The Lonely Pipette : helping scientists do better science

You have built your boat, assembled your crew, and navigated the storms. But where exactly are you sailing? In this final episode of this ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast limited series, we arrive at the ultimate destination : Success. But what does success really mean in academia ? Is it the number of papers you publish, the size of your lab, or the awards you collect? Jonathan and Renaud bring together four brilliant scientists to challenge the traditional academic compass : Rachael Dangarembizi (University of Cape Town, South Africa), Michaela Fenckova (University of South Bohemia, Czech Republic), Harmit Malik (Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, USA), and Srikanth Ramaswamy (Newcastle University, UK). This podcast series is a limited-series from The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast, a guide that will help you to adress the difficult issue of transitioning from postdoc to team leader. The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast 'From Postdoc to PI' is organized with the support of the International Brain Research Organization (IBRO), a founding partner of the ALBA Network. You want to support our work ? Buy us a coffee ! ==> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lonelypipette Support the show 💌 Subcribe to our newsletter and receive the episodes and news directly in your mailbox : https://tinyurl.com/TLPNL To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20

Even the best captain cannot control the weather. But they can control how they navigate the storm. In Episode 4 of the ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast, we sail into the darker waters of academia: power dynamics, bullying, and toxic environments. We often talk about the "dream lab," but what happens when that dream becomes a nightmare? When the hierarchy is used to silence rather than support ? Or when systemic barriers put researchers in danger ? Renaud and Jonathan sit down with three courageous scientists, Alicja Puścian (University of Warsaw, Poland), Dori Grijseels (Max Planck Institute, Germany), and Angeline Dukes (University of Minnesota, USA) who share powerful personal stories and navigation strategies. This podcast series is a limited-series from The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast, a guide that will help you to adress the difficult issue of transitioning from postdoc to team leader. The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast 'From Postdoc to PI' is organized with the support of the International Brain Research Organization (IBRO), a founding partner of the ALBA Network. Support the show 💌 Subcribe to our newsletter and receive the episodes and news directly in your mailbox : https://tinyurl.com/TLPNL To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20

What is the most valuable "invisible skill" of a group leader ? In Episode 3, we tackle the difficult question : how to build a research culture where people don't just survive, but thrive. Science is not a solo trip. It is a group expedition. Yet, most group leaders are never trained to manage humans, resolve conflicts, or foster inclusivity. Renaud and Jonathan sit down with four inspiring scientist Dori Grijseels (Max Planck Institute, Germany), Angeline Dukes (University of Minnesota, USA), Adrian Liston (University of Cambridge, UK), and Denise Fitzgerald (Queen’s University Belfast, UK) to decode the DNA of a healthy lab. This podcast series is a limited-series from The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast, a guide that will help you to adress the difficult issue of transitioning from postdoc to team leader. The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast 'From Postdoc to PI' is organized with the support of the International Brain Research Organization (IBRO), a founding partner of the ALBA Network. Support the show 💌 Subcribe to our newsletter and receive the episodes and news directly in your mailbox : https://tinyurl.com/TLPNL To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20

What if constraints could fuel your lab instead of limiting it ? Episode 2 dives into the realities and opportunities of building a lab in resource-constrained settings. Renaud and Jonathan talk to Daniela Di Bella (Harvard, USA), Vatsala Thirumalai (National Centre for Biological Sciences, India), and Sahba Besharati (University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa) about how determination and creativity can turn restrictions into scientific excellence. From Argentina to India and South Africa, they share how starting with less taught them to think bigger, act smarter, and stay true to their vision. This podcast series is a limited-series from The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast, a guide that will help you to adress the difficult issue of transitioning from postdoc to team leader. The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast 'From Postdoc to PI' is organized with the support of the International Brain Research Organization (IBRO), a founding partner of the ALBA Network. Support the show 💌 Subcribe to our newsletter and receive the episodes and news directly in your mailbox : https://tinyurl.com/TLPNL To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20

