Do You Even Science

Writing the acknowledgements, giving thanks to the people who have helped you along the way, is a surprisingly difficult part of completing your thesis. It’s also usually the last thing you do. In this episode, Simon talks about the difficulty and importance of knowing how to end a project, goes over his notes from a meeting with Toronto city councillor Joe Mihevc on why Canada should decriminalize all drugs, and talks about the importance for scientists to consider the science as a flawed but wonderful process. Finally, in this last episode of Do You Even Science, we end with our acknowledgements. Thank you to everyone who came on the show and to everyone who took the time in their busy lives to listen to us.

In this episode, Simon talk with his Mirjam Guesgen (who met at the workshop organized by BBC superstar science journalist Matt McGrath from episode 2!) about her journey from academic researcher to award winning journalist. Their conversation, like Mirjam's journey, covers a lot of ground. From her doctoral research with sheep in New Zealand to her post-doctoral research with cows in Canada, there have been many surprising stops along the way. In their discussion, Mirjam shares advice for budding science journalists and perspectives on the realities of working in the industry.

In this episode, Simon talk with his friend Yasmin Beydoun about her path to becoming a speech-language pathologist. Their conversation takes them everywhere from meeting at a nerd camp for entrepreneurial neuroscience students in Halifax to her clinical training with linguistic minorities. We also learn about the complexities around swallowing, how standardized tests can keep out marginalized communities from becoming healthcare professionals, and the politics of school speech assessments. Are you a SLP or SLP-in-training with similar experiences? Have you attended academic camps and connected with great people from different areas of study? Have you worked with an SLP that changed your life? We would love to hear about your experiences! Tweet us @DYES_podcast.

In this very special episode, Simon co-hosts with his partner Nicola while Deena is away at an international conference. Simon gives an update on his job hunt and explains the difference between tenure-track professor and course instructors. Nicola talks about her experience with radical career change, having gone from electrical engineer to psychologist working with individuals with borderline personality disorder. They finish by discussing what it’s like, the pros and cons, of being in a couple with two PhDs.Are you with a person that has a PhD? Have you experienced some challenges that we didn’t mention? Or maybe you’re interested in someone who is in grad school or has a PhD. What does that feel like, to be with someone who spent so long in school when you haven’t? We would love to hear about your experiences! Tweet us @DYES_podcast.

Our failures don't need to define us - cliche, we know! Listen as Simon and Deena share some of their failures while in academia and as far back as high school. Also, Simon's good friend Dom shares what she views as failures during her PhD and, "against all odds", becoming a faculty member in a prestigious liberal arts university in New York. Deena shares the perspective from an interview she came across that allowing oneself to be vulnerable and share failures comes from a place of privilege. What are your thoughts on publicly sharing failures? What are some of your failures and how did you handle the situation and grow (or not grow) from it? Tweet us @DYES_podcast.Link to the "Failure CV": https://www.princeton.edu/~joha/Johannes_Haushofer_CV_of_Failures.pdfLink to Interview on public sharing of failures + privilege: https://www.conditonallyaccepted.com/2017/03/04/failure/

Green Rush or Green Goblin - The varying potencies of cannabis legalization. Listen to Part 1 of Simon and Deena's discussion about drug use in Canada. Topics include: decriminalization vs legalization; Fact Check on cannabis laced with fentanyl; apparent East-Coast trend of lacing cannabis with Windex; the varying drug policies re: cannabis by province; and harm reduction techniques. In an upcoming episode, Part 2, Simon and Deena take drug policy questions to the leader of their constituency and dispel more drug myths.What are your thoughts on drug policies across Canada? Should policies be consistent across provinces? Why or why not? Have you heard/seen media reports of cannabis laced with fentanyl? Tweet us @DYES_podcast. We'd love to hear your thoughts!

Recent happenings in Ontario have put the province in the spotlight. Listen as Deena summarize current events, such as U of T's new policy mandating involuntary medical leave of absence for mental health issues; and, the shocking return to the 1998 sexual education curriculum. Simon reminds us of an important aspect of politics - who is accountable for potential harm associated with new party policies, particularly when a solid evidence-base exists? Simon presents a concise synopsis and analysis of Ford's "Buck-a-Beer" policy to reduce the cost and increase the availability of alcohol, despite a solid evidence-base indicating the harms associated with this practice.How should policies be made? What is the interaction between policy development and evidence-base? Who should be held accountable for decisions that run contrary to a strong evidence-base? Tweet us @DYES_podcast to share your view.On our next episode: Green Rush or Green Goblin? The varying potencies of cannabis legalization.ReferencesMinimum alcoh

According to @drdeenamhamza, the #ImmodestWomen movement is just beginning. Listen as @drsimonlandry and Deena discuss the source of this hashtag and their experiences using the title "Dr."Bonus: Deena has kept Simon honest in his "make-right" project. Listen as Simon shares the letter he sent to his forgotten participants.Follow us @DYES_podcast and on iTunes. Leave us comments and reviews - we'd love to hear your thoughts!

