys gave us some great clips about what

53
00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:52,560
Speaker 1: you're doing, and I can't wait to share those with everybody.

54
00:02:53,800 --> 00:02:54,000
Speaker 3: You know.

55
00:02:54,919 --> 00:02:56,880
Speaker 1: I have to say I don't like to give engineer

56
00:02:56,880 --> 00:02:58,799
Speaker 1: in Hiss props, but y'all showed out.

57
00:02:59,080 --> 00:03:01,720
Speaker 2: Yes, y'all did, and I'm very proud as a fellow

58
00:03:01,960 --> 00:03:05,080
Speaker 2: black and engineering person. I was very proud that that

59
00:03:05,200 --> 00:03:07,400
Speaker 2: E and STEM came in strong.

60
00:03:07,480 --> 00:03:08,280
Speaker 4: It was a.

61
00:03:08,440 --> 00:03:13,240
Speaker 2: Capital E bold in the boldest font you can think of.

62
00:03:13,560 --> 00:03:16,040
Speaker 2: So that's where we're going to start today. Yes, and

63
00:03:16,120 --> 00:03:19,200
Speaker 2: so I think before we jump into our clips that

64
00:03:19,200 --> 00:03:22,359
Speaker 2: we received, I think given a general overview of what

65
00:03:22,760 --> 00:03:28,399
Speaker 2: engineering is and why it's important. Is important. So engineering

66
00:03:28,560 --> 00:03:34,080
Speaker 2: is the how you apply science and math into the

67
00:03:34,120 --> 00:03:36,520
Speaker 2: real world, into the things that we touch and feel.

68
00:03:37,120 --> 00:03:40,520
Speaker 2: So engineering is important because when you look around you

69
00:03:40,640 --> 00:03:45,480
Speaker 2: at pretty much everything within sight, somebody had to engineer that.

70
00:03:45,880 --> 00:03:50,320
Speaker 2: So they had to understand its characteristics, it's chemical properties,

71
00:03:51,840 --> 00:03:55,600
Speaker 2: its structure in order to make something work well, for

72
00:03:55,680 --> 00:03:58,120
Speaker 2: it to work efficiently, and for it to be useful

73
00:03:58,160 --> 00:04:02,120
Speaker 2: for you. Engineers are very very important. I don't mean

74
00:04:02,160 --> 00:04:04,200
Speaker 2: to toot our own horn.

75
00:04:04,000 --> 00:04:05,400
Speaker 5: But toue.

76
00:04:06,480 --> 00:04:08,000
Speaker 1: I think that's called laying on the horn. I don't

77
00:04:08,000 --> 00:04:11,520
Speaker 1: even think that's tooting it. Well, that's fine, that's fine,

78
00:04:11,640 --> 00:04:13,520
Speaker 1: that's fine. Engineering is important.

79
00:04:13,680 --> 00:04:17,919
Speaker 2: Engineers are important, and I am very proud to be

80
00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:20,400
Speaker 2: an engineer and to be a black engineer.

81
00:04:20,720 --> 00:04:21,760
Speaker 1: Let's get into the clips.

82
00:04:22,040 --> 00:04:24,880
Speaker 4: My name is Chandler, and I'm a structural engineer in training.

83
00:04:25,520 --> 00:04:28,240
Speaker 4: In my work, I take an architectural concept of a

84
00:04:28,240 --> 00:04:30,880
Speaker 4: building and turn it into something that can withstand loads

85
00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:35,680
Speaker 4: from people, equipment, winds, snow, earthquakes, and many other forces.

86
00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:38,599
Speaker 4: Then I build structural models to analyze the forces on

87
00:04:38,680 --> 00:04:41,240
Speaker 4: all of the structural members and produce drawings so that

88
00:04:41,320 --> 00:04:44,320
Speaker 4: it can be built. Structural engineering is important because it

89
00:04:44,360 --> 00:04:46,920
Speaker 4: allows us to enjoy the beauty of the built environment

90
00:04:47,200 --> 00:04:50,400
Speaker 4: while also staying safe and protected from the elements and

91
00:04:50,440 --> 00:04:51,400
Speaker 4: forces around us.

92
00:04:52,000 --> 00:04:55,839
Speaker 2: Yes, the work that Chandler is doing is super important.

93
00:04:56,200 --> 00:04:59,320
Speaker 2: If we think about any building, any structure that we've

94
00:04:59,360 --> 00:05:03,320
Speaker 2: stepped into in our lives, a structural engineer has been

95
00:05:03,360 --> 00:05:05,960
Speaker 2: a part of that. They have used their mind to

96
00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:08,720
Speaker 2: make sure that that building stays up while we're in it.

97
00:05:09,040 --> 00:05:10,920
Speaker 2: And the thing that we also have to consider is

98
00:05:10,920 --> 00:05:15,400
Speaker 2: that what is taken into account when a structural engineer

99
00:05:15,440 --> 00:05:19,400
Speaker 2: is working is not just oh, how does concrete stand up?

100
00:05:19,480 --> 00:05:22,000
Speaker 2: How does rebar stand up? How do all these things

101
00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:26,440
Speaker 2: stand up? Brick whatever it allbar? So rebar is a

102
00:05:26,480 --> 00:05:29,160
Speaker 2: reinforcing steel that they usually put in concrete just to

103
00:05:29,200 --> 00:05:31,600
Speaker 2: help it hold together. So if you were to go

104
00:05:31,720 --> 00:05:34,080
Speaker 2: to any building that was recently knocked down, you could

105
00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:37,200
Speaker 2: see rebar all through the concrete and things like that. Okay,

106
00:05:37,640 --> 00:05:40,760
Speaker 2: they also have to consider where that building is being

107
00:05:40,880 --> 00:05:43,880
Speaker 2: or that structure is being built. So let's say that

108
00:05:43,920 --> 00:05:47,880
Speaker 2: they're in the northeast. We get a lot of hurricanes here,

109
00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:51,440
Speaker 2: so you have to build this structure with that in mind.

110
00:05:51,600 --> 00:05:54,800
Speaker 2: So you have to think, what are hurricane wins? How

111
00:05:55,240 --> 00:05:57,640
Speaker 2: many miles per hour is that? And then they start

112
00:05:57,720 --> 00:06:00,200
Speaker 2: to test those things out. So they might build like

113
00:06:00,200 --> 00:06:02,960
Speaker 2: a mini a sample structure, and then they put it

114
00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:05,800
Speaker 2: in a wind tunnel and let that wind just whip

115
00:06:05,839 --> 00:06:08,280
Speaker 2: it just like how a hurricane would, and see if

116
00:06:08,279 --> 00:06:10,000
Speaker 2: it stands up, if it stands up, they know that

117
00:06:10,040 --> 00:06:12,160
Speaker 2: they're doing the right thing, and then they can use

118
00:06:12,160 --> 00:06:15,120
Speaker 2: that material and build these buildings that protect us during

119
00:06:15,120 --> 00:06:18,240
Speaker 2: those times. That's the reason why when we have all

120
00:06:18,279 --> 00:06:22,800
Speaker 2: of these really really harsh weather events, we feel so

121
00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:25,880
Speaker 2: lucky that our houses don't fall down, you know. And

122
00:06:25,920 --> 00:06:30,960
Speaker 2: then you also have to consider time and other events

123
00:06:31,080 --> 00:06:33,839
Speaker 2: that we in our every day don't think about. So

124
00:06:34,960 --> 00:06:36,480
Speaker 2: you have to consider how many people are going to

125
00:06:36,520 --> 00:06:37,840
Speaker 2: be in this building, what is this building going to

126
00:06:37,880 --> 00:06:38,240
Speaker 2: be used for?

