GradCast

406 | Going Retro(Viral): The Study of Nef, the Protein That Boosted HIV

In this episode, Mitch Mumby, PhD student in Microbiology and Immunology, talks to hosts Brittany and Laura about HIV, the virus that came to be one of the most successful pathogens known by humans. Tune in to learn about how Nef, a small and disorganized protein, conferred new abilities to HIV, and the impacts that studying such a delicate and controversial topic could have on someones relationship with knowledge. 

To learn more about Mitch, find him on twitter as @mitchmumby

Recorded on January 17, 2023.

Produced by Laura Muñoz Baena.

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot.

404 | Addressing Safeguarding Gaps: Investigating Maltreatment in Para Sport

This week, hosts Meghan Voll and Carly Charron interview Master’s student Karmen Mohindru about her research examining harm and maltreatment in Canadian Para Sport. Karmen talks about potential harms these athletes face, and a concerning lack of policies and education about these in Canada to adequately protect them.

To find out more about Karmen and her work, email her at kmohindr@uwo.ca or visit the Health and Physical Cultures for Social Justice Lab website.

Recorded on December 14, 2022.

Produced by Jordan VanderBurgt.

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot.

403 | Turning Up the Heat in the Boreal Forest

This week your hosts Ariel Frame and Scott Walters speak with master's student Julia Hammer about how climate change may impact basic life function of trees. Julia discusses her research on how rising temperature and carbon dioxide levels affect boreal trees' capacity to photosynthesize and what this might mean for these species with projected climate trends. We learn about rooftop greenhouses, forest laboratories with scaffolded trees, what photosynthesis really is, and a whole lot more.

To learn more about Julia's research, follow her on Twitter @julfacts

 

Recorded on November 29, 2022.

Produced by Amalie Hutchinson.

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot.

402 | Bioinformatics for Sars-COV2: Studying a Pandemic in a Middle of a Pandemic

Hosts Carly and Laura talk with master's student Erin Brintnell about her research on SARS-CoV2. Erin explains how bioinformaticians use biological data to create models that predict the number of infected individuals in a population, and use those numbers to inform public health responses. 

If your want to learn more about Erin and her journey between computers and viruses, find her on instagram at smoresperson3.

Recorded on November 16, 2022.

Produced by Laura Muñoz Baena.

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot.

401 | Stars With Disks: Innate or a Fashion Choice?

Anusha Ravikumar speaks with Ariel Frame and Laura Muñoz Baena about her research on stars she is doing as part of her PhD in physics and astronomy. Anusha answers multiple questions about how we currently think stars are born and explains how her work will shed light on the development of star disks. 

 

To find out more from Anusha, follow her on Twitter @hustling_stars

Recorded on November 22, 2022.

Produced by Laura Muñoz Baena.

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot.

 

400 | Good Vibrations: Investigating Postures of Black-Widow Spiders

This week, hosts Carly Charon and Meghan Voll interview PhD student Hossein Asgari about his research using 3-D marker-less tracking to investigate locomotion on black widow spiders. Hossein talks about the effect particular vibrations have on spider’s behaviour and ability to detect prey, and whether they actually use differing postures to better make sense of these vibrations. 

To find out more about Hossein and his work, go check out his Twitter (@hoss_asg).

Recorded on November 15, 2022.

Produced by Jordan VanderBurgt.

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot.

399 | Turn It Down: Learning About Misophonia and Sensory Filtering

This week, hosts Carly Charron and Laura Muñoz Baena interview Facundo Lodol, one of the newest members of the Editorial Board, about his MSc research in the Neuroscience department. Facundo talks about his project on misophonia, a disorder characterized by heightened sensitivity to trigger sounds such as chewing. He is interested in the relationship between misophonia and the brain’s ability to filter out irrelevant stimuli.

To find out more about Facundo, find him on Instagram @foku_ 

Recorded on November 8, 2022.

Produced by Laura Muñoz Baena.

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot.

398 | Till the Venture do us Part

This week, hosts Amalie Hutchinson and Brittany Melton sit down with PhD candidate Audra Quinn. Audra is studying entrepreneurship at Ivey Business School. We talk about one branch of her work: the interactions between co-founders. So, before you choose your business parter, give this episode a listen!

To find out more about Audra and her work, go check out her Twitter (@AudraQuinn) and website (https://audraquinn.com). 

Recorded on November 1, 2022.

Produced by Jordan VanderBurgt.

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot.

397 | Slurping Shorebirds and Diving Dippers

This week, our newest member of the Editorial Board, Scott Walters, joins host Ana Moyer and Charan Mandur to talk about his PhD research in the biology department. Scott talks about his work looking at how nutrition on mudflats and rivers affects the water-associated birds living there and their migrations. We learn about mist nets, biofilm, and more. 

To get into contact with Scott for more questions, email him at swalte42@uwo.ca

Recorded on October 25, 2022.

Produced by Amalie Hutchinson.

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot.

396 | Slowly Finishing a PHD, Not for a Lac(Tate) Of Trying

Today, host and past editor, Ariel Frame (PhD candidate in Neuroscience) joins hosts Laura and Brittany to discuss the final stages of his PhD research. Join us to learn more about lactate metabolism in the brains of mice and flies! For more of Ariel, check out Episode 267, The Super Secret Sex Life of Fruit Flies.

To keep up with Ariel, check out his Twitter  @ArielFrame and on Google Scholar.

 

Recorded on October 18, 2022.

Produced by Laura Muñoz Baena.

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot.