Saturday Morning Lab

Let's Get Coffee! Ashley Kopec Episode

Hey pals! “Let’s get coffee” is a short midweek episode companion to our longer Saturday episodes. In these bite-sized offerings, I sit back and comfortably reflect on last week’s discussion. This week I reflect on my discussion with Ashley Kopec and her question of what moments in the past week have given us a sense of fulfillment. I'd love to hear from you! Send me an email at SaturdayMorningLab@outlook.com with your thoughts!

Rahaf Salim says your uniqueness is your strength!

On this week's episode, I sit down with Rahaf Salim, a talented, charismatic, and purpose-driven graduate student from Purdue University who hopes to turn her bench-side discoveries into treatments for osteoarthritis, a complex and painful disease and a leading cause of disability. She discusses her background as a Palestinian American growing up on the East Coast and how her values shaped her career ambitions. She highlights the importance of entrepreneurial and industry literacy to empower primary investigators to efficiently translate their discoveries into available therapies. She also stresses the importance of harnessing human diversity in the most practical and genuine sense. She challenges us to think about how our individual characteristics and perspectives uniquely empower us in our respective fields.

Elvira Forte says stay curious and keep ready!

This week, I chat with Dr. Elvira Forte, Senior Science Writer at the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Center. Elvira grew up on the outskirts of Rome and the only one in her family to pursue science. Elvira is genuine, thoughtful, curious, dedicated, and very passionate about research. That curiosity has led her to interesting and diverse career paths in science. She urges everyone to stay curious and keep their eyes open for opportunities that so often slip our notice. What a joy it was to chat with her. 

Ashley Kopec says listen to that nagging voice!

This week, I chat with Dr. Ashley Kopec. Ashley is a Scientific Review Officer with the Division of Neuroscience, Development and Aging (DNDA) at the National Institutes of Health. In our discussion, she shares her early experience growing up a carefree kid in a small farm town in Southeast Wisconsin to her success as an Associate Professor and ultimately, her decision to leave academia for the Federal Government. As always, your questions and comments are welcome at SaturdayMorningLab@outlook.com!

Saturday Morning Lab

Hey friends, I'm excited to share the trailer for my upcoming podcast! Season 1 begins in January 2025. Stay tuned! Your questions and comments are welcome at SaturdayMorningLab@outlook.com!