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Steve and Caleb are back from Summer Break! The guys catch up on how they have been spending their summer. Steve has been busy working on his Jeep all summer. Steve talks about how much he loves working on cars as a hobby. The guys talk about how fun it would be to have an old project car to work on. They also fill us in on how they have been spending their time in the lab. Caleb has been working on figuring out third gen sequencing, which neither Steve nor anyone else has heard of. Caleb warns about the troubles of being on the cutting edge of science. Steve talks about how he has been working on doing qPCR for his project. The guys give a quick lesson on RNA and cDNA and why you would want to perform qPCR and they talk about some of the troubles of working with RNA. They also explain why funding random science is so important and how you never know what a project will lead to. Caleb explains the story of how Taq polymerase was discovered. Finally, it is unfortunate that the guys have to end on talking about the problem of gun violence. There was recently a shooting in the Oregon District in Dayton, Ohio, both Steve and Caleb's home town. The guys discuss how they feel about it and what a complicated problem it is. They also give a couple of suggestions of what small things you could do to possibly indirectly help with this issue.WebsiteInstagramFacebook

Steve and Caleb are back with another episode of The Beaker Report. Steve and Caleb spend some time catching up on what has been going on in their labs. Steve has been 3D printing some parts for his projects in the lab and he talks about some new technologies in the world of 3D printing. The guys also talk about how great summer is when you work at a university. One of the benefits of being a scientist is how flexible your schedule can be in the summer. Steve talks about how he has been riding his bike to the lab this summer and Caleb talks about his skateboard goals. This gets the guys on a discussion of why it is so captivating to watch people doing extreme stunts. Check out this and much more on this weeks episode of The Beaker Report! Website Instagram Facebook

This week on The Beaker Report, Steve and Caleb talk to Chris Dupont. Chris is a researcher at Wright State University and was recently accepted into the MD/PhD program at the Boonshoft School of Medicine. He works in Dr. Rich's muscle physiology lab, a lab that Steve's lab collaborates with quite frequently. Chris grew up in Montreal, Canada where he played soccer from a young age. He traveled the world playing soccer and eventually earned a scholarship to play at Wright State University. On the podcast, Chris tells the guys all about what it was like to travel playing soccer and then he discusses how he decided to get into science. In his undergrad, Chris decided to get a degree in physics. He said he didn't even know he was going to college until just before he started. He also touched his process of choosing a major and then talked about how he decided he wanted to start doing research and how he found out about Dr. Rich and got into his lab. Steve and Chris find out that they worked the same job in college, only Steve finds out his experience was much worse. Chris also shares that, like Steve and Caleb, he also enjoys podcasts. He shares his top two, Spittin Chiclets and Against the Rules with Michael Lewis. Then, the guys get into a discussion of some of the problems with required courses in college. They suggest some courses that the university should offer. At the end they talk about why they love doing science as a job and how different working in a lab is compared to taking a lab for a course. This weeks episode was a blast. Thanks again to Chris Dupont for coming on and sharing his story on The Beaker Report. Website Instagram YouTube

This week on The Beaker Report, Steve is joined by Dr. Sandy Specht. Dr. Specht is a Professor of Biology at Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio. Steve and Caleb both took Dr. Specht's Biology I course in their undergrad. Steve and Dr. Specht catch up and she explains how she got into biology in the first place. They share stories of how each other first became interested in medicine. Steve also questions Dr. Specht about some of the difficulties of teaching. They cover how important it is to get good scientific information out to the public and how there is a general misunderstanding of the scientific process amongst the public. Check out this a more on this weeks episode of The Beaker Report. Website Facebook Instagram

Steve and Caleb are back with another episode of The Beaker Report podcast. It's been a couple of weeks since the guys caught up with each other. Caleb is now officially a PhD candidate. He passed his candidacy exam last week. So he outlines the process and timeline of preparing for a candidacy exam and what is involved. The guys also get caught up on what has been going on in the lab. Steve has gotten back into doing electrophysiology and covers the struggles involved with getting the experiment up and running. Then the guys get super nerdy and start talking about data analysis and some of there favorite plots. Check out this and much more in this science packed episode! Website Facebook Instagram

Tune in this week for another fun episode of The Beaker Report podcast with Steve Burke and Caleb Schuler. After Caleb recapped his recent trip to Madison, Wisconsin the guys get into a discussion on the Drake equation. The Drake equation attempts to estimate the number of civilizations capable of communication that exist in the Milkyway Galaxy. They had a funny realization about the equation. Also, Steve gives a status update about his research. Website Facebook Instagram

This week on The Beaker Report Caleb is in Ohio! Steve and Caleb got together to do a podcast Caleb brought an old buddy of his from the Navy along. Jordan Falardeau is this weeks guest and it was a blast. After having met up for lunch and some beers the guys, being slightly tipsy, recorded this epic podcast where they discussed the future of automation and how humans will adapt to a future where robots do every. This led them down many paths such as, what is the mean of life? What is your purpose in life if there is no struggle? Can humans compete with robots if we could download information to our brains? For the answers to these questions be sure to take a listen. Website Facebook Instagram Show Music - Change is Gonna Come by Greta Van Fleet

This week on The Beaker Report, Caleb is out of town so Steve brought back beloved guest Ryan Rakoczy! Ryan and Steve discussed many topics on this episode including research and laboratory techniques. The guys got into some deep discussion about time and the possibilities and ramifications of curing death and disease. They also discussed what happens after death and what is the purpose of life. Mostly, Steve kept coming back to the idea that we can not be sure of anything absolutely. This is a fun episode and a great discussion. Check it out. Thanks again to Ryan for being a guest on the podcast he will definitely be back again. Website Instagram Facebook Episode Music - Mister Magic by Grover Washington Jr.

Steve and Caleb are backthis week with another episode of The Beaker Report. This show starts out silly with some reminiscing about Saturday morning cartoons and which X-Men were the guys favorites. The guys then get into some automobile history and talk about electric cars. Steve talks about how he would like to convert a car to electric. Steve talks about how conversions could be an affordable way to get off of the need to use fuel. Next, the guys get into the concerns of job automation and the argument mentioned for the idea of a universal basic income. The guys discuss some of the ideas of Andrew Yang who is running for president in 2020 on this idea. Finally, the guys end with the weekly dose of science. The discuss some ecology and Steve gives some updates on his recent work.

Episode #34 with Steve Burke and Caleb Schuler The science show for the average Joe! Website Facebook Instagram

This week Caleb and Steve start the show with a discussion of time and why it is not a base ten system like the metric system. They touch on whether or not we need daylight savings time or not. They also talk about their love for Wikipedia and how great it is to have a resource like that. Caleb touches on how being in the military has benefited him as a graduate student and shares some fantastic sayings he picked up as well. One of them being, "embrace the suck". The guys discuss how life never gets easy and you have to embrace the struggles you have. They also have a brief discussion of simulation theory. Finally, Steve talks about how strange the perception of time is in that it can change in different circumstances. They talk about how fascinating it is that there are chemicals that can alter your perception of time (i.e. psychedelics). They talk about how psychedelic trips must be similar to what happens when you are dreaming. Steve describes how plants evolve proteins that cause interesting things to happen in humans and what is the difference between a drug and a toxin. Listen to this and much more this week on The Beaker Report! Website Instagram Facebook

Feeling slightly buzzed from a lab meeting at the Pub, Steve starts this episode by explaining the strike that is going on at Wright State University. Steve and Caleb discuss how the strike is affecting the students at the university and how it impacts Steve's research. Then they get into teaching and what is the best way to organize labs so that students get the most out of them. Steve proposes some different ideas for how labs could be taught so that students are actually interested in the work they do in the lab. Steve is teaching an exercise physiology lab this semester and as a result, he has been thinking about obesity in America. The guys go over the horrifying statistics of obesity in the country and some of the causes of it. Caleb tells us about his dislike of standing in lines. Finally, Steve plays a song that his band has been learning and this leads to a discussion of rock radio stations and how the music they play has changed over time. Show Music: Bad Company - Burnin Sky

This week Zach Jeckering, the founder of Hooligans Tribe, joins Steve and Caleb on the podcast. This episode was recorded on a late Saturday night and the guys had been drinking. The show went all over the place ranging from flat Earth to Moon landings. However, amazingly they ended up discussing quite a bit of science. Steve and Caleb taught Zach about Tardigrades. Also, Steve and Caleb got caught up on each other's research. If you are looking for a fun episode this one is for you. Thanks again to Zach Jeckering for being The Beaker Report's first reoccurring guest as well as the first sponsor. The Hooligans Tribe is a local streetwear brand. Zach makes some really sick bags and clothes. Go get your swag at www.hooliganstribe.com. Show Music: The Black Keys - Ain't Nothing Like You Website Facebook Instagram

This week the guys are back together. Caleb was in Seattle for a week working with collaborators at the University of Washington's applied physiology laboratory. Caleb recapped some of the work he did while he was away. He also talked about how he is staying up late because of the jet lag. Steve admits that he stayed up late recently watching video game streaming on YouTube, which leads to a discussion of how different video games are now from when the guys were young due to the addition of the internet. Eventually, the guys get begin talking about the weather due to all the snowfall that Ohio got this week. Like scientists tend to do the conversation divulged into a discussion on global warming. Caleb references a scientist that does some research in Antarctica named Peter Doran. One of his papers on climate change was taken by many right-wing climate deniers as evidence that climate change is not real even though they didn't fully understand the details of the paper. Check out this link for a video on him. Finally, the guys finish up with some updates on what's been happening in the lab and Steve talks about what happened with his big Eureka moment. They also talk about what they have planned for the semester now that school is back in session. Check out the show for much more! Website Facebook Instagram