127
00:06:38,440 --> 00:06:39,520
Speaker 1: Is how long should it last?

128
00:06:39,800 --> 00:06:42,160
Speaker 2: Right, So you have to take all those things into

129
00:06:42,200 --> 00:06:44,760
Speaker 2: account when you are when you are building these structures.

130
00:06:44,839 --> 00:06:47,240
Speaker 2: And let's not just focus on buildings. Let's talk about tunnels,

131
00:06:47,360 --> 00:06:50,919
Speaker 2: bridges and things like that. So if you're thinking about

132
00:06:50,960 --> 00:06:54,760
Speaker 2: a bridge that connects two pieces of land, that's what

133
00:06:54,800 --> 00:06:57,880
Speaker 2: a bridge is. They have to consider how many cars

134
00:06:58,000 --> 00:06:59,880
Speaker 2: are going to be going over it's the average amount

135
00:06:59,880 --> 00:07:01,520
Speaker 2: of is going to be going over this in a year.

136
00:07:01,760 --> 00:07:03,320
Speaker 2: What does it need to withstand? So then you have

137
00:07:03,360 --> 00:07:07,240
Speaker 2: to go through wear and tear testing for these different materials. Tunnels,

138
00:07:07,520 --> 00:07:09,880
Speaker 2: is a tunnel going to be underwater? How many pounds

139
00:07:09,880 --> 00:07:12,840
Speaker 2: per square inch of pressure doesn't need to withstand.

140
00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:14,000
Speaker 1: These are all the.

141
00:07:13,920 --> 00:07:16,320
Speaker 2: Things that structural engineers do, and this is why I

142
00:07:16,480 --> 00:07:18,880
Speaker 2: love that field. I'm not a structural engineer, but I

143
00:07:18,920 --> 00:07:20,760
Speaker 2: have so much respect for them.

144
00:07:20,920 --> 00:07:25,640
Speaker 1: I can't tell you're not a structural engineer. I don't

145
00:07:25,680 --> 00:07:29,000
Speaker 1: know if this feels obvious or not, but it just

146
00:07:29,080 --> 00:07:31,840
Speaker 1: occurred to me based on the things that you're saying.

147
00:07:32,480 --> 00:07:32,640
Speaker 6: Right.

148
00:07:32,840 --> 00:07:35,080
Speaker 1: Why you can look at something on TV that has

149
00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:37,560
Speaker 1: multiple houses and you can kind of pinpoint this is

150
00:07:37,560 --> 00:07:39,720
Speaker 1: where this is in America, or this is where this

151
00:07:39,880 --> 00:07:42,600
Speaker 1: is in the world, right, because these structural engineers have

152
00:07:42,720 --> 00:07:46,880
Speaker 1: optimized what a home should look or feel like based

153
00:07:46,920 --> 00:07:49,760
Speaker 1: on what's happening in that area. Yeah, and you.

154
00:07:49,720 --> 00:07:53,760
Speaker 2: Know who the first structural engineers were the indigenous people

155
00:07:53,800 --> 00:07:58,080
Speaker 2: of America. Yes, yeacause if you go out to places

156
00:07:58,120 --> 00:08:00,760
Speaker 2: in like the desert or Arizona and how they build

157
00:08:00,760 --> 00:08:03,280
Speaker 2: their houses, the indigenous people were doing that way before

158
00:08:03,360 --> 00:08:06,320
Speaker 2: the structural the modern day structural engineers came along.

159
00:08:06,480 --> 00:08:09,440
Speaker 1: I was reading something about homes in Japan and how

160
00:08:09,480 --> 00:08:13,360
Speaker 1: they have these narrow these narrow entry points, and something

161
00:08:13,400 --> 00:08:15,440
Speaker 1: about where you spray the water on the ground so

162
00:08:15,480 --> 00:08:17,880
Speaker 1: that evaporates so it feels cool and all of this

163
00:08:17,880 --> 00:08:20,480
Speaker 1: stuff people were doing. I'm like, these those are structural

164
00:08:20,520 --> 00:08:23,360
Speaker 1: engineer structural engineers, and I think one of the things

165
00:08:23,400 --> 00:08:26,160
Speaker 1: you hit, a structural engineer has to really understand the

166
00:08:26,200 --> 00:08:28,960
Speaker 1: material that they're working with toom and it feels like

167
00:08:29,000 --> 00:08:34,400
Speaker 1: structural engineering is a natural partner with material science.

168
00:08:34,440 --> 00:08:39,000
Speaker 2: Ooh, my other love, that's my main joint. That's my

169
00:08:39,080 --> 00:08:40,600
Speaker 2: bay material science.

170
00:08:41,000 --> 00:08:44,160
Speaker 6: This is Cicily speaking. I am a fifth year PhD

171
00:08:44,320 --> 00:08:48,360
Speaker 6: student studying chemistry and materials science. Right now, I'm using

172
00:08:48,400 --> 00:08:51,280
Speaker 6: a confocal microscope, which is a tool that I use

173
00:08:51,320 --> 00:08:55,640
Speaker 6: a lot because I study colloidal particle materials. So colleors

174
00:08:55,640 --> 00:09:00,360
Speaker 6: are present in many cosmetic formulations. All the lotions, creams,

175
00:09:00,400 --> 00:09:02,280
Speaker 6: things like this that you use. These are made up

176
00:09:02,360 --> 00:09:05,640
Speaker 6: of coloidal emulsions, as well as the droplets of water

177
00:09:05,720 --> 00:09:07,959
Speaker 6: that make up clouds in the sky, the milk in

178
00:09:08,040 --> 00:09:10,560
Speaker 6: your fridge, the paint on your walls, all of these

179
00:09:10,559 --> 00:09:15,439
Speaker 6: things were developed using colloid chemistry. So specifically, I make

180
00:09:15,559 --> 00:09:19,839
Speaker 6: solid coloidal particles, which can be thought of as really

181
00:09:19,880 --> 00:09:23,640
Speaker 6: really small marbles. And this is important because, as I've mentioned,

182
00:09:23,679 --> 00:09:26,439
Speaker 6: colloids are present in a lot of materials that you

183
00:09:26,520 --> 00:09:29,400
Speaker 6: interact with daily and being able to manipulate the structure

184
00:09:29,440 --> 00:09:33,120
Speaker 6: of the building block of these materials can give materials

185
00:09:33,160 --> 00:09:37,000
Speaker 6: with really interesting property. So, for example, coloidal particles can

186
00:09:37,040 --> 00:09:40,240
Speaker 6: be used to create photonic crystals, which can emulate the

187
00:09:40,360 --> 00:09:44,160
Speaker 6: kinds of iridescent color and diffraction patterns that you see

188
00:09:44,200 --> 00:09:47,680
Speaker 6: in things like opals and clamshells and blue moor fro butterflies.

189
00:09:48,160 --> 00:09:50,320
Speaker 6: So I create new colodo building blocks so that we

190
00:09:50,360 --> 00:09:53,360
Speaker 6: can have some day, you know, screens that only require

191
00:09:53,400 --> 00:09:56,320
Speaker 6: the input of light rather than the input of electricity.

192
00:09:56,559 --> 00:09:59,120
Speaker 6: So that's one of the applications of what I do. So, yeah,

193
00:09:59,160 --> 00:10:01,280
Speaker 6: that's a bit about me material scientists.