Knowledge mobilization, knowledge translation, and knowledge transfer and exchange – what do these terms really mean? Do you know the difference between innovation and invention? Simon updates Deena on “broader impact” and his take on a recent conference he attended in Winnipeg. As a topic of interest, Simon shares a recent article he came across in the Globe & Mail about Canadian research with an industry partner that led to a patent for the company. However, this intellectual property, 5g technology now owned by Huawei, the industry partner, will be sold back to Canada. It could also be used in ways that do not align with Canadian interests. What are your thoughts on how invention/innovation within Canada is used abroad? Who do you think is responsible for keeping Canadian Innovation in-house? Tweet us @DYES_podcast. We’d love to hear your thoughts. If you want to help us out, give us 5 stars on iTunes and a nice review. We’d really appreciate it!

During conversations, Simon has noticed Deena use the line: "I can't be smart all the time" and has often wondered how this phrase came to be. In this episode of "Do You Even Science?" Deena shares that her go-to line is a culmination of events occurring during her PhD and after as she tackles trainee positions as a Postdoctoral Fellow in Medicine. Listen to discover if Deena has been facing high expectations, perhaps a bar she can't reach? Or are the expectations themselves impossible and/or unjustified? What are your experiences with Imposter Syndrome? How have you handled situations where you're assumed to be "smart in everything", but don't perform to the expectations of others? Tweet us @DYES_podcast. We’d love to hear your thoughts. If you want to help us out, give us 5 stars on iTunes and a nice review. We’d seriously appreciate it!

Regrets – I’ve had a Few: Graduate studies are a long-term investment and during this path there are a lot of ups and downs, and at some stages, more downs than ups. Simon agrees to be really vulnerable and share his experiences with listeners. As he details his feelings during and after his PhD, Deena and Simon come up with a plan to support positive change and wellbeing.What are your regrets from grad school? Tweet us @DYES_podcast. We’d love to hear your thoughts. If you want to help us out, give us 5 stars on iTunes and a nice review. We’d seriously appreciate it!

How is “policy” defined? And, what role do researchers play in the development of policies? Simon and Deena share their view on how “policy” is defined and the importance of taking research findings a step further, and how to engage politicians and other leaders in our work. Evidence-base leading to policy development, or policy development guiding the evidence-base?As a topic of interest in her field, Deena teaches Simon about transgender rights through Canada’s newly enacted policy to support inmates in their gender identity along with other current events.To help Simon prepared for this episode, Deena sent him the following articles:Police, Jails & PrisonsHow LGBT prisoners are lost in the systemCanada's prison system overhauls transgender inmate policyTransgender woman 'raped at men's prison' hours after judge blocked moveWhat are your thoughts on the newly enacted policy supporting the gender identity of inmates? Tweet us @DYES_podcast. We’d love to hear your thoughts. If you want to help us out, giv

Straight from the expert, BBC Science Journalist Matt McGrath (@MattMcGrathBBC) answers a pressing question: "Who Cares?" when it comes to communicating science. While honing his skills through a position at York University as the Science Communicator in Residence, Matt is snagged on his last day in Canada for a DYES interview by Simon (@drsimonlandry). Insightful tips on how to communicate science from building relationships with journalists to creating usable audiovisual content.What does science communication mean to you? What forms of communication have been the most effective, and what would you like to see more of? Tweet us @DYES_podcast. We’d love to hear your thoughts. If you want to help us out, give us 5 stars on iTunes and a nice review. We’d really appreciate it!

Deena and Simon discuss the idea of "quitting" academia, talk about their path to getting their PhDs, and how both staying and leaving academia can make you feel like you've wasted your time.The CBC article that sparked this conversation is: From professor-in-waiting to florist: Why some PhDs are quitting academia for unconventional jobs.We want to hear from you! Let us know on Twitter, at @DYES_podcast, if you feel your academic training was a waste because you left or maybe it's the opposite and you feel staying in academia was a waste.Side note, the phenomenon Simon was refering to, where you hear about something then it seems to be everywhere, is The Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon.