From where does it STEM?
Episodes
Shifting the System: Dr. David Asai
11 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this special episode, From where does it STEM? co-host Angelique Allen talks with Dr. David Asai about reimagining science education, equity in STE...
From Information to Innovation: Dr. Melissa Haendel
27 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Melissa Haendel just joined UNC as its newest faculty member, shaking up the world of biomedical data. We talk big data, open science, and how she...
Building the Future of Marine Science: Dr. Monica Medina
25 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Corals, symbiosis, and scientific courage—Dr. Mónica Medina dives deep into what it means to study and protect life underwater. We talk about reef ...
The Evolving Role of Scientists in Leadership & Impact: Dr. Keith Yamamoto
23 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Policy powerhouse, science champion, and advocate for equity—Dr. Keith Yamamoto has done it all. In this episode, we talk about precision medicine, ...
Breaking Down Barriers for Hispanic/Latinx Scientists: Dr. Benjamin Garcia
20 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Mass spec, mentorship, and making science more inclusive—Dr. Ben Garcia does it all. In this episode, we talk about his journey through proteomics, ...
Balancing Civic Service & Science: Mayor Barbara Foushee
18 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Trailblazer, community builder, and scientist—Mayor Barbara Foushee wears many hats. In this episode, we talk about making history in Carrboro, lead...
Shaping the Future of Bioengineering: Dr. Kaitlyn Sadtler
21 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I chatted with Dr. Kaitlyn Sadtler, who is pushing the boundaries of biomedical science. Co-hosted with HHMI Gilliam Fellow and ChemE...
Making Waves in Science, Science Communication, and Representation: Jaida Elcock
19 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I chat with Jaida Elcock, a marine biologist studying basking sharks, and co-host with HHMI Gilliam Fellow Danny Olivares-Cordero, a ...
Bridging Science & Story: Sabrina Imbler
17 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we chatted with Sabrina Imbler, a science writer exploring the wonders of the natural world. They also wrote one of my favorite books...
Educating Communities through Global Experiences : Zingfa Wala
13 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I co-hosted Zingfa Wala with fellow Occidental Alumnus Julissa Larios. Both work at the Organization of Tropical Studies (OTS) and ar...
Inspiring the Next Generation of Filipino Scientists : Dr. Sheila Teves & Dr. Lawrence David
08 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Sheila Teves (UBC) and Dr. Lawrence David (Duke U) with a fellow graduate student at Duke, Enya (@DewarsEnya)! Word...
Finding Fulfillment in Science : Dr. Harmit Malik
06 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Harmit Malik.
Rethinking How We Teach Science : Dr. Bryan Dewsbury
31 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Bryan Dewsbury, an Associate Professor of Biology at Florida International University (FIU). Per the Howard Hughes...
Bring Others Up With You: Dr. Michael Johnson
02 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Michael Johnson, an Associate Professor of Immunobiology and Associate Dean for Basic Science Research and Graduate...
Representation Matters: Dr. Andre Isaacs
22 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Dr. Zack Drum, a postdoc in my lab, and I interviewed Dr. Andre Isaacs. Andre is originally from Jamaica and moved to the US to att...
What Makes a "Good" Scientist? : Dr. Roshni Patel & Dr. Rachel Ungar
20 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Roshni Patel & Dr. Rachel Ungar. As graduate students at Stanford University in the Pritchard and Montgomery la...
Science is Fallible: Angela Saini
18 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Angela Saini with Dr. Mike Love. Angela is a prominent author interested in bridging science and society. Her works inc...
A Night at the American Museum of Natural History: Dr. Sean Decatur
04 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Sean Decatur, the President of the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) with my lab's amazing manager, Sylvie ...
Authenticity & Moving the Culture of Science Forward: Dr. Raven Baxter
01 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Raven Baxter, otherwise known as Raven the Science Maven. She is a prominent scientist, science communicator, and S...
Bridging Science & Society : Dr. Alondra Nelson
30 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Alondra Nelson, the Harold F. Linder Professor at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. Pe...
Building Trust in Science Requires Diversity: Dr. Freeman Hrabowski
28 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Freeman Hrabowski, the President Emeritus of The University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). Per his website...
Science is a Living, Breathing Process: Dr. Holden Thorp
24 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Holden Thorp, the Editor-In-Chief of Science Magazine. Formerly, he was Provost of Washington University in St. Lou...
Directing the National Science Foundation (NSF) : Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan
22 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan, the Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF).
Empowering Women in STEM: Dr. Marcia McNutt
17 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I chatted with Dr. Marcia McNutt. A decorated scientist who was the 15th Director (and 1st woman) of the United States Geological Sur...
Helping Underrepresented Students Move Up the Socioeconomic Ladder : Dr. Robert Fernandez
15 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I chatted with Dr. Robert Fernandez, the Executive Director of Cientifico Latino, and a United States Obama Leaders for the Obama Fou...
Empowering the next generation of Hispanic/Latinx Scientists: Dr. Tina Termini
15 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When Doris (formerly UNC PREP Postbac Scholar, Currently University of Michigan PhD student) was applying to graduate school, JP connected her with Dr...
Getting Everyone to their Destination: Dr. Lyric Jorgenson
05 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Lyric Jorgenson, the Associate Director of Science Policy and the Director of the Office of Science Policy at the N...
How Can Artificial Intelligence (AI) be kind? : Dr. Yim Register
04 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Yim Register (they/them). A recently minted DOCTOR. Per their website, they are an NSF GRFP Fellow and got their Ph...
Giving People Power to Change : Dr. Beronda Montgomery
03 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Beronda Montgomery, an amazing mentor, leader, and author of "Lessons from Plants". Per her website, she ...
Hearing it from the Top: Dr. Neali Lucas
02 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Neali Lucas. She has been at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for 14 years, where she is currently the Senior...
Impact Through Science Policy: Dr. Adriana Bankston
01 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, guest co-host Rami Major and I interviewed Dr. Adriana Bankston. Per her website, she is an advocate for scientific research and inno...
Finding your Science Communication Identity : Dr. Pallav Kosuri
20 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Pallav Kosuri. Per Pallav's website, he studied physics in college at KTH in Stockholm, Sweden (where he's ...
Mentoring the Next Generation of Diverse Scholars : Dr. Mike Summers
10 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Michael Summers is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and the Robert E. Meyerhoff Chair for Excellence in Research and Mentoring an...
Staying Inspired and Empowered in STEM : Dr. Antentor O. Hinton Jr.
05 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Antentor Hinton Jr. Per his biosketch on his lab website, he is a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the Departmen...
The Frontier of Women's Healthcare : Dr. Crystal Schiller
26 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Crystal Schiller, a clinical psychologist specializing in women’s mental health. She studies how hormones trigger...
Building Science Community through Social Media: Dr. Ubadah Sabbagh & Dr. Daniel Gonzales
13 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Ubadah Sabbagh & Dr. Daniel Gonzales. Ubadah is a Syrian neuroscientist and NIH K00 Fellow at the McGovern Inst...
Directing the NHGRI : Dr. Eric Green
06 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I co-hosted Dr. Eric Green, Director of the NHGRI with Parth and Chinmay, the co-hosts of Biocast. He is the third NHGRI director, ha...
Reunion! : A Follow-up with Dr. Karolin Luger and the Hosts of Biocast
29 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I co-hosted Dr. Karolin Luger with Chinmay and Parth, the co-hosts of a partner podcast with From where does it STEM? called Biocast....
Field Safety in Field Biology: Dr. Murry Burgess
29 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Murry Burgess. When I interviewed Murry in 2023, she was a PhD candidate at North Carolina State University, and no...
Preventing Global Pandemics: Dr. Dimie Ogoina
16 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Dimie Ogoina. Dr. Ogoina is a Nigerian Infectious Disease Physician-Scientist and Professor of Medicine at the Nige...
When Pigs Fly: Dr. Muhammad Mohiuddin
07 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I had a conversation with Dr. Muhammad Mohiuddin. Dr. Mohiuddin and his team transplanted the first gene-edited pig heart into a huma...
Incorporating Patient Engagement: Lisa McCorkell
30 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I had a conversation with Lisa McCorkell, a Long COVID Patient-Researcher and Advocate. She received a Masters in Public Policy from ...
From Los Angeles to New Jersey: Dr. Mike Levine
23 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Mike Levine is the Director of the Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics at Princeton University. Originally from Southern California, M...
Science isn't a "One Person Show": Dr. Diana Greene Foster
15 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Diana Greene Foster is a Professor at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and the Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health ...
Acknowledging the History of Genetics & Genomics: Dr. Christopher Donohue
09 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Per the National Human Genome Research Institute, Dr. Christopher Donohue is a historian at the NHGRI at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He c...
