GradLIFE Podcast

AI Conversations: Michael Curtin and Eric Kurt

Tue, 03 Dec 2024 12:00:00 -0500

Whether you're curious about practical applications, what a "black box" means, or ethical considerations, tune in to this episode of AI Conversations where your questions lead the way!

Michael Curtin (Innovation Coordinator, Campus Research IT) and Eric Kurt (Media Commons Coordinator, University Library; Interim Manager, Scholarly Commons) share their perspectives on emerging generative AI technologies and answer questions from graduate students on the future of generative AI in your research and career.

Building Scaffolds with Kyle Timmer

Thu, 19 Sep 2024 09:00:00 -0400

Kyle Timmer is on a mission to help your body heal faster after an injury.

A PhD student in Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering at Illinois, Kyle took home the grand prize at Research Live!, a fun, fast-paced competition where graduate students showcase their research. Research Live! challenges participants to give a three-minute research talk that explains their project to a general audience. Dazzling both the audience and judges, Kyle showcased his work, "A Biomimetic Scaffold to Improve Rotator Cuff Shoulder Repair." His new approach, which uses structures that mimic natural tissue to enhance healing, could revolutionize how doctors treat shoulder injuries, potentially shortening recovery time and improving outcomes for patients worldwide.

Fresh off his win, Kyle joined GradLIFE podcast host John Moist to discuss the art of science communication, working with stem cells, the ins and outs (and highs and lows) of lab work, and more.

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Show Notes:

Watch Kyle's Winning Research Talk from Research Live! 2024

Timmer Receives Grand Prize at Research Live!
Learn More About Research Live!

Read More About the Winners of Research Live! 2024

Harley Research Lab
Harley Research Lab - People

Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering @ Illinois

Check out the Graduate College @ Illinois

Listen to the GradLIFE Podcast

Read the GradLIFE Blog

AI @ Illinois: AI and Accessibility with Kyrie Zhou

Tue, 09 Jul 2024 11:00:00 -0400

This episode is part of our special GradLIFE series AI at Illinois, where we delve into the impacts of artificial intelligence technologies on our graduate students' research, teaching, and thinking.

On this episode, Bri Lafond (Writing Studies doctoral candidate and Graduate College Career Exploration Fellow) sits down with Kyrie Zhou (Information Sciences) to chat about generative AI, education, accessibility, and researching bias in new technologies.

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Show Notes:

Kyrie Zhou
Information Sciences at Illinois
Kyrie's Website
Kyrie's Publications

Madelyn Rose Sanfilippo - School of Information Sciences
Ted Underwood - School of Information Sciences
Rachel Adler - School of Information Sciences

University of Illinois Generative AI Solutions Hub - Office of the Provost
Generative Artificial Intelligence - Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning

Some Miscellany from the Show:

Kyrie's Recent Piece: "Accessible Adventures: Teaching Accessibility to High School Students Through Games"

Kyrie's Recent Piece: "The Teachers Are Confused As Well: A Multiple-Stakeholder Ethics Discussion on Large Language Models in Computing Education"

GradLIFE is a production of the Graduate College at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. For more information, and for anything else related to the Graduate College, visit us at grad.illinois.edu

AI @ Illinois: Surveillance and Syntax with Kainen Bell and Antonio Hamilton

Tue, 18 Jun 2024 15:00:00 -0400

This episode is part of our special GradLIFE series AI at Illinois, where we delve into the impacts of artificial intelligence technologies on our graduate students' research, teaching, and thinking.

On this episode, Bri Lafond (Writing Studies doctoral candidate and Graduate College Career Exploration Fellow) sits down with Kainen Bell (School of Information Sciences) and Antonio Hamilton (English) for a chat about how AI is impacting conversations around writing, education, and surveillance.

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Show Notes:

Kainen Bell
Information Sciences at Illinois
Community Data Clinic
Wikimedia Foundation

Antonio Hamilton
English at Illinois
Writers Workshop

Some Miscellany from the Show:

Anti-Surveillance Campaigns in Brazil
- Get my face out of your sight! (Tire meu rosto da sua mira!) - National Campaign in Brazil
- No Camera in my face (Sem Câmera na minha cara) - Local Campaign in Recife Brazil

From Kainen: To learn more about how global communities are resisting Data Colonialism, read the recently published book, Resisting Data Colonialism – A Practical Intervention
- Created by a network of Activists, Scholars, and Community Organizers named Tierra Común
- Kainen wrote a submission titled, Resistance storytelling: Anti-Surveillance campaign in Recife, Brazil (Page 63)

Institute for IP and Social Justice
Algorithms of Oppression, Safiya Noble
Gender Shades, Joy Buolamwini

GradLIFE is a production of the Graduate College at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. For more information, and for anything else related to the Graduate College, visit us at grad.illinois.edu

AI @ Illinois: Making AI Legible with Clara Belitz and Ali Zaidi

Tue, 05 Mar 2024 13:00:00 -0500

GradLIFE is a production of the Graduate College at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. For more information, and for anything else related to the Graduate College, visit us at grad.illinois.edu

Studying Stress in Graduate School with Joe Mirabelli

Wed, 17 Jan 2024 11:00:00 -0500

Joe Mirabelli (PhD, '23, Educational Psychology) has spent years studying how graduate students experience and cope with stress. In this conversation, Joe sits down with John Moist to discuss what he's learned about how graduate students excel in grad school.
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Show Notes:

Joe Mirabelli in Research Live! 2023

Educational Psychology at Illinois

Jennifer Cromley, Professor, Educational Psychology @ Illinois

Research Live! @ UIUC

GradLIFE: Joe Mirabelli | Lessons Learned from a PhD Student who Studies PhD Students’ Stress and Coping

GradLIFE is a production of the Graduate College at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. For more information, and for anything else related to the Graduate College, visit us at grad.illinois.edu

Encountering Imposter Syndrome with Lisa Abston and Darrien Watson

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 15:00:00 -0400

When you're in graduate school and doing awesome work, it's not uncommon to experience imposter syndrome: doubting your abilities and feeling like a fraud in your work.