194
00:10:01,960 --> 00:10:05,240
Speaker 2: I love this because just like Cicily, I am a

195
00:10:05,240 --> 00:10:08,880
Speaker 2: material scientist as well. I didn't work with materials on

196
00:10:08,920 --> 00:10:11,240
Speaker 2: the micrometer scale that I worked with materials that were

197
00:10:11,280 --> 00:10:13,960
Speaker 2: on the nanometer scale, so a little bit smaller. But

198
00:10:14,200 --> 00:10:18,720
Speaker 2: I totally understand the colloidal chemistry that she's doing and

199
00:10:19,320 --> 00:10:24,080
Speaker 2: why this is so important. Okay, So colloidal particles are spherical,

200
00:10:24,160 --> 00:10:27,000
Speaker 2: and they're dispersed. It can be dispersed in a gas,

201
00:10:27,000 --> 00:10:30,480
Speaker 2: a liquid, or solid. The ones that we most commonly

202
00:10:30,600 --> 00:10:32,760
Speaker 2: understand are the ones that are dispersed in a liquid,

203
00:10:33,240 --> 00:10:35,440
Speaker 2: and the reason why they're so cool and so important

204
00:10:35,480 --> 00:10:39,880
Speaker 2: it's because when they're stable, everything looks nice and smooth,

205
00:10:40,000 --> 00:10:42,719
Speaker 2: but if they're unstable, then things start to clump up

206
00:10:42,880 --> 00:10:46,800
Speaker 2: and not look so great, and that balance between the

207
00:10:46,840 --> 00:10:49,880
Speaker 2: two is really really hard to find. So when people

208
00:10:50,000 --> 00:10:53,520
Speaker 2: like Sicily are doing really novel work to create different

209
00:10:53,559 --> 00:10:57,320
Speaker 2: structures inside of a colloidal suspension, whether it be solid

210
00:10:57,360 --> 00:11:02,800
Speaker 2: liquid or gas, it is very very difficult to do,

211
00:11:03,440 --> 00:11:08,600
Speaker 2: especially if those particles are not spherical. So when she

212
00:11:08,679 --> 00:11:12,880
Speaker 2: talks about the butterfly and clamshells and how you could

213
00:11:12,880 --> 00:11:15,320
Speaker 2: see those rainbow colors when you look at them, it's

214
00:11:15,360 --> 00:11:18,800
Speaker 2: the diffraction of light. And so when light hits those

215
00:11:18,840 --> 00:11:24,240
Speaker 2: things because of the particle structure within the clamshell or

216
00:11:24,240 --> 00:11:27,760
Speaker 2: in the butterfly wing, we see that rainbow because of

217
00:11:28,120 --> 00:11:31,079
Speaker 2: how the light is reflecting back. Okay, so what she's

218
00:11:31,080 --> 00:11:34,520
Speaker 2: doing is really really innovative and really really cool, and

219
00:11:34,559 --> 00:11:38,480
Speaker 2: it's gonna change everything. So what you're saying is that

220
00:11:39,080 --> 00:11:42,120
Speaker 2: we're getting this refraction of light and she's creating something

221
00:11:42,160 --> 00:11:44,800
Speaker 2: that will probably that could do the same thing. That

222
00:11:44,840 --> 00:11:47,480
Speaker 2: feels like, I mean, I'm gonna get you, give you your

223
00:11:47,440 --> 00:11:48,040
Speaker 2: engineering and.

224
00:11:48,040 --> 00:11:51,959
Speaker 1: Material science props. But that also feels like biomemicry, right.

225
00:11:52,040 --> 00:11:56,320
Speaker 1: That feels like, okay, taking things that exist in biology

226
00:11:56,360 --> 00:12:01,959
Speaker 1: and living organisms and recreating them right to advance to technology. Okay,

227
00:12:02,080 --> 00:12:04,679
Speaker 1: I think we're in the biowheelhouse. I'm just gonna just

228
00:12:04,679 --> 00:12:06,559
Speaker 1: gonna go ahead and say this is my spoke.

229
00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:10,839
Speaker 2: I see where you're going. Okay, So that we've had

230
00:12:10,920 --> 00:12:13,920
Speaker 2: enough of the engineering talk, I am very excited to

231
00:12:14,000 --> 00:12:15,679
Speaker 2: jump into the biosciences.

232
00:12:15,960 --> 00:12:19,360
Speaker 1: Biology is the study of living organisms. And people always

233
00:12:19,360 --> 00:12:21,360
Speaker 1: say like, oh, biology is that means you with plants

234
00:12:21,400 --> 00:12:24,080
Speaker 1: and animals, But there's so much more to it. Just

235
00:12:24,120 --> 00:12:27,720
Speaker 1: like we learned about engineering at this macro scale when

236
00:12:27,760 --> 00:12:30,840
Speaker 1: we talked about structural engineering and building things up, the

237
00:12:30,840 --> 00:12:35,160
Speaker 1: same parallels exist in biology. So you have people that

238
00:12:35,240 --> 00:12:38,679
Speaker 1: study ecosystems and organisms and how they interact, and then

239
00:12:38,720 --> 00:12:40,920
Speaker 1: you and how to build up systems and how to

240
00:12:40,960 --> 00:12:44,280
Speaker 1: make them, how to make different types of organisms work together,

241
00:12:44,320 --> 00:12:46,200
Speaker 1: which is what I used to be interested in, you know,

242
00:12:46,280 --> 00:12:50,120
Speaker 1: so microbial symbiosis. But then also there are people that

243
00:12:50,160 --> 00:12:52,640
Speaker 1: study how to break these systems down and how to

244
00:12:52,679 --> 00:12:56,080
Speaker 1: look at these things that are really tiny nano or

245
00:12:56,600 --> 00:13:01,240
Speaker 1: micro level you know, before we were even recording this episode,

246
00:13:01,240 --> 00:13:04,680
Speaker 1: I was telling you about these African sicklets, these fish.

247
00:13:04,800 --> 00:13:05,040
Speaker 7: You know.

248
00:13:05,200 --> 00:13:06,360
Speaker 1: I go down the rabbit hole.

249
00:13:06,440 --> 00:13:15,080
Speaker 2: My friend she watches one video on Twitter and I

250
00:13:15,080 --> 00:13:17,760
Speaker 2: saw someone give a presentation on this earlier this week,

251
00:13:17,800 --> 00:13:21,280
Speaker 2: and so it has really just rocked my world. And

252
00:13:21,960 --> 00:13:24,000
Speaker 2: I'm like, there's so much we don't know about fish

253
00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:26,360
Speaker 2: and behavior and things we can learn. And we have

254
00:13:26,480 --> 00:13:30,560
Speaker 2: someone who's who called in? Who's a marine biologist? Perfect?

255
00:13:30,679 --> 00:13:31,760
Speaker 1: Perfect, let's hear it.

256
00:13:31,840 --> 00:13:35,240
Speaker 7: My name is Cinda Scott, and I'm a marine biologist.

257
00:13:35,559 --> 00:13:38,640
Speaker 7: I'm the director of the Center for Tropical Island Biodiversity

258
00:13:38,679 --> 00:13:42,679
Speaker 7: Studies at the School for Field Studies in Bocas del Toro, Panama.

259
00:13:43,240 --> 00:13:47,640
Speaker 7: I'm female, I'm black. I'm originally from Boston, Massachusetts, and

260
00:13:47,679 --> 00:13:50,559
Speaker 7: I live and work abroad in Panama. I chose a

261
00:13:50,640 --> 00:13:54,199
Speaker 7: career in marine biology because I've always been fascinated by

262
00:13:54,200 --> 00:13:56,840
Speaker 7: the fact that humans and fish have many genes in common.