Making the leap from postdoc to group leader is both exciting and terrifying. Episode 1 offers the postdoc perspective on this journey. Renaud and Jonathan from the Lonely Pipette talk with Florencia Fernandez-Chiappe (Boston University, US), Mayank Chugh (William & Mary, US), and Ashley Bourke (MPI for Brain Research, DE) about the fears, anxieties, and uncertainties that come with this transition. They share their personal experiences, discuss common challenges, and offer insights on how to navigate this crucial career step with confidence. This podcast series is a limited-series from The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast, a guide that will help you to adress the difficult issue of transitioning from postdoc to team leader. The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast 'From Postdoc to PI' is organized with the support of the International Brain Research Organization (IBRO), a founding partner of the ALBA Network. You want to support our work ? Buy us a coffee ! ==> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lonelypipette Support the show 💌 Subcribe to our newsletter and receive the episodes and news directly in your mailbox : https://tinyurl.com/TLPNL To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20

We had the great honour of producing a podcast for the ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast. This podcast series is a unique resource, a guide that will help you to adress the difficult issue of transitioning from postdoc to team leader. We hope it will inspire you as much as it has transformed our vision of academia ! The ALBA-IBRO Diversity Podcast 'From Postdoc to PI' is organized with the support of the International Brain Research Organization, a founding partner of the ALBA Network. This podcast is hosted by The Lonely Pipette, produced by Exaltia and organised with the support of IBRO. Enjoy listening and see you next Wednesday for the broadcast of this limited series, which will be released every two weeks! The ALBA Diversity Podcast interviews neuroscientists from underrepresented groups to better understand their hurdles and victories, and what keeps them going in today’s brain research community. In season 2, with IBROs' support, we focus on the transition from postdoc to PI, highlighting the unique challenges faced by postdocs and early-career PIs worldwide. By sharing their experiences and strategies for overcoming obstacles, the podcast aims to provide valuable insights for scientists navigating this critical career stage. To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20

This month we talk with Ana Boskovic about her experience of setting up her own lab and hiring a new team She mentioned these labs, scientists and institutions University of Zagreb https://www.unizg.hr/homepage/ EMBL Rome https://www.embl.org/research/faculty/rome/ Maria Elena Torres-Padilla (podcast episode from Season 1) https://www.buzzsprout.com/1356877/episodes/6624301-tlp-6-just-go-for-it-following-your-curiosity-and-excitement-maria-elena-torres-padilla Maria Elena Torres-Padilla (lab) https://www.helmholtz-munich.de/en/ies/pi/maria-elena-torres-padilla Oliver Rando https://www.umassmed.edu/randolab/ Edith Heard (podcast episode from Season 2) https://thelonelypipette.buzzsprout.com/1356877/episodes/11387623-tlp-12-science-without-frontiers-edith-heard F Scott Fitzgerald https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/F._Scott_Fitzgerald Diocletian https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diocletian Split, Croatia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Split,_Croatia To find out more about Ana visit these links You want to support our work ? Buy us a coffee ! ==> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lonelypipette To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

This month Ivan Oransky joins us to talk about his work as a journalist and advocate for monitoring scientific misconduct. Ivan mentioned these scientists, writers and institutions Harvard University : https://www.harvard.edu/ The Harvard Crimson https://www.thecrimson.com/ Yale University https://www.yale.edu/ The Scientist https://www.the-scientist.com/ Journal of American Medical Association https://jamanetwork.com/ New York University’s Carter Journalism Institute https://journalism.nyu.edu/ The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com Lawrence Altman MD https://www.nytimes.com/by/lawrence-k-altman George Lundberg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_D._Lundberg https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1114712/ To find out more about Ivan and his work visit these links at NYU https://journalism.nyu.edu/about-us/profile/ivan-oransky-md/ on Twitter/X https://x.com/ivanoransky Retraction Watch https://retractionwatch.com/ The Transmitter /Spectrum magazine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Transmitter Ivan’s first play about the Immune System (aged 11) https://theoranskyjournal.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/immune-system-play.pdf You want to support our work ? Buy us a coffee ! ==> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lonelypipette To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

