People Behind the Science Podcast Stories from Scientists about Science, Life, Research, and Science Careers
Are you searching for great stories to ignite your curiosity, teach you to perform better in life and career, inspire your mind, and make you laugh along the way? In this science podcast, Dr. Marie McNeely introduces you to the brilliant researchers behind the latest scientific discoveries. Join us as they share their greatest failures, most staggering successes, candid career advice, and what drives them forward in life and science.
Our website with show notes]]
Greetings science fans!
We’re elated to welcome you to People Behind the Science where we explore the lives and experiences of the people behind the research and scientific discoveries of today.
People Behind the Science’s mission is to inspire current and future scientists, share the different paths to a successful career in science, educate the general population on what scientists do, and show the human side of science.
In each episode, a different scientist will guide us through their journey by sharing their successes, failures, and passions. We are excited to introduce you to these inspiring academic and industry experts from all fields of science to give you a variety of perspectives on the life and path of a scientist.
Our esteemed guests will tell you:
what motivates them and how they balance their competing responsibilities
how they worked through some of the most challenging times in their careers
advice to help you through your own journey through life and science
Our Podcast
People Behind the Science is a podcast focused on the people doing fascinating research through interviews with top scientists. We are proud to have interviewed so many inspiring scientists, including U.S. National Academy scientists like Josh Sanes, Nick Spitzer, Lou Muglia, Jacob Israelachvili, Gene Robinson, Larry Squire, John Dowling, James Berger, and David Spergel, as well as popular scientists in the media like Donna Nelson (science advisor for the TV show Breaking Bad) and Jack Horner (science advisor for the Jurassic park movies). We are honored to have shared their amazing stories with people in all 50 states in the USA and in over 120 countries across the world.
- Update frequency
- every 7 days
- Average duration
- 42 minutes
- Episodes
- 829
- Years Active
- 2014 - 2025
289: Speaking Up About Important Topics in Speech Production and Computer-Assisted Communication - Dr. Rupal Patel
Dr. Rupal Patel is a Professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders as well as the College of Computer and Information Science at Northeastern University. She is also Director of…
288: Sniffing Out Stimulating Questions in Olfactory Receptor Research - Dr. Stuart Firestein
Dr. Stuart Firestein is a Professor and Chair in the Department Biological Sciences at Columbia University. He received his B.S. Degree in Biology from San Francisco State University and his PhD in N…
287: Engineering Solutions to Reduce Risk and Increase Resilience - Dr. Seth Guikema
Dr. Seth Guikema is an Associate professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. He holds joint appointments in the Department of Civil Engineering…
286: Capturing Creativity and Investigating Improvisation in the Brain - Dr. Heather Berlin
Dr. Heather Berlin is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Visiting Scholar at the New York Psychoanalytic Society. She received he…
285: Serving Those with Disability Through Health Services and Outcomes Research - Dr. Nancy Mayo
Dr. Nancy Mayo is the James McGill Professor in the Department of Medicine and the School of Physical and Occupational Therapy at McGill University (Division of Geriatrics and Division of Clinical Ep…
284: Chemistry is Key: Studying Self Assembly and the Origins of Life - Dr. Lee Cronin
Dr. Lee Cronin is the Regius Professor of Chemistry at the University of Glasgow. He received his Bsc in Pure Chemistry with First Class Honors as well as his PhD in Inorganic Chemistry from York Uni…
283: Strategic Scientist Creating Computation Automation and Innovation - Dr. Stephen Wolfram
Dr. Stephen Wolfram is the Founder and CEO of Wolfram Research. In addition, he is the creator of the Wolfram Language, the computational platform Mathematica, and the computational knowledge engine …
282: Laboring to Understand the Interactions Between Pregnancy and the Immune System - Dr. Elizabeth Bonney
Dr. Bonney is a Professor and Director of the Research Division in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at the University of Vermont. She received her Bachelor's degree …
281: Science with Style: Studying Plant Reproductive Biology - Dr. Spencer Barrett
Dr. Spencer Barrett is the University Professor, Canada Research Chair, and Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Toronto. He completed his Bachelor of …
280: Going with the Flow Studying Fluid Dynamics and Animal Locomotion - Dr. David Hu
David is an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Biology at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He received his Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering and PhD in Mathematics from the Mass…
279: Rewarding Research on the Influence of Emotion and Motivation on Learning and Behavior - Dr. Kay Tye
Dr. Kay Tye is an Assistant Professor of Neuroscience in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She…
278: Cosmic Insights on Dark Matter, the Origins of the Universe, and Issues of Science and Society - Dr. Lawrence Krauss
Dr. Lawrence Krauss is the Foundation Professor in the School of Earth and Space Exploration and Department of Physics and the as well as the Inaugural Director of the Origins Project at Arizona Stat…
277: Excellent Research Examining Enzymes and Protein Engineering - Dr. Vic Arcus
Dr. Vic Arcus is a Professor of Biological Sciences at the University of Waikato in New Zealand. He received his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Organic Chemistry from the University of Waikato an…
276: Restoring a Sense of Hope for People with Hearing Loss Through Research on Hair Cell Regeneration - Dr. Jim Hudspeth
Jim is the F.M. Kirby Professor at The Rockefeller University, and he leads the Laboratory of Sensory Neuroscience there. In addition, he is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator. Jim receiv…
275: Conducting Research on Old Stars that has Universal Appeal - Dr. Anna Frebel
Dr. Anna Frebel is the Silverman Family Career Development Professor of Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She received her PhD from the Australian National University's Mt. …
274: Making Great Strides in Understanding Locomotion: From Little Lizards to Robotic Rattlesnakes - Dr. Daniel Goldman
Dr. Daniel Goldman is an Associate Professor of Physics at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He received his PhD in Physics from the University of Texas, Austin and conducted postdoctoral research…
273: Tales of Ion Detection: The Making of a Mass Spectrometry Mastermind - Dr. Charles Hohenberg
Charles is a Professor of Physics at Washington University in St. Louis. He received his PhD in Physics from the University of California, Berkeley and has been on the faculty at Washington Universit…
272: Synthesizing Chemistry and Physics in Her Studies of Soft Matter and Self-Assembly - Dr. Kate McGrath
Dr. Kate McGrath is the Vice-Provost of Research at Victoria University of Wellington and the Director of The MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, a New Zealand Government …
271: Bringing a Structured Approach to Our Understanding of Degeneration in the Aging Brain - Dr. Greg Petsko
Dr. Greg Petsko is the Arthur J. Mahon Professor of Neurology and Neuroscience and Director of the Helen and Robert Appel Alzheimer's Disease Research Institute at Weill Cornell Medical College, as w…
270: Studying the Sea through Shells, Skeletons, and Sediments - Dr. Abby Smith
Dr. Abby Smith is an Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Marine Science at the University of Otago. She Received her B.A. Degree in Geology and Biology from Colby College, her M.S. Degr…