Introducing the Leading Life Sciences Podcast
This new series will discuss/debate leading life science topics with featured guests.
We’re starting something new.
We address a lot of very important topics in scientific entrepreneurship, career development and academia at The Black Hole. All of our posts follow a very similar formula: calling attention to a common, but rarely talked-about problem, a defined discussion of misalignments between what the system is solving for today and what we should be solving for instead, and a proposal of well thought-out and practical solutions. In fact, we differentiate ourselves from the pack by offering the latter – which is something Dave and I take a lot of pride in.
A common thread that in all of The Black Hole’s articles is our focus on people: they are the core of any successful venture, and programs should be structured in ways that elevate and value the individual. Whether institutions choose to take our advice or not, it feels good knowing that we are offering viable alternatives that always put scientists first. Nevertheless, people are complicated and we often struggle to explore in 500 words all of the nuances and conflicting opinions governing our current systems in science. It is sometimes challenging to put voice to all the different perspectives or play proper devil’s advocate to popular positions (although we’ve often tried). By comparison, unstructured conversation can go beyond defining the problem and offering a solution; the two formats are complementary because context is important.
Enter the Leading Life Sciences Podcast. A new format talk radio series where Damien Wilpitz (founder/CEO of EDC and guest writer for The Black Hole) and I (Jonathan Thon) discuss/debate leading life science topics with featured guests. We float between serious and fun, but strive to add context to the topics we feature here at the Black Hole. We’re putting together our topic list for Season 1 – so if there are subjects you’d like us to discuss or want to be a guest on our podcast, let us know below. Episode 1 will feature David Kent, founder of The Black Hole and group leader at the University of Cambridge in the Cambridge Stem Cell Institute). Tune in!
Featured Jobs
- Fashion - Instructional Assistant/Associate Professor (Creative & Cultural Industries)Chapman University - Wilkinson College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences
- Economics - Associate/Full Professor of TeachingThe University of British Columbia
- Public Policy - JW McConnell Visiting ScholarMcGill University
- Politics and Public Administration - Assistant Professor (Public Policy)Toronto Metropolitan University
- Vice-President Research & Scientific EngagementMS Canada
More from Opinion
-
Book review: Indigenous lessons for healing our society
Blair Stonechild, The Knowledge Seeker: Embracing Indigenous Spirituality, Regina: University of Regina Press, 2016, 224 pages.
-
Supporting students in the age of GenAI
Universities need to rethink student discipline when it comes to reinforcing academic integrity.
-
Improving universities’ public standing
How universities can help make their case.
-
How to stay up to date within your field of research when you are busy teaching
Instead of trying to cram all of your research prep into the summer months, why not set aside some time each week to read about what’s new in your field of scholarship?
More from Lab
-
Building a lab: 6 months of triumphs and trials
As head of a lab, you're the one-man band responsible for everything from marketing to finance to product development.
-
A call for widespread adoption of universal MTAs
The current process for material transfer agreements involves way too much paperwork and puts unnecessary stress on both researchers and technology transfer offices.
-
The purpose of branding in science
Branding is the exercise of summarizing an organization’s culture to attract a particular type of employee, collaborator or funder.
-
Incentive structures are needed to ensure scientific progress
We must identify and resolve the gaps in our current scientific training, and revisit and refine the incentive structures we’ve created around our scientists.
More from The Black Hole
-
How to start a company from scratch
Establishing and leading a startup is hard, but it is also an opportunity to do something creative, fun and unique.
-
Yes to more evaluation, but a bigger yes to more action
A recent report on research culture shows that evaluation is key, but stops short of practical solutions to core problems.
-
The art of grant writing: write, rewrite and write again
And don't forget the detailed budgeting and a looming submission deadline.
-
Breaking EDI barriers in science
Clear metrics are needed to evaluate the success of initiatives to remove inequities in the research enterprise.
Post a comment
University Affairs moderates all comments according to the following guidelines. If approved, comments generally appear within one business day. We may republish particularly insightful remarks in our print edition or elsewhere.