In this episode, I sit down with Leah Elson, a brilliant scientist and author, whose passion for science communication and advocacy for women in STEM resonates deeply. Leah discusses her unique path balancing athletics with scientific pursuits, and the critical role of effective communication in bridging the gap between the scientific community and the public. Together, we explore how early exposure to science and public speaking can empower individuals, and reflect on the personal and societal impact of fostering curiosity and critical thinking in young minds.
We also address the pressing need to rebuild trust in science and promote diversity within scientific communities. Leah and I share insights on how to make science more accessible and engaging, especially for marginalized groups, and discuss the broader implications of inclusivity on scientific progress. This episode is a poignant reminder that true fulfillment lies beyond wealth and fame, in the essence of our inner values and the legacy of our contributions to society.
Warmly,
Nico Barraza
@FeedTheSoulNB
www.nicobarraza.com
In this episode, I sit down with Leah Elson, a brilliant scientist and author, whose passion for science communication and advocacy for women in STEM resonates deeply. Leah discusses her unique path balancing athletics with scientific pursuits, and the critical role of effective communication in bridging the gap between the scientific community and the public. Together, we explore how early exposure to science and public speaking can empower individuals, and reflect on the personal and societal impact of fostering curiosity and critical thinking in young minds.
We also address the pressing need to rebuild trust in science and promote diversity within scientific communities. Leah and I share insights on how to make science more accessible and engaging, especially for marginalized groups, and discuss the broader implications of inclusivity on scientific progress. This episode is a poignant reminder that true fulfillment lies beyond wealth and fame, in the essence of our inner values and the legacy of our contributions to society.
Warmly,
Nico Barraza
@FeedTheSoulNB
www.nicobarraza.com
Keep pushing, keep pushing, keep pushing. And I need you to be a minister for a moment and find somebody sitting in your general vicinity. Look them dead in the eyes if they owe you $20, and tell them neighbor, whatever you do, keep pushing, keep pushing, keep pushing, keep pushing, keep pushing. It's hard to keep pushing in the world that we're living in right now. How is one supposed to find serenity and sanity and strength in the world we live?
Speaker 2:in right now. Hey everybody, welcome back to the show. So I am actually flying out to Denver this afternoon to see another surgeon. I'll be like surgeon number 20, 25 in this crazy story that is my sort of episodes with multiple shoulder surgeries since 2020. And I gotta be honest, I'm definitely running out of steam, I'm getting exhausted, but I'm still hopeful that things can be improved, even with the mistakes that were made in my past surgeries. And I'm seeing a very well-known surgeon in Vail Colorado. So I fly into Denver this afternoon and then rent a hotel and a car, driving out to Vail to see him early tomorrow morning.
Speaker 2:I'm recording this on, well, I guess on Monday, july 1st, when this episode is launching. So I'm recording this intro. So I'm going to see this guy and then I'm going to see three more surgeons in Arizona to get different opinions and then kind of weigh all the difference and figure out a plan forward from there. And then, of course, stem cells are still an option too, but sort of waiting to see if people think I need extra surgery here. The issue is I'm having just a lot of pain, dysfunction in my bicep and in my shoulder from the decisions that were made from the past two surgeons, unfortunately, and I recorded an episode on this a couple episodes ago. So if you want to be updated on kind of where I am with my arm and with the chronic pain and with uh you know just all that stuff, health wise.
Speaker 2:You can listen to that episode. It was a. It was a solo episode with me just kind of talking about it, but it's been difficult, you know. I think um trying to come to terms with the chronic pain that I'm in the fact that it might never get better is a. It's a very scary situation, you know, not knowing if you're ever going to feel normal again, specifically when you've spent so much money and you trust these orthopedic surgeons and you think they're going to make your life better or get you back to function.
