Gregory Jerkiewicz Professor, Department of Chemistry Synopsis: Dr. Gregory Jerkiewicz’s research is focused on surface and materials electrochemistry as well as molecular-level electrocatalysis. He directs an international research project (Ni Electro Can) that is developing nickel-based materials for applications in fuel cells and other technologies. In this episode, Dr. Jerkiewicz explains the science behind electrochemistry, which creates chemical reactions that generate electrons and...

Leela Viswanathan Associate Professor, Department of Geography and Planning Synopsis: Dr. Leela Viswanathan is studying the intersection of planning, equity and diversity, and her team is trying to educate municipalities about how cities are located on Indigenous traditional and treaty territories. She has an ongoing SSHRC-funded project that aims to improve Indigenous-Municipal relations in the context of land use planning in Southern Ontario. In this episode, Dr. Viswanathan discusses the...

  John Smol Canada Research Chair in Environmental Change and Professor, Department of Biology Synopsis: Dr. John Smol is world-renowned paleolimnologist (someone who studies long-term environmental change using lake sediments), and he has received over 60 awards for his research, outreach and teaching. He has conducted studies around the world on the impacts of humans on the environment, with a particular focus on the Arctic. In this episode, Dr. Smol describes how the study of...

Patricia Smithen Assistant Professor, Paintings Conservation, Department of Art History and Art Conservation Synopsis: Patricia Smithen is an art conservator and Queen’s alumna who teaches in the Master of Art Conservation program at Queen’s. Prior to pursuing doctoral studies, she worked as a paintings conservator at the Canadian Conservation Institute, as a private practitioner in Montreal and at the Detroit Institute of Arts, and as the Conservator of Modern and Contemporary Paintings at...

Adrian Baranchuk Professor, Department of Medicine Synopsis: Dr. Adrian Baranchuk studies electrocardiography, sleep apnea and cardiovascular disease, and complex ablation. In this episode, Dr. Baranchuk discusses his motivation for entering the field of cardiology, including his intense curiosity to understand the mathematical modelling of cardiac arrhythmias. With the help of two students, Sohaib Hasseb and Bryce Alexander, he assembled an exciting study about the links between alcohol...

Lynda Colgan Professor of Elementary Mathematics, Faculty of Education Synopsis: Dr. Lynda Colgan’s lifelong mission is to make science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, fun. She has published award-winning books about mathematics education, created toolkits for educators and students, inspired several television series for children, and directed the wildly successful Science Rendezvous Kingston for over seven years. Dr. Colgan discusses the anxieties of North American...

John McGarry Canada Research Chair in Nationalism and Democracy and Professor, Department of Political Studies Synopsis: Born in Belfast and educated at Trinity College Dublin, Dr. John McGarry is a highly decorated political scientist specializing in conflict resolution who received extensive international praise for his role in the Good Friday Agreement. He has acted as Senior Advisor on Governance to the United Nations-led negotiations in Cyprus, and he has advised on the conflict in...

Laura Murray Professor, Department of English Language and Literature Synopsis: Dr. Laura Murray has published and taught extensively in Indigenous studies, US literature, copyright law, and cultural policy, and has been involved with community arts and political activism. She is also the Director of the Swamp Ward and Inner Harbour History Project, which is collecting stories through oral history and archival research to better understand the history of Kingston. In this episode, she...