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.
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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
- 828
- Years Active
- 2014 - 2025
128: Discovering How Animals are Playing Their Way to Better Brains and Social Skills - Dr. Sergio Pellis
Dr. Sergio Pellis is a Professor in Neuroscience at the University of Lethbridge. He received his PhD in Zoology and Ethology from Monash University in Australia. Afterwards he completed a post-docto…
127: Going Beyond the Barrier Looking at Immune Activation in the Brain in Response to Viral Infection - Dr. Robyn Klein
Dr. Robyn Klein is an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Departments of Internal Medicine, Anatomy and Neurobiology and Pathology and Immunology at the Washington University in St. Louis School o…
126: Spreading Enthusiasm for Research on Dengue and Influenza Viruses to Improve Global Health - Dr. Eva Harris
Dr. Eva Harris is a Professor of Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology as well as Director of the Center for Global Public health at the University of California, Berkeley. She is also the founder and …
125: Fueling Her Passion for Research Studying Life Cycles of Biofuels - Dr. Jennifer Dunn
Dr. Jennifer Dunn is a Biofuel Life Cycle Analysis Team Lead and Principal Environmental Analyst at the Argonne National Laboratory. She received her Masters degree in Sustainable Chemical Engineerin…
124: Driven to Study Cognitive Control and How it Breaks Down in Psychiatric Disorders - Dr. Todd Braver
Dr. Todd Braver is a Professor of Psychology as well as the Principal Investigator and Co-Director of the Cognitive Control and Psychopathology Laboratory at Washington University in St. Louis. He is…
123: Shedding Light on How Optimizing Photosynthesis Could Increase Plant Productivity - Dr. Stephen Long
Dr. Stephen Long is the Gutgsell Endowed Professor of Crop Sciences and Plant Biology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He received his BS (1st Agriculture) at the University of Reading…
122: Discerning Diversity of Ants in Tropical Rainforests - Dr. Terry McGlynn
Dr. Terry McGlynn is an Associate Professor of Biology at California State University Dominguez Hills. Terry received his PhD in Environmental, Population and Organismic Biology from the University o…
121: A Researcher with His Sights Set on Understanding the Retina and Color Vision Processing - Dr. John Dowling
Dr. John E. Dowling is the Gordon and Llura Gund Professor of Neurosciences in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology at Harvard University. John received his PhD from Harvard University. H…
120: Ironing Out the Genes Implicated in Neurological Diseases to Aid in Development of Therapeutics - Dr. Dan Geschwind
Dr. Dan Geschwind is the Gordon and Virginia MacDonald Distinguished Professor in of Neurology, Psychiatry and Human Genetics at the University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine. He is als…
119: Charging Forward with New Discoveries in Neutrino Physics - Dr. Kate Scholberg
Dr. Kate Scholberg is a Professor of Physics and Bass Fellow, as well as the Director of Undergraduate Studies at Duke University. She received her Masters and PhD in Physics from the California Inst…
118: Bringing the Buried History of Early Humans to Light - Dr. Steven Churchill
Dr. Steven Churchill is a and past chair of the Department of Evolutionary Anthropology at Duke University. He also holds a secondary appointment as an Honorary Reader in the Evolutionary Studies Ins…
117: Getting Sentimental About Microbes in Marine Sediments - Dr. Jennifer Biddle
Dr. Jennifer F. Biddle is an Assistant Professor in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment at the University of Delaware. She received her PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Pennsyl…
116: Seeing Through the Smoke to Understand How Smoking Changes Gene Expression - Dr. Katrina Steiling
Dr. Katrina Steiling is a physician-scientist and Assistant Professor of Medicine and Bioinformatics in the Section of Computational Biomedicine at Boston University School of Medicine. She completed…
115: Staying Grounded Studying Soil-Dwelling Bees - Dr. Alexandra Harmon-Threatt
Dr. Alexandra Harmon-Threatt is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Entomology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She received her PhD from the University of California, Berke…
114: Balancing it All While Studying Oscillating Chemical Reactions - Dr. Irving Epstein
Dr. Irving R. Epstein is the Henry F. Fischbach Professor of Chemistry and a member of the Volen Center for Complex Systems at Brandeis University, as well as a Professor of the Howard Hughes Medical…
113: Action-Packed Research on How our Brains Learn and Perceive Complex Movements - Dr. Emily Cross
Dr. Emily Cross is a Senior Lecturer of cognitive neuroscience and a dancer who shares a dual appointment at the School of Psychology at Bangor University in North Wales and the Department of Social …
112: Digging Up Clues on How Ancient Plants Responded to Their Environments - Dr. Nan Arens
Dr. Nan Arens is an Associate Professor of Geosciences at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in New York. She received her Masters degree in Geology from Pennsylvania State University as well as a Mas…
111: Making a Splash in River Ecosystem Research and Conservation - Dr. Steve Ormerod
Dr. Steve Ormerod is a Professor in Ecology in the Cardiff School of Biosciences at Cardiff University in the United Kingdom. He is also Chair of Council of the Royal Society for the Protection of Bi…
110: Getting a Glimpse Inside the Brain to Uncover the Science Behind Social Behavior - Dr. Ralph Adolphs
Dr. Ralph Adolphs is the Bren Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience and Professor of Biology at the California Institute of Technology. He received his PhD in Neurobiology from Caltech and complet…
109: Thought-Provoking Research on how Kids Learn Science - Dr. David Klahr
Dr. David Klahr is the Walter van Dyke Bingham Professor of Cognitive Development and Education Sciences in the Department of Psychology at Carnegie Mellon University. He is also the Training Directo…