263
00:13:57,720 --> 00:14:01,440
Speaker 7: Fish are our oldest vertebrate ancestor, and through them we

264
00:14:01,480 --> 00:14:04,679
Speaker 7: can understand more about ourselves. In addition to the fascinating

265
00:14:04,679 --> 00:14:07,400
Speaker 7: world of fish, I mean, they can change colors in

266
00:14:07,440 --> 00:14:10,400
Speaker 7: the blink of an eye, they can switch sexes, and

267
00:14:10,440 --> 00:14:13,640
Speaker 7: they have an incredible array of adaptations that we merror

268
00:14:13,720 --> 00:14:17,480
Speaker 7: humans barely understand. Fish can tell us so much about

269
00:14:17,480 --> 00:14:21,440
Speaker 7: how we evolved, for example, major systems such as metabolism,

270
00:14:21,680 --> 00:14:24,200
Speaker 7: and when you study fish and really see how varied

271
00:14:24,200 --> 00:14:27,320
Speaker 7: their genome sizes are, you can really begin to understand

272
00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:31,840
Speaker 7: how it's actually possible that so much diversity exists between species.

273
00:14:32,400 --> 00:14:36,840
Speaker 2: Sinda's work is really cool. I never even thought of

274
00:14:37,120 --> 00:14:37,600
Speaker 2: any of that.

275
00:14:37,840 --> 00:14:39,960
Speaker 1: It feels very similar to this conversation we had with

276
00:14:40,000 --> 00:14:43,880
Speaker 1: doctor Kismikia Corbett when we were preparing for the coronavirus episode.

277
00:14:43,880 --> 00:14:47,000
Speaker 1: Do you remember, yes, you know, people often say, oh,

278
00:14:47,000 --> 00:14:49,000
Speaker 1: why are they studying this grass opera or why are

279
00:14:49,040 --> 00:14:53,920
Speaker 1: they studying bats? And why are they studying fish when

280
00:14:54,120 --> 00:14:57,240
Speaker 1: there are so much human disease? But like she said,

281
00:14:57,320 --> 00:15:01,680
Speaker 1: we share genetic information with these organisms, right.

282
00:15:01,640 --> 00:15:06,800
Speaker 2: Yeah, so potentially studying those organisms and animals it could

283
00:15:06,880 --> 00:15:13,360
Speaker 2: lead to us discovering potential cures for maybe diseases that

284
00:15:13,440 --> 00:15:14,760
Speaker 2: we have as humans.

285
00:15:14,800 --> 00:15:17,040
Speaker 1: I mean, I think it just leads to broader understanding

286
00:15:17,120 --> 00:15:22,760
Speaker 1: of life in general. Right, changes over time, advantageous changes,

287
00:15:22,840 --> 00:15:25,560
Speaker 1: things that we can see different branch points where things

288
00:15:25,600 --> 00:15:28,600
Speaker 1: have evolved in different ways. Exactly, there's so much to

289
00:15:28,760 --> 00:15:31,600
Speaker 1: learn there. To quote Jay Z, here we.

290
00:15:31,560 --> 00:15:34,920
Speaker 2: Go hope did that, so hopefully you wouldn't have to

291
00:15:34,960 --> 00:15:40,640
Speaker 2: go through that. These animals, these animals are experiencing these

292
00:15:40,680 --> 00:15:44,200
Speaker 2: things that almost directly mirror what we go through. If

293
00:15:44,680 --> 00:15:47,800
Speaker 2: they have found a way to adapt or learn a

294
00:15:47,800 --> 00:15:51,240
Speaker 2: way to heal themselves or anything like that, if they

295
00:15:51,240 --> 00:15:54,760
Speaker 2: have the secret, why should we have to go through that.

296
00:15:55,320 --> 00:15:57,440
Speaker 2: They're here to help us. We're all living in this

297
00:15:57,560 --> 00:16:00,680
Speaker 2: animal kingdom together. And so that brings us to one

298
00:16:00,720 --> 00:16:03,720
Speaker 2: of our next topics, which is human disease. One of

299
00:16:03,760 --> 00:16:07,800
Speaker 2: my first, it was actually my second research experience, was

300
00:16:07,840 --> 00:16:10,760
Speaker 2: working with this professor, doctor EMMANUELA.

301
00:16:10,840 --> 00:16:15,800
Speaker 1: Taioli. It was an epidemiology lab, and I studied mammographic density,

302
00:16:16,160 --> 00:16:19,280
Speaker 1: and so we would look at they would look at

303
00:16:19,280 --> 00:16:23,680
Speaker 1: mammograms and based on like there was some program they

304
00:16:23,680 --> 00:16:27,920
Speaker 1: had and based on how the mammogram looked, you could

305
00:16:27,960 --> 00:16:30,000
Speaker 1: kind of get an idea of breast density, and so

306
00:16:30,040 --> 00:16:31,720
Speaker 1: they were trying to see if there was a correlation.

307
00:16:31,800 --> 00:16:35,120
Speaker 1: They were saying that it seemed like African American women

308
00:16:35,800 --> 00:16:38,160
Speaker 1: their breast density was higher and they were trying to

309
00:16:38,160 --> 00:16:40,720
Speaker 1: see if there was a correlation between breast density and

310
00:16:40,800 --> 00:16:45,520
Speaker 1: predictions about breast cancer from the mammograms. It was like

311
00:16:45,560 --> 00:16:48,320
Speaker 1: this MAM's data set. I don't know. It was my

312
00:16:48,360 --> 00:16:49,040
Speaker 1: sophomore year.

313
00:16:48,960 --> 00:16:51,640
Speaker 2: Girl, I still trying to learn.

314
00:16:52,480 --> 00:16:54,360
Speaker 1: It was a summer research experience.

315
00:16:56,200 --> 00:16:57,320
Speaker 2: That's really interesting work.

316
00:16:57,400 --> 00:16:59,320
Speaker 1: Though I don't know what they found on the study.

317
00:16:59,360 --> 00:17:02,680
Speaker 1: But you know, you never finish a study and never right.

318
00:17:03,400 --> 00:17:06,760
Speaker 1: And this next topic is special to me. The caller, right,

319
00:17:07,680 --> 00:17:09,800
Speaker 1: this is one of my really good friends and we've

320
00:17:09,840 --> 00:17:12,240
Speaker 1: been friends for a really long time, and he is

321
00:17:12,280 --> 00:17:16,000
Speaker 1: the reason I didn't leave Hampton the first year. And

322
00:17:16,040 --> 00:17:18,560
Speaker 1: I was like, I am in the first week. Okay,

323
00:17:19,680 --> 00:17:20,919
Speaker 1: it was right after Labor Day.

324
00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:21,560
Speaker 5: I want to go.

325
00:17:21,960 --> 00:17:24,240
Speaker 1: And that's exactly what I said. And if you've been

326
00:17:24,240 --> 00:17:26,200
Speaker 1: to Hampton, you know you can't have a car on campus.

327
00:17:26,200 --> 00:17:27,399
Speaker 1: And I was like, well, you drive me back to

328
00:17:27,440 --> 00:17:28,000
Speaker 1: North Carolina.

329
00:17:28,000 --> 00:17:28,679
Speaker 2: I've got to get home.

330
00:17:29,080 --> 00:17:31,040
Speaker 1: I don't think this is for me. I should have

331
00:17:31,080 --> 00:17:36,520
Speaker 1: gone to A and T. And he just really helped

332
00:17:36,520 --> 00:17:38,280
Speaker 1: me stay on the path. So he was a chemistry major.

333
00:17:38,320 --> 00:17:40,719
Speaker 1: I was a biology major. We knew each other from

334
00:17:40,800 --> 00:17:42,480
Speaker 1: high school, went to the same college and then he

335
00:17:42,520 --> 00:17:44,439
Speaker 1: went to med school, and so I'll let you hear

336
00:17:44,480 --> 00:17:45,160
Speaker 1: about what he does.

337
00:17:45,600 --> 00:17:48,000
Speaker 5: Hi, my name is Randy Miles, and I am a

338
00:17:48,040 --> 00:17:51,919
Speaker 5: doctor at Massachusetts General Hospital affiliated with Harvard Medical School.