This month we enjoyed talking to Arjun Raj about his interdisciplinary approaches to studying biological systems He mentioned these labs, scientists and institutions University of Pennsylvania https://www.upenn.edu/ UC Berkeley https://www.berkeley.edu/ Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University https://cims.nyu.edu/dynamic/ Massachusetts Institute of Technology https://www.mit.edu/ Fred Kramer https://phri.njms.rutgers.edu/faculty-and-research/faculty/fred-russell-kramer/ Sunjay Tyagi https://phri.njms.rutgers.edu/faculty-and-research/faculty/sanjay-tyagi/ To find out more about Arjun visit these links Raj Lab https://rajlab.seas.upenn.edu/ on Twitter/X https://x.com/arjunrajla Random musings Blog https://rajlaboratory.blogspot.com/ Tools for Science resource https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jBGk-u5auVCvI5EMaQnptMWbxHHl3ncIhKgIgEzjylw/edit You want to support our work ? Buy us a coffee ! ==> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lonelypipette To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

This month Alicia Rojas tells us about her journey from Costa Rica to Israel and back, in search of pathogens and parasites She mentioned these labs, scientists and institutions University of Costa Rica : https://www.ucr.ac.cr/ Hebrew University of Jerusalem : https://en.huji.ac.il/ Neta Regev-Rudzki laboratory : https://www.weizmann.ac.il/Biomolecular_Sciences/regev/ Weizmann Institute of Science: https://www.weizmann.ac.il/pages/ Research Center for Tropical Diseases. : http://www.ciet.ucr.ac.cr/en/about-ciet To find out more about Alicia visit these links Alicia’s lab : https://www.thetropicalwormlab.com/ Alicia’s LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/alicia-rojas-30215b1aa/ On Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/thetropicalwormlab_ucr/ On Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/thetropicalwormlabUCR/ You want to support our work ? Buy us a coffee ! ==> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lonelypipette To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

This month Hans Clevers talks to us about his productive career and his pioneering work on organoid technologies. Hans admits that he initially found biology frustrating and disappointing He mentioned these labs, institutions and companies Roche Pharma R&D (pRED): https://www.roche.com/innovation/structure/pred Utrecht University : https://www.uu.nl/en Dana Farber Cancer Institute : https://www.dana-farber.org/ Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences : https://www.knaw.nl/en Cox Terhorst : https://immunologyphd.hms.harvard.edu/people/cox-terhorst To find out more about Hans visit these links X-Twitter https://x.com/hansclevers?lang=en Hubrecht Institute https://www.hubrecht.eu https://www.hubrecht.eu/research-groups/clevers-group/ Wikipedia page https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Clevers Utrecht University https://www.uu.nl/staff/JCClevers Google Scholar https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=jTAHhTQAAAAJ&hl=en You want to support our work ? Buy us a coffee ! ==> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lonelypipette To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

Today we chat with postdoc Nour El Houda Mimouni about her passionate commitment to improving womens’ health. She mentioned these labs, scientists, institutions and companies https://www.cite-sciences.fr/fr/accueilhttps://zuckermaninstitute.columbia.edu/https://www.columbia.edu/https://www.biancajonesmarlin.com/https://www.forwomeninscience.com/https://www.healthparliament.eu/https://www.femmesdesante.fr/https://bfa.u-paris.fr/equipe-3/team-members/?lang=enhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simone_Veilhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacinda_ArdernTo find out more about Nour visit these links X-Twitter https://twitter.com/NourMimouni5 Nour’s LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/nour-el-houda-mimouni-2b9933a4/ Nour in the lab https://www.biancajonesmarlin.com/nour-mimouni You want to support our work ? Buy us a coffee ! ==> https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lonelypipette To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

In this episode, we kick off our Season 3 guests with David Fajgenbaum who shares his extraordinary journey to cure himself from Castleman disease. He mentioned these labs, scientists, institutions and companies https://www.med.upenn.edu/https://www.georgetown.edu/https://cdcn.org/https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/castlemans-disease/https://www.ox.ac.uk/ To find out more about David and Every Cure visit these links X-Twitter : @DavidFajgenbaum Every Cure https://twitter.com/EveryCure David’s LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidfajgenbaum/ Every Cure’s LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/every-cure/ David’s Book “Chasing My Cure: A Doctor's Race to Turn Hope Into Action” : https://chasingmycure.com/ To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

In this episode Renaud and Jonathan share their excitement about the launch of Season 3 of The Lonely Pipette podcast. BUT this time, they are not the ones asking the questions. 💌 Subscribe and receive the next season in you mailbox To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