Mentoring, DEI in STEM, and Chasin' Waterfalls: Dr. Chrystal Starbird
02 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Chrystal Starbird is an Assistant Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who is passionate about DEI in STEM and mentoring t...
Embracing the community ::: Dr. Hadley Wickham
20 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Happy #TidyTuesday! Excited to share an awesome conversation with Hadley Wickham (@hadleywickham), Chief Scientist @rstudio! We tried to stay away fro...
Rejection just means Redirection: Angeline Dukes
21 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Angeline Dukes is a PhD candidate and neuroscientist at the University of California, Irvine. She is a proud alumnus of Fisk University and the Founde...
Words of Wisdom: Dr. Francis Collins
04 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It was an honor and privilege to interview Dr. Francis Collins M.D., Ph.D. He was appointed the 16th Director of the National Institutes of Healt...
STEM, STEAM, Make Dream: Dr. Chris Emdin
02 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Christopher Emdin, Ph.D., is the Robert A. Naslund Endowed Chair in Curriculum Theory and Professor of Education at the University of Southern Califor...
Mentorship Matters: Yeraldi Loera
31 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Yeraldi Loera graduated from Occidental College as a Biology major in the Fall of 2016. After graduating, she attended California State Polytechnic Un...
Objectivity vs. Subjectivity in Science: Dr. Sabah Ul-Hasan
09 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
On this episode, I got the chance to sit down and chat about social justice in science with Dr. Sabah Ul-Hasan, a bioinformatician and postdoc at The ...
Navigating a Physics PhD as a Coptic Student: George Iskander
14 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Awesome chatting with STEM Twitter celebrity George Iskander, a Physics PhD student at the University of Chicago! I also want to announce that I’ll ...
Humanity in Science: Dr. Karolin Luger
13 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Karolin Luger is a biochemist and structural biologist at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Famously known for solving the structure of the nuc...
Bridging Social Factors & Context in Infectious Disease Modeling: Tiggy Menkir
06 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Tigist (Tiggy) Menkir is a PhD student working with Dr. Caroline Buckee at the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics housed within the Harvard T.H....
Being a Data Analyst in Costa Rica: Cristal Rivera
01 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Cristal Rivera is an industrial production engineer who I had the pleasure of meeting through the 2021 RStudio Diversity Scholars program. She is extr...
First-Gen Feels: Dr. Charles Scaife
29 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 2 of Season 2 is LIVE! On this week’s episode, I had the opportunity to sit down and chat with Dr. Charles Scaife! Charles is currently an O...
A Royal Opportunity: Dr. Christopher Jackson
21 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Season 2 is LIVE! On this week’s episode, I had a life-changing conversation with Prof. Christopher Jackson who is now a Professor at the University...
Military Brat and Kicking Balls to Cancer Research: Dr. Alexis Zukowski
18 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
"...the road less traveled by, and that has made all the difference." Alexis Zukowski is a postdoc in the lab of Dr.Srinivas Ramachandran lab at the U...
From where does it STEM? trailer
06 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Hosted by JP Flores
Perspectives of an NSF Scientist: Dr. Alias Smith
04 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Alias Smith is an Associate Program Director at the National Science Foundation (NSF). In this episode, we chatted about his journey as both a stu...
Science is for the Community: Justin Stewart
26 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Justin Stewart is a queer, autistic microbiologist who has a burning passion for diversity and inclusion in STEM. Originally from Texas, USA, they mad...
Diversity in Shark Science: Jasmin Graham
05 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I was able to interview Jasmin Graham who is a shark scientist studying elasmobranch ecology and evolution. She has a passion for sci...
Community College to Four-Year: Amanda Finn
29 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Everyone's academic journey is different. Just ask Amanda Finn- an undergraduate at Cal State University, Long Beach. Her passion and love for researc...
Mentorship, Community, and Family: Dr. Christopher Barnes & Dr. Naima Sharaf
22 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I got to sit down and interview Dr. Christopher Barnes and Dr. Naima Sharaf who are currently postdoctoral researchers at CalTech. Th...
The Struggles of BIPOC Undergrads: Brian Zou & Evelyn Montenegro
15 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
This past week, I got to sit down and interview Brian Zou (Macalester College) and Evelyn Montenegro (UC Davis) about their journeys in STEM as underr...