339
00:17:52,280 --> 00:17:55,680
Speaker 5: I am a radiologist who specializes in breast imaging, which

340
00:17:55,720 --> 00:17:58,920
Speaker 5: means I interpret X rays of the breast called mammograms,

341
00:17:59,400 --> 00:18:03,400
Speaker 5: looking for any signs of breast cancer. So in the US,

342
00:18:03,600 --> 00:18:06,760
Speaker 5: about one out of eight women will develop breast cancer

343
00:18:06,840 --> 00:18:12,119
Speaker 5: over their lifetime. So it is important, I repeat very important,

344
00:18:12,320 --> 00:18:16,160
Speaker 5: that women at average risk receive a mammogram every year,

345
00:18:16,280 --> 00:18:21,000
Speaker 5: starting at age forty. Our goal is to find cancers

346
00:18:21,119 --> 00:18:24,760
Speaker 5: if they do develop when they are small so they

347
00:18:24,760 --> 00:18:29,679
Speaker 5: are easily treated. So if you're listening to this you

348
00:18:29,720 --> 00:18:32,320
Speaker 5: are a woman and you are over the age of

349
00:18:32,359 --> 00:18:35,760
Speaker 5: forty and are not up to date with your mammogram,

350
00:18:36,280 --> 00:18:38,679
Speaker 5: don't be scared, Go get screen.

351
00:18:38,760 --> 00:18:39,040
Speaker 7: Friends.

352
00:18:40,280 --> 00:18:42,520
Speaker 5: Science is such a big part of my job, from

353
00:18:42,680 --> 00:18:47,760
Speaker 5: X ray generation to performing procedures. Yes, I do biopsies. Two.

354
00:18:48,520 --> 00:18:52,480
Speaker 5: My job is dope, just not as dope as Zakia

355
00:18:52,560 --> 00:18:56,960
Speaker 5: and TT. For more information on breast cancer and breast imaging,

356
00:18:57,880 --> 00:19:01,480
Speaker 5: please follow me on Twitter at our Miles.

357
00:19:01,240 --> 00:19:04,119
Speaker 1: MDD Randy rand.

358
00:19:06,280 --> 00:19:07,680
Speaker 2: We love Randy, we do.

359
00:19:10,560 --> 00:19:13,359
Speaker 1: And the work he's doing is so important, you know.

360
00:19:13,440 --> 00:19:15,200
Speaker 1: I think one of the things that I've been really

361
00:19:15,240 --> 00:19:19,640
Speaker 1: interested in is the awareness around health, like just health

362
00:19:19,680 --> 00:19:24,160
Speaker 1: awareness and prioritizing one's health, especially in the black community, right.

363
00:19:24,200 --> 00:19:26,280
Speaker 1: And I think the people that are doing STEM outreach

364
00:19:27,119 --> 00:19:29,520
Speaker 1: they're spreading that message too, right. They're saying like, this

365
00:19:29,600 --> 00:19:31,439
Speaker 1: is important, this is what you should be doing, this

366
00:19:31,480 --> 00:19:33,840
Speaker 1: is why this matters. This is how one thing is

367
00:19:33,880 --> 00:19:36,400
Speaker 1: linked to another. I was talking to someone the other

368
00:19:36,480 --> 00:19:39,879
Speaker 1: day and we were talking about dental health, which a

369
00:19:39,880 --> 00:19:42,400
Speaker 1: lot of people think of based on how our current

370
00:19:42,440 --> 00:19:46,480
Speaker 1: insurance system is as a luxury. But gum disease and

371
00:19:46,640 --> 00:19:50,600
Speaker 1: bacteria in your gums can lead to heart disease because

372
00:19:50,640 --> 00:19:53,520
Speaker 1: it's all linked to the same blood system. And I'm like,

373
00:19:53,720 --> 00:19:57,800
Speaker 1: who knew? I mean, I knew it, But do you

374
00:19:58,200 --> 00:19:59,920
Speaker 1: think about that when you think about brushing your teeth

375
00:20:00,000 --> 00:20:01,560
Speaker 1: floss and do you think about heart health?

376
00:20:01,600 --> 00:20:03,320
Speaker 2: That's why I brush my teeth before I eat.

377
00:20:04,119 --> 00:20:12,399
Speaker 1: Okay, that's good Britsting. Okay, So we've heard from some

378
00:20:12,480 --> 00:20:14,080
Speaker 1: of you, but we have some more people coming up.

379
00:20:14,480 --> 00:20:16,640
Speaker 1: We're gonna take a quick break and when we come back.

380
00:20:16,640 --> 00:20:19,560
Speaker 1: We're going to tell you all about STEM education and outreach.

381
00:20:38,840 --> 00:20:41,040
Speaker 2: And we're back, and so now we are going to

382
00:20:41,160 --> 00:20:44,840
Speaker 2: jump into something that is very important, and that is

383
00:20:45,119 --> 00:20:48,680
Speaker 2: STEM education and outreach. Yeah, a lot of folks think

384
00:20:48,720 --> 00:20:50,840
Speaker 2: that STEM is just in the classroom.

385
00:20:51,200 --> 00:20:52,080
Speaker 1: They can be more wrong.

386
00:20:52,160 --> 00:20:55,600
Speaker 2: Bunsen burners, beakers and all these things like that. There

387
00:20:55,680 --> 00:21:00,760
Speaker 2: is so much more to STEM than meets the eye.

388
00:21:01,080 --> 00:21:05,040
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think you know. It's education. Yes, in the classroom,

389
00:21:05,119 --> 00:21:07,679
Speaker 1: yes it's important, but it's also tying those principles to

390
00:21:08,280 --> 00:21:11,240
Speaker 1: day to day things that you see, right, you understand importance,

391
00:21:11,920 --> 00:21:15,080
Speaker 1: You understand, yes, the topic or the content, but then

392
00:21:15,119 --> 00:21:17,920
Speaker 1: you see how it's related to all these other systems

393
00:21:17,920 --> 00:21:20,040
Speaker 1: that we use every day. Like you just said about

394
00:21:20,080 --> 00:21:23,159
Speaker 1: structural engineering, I don't think about that when I go

395
00:21:23,160 --> 00:21:25,000
Speaker 1: in the house and walk upstairs and hope the floor

396
00:21:25,040 --> 00:21:27,680
Speaker 1: doesn't I don't hope the floor doesn't fall in. It's

397
00:21:27,800 --> 00:21:31,120
Speaker 1: just not gonna fall. Yeah, you know, I think about

398
00:21:31,119 --> 00:21:34,840
Speaker 1: that kind of stuff with civil engineers who make sure

399
00:21:34,880 --> 00:21:37,359
Speaker 1: that our water gets to us and it's not contaminated.

400
00:21:37,840 --> 00:21:40,439
Speaker 1: I'm looking at you, Flint, but I mean there's just

401
00:21:40,480 --> 00:21:43,760
Speaker 1: so many things that are happening that are related to

402
00:21:43,800 --> 00:21:48,080
Speaker 1: STEM and we don't immediately consider them STEM. And I

403
00:21:48,119 --> 00:21:50,000
Speaker 1: think we can kind of raise our awareness with that.

404
00:21:50,040 --> 00:21:51,440
Speaker 1: And the people that are doing that are folks that

405
00:21:51,480 --> 00:21:53,680
Speaker 1: are in STEM education and in outreach.

406
00:21:53,960 --> 00:21:54,160
Speaker 7: Yes.

407
00:21:54,520 --> 00:21:57,480
Speaker 1: So when we think about twenty first century learning, that's

408
00:21:57,520 --> 00:21:59,760
Speaker 1: not just in the classroom, that's on the apps, that's

409
00:22:00,240 --> 00:22:03,919
Speaker 1: podcast like this one exactly everywhere.

