On those days when you manage to take a break from bench-work and call home, you will almost certainly get ‘The Question:’ “So, how is your research going?” If you’re new to grad school, you might make the mistake of telling your parent or loved one ex...

When we imagine what life is like for people who are blind, our first reaction might be paralysis. We consider just how difficult our lives would be without sight; preparing breakfast, dressing for work, and navigating from home to the lab sound like i...

When we think of scientists, we often think of the lone researcher plodding away at the bench late into the night.  We imagine Alexander Fleming scrutinizing his penicillium molds or Einstein pondering the latest equation he’s written on the chalk boar...

Today, a graduate student will make a terrible mistake. He’ll blindly commit to a long-term relationship that will make him miserable.  He’ll be too shy to ask his partner the painfully awkward questions that could predict their ultimate failure as a t...

Scientific training has its roots in the ancient world.  From Aristotle’s natural philosophy to the modern biomedical research lab, science training has relied heavily on an apprenticeship model. Senior scientists take promising young students into the...

It’s a compelling promise: take a few drops of blood, and tell the patient what hidden diseases are lurking in his body.  If only we could have an early warning system for cancer, Alzheimer’s, or myriad other diseases,

It’s official: the Hello PhD podcast is one year old! In honor of our birthday, we’re taking a look back at our favorite episodes and moments from the first year of the show. Stay with us… Cheers, Mate!

Jessica was finishing her third year of grad school when she finally decided she had had enough. Funding had gotten tighter, and her PI had basically checked out.  Many of her lab-mates saw the writing on the wall,

We’ve all had bad days in the lab: you throw out the supernatant you were supposed to save, or contaminate all the cells in tissue culture. It hurts, but the next day, you can start over and try again. Today on the show,

As a second-year grad student, Craig was making progress on an exciting project in a new lab. Then, one morning, the PI called Craig into his office. “I got a really generous offer to move the lab to Sweden.  Do you want to come with me?