Dear Lonely Pipetters, Season 2 has been an amazing journey, BUT Season 3 will be awesome. We are so proud to be still here, with you supporting us. Thank you! In this final episode, we take the chance to give you untold stories about Season 2 making-of, personal stories and what you can do to help us build Season 3. Don’t miss it out ! Subscribe to be updated when Season 3 starts : https://bit.ly/NLTLP To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

This week, we talk to Maria Leptin about her path to the head of the European Research Council She mentioned these institutions and researchers https://www.uni-bonn.de/en/university/universityhttps://www.uni-heidelberg.de/enhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basel_Institute_for_Immunologyhttps://www2.mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk/https://www.mpg.de/151769/biology-tuebingenhttps://www.embo.org/https://erc.europa.eu/homepagehttps://www.tbvi.eu/team/prof-georg-friedrich-fritz-melchers/ To find out more about Maria visit her websites or follow her on Twitter https://erc.europa.eu/erc_member/maria-leptinhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Leptinhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-7097-348Xhttps://twitter.com/mleptinTo find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

This week, we meet our first philosopher guest - Thomas Pradeu tells us what scientist can learn from philosophers He mentioned these researchers/philosophers https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Gayonhttps://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgardo_D._Carosellahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elliott_Soberhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernst_Mayrhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Dawkinshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Pagethttps://www.cnrs.fr/fr/personne/lucie-laplanehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Baconhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_LewontinTo find out more about Thomas visit his websites or follow him on Twitter https://www.u-bordeaux.fr/universite/espace-presse/repertoire-dexperts/thomas-pradeuhttps://immunoconcept.cnrs.fr/conceptual-biology-medicine/To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

This week, Elphege Nora shares personal thoughts on his journey from Paris to California He mentioned these institutions, researchers and resources https://institut-curie.org/https://gladstone.org/https://thelonelypipette.buzzsprout.com/1356877/11387623-tlp-12-science-without-frontiers-edith-heardhttps://thelonelypipette.buzzsprout.com/1356877/5520439-tlp-1-navigating-the-path-to-team-leader-maxim-greenberghttps://twitter.com/benoitbruneauhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosh%C3%A9_Yanivhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fran%C3%A7ois_Jacobhttps://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_NoraTo find out more about Elphege visit his websites or follow him on Twitter https://noralab.ucsf.edu/index.php/the-team/https://twitter.com/elphegenoralab?lang=enTo find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

This week, Christophe Lavelle shares his double passion for science and for cooking He mentioned these institutions, researchers and resources https://www.mnhn.fr/enhttps://www.routledge.com/Handbook-of-Molecular-Gastronomy-Scientific-Foundations-Educational-Practices/Burke-Kelly-Lavelle-Kientza/p/book/9781466594784https://www.museedelhomme.fr/fr/je-mange-donc-je-suisTo find out more about Christophe visit his websites or follow him on Twitter https://food20.fr/chercheur/christophe-lavelle/https://biophysique.mnhn.fr/fr/annuaire/christophe-lavelle-9027https://twitter.com/ To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/

This week, Ana-Maria Lennon-Dumenil tells us about her passion for science interfacing with physics and her journey from Santiago to Paris She mentioned these institutions, researchers and resources https://www.pasteur.fr/enhttps://www.harvard.edu/https://institut-curie.org/https://erc.europa.eu/homepagehttps://www.childrenshospital.org/research/labs/ploegh-lab-research/hidde-ploeghhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/catherine-alcaide-5b165856/https://curie.fr/personne/matthieu-pielhttps://research.pasteur.fr/fr/member/guillaume-dumenil/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zesterhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girl,_Woman,_OtherTo find out more about Ana-Maria visit her websites or follow her on Twitter : https://institut-curie.org/personne/ana-maria-lennonhttps://rupress.org/jcb/article/215/1/2/38770/Ana-Maria-Lennon-Dumenil-A-dynamic-careerhttps://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ana-Maria_Lennon-Dum%C3%A9nil To find out more about Renaud and Jonathan : https://twitter.com/LePourprehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/renaudpourpre/https://twitter.com/Epigenetiquehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanweitzman/%20 More about the soundtrack : Music by Amaria - Lovely Swindler https://soundcloud.com/amariamusique/