410
00:22:04,160 --> 00:22:08,760
Speaker 2: Yes, And with all this new technology and ways to

411
00:22:08,920 --> 00:22:12,280
Speaker 2: educate ourselves, the amount of points where STEM can touch

412
00:22:12,320 --> 00:22:17,640
Speaker 2: you are increasing exponentially. And so we loved hearing from

413
00:22:17,680 --> 00:22:22,240
Speaker 2: people who had STEM backgrounds and are in STEM outreach,

414
00:22:22,600 --> 00:22:24,800
Speaker 2: and then some that don't have STEM backgrounds and then

415
00:22:24,840 --> 00:22:27,200
Speaker 2: STEM outreach and so let's listen to that now.

416
00:22:27,920 --> 00:22:30,800
Speaker 3: Hi, my name is Mercedes Crawford from Houston, Texas, but

417
00:22:30,880 --> 00:22:35,360
Speaker 3: currently living in Washington, DC. My STEM career is not

418
00:22:35,520 --> 00:22:38,480
Speaker 3: like everyone else's. I do not have a STEM background,

419
00:22:38,520 --> 00:22:41,480
Speaker 3: but my goal and my passion in life is to

420
00:22:41,560 --> 00:22:45,440
Speaker 3: introduce students from K through twelve into STEM careers. I've

421
00:22:45,480 --> 00:22:48,480
Speaker 3: spent the last ten years introducing our amazing students to

422
00:22:48,560 --> 00:22:51,920
Speaker 3: what STEM can do for them, their families, in their communities,

423
00:22:52,040 --> 00:22:53,840
Speaker 3: and I will continue to do that as long as

424
00:22:53,880 --> 00:22:56,840
Speaker 3: I can. So keep up the good work, girls. I

425
00:22:56,960 --> 00:22:59,280
Speaker 3: use your podcast all the time. I love it, and

426
00:22:59,320 --> 00:23:00,560
Speaker 3: I hope to meet you one day.

427
00:23:01,040 --> 00:23:01,600
Speaker 2: Thanks.

428
00:23:02,400 --> 00:23:04,439
Speaker 1: I think the K through twelve you know how I

429
00:23:04,440 --> 00:23:05,000
Speaker 1: feel about that.

430
00:23:05,200 --> 00:23:05,640
Speaker 8: M hmm.

431
00:23:06,520 --> 00:23:08,280
Speaker 1: K through twelve is where my heart is a lot

432
00:23:08,320 --> 00:23:12,479
Speaker 1: of my My first exposure to STEM education was in

433
00:23:12,520 --> 00:23:14,520
Speaker 1: the K through twelve arena. Me too.

434
00:23:14,720 --> 00:23:14,800
Speaker 6: Now.

435
00:23:14,800 --> 00:23:17,400
Speaker 1: They used to participate in this program called boost back

436
00:23:17,440 --> 00:23:20,760
Speaker 1: when we read Duke and boy, those fifth graders were

437
00:23:20,760 --> 00:23:23,480
Speaker 1: giving me a run for my money. Okay. We would

438
00:23:23,480 --> 00:23:24,879
Speaker 1: meet these fifth graders and they would be in the

439
00:23:24,880 --> 00:23:27,679
Speaker 1: program through and they would join the program for the

440
00:23:27,800 --> 00:23:31,000
Speaker 1: sixth through eighth grade, and we would have these Saturday

441
00:23:31,040 --> 00:23:33,880
Speaker 1: activities and we work with them and then they would

442
00:23:33,880 --> 00:23:36,240
Speaker 1: build up to this one post of presentation and it

443
00:23:36,240 --> 00:23:38,800
Speaker 1: would just blow my mind to see how much they

444
00:23:38,880 --> 00:23:42,560
Speaker 1: learned we would do these joint activities. I still think

445
00:23:42,560 --> 00:23:44,200
Speaker 1: about my boost kids all the time.

446
00:23:44,400 --> 00:23:44,760
Speaker 2: That is.

447
00:23:44,880 --> 00:23:45,600
Speaker 1: I love that.

448
00:23:45,880 --> 00:23:47,560
Speaker 2: And I remember when I was in when when I

449
00:23:47,600 --> 00:23:51,800
Speaker 2: was in grad school with you, I was organizing graduate

450
00:23:51,840 --> 00:23:56,280
Speaker 2: students from all different backgrounds to go to this middle

451
00:23:56,280 --> 00:23:58,600
Speaker 2: school and talk about the work that they do, like yeah,

452
00:23:58,720 --> 00:24:02,320
Speaker 2: really relaxed and like ted talks style so that kids

453
00:24:02,320 --> 00:24:05,479
Speaker 2: can see themselves in us basically and let them know

454
00:24:05,560 --> 00:24:07,800
Speaker 2: like how we got there, Like a lot of people

455
00:24:07,880 --> 00:24:11,119
Speaker 2: had struggle stories about how they got to being in

456
00:24:11,200 --> 00:24:14,240
Speaker 2: graduate school. And it just kind of humanizes what a

457
00:24:14,280 --> 00:24:17,640
Speaker 2: scientist is. Because what I would always ask in the beginning,

458
00:24:17,640 --> 00:24:19,280
Speaker 2: like what do you think a scientist looks like? And

459
00:24:19,320 --> 00:24:23,960
Speaker 2: they would describe this old guy with a lab coat, pocket, protector,

460
00:24:24,440 --> 00:24:27,880
Speaker 2: glasses and all these they basically were describing with Albert

461
00:24:27,880 --> 00:24:30,520
Speaker 2: Einstein or whatever they thought he looked like. And so

462
00:24:30,720 --> 00:24:33,160
Speaker 2: I would bring these people in and say, look, I'm

463
00:24:33,160 --> 00:24:37,639
Speaker 2: a scientist, they're a scientist, and we're regular. So it

464
00:24:37,840 --> 00:24:40,800
Speaker 2: really I feel like it really helps to show those

465
00:24:40,840 --> 00:24:44,240
Speaker 2: things to the k through twelve students. So I think, yes,

466
00:24:44,800 --> 00:24:49,840
Speaker 2: it's both exposing students, exposing students to careers in science

467
00:24:49,840 --> 00:24:52,919
Speaker 2: and helping them see what a scientist looks like and

468
00:24:52,960 --> 00:24:55,760
Speaker 2: then just giving them a deep dive, hands on experience

469
00:24:55,840 --> 00:24:56,359
Speaker 2: in science.

470
00:24:56,880 --> 00:24:58,760
Speaker 1: And our next caller has done that.

471
00:24:59,359 --> 00:25:03,520
Speaker 9: Hi, doctor Serena mcala, and I am the president and

472
00:25:03,560 --> 00:25:08,200
Speaker 9: founder of I Research Foundation and I Research Institute. With

473
00:25:08,240 --> 00:25:13,280
Speaker 9: regards to the foundation, we raise funds to support underrepresented

474
00:25:13,280 --> 00:25:17,200
Speaker 9: and underprivileged young adults who are interested in science research

475
00:25:17,240 --> 00:25:21,919
Speaker 9: but maybe don't have access to complete science research projects.