In this episode of the GradLIFE podcast, John Moist sits down with Lisa Abston (Assistant Dean for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion here in the Graduate College) and Darrien Watson (fourth-year PhD student in Recreation, Sport, and Tourism) for a discussion that ranges from the emotions of graduate study and experiences with feeling like an imposter in academia to some practical tips and strategies for keeping your way when imposter syndrome rears its head.
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Show Notes:

The GradLIFE Podcast is a production of the Graduate College at the University of Illinois. Learn more about the GradLIFE Blog, Podcast, and Newsletter here.

UIUC Graduate College: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Some readings (and a listen) on imposter syndrome:

UIUC College of Law Library: How To Survive Law School Without Losing Your Mind

Healthy Illini Podcast - Episode 53: Imposter Syndrome

Harvard Business Review: Stop Telling Women They Have Imposter Syndrome

Inc.: 3 Reasons Imposter Syndrome Is Actually a Professional Superpower, According to a Professor Who Wrote a Book on Spotting Talent

Playing Cyberball with Haley Skymba

Tue, 25 Apr 2023 08:00:00 -0400

If you can, cast your mind back to high school. For some of us, it's been a little longer than others. You might think of the sound of chattering classmates in the hallway, or maybe of studying late for an important test. Adolescence is a particularly challenging time that comes with many difficult emotions, and it's never been easy to be a teenager.

But here at the University of Illinois, researchers have demonstrated that past experiences with bullying, friendlessness, and other forms of social exclusion directly impact teenage girls' perceptions of their self-worth. Beckman Institute researcher and Professor of Psychology Karen Rudolph and her team think this is a crucial first step in crafting intervention programs to improve teen mental health.

On this episode of the GradLIFE Podcast, Graduate College Communications Specialist John Moist chats with Haley Skymba, a doctoral student at UIUC and Beckman Institute researcher, to talk about her work on Dr. Rudolph's research team. Haley was gracious enough to come in and chat about her research, background, and where she plans to take her work from here.

Show Notes:

The GradLIFE Podcast is a production of the Graduate College at the University of Illinois. Learn more about the GradLIFE Blog, Podcast, and Newsletter here.

To read more about this research, visit the Illini News Bureau and The Beckman Institute

Dr. Karen Rudolph

Haley Skymba

Click here to access the research featured in this podcast from the Journal of Research on Adolescence.

The Beckman Institute's clip of Haley Skymba is kindly provided from this video.

Learn more about the Family Studies Lab

Check out The Beckman Institute

The research discussed in this podcast was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health under award numbers MH105655 and MH68444. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and guests and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Highs, Lows in Grad School During COVID - Abby & Sebastian

Mon, 26 Jul 2021 11:00:00 -0400

SAGE graduate student podcasters Abby (Social Work) and Sebastian (Labor and Employment Relations) interview each other about choosing their research fields and Illinois for graduate education. How “virtual everything” affects their grad school ups and downs and teaches them a few tricks.

Highs, Lows in Grad School During COVID - Cat & Shelby

Mon, 26 Jul 2021 11:00:00 -0400

SAGE graduate student podcasters Cat (Physics) and Shelby (Kinesiology) interview each other about choosing their research fields and Illinois for graduate education. How “virtual everything” affects their grad school highs and lows and teaches them a few tricks.

Your Portfolio Will Never Be Perfect or Done

Mon, 26 Jul 2021 11:00:00 -0400

Landscape Designer Saloni Chawla (MLA '18) sits down to talk with us about how she landed her dream job at STIMSON an urban and rural landscape architecture studio with a working farm and a plant nursery, and why she considers it a perfect match with her interests in cultural landscapes and people.

A Research Pivot, One Year Later

Mon, 26 Jul 2021 11:00:00 -0400

It has been a year of COVID. Our graduate student podcasters share their funniest Zoom stories and how they have been navigating this new landscape. Burning Man expert Caitlin Brooks (Recreation, Sport, and Tourism) speaks about mourning canceled ethnographic dissertation fieldwork and the power of community in times of isolation.

Bringing Childlike Approaches to Self-Care

Wed, 21 Jul 2021 11:00:00 -0400

SAGE grad student podcasters get to know more about fellow podcaster Abby Valtierra, who is pursuing a master’s in Social Work.

Abby shares some techniques to lower stress in elementary school students, such as a 5-4-3-2-1 mapping exercise, that might also work for grad students. And our podcasters share powerful “mesources” including the importance of positive self-talk.

The Fine Art of Balance

Wed, 21 Jul 2021 11:00:00 -0400

Theatre doctoral student Vincent Carlson performs "You and Your Work," a poem he wrote inspired by boundary setting and conflicting ideas about work ethic.

Training for an actual half marathon, he contemplates how grad school is a marathon and that you have to pace yourself. There is also a tasty discussion about the importance of treats!

You Can't Pour From an Empty Cup

Wed, 21 Jul 2021 11:00:00 -0400

SAGE grad student podcasters interview the Counseling Center’s Kamau Grantham, who gives everyone permission to take care of themselves and encourages the practice of self-care, an intentional skill that takes time to figure out. Things get salty as they contemplate the balance of ingredients in chocolate chip cookies. The podcasters continue the discussion with their favorite “mesources.”