The Beaker Report is back from the holidays with another great episode. With Caleb out of town, Steve had to bring on a guest. This week Ryan Rakoczy joins Steve to talk about his research and what he does as a Ph.D. student at Wright State University. Ryan works in a respiratory physiology lab where he studies the control of breathing. He studies small structures in the neck called carotid bodies. These structures sense changes in blood oxygen, pressure, and carbon dioxide which aids in the control of breathing. This episode is filled with random science tidbits and helpful information on how to get ahead of the game for those interested in working in a science related field one day. But don't worry, Steve and Ryan had plenty to drink during the course of this episode so it takes some pretty interesting and funny turns along the way. Take a listen! Website Facebook Instagram Show music: The Black Crowes - Kickin' My Heart Around

On this episode Steve and Caleb start by explaining how nice it is to be on winter break. They then jump straight into talking about research. This time they discuss how easy it is to get sucked into a research rabbit hole. They also touch on how to sift through the mountains of papers out there. They talk about how every job has aspects you don't like and how to stay focused on the parts you do like. Eventually they get into a deep discussion on consciousness and memories. This is a fun podcast and eventually the guys wish everyone a great holiday. They end the show with some advice on some things to know before starting college. Take a listen. Website Facebook Instagram

The semester is officially over and Steve and Caleb are pumped! Steve recaps his incredible night at the lab and describes how it feels to have a eureka moment in the lab. He talks about his struggles with some of his new equipment and overcoming some failures to get to the point of collecting great data. Steve explains what it is to get "scooped" in science. Then the guys discuss some of Steve's findings and how it might lead to some clinical research with actual patients and hopefully a future treatment for the symptoms of the disease. Next, the guys shift back to discuss the concept of the Gaia hypothesis. Steve spent some time learning about the concept since the previous episode of the podcast and Caleb finds out whether or not Steve is now a believer. This leads to a fantastic discussion about some of the challenges of shifting totally to renewable energy. Steve talks about his new appreciation for nuclear energy and some of the misconceptions people have about it. Take a listen you won't regret it. Show Music: When My Train Pulls In (Live) - Garry Clark Jr. Website Facebook Instagram

Its finals week and Caleb and Steve are finally done with their grading for the semester. The guys talk about what they have going on for the last week of the semester. Steve's plan for the spring is to study for the MCAT and he talks a little about his study plans. Caleb has a prelim coming up so he plans to study up on snow ecology. Next, they begin talking about how working in the lab helps you understand research papers easier. Steve tells Caleb about some of the papers he's been reading and critiques some of their experimental methods. Steve also explains a fascinating technique known as a skinned muscle fiber experiment. They also discuss the importance of being skeptical when reading papers. Steve talks about a paper he is reading that is full of mistakes. Steve then tells about his current struggles in the lab with his neuromuscular transmission recordings. He has been having long and frustrating days but he hopes that he can be a good example of the necessity of perseverance in science. Caleb rounds up the episode by talking about his new mathematical modeling endeavors. Then he introduced the Gaia hypothesis, which is an interesting take on how the life on Earth works in harmony to maintain the conditions necessary for life on Earth. In its early days, it was controversial but has been much more widely accepted lately. It was proposed by James Lovelock when he was working for NASA. Website Facebook Instagram

As the fall semester comes to an end Steve and Caleb update each other on some potential successful experiments in the lab and recap their Thanksgiving Break. Steve speaks of just how important it can be to take some time off from the lab. Then, the guys discuss some methods for teaching and some difficulties of teaching. Next, Caleb details what a PhD Candidacy exam is and as usual the guys take a couple left turns and end up talking about some general life strategies such as working harder than everyone else. This leads Steve to talk about a recent podcast series he listened to. The podcast tells the terrifying story of a neurosurgeon, Dr. Chirstophe Duntsch (AKA Dr. Death), who took that strategy to the extreme resulting in a nightmare. Finally, the guys update the #noslacknovemeber goals, and get back into the routine with a heavy dose of science this episode! Website Facebook Instagram

This week on the podcast the guys talk to Mykee Chanchu ( @nintupak ). Mykee works as a lab technician at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Baltimore Maryland. His lab uses zebra fish 🐟 to study neuronal identity. Mykee tells us about his path to becoming a scientist and some possibilities other than academia for those interested in science. This episode is full of science. Mykee teaches us about CRISPR and how he uses it in his lab. He also talks about a part of the brain known as the Habenula and some of the techniques his lab uses to study its function. Be sure to have your Google ready for this one. Website Facebook Instagram