476
00:25:22,600 --> 00:25:26,399
Speaker 9: And at the Foundation, we provide them an opportunity to

477
00:25:27,400 --> 00:25:32,680
Speaker 9: work at I research institute on either learning about research

478
00:25:32,760 --> 00:25:35,400
Speaker 9: methods and the steps in order to become a researcher,

479
00:25:35,760 --> 00:25:37,760
Speaker 9: how to write an abstract, how to write a paper,

480
00:25:38,480 --> 00:25:41,880
Speaker 9: or at the four week level where they are more

481
00:25:41,920 --> 00:25:46,240
Speaker 9: advanced students, we actually help them create projects that we

482
00:25:47,480 --> 00:25:52,000
Speaker 9: provide all of the reagents for and equipment for and

483
00:25:52,040 --> 00:25:58,879
Speaker 9: allow them to use this arena, this laboratory to conduct

484
00:25:58,960 --> 00:26:02,280
Speaker 9: novel experimentation that they could use to write again research

485
00:26:02,320 --> 00:26:06,000
Speaker 9: papers or to compete in some of the scholarship money

486
00:26:06,000 --> 00:26:10,199
Speaker 9: that's available for STEM students. So overall, the goal of

487
00:26:10,400 --> 00:26:15,399
Speaker 9: our research institute and foundation is to really bring STEM

488
00:26:15,920 --> 00:26:18,359
Speaker 9: to the masses. We want high school age students to

489
00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:22,080
Speaker 9: be fully invested in the research process in any discipline

490
00:26:22,080 --> 00:26:25,120
Speaker 9: of science that they're interested in, and we help them

491
00:26:25,160 --> 00:26:28,560
Speaker 9: to achieve that goal through working with us.

492
00:26:29,280 --> 00:26:34,040
Speaker 1: And that last caller was being really modest. Yes, listen,

493
00:26:34,400 --> 00:26:36,320
Speaker 1: she is a rock star science teacher.

494
00:26:36,400 --> 00:26:39,480
Speaker 2: Okay, googles, y'all do your googles.

495
00:26:39,560 --> 00:26:46,000
Speaker 1: That was doctor Serena mcala, who has sends amazing projects

496
00:26:46,160 --> 00:26:48,840
Speaker 1: to the International Science Fair.

497
00:26:49,920 --> 00:26:51,360
Speaker 2: Not that Science Fair that y'all did.

498
00:26:52,480 --> 00:26:54,800
Speaker 1: This is how a plant grows.

499
00:26:55,000 --> 00:26:57,480
Speaker 2: Those kinds. We know that a plant goes with water

500
00:26:57,520 --> 00:27:02,720
Speaker 2: and light. We know that. Talking about real, probably big projects.

501
00:27:02,760 --> 00:27:05,439
Speaker 1: Okay, these are high schoolers and you can learn more

502
00:27:05,480 --> 00:27:07,960
Speaker 1: about her work and check her out. There's a national

503
00:27:08,040 --> 00:27:11,640
Speaker 1: geographic documentary called Science Fair that features her and nine

504
00:27:11,640 --> 00:27:14,160
Speaker 1: of her students who go to the International Science Fair.

505
00:27:14,240 --> 00:27:16,520
Speaker 2: I can't wait to watch it. The kid described it

506
00:27:16,560 --> 00:27:21,760
Speaker 2: as cheer but for a science and I'm hooked already. Okay,

507
00:27:22,359 --> 00:27:27,600
Speaker 2: So what Serena and Mercedes are doing is creating the

508
00:27:27,640 --> 00:27:32,560
Speaker 2: future job market, yes, in the STEM field. And that

509
00:27:32,960 --> 00:27:35,560
Speaker 2: leads us to our next point that STEM is not

510
00:27:35,800 --> 00:27:38,119
Speaker 2: just sitting at the bench, sitting at a lab bench

511
00:27:38,240 --> 00:27:42,960
Speaker 2: and mixing chemicals and dissecting things. No, STEM is an enterprise.

512
00:27:43,280 --> 00:27:46,880
Speaker 1: You're so right. I think too often we get into

513
00:27:46,920 --> 00:27:50,640
Speaker 1: this tunnel vision about what STEM science is. This is

514
00:27:50,680 --> 00:27:53,720
Speaker 1: having on a lab coat, is having a pipette, or

515
00:27:53,760 --> 00:27:56,399
Speaker 1: it's using a microscope, And I'm like, no, somebody's got

516
00:27:56,520 --> 00:27:58,720
Speaker 1: to write these budgets. Somebody's got to write these grantly,

517
00:27:58,840 --> 00:27:59,560
Speaker 1: somebody has.

518
00:27:59,400 --> 00:28:03,520
Speaker 2: To do it with the understanding of how these fields work,

519
00:28:03,640 --> 00:28:06,280
Speaker 2: so right with a lens, a STEM lens.

520
00:28:06,359 --> 00:28:09,800
Speaker 1: Yes, And I think that's something that's overlooked when we

521
00:28:09,840 --> 00:28:12,119
Speaker 1: think about careers in STEM. People say, not everybody can

522
00:28:12,119 --> 00:28:14,240
Speaker 1: be a professor. Hey, let me tell you. I was there.

523
00:28:14,320 --> 00:28:16,320
Speaker 1: That's not the only career in stam okay.

524
00:28:16,520 --> 00:28:19,400
Speaker 2: And so our next caller is a perfect example of that.

525
00:28:20,040 --> 00:28:23,440
Speaker 2: She went from being in a more traditional STEM career,

526
00:28:23,440 --> 00:28:25,879
Speaker 2: I should say, and using those skills to make a

527
00:28:25,920 --> 00:28:27,760
Speaker 2: productive STEM enterprise.

528
00:28:28,160 --> 00:28:31,360
Speaker 8: Hey, Dove Levs, my name is Kierana and I'm receiving

529
00:28:31,400 --> 00:28:35,560
Speaker 8: my master's in Engineering management. Now, my engineering degree is

530
00:28:35,600 --> 00:28:38,840
Speaker 8: not a traditional research based engineering degree, But before I

531
00:28:38,880 --> 00:28:41,520
Speaker 8: got into my master's program, I received my bachelor's in

532
00:28:41,600 --> 00:28:44,440
Speaker 8: chemical engineering, where I spent some years as a research

533
00:28:44,480 --> 00:28:47,920
Speaker 8: and development engineer in the nuclear industry. Being in the

534
00:28:48,000 --> 00:28:51,120
Speaker 8: nuclear industry is super important because so many people don't

535
00:28:51,200 --> 00:28:54,640
Speaker 8: understand it, and it's really important that once you understand

536
00:28:54,680 --> 00:28:57,520
Speaker 8: how FISSI reactions work and how you work in nuclear

537
00:28:57,920 --> 00:29:01,000
Speaker 8: that you're not as afraid of it. My master's program

538
00:29:01,040 --> 00:29:03,960
Speaker 8: is something that's more focused on engineering management, and a

539
00:29:04,000 --> 00:29:05,880
Speaker 8: lot of people don't think of management when they think

540
00:29:05,880 --> 00:29:08,680
Speaker 8: of engineering. But engineering is more than just being in

541
00:29:08,680 --> 00:29:13,200
Speaker 8: the lab or doing STEM research. There's so many different

542
00:29:13,240 --> 00:29:18,320
Speaker 8: sizes including project management, product management, operations, and black people

543
00:29:18,400 --> 00:29:20,840
Speaker 8: need to be represented on all levels. So that's what

544
00:29:20,960 --> 00:29:23,720
Speaker 8: really motivated me to get into my current program.

545
00:29:23,760 --> 00:29:26,960
Speaker 2: Now, being a part of this industry has been so

546
00:29:27,120 --> 00:29:29,920
Speaker 2: rewarding for the both of us. That's how Dope Lab

547
00:29:30,160 --> 00:29:34,080
Speaker 2: was born, you know, being black and STEM and being

548
00:29:34,080 --> 00:29:38,720
Speaker 2: a part of groups that help foster our education and

549
00:29:38,760 --> 00:29:44,080
Speaker 2: community and everything like that. And so we are always

550
00:29:44,360 --> 00:29:48,440
Speaker 2: advocates for people finding community no matter where they are

551
00:29:48,960 --> 00:29:51,360
Speaker 2: and so that they can be their very best selves.

552
00:29:51,560 --> 00:29:54,480
Speaker 1: We loved hearing you guys talk about finding your true north.

553
00:29:54,920 --> 00:29:58,000
Speaker 1: What drives you when it's not easy? What keeps you

554
00:29:58,040 --> 00:30:01,280
Speaker 1: in the lab when those results aren't looking right? What

555
00:30:01,480 --> 00:30:03,440
Speaker 1: keeps you in the field when you're tired and you

556
00:30:03,480 --> 00:30:05,960
Speaker 1: know you need to collect another another data point right?

557
00:30:07,160 --> 00:30:10,240
Speaker 1: What drives you to go and talk to those kids

558
00:30:10,280 --> 00:30:13,000
Speaker 1: even though they're talking while you're talking them?

559
00:30:13,080 --> 00:30:17,640
Speaker 2: Kids be so bad. But we honestly really loved it

560
00:30:17,800 --> 00:30:23,160
Speaker 2: because it shows that this community is growing and the

561
00:30:23,280 --> 00:30:26,160
Speaker 2: folks inside of it were lifting as we climb and you.

562
00:30:26,160 --> 00:30:26,800
Speaker 1: Love to see it.

563
00:30:26,880 --> 00:30:27,760
Speaker 2: I'd love to see it.

564
00:30:31,920 --> 00:30:34,520
Speaker 4: I love being a black woman and I love being

565
00:30:34,520 --> 00:30:38,640
Speaker 4: an engineer. I get to represent us, but even more

566
00:30:38,680 --> 00:30:41,840
Speaker 4: than that, I get to help bringing our perspectives to

567
00:30:41,880 --> 00:30:45,400
Speaker 4: the table in each of our respective sim fields, and

568
00:30:46,000 --> 00:30:49,480
Speaker 4: hopefully you start a bigger conversation that can trickle down

569
00:30:49,560 --> 00:30:54,120
Speaker 4: and positively affect young black boys and girls who may

570
00:30:54,200 --> 00:30:57,760
Speaker 4: see themselves in us and realize that they're more than

571
00:30:57,800 --> 00:31:00,120
Speaker 4: capable of excelling in any field that.

572
00:31:00,120 --> 00:31:03,640
Speaker 7: I really want to encourage young people, especially students of color,

573
00:31:03,680 --> 00:31:05,840
Speaker 7: out there, to get involved in our environment and to

574
00:31:05,960 --> 00:31:09,840
Speaker 7: work in fields where we are severely underrepresented. Marine biology

575
00:31:09,840 --> 00:31:13,160
Speaker 7: in particular is one of those fields, as is environmental

576
00:31:13,200 --> 00:31:17,360
Speaker 7: studies and conservation. And I think conservation for so long

577
00:31:17,400 --> 00:31:20,600
Speaker 7: has had one narrative and it usually does not even

578
00:31:20,640 --> 00:31:23,400
Speaker 7: include the very people who are affected by the policies

579
00:31:23,720 --> 00:31:26,440
Speaker 7: that are put in place, and that needs to change,

580
00:31:26,480 --> 00:31:29,000
Speaker 7: and more voices need to be heard. And so there

581
00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:31,640
Speaker 7: are some days when I'm out there doing field work

582
00:31:32,000 --> 00:31:34,120
Speaker 7: and we're like the only boat out there, and I think,

583
00:31:34,200 --> 00:31:36,760
Speaker 7: how is this possible that no one else is out here?

584
00:31:37,480 --> 00:31:39,520
Speaker 7: Am I the only person out here? Looking at this

585
00:31:39,880 --> 00:31:42,160
Speaker 7: and what is this black girl from Boston doing out

586
00:31:42,160 --> 00:31:45,280
Speaker 7: in the mangroves in an isolated area of Panama, surrounded

587
00:31:45,280 --> 00:31:48,440
Speaker 7: by a bunch of islands and fish, And does any

588
00:31:48,440 --> 00:31:52,720
Speaker 7: of this work even matter? And the answer is absolutely yes,

589
00:31:53,240 --> 00:31:54,680
Speaker 7: and I absolutely love it.

590
00:31:55,000 --> 00:31:57,160
Speaker 9: I'm here now and I hope to help the next

591
00:31:57,200 --> 00:32:00,320
Speaker 9: generation to achieve their goals into full and love with

592
00:32:00,360 --> 00:32:01,440
Speaker 9: the science is the way I have.

593
00:32:01,680 --> 00:32:03,840
Speaker 8: But at the end of the day, I'm an engineer,

594
00:32:04,160 --> 00:32:07,360
Speaker 8: a stem enthusiast at heart, and a Steminus to today

595
00:32:07,400 --> 00:32:08,720
Speaker 8: I die and I'm black.

596
00:32:08,720 --> 00:32:09,480
Speaker 3: It be black black.

597
00:32:11,520 --> 00:32:14,200
Speaker 1: That's it for Lab twenty four and Semester two.

598
00:32:14,880 --> 00:32:17,720
Speaker 2: Oh my gosh. We're gonna miss you, guys. We're going

599
00:32:17,800 --> 00:32:18,120
Speaker 2: on a.

600
00:32:18,080 --> 00:32:20,680
Speaker 1: Break, yes, but we will be back. Don't begin to

601
00:32:20,760 --> 00:32:23,360
Speaker 1: check our website for some links to amazing scientists who

602
00:32:23,360 --> 00:32:23,760
Speaker 1: we love.

603
00:32:24,080 --> 00:32:26,640
Speaker 2: Make sure you're following us on Instagram and Twitter so

604
00:32:26,680 --> 00:32:28,280
Speaker 2: that you can keep up with what we're doing during

605
00:32:28,280 --> 00:32:28,800
Speaker 2: our break.

606
00:32:28,960 --> 00:32:31,120
Speaker 1: Yes, and we will announce when we're coming back. We

607
00:32:31,160 --> 00:32:33,480
Speaker 1: want you to be the first to know. Yes. TT

608
00:32:33,680 --> 00:32:36,920
Speaker 1: is on Twitter at d r underscore t Sho and.

609
00:32:36,920 --> 00:32:41,520
Speaker 2: You can find Zakiya at z said so.

610
00:32:40,640 --> 00:32:42,680
Speaker 1: Dope Labs is produced by Jenny Rattle at mass of

611
00:32:42,720 --> 00:32:46,080
Speaker 1: Wave Runner Studios, with help from Elizabeth Nakano. Mixing and

612
00:32:46,160 --> 00:32:47,520
Speaker 1: sound designed by Hannis Brown.

613
00:32:48,000 --> 00:32:52,160
Speaker 2: Original theme music is by Taka Yasuzawa and Alex Sugi Eurra,

614
00:32:52,680 --> 00:32:55,640
Speaker 2: with additional music by Elijah Alex Harvey.

615
00:32:56,000 --> 00:32:58,760
Speaker 1: Dope Labs is a production of Spotify Studios and Mega

616
00:32:58,760 --> 00:33:02,200
Speaker 1: Own Media Group and is executive produced by us T. T.

617
00:33:02,320 --> 00:33:07,400
Speaker 1: Shadiah and Zakiah Wattley. You don't think I would tell

618
00:33:07,400 --> 00:33:09,880
Speaker 1: you for breath snolk stink stinkd.

619
00:33:09,680 --> 00:33:11,719
Speaker 2: Jimmy, don't tell me my husband. Don't tell him.

620
00:33:11,720 --> 00:33:13,240
Speaker 1: It's because he love you. I don't love you like that.

621
00:33:13,680 --> 00:33:16,920
Speaker 2: I say, Hey girl, somebody needs to tell me