Speaker 2:You know, and, of course, with my background being a very high level athlete and using my body to do so many things like climbing, running, skiing, biking, everything and you you take for granted those things when you, when you do them so often and it's been four years since I've really been able to enjoy, you know, the, the sort of um like the epitome of what my body can do, like the highest level. You know, I haven't really been able to. When you're such a, when you're at such a high level of athletics and sport, you're just, you're so connected with your body, right, I've always been utilizing my body throughout my life to, to relate, you know, to compete, to find joy, to find solace in, like, just the practice of getting better at something in the physical sense and also in the mental and emotional sense, because those things all play together and it's been quite difficult for me to, you know, the past four years. It's just really affected a lot of things and I'm hoping that there's a path to get better. And honestly, what I'm asking now is just to get to where I was pre-surgery, which is crazy to think about, because when I decided to get the first surgery after my crash I was still pretty good, honestly, had a lot of functionality, still nothing was really wrong with my arm, just a little bit of instability in my AC joint from the AC joint separation. And after that first surgery I've been in severe chronic pain, you know, my coracoid fractured because of that first surgery. The second surgeon in San Diego, without my consent, when I was under anesthesia, decided to cut that non-union fracture at the tip and therefore he had to reattach the short head of my bicep and the coracobrachialis. And now I have a ton of bicep issues and chronic pain there in the bicep and less power and less strength in my bicep, which was previously not injured at all.
Speaker 2:There's a lot of things that happened that got me to this point and I've consistently sort of asked, just like the universe, or outwardly like, why is this happening to me? You know, why aren't things getting better? And you know there's a lot of universalists or spiritual people that like, well, you have to surrender or just believe the universe has a plan, and I don't really believe that. Honestly. I think that sometimes shitty things happen in life. You know, innocent people die all the time, people get persecuted, and I think it's a very elitist and entitled perspective to just say, well, the universe has a plan, their soul was only meant to be here for X amount of years. I think that's honestly, it's just very hypocritical. It's like it's easy to say that from the ivory tower of being secure or being alive still even right, and so I don't try to sugarcoat my reality to myself. You know, sometimes shitty things happen, sometimes things don't work out the way you want them to, but you still have to find a way to live and to prosper and to thrive.
Speaker 2:And it's quite hard when you're in chronic pain and dysfunction because you know you can't meditate or do enough yoga or do enough ice baths to get yourself out of this. It's not just a central nervous system thing, even though that's how you process pain. It's not just a central nervous system thing, even though that's how you process pain. It's the physical manifestation of you know, I'm in pain all the time, so I never have a rest, I never get to relax, and you can't really relate to that until you experience something like this. You know anyone that's out there that actually deals with chronic pain. You know what I mean, right, and people just don't know. They're like oh, just snap out of it. Or you know that, or they can't. Someone just fix it.
Speaker 2:Sometimes people have such bad injuries that they can't, or they have sort of a systemic nervous system thing that they can't get away from it, right, like fibromyalgia, for instance, and I never really was able to relate to how that changes your brain and changes your personality over time and how you relate and function in your day-to-day life in the world. And now I have so much more empathy and compassion for those experiences because of what I'm living in myself, and arguably you could see that as a gift, right, because I can relate in that level, although I would wish this on nobody. It's been man. It's been really hard, especially for the level of athlete I am, and just the fact that I just love pushing myself and being out there, like climbing. I miss climbing so much and I miss being on the mountain so much and pushing myself and not worrying about how I grip my backpack or where my backpack's sitting on my shoulder or how using a trekking pole is hurting my arm in a certain way, and these little things we take for granted even opening a door or changing the gear in my car or something like that how that affects me. It's been very interesting to just observe myself and how that's manifested. So I guess please send me some well wishes. If you're into prayer, please send me some prayers and keep me in your thoughts.
Speaker 2:There's a lot of, admittedly, fear that goes into this experience, even though I'm trying to be compassionate to myself, because I've sat in front of so many surgeons and they just kind of shrug their shoulders and be like I've never seen a case like this.
Speaker 2:Your arm has been really jacked up by these surgeons and I'm not willing to take the risk to go in because it could make it worse and being told that it's sort of like again, I don't have an experience with cancer, but I have a lot of friends that have had it or lost their lives to it, people that I know, friends of friends, and I feel like it's somewhat like that where someone is looking at you and being like, yeah, there's no solution. I'm sorry. This is like a terminal thing, and the difference with this is like it doesn't end really Right. There's not an end in sight, it's just I could be suffering like this for the rest of my life, which is incredibly daunting to think about, you know. But I'm staying hopeful, I'm going to keep fighting as much as I can and you know.
Speaker 2:I want to believe that there is a solution out there, or, if not a complete solution, that it can at least be better in a lot of ways. Again, I'm really grateful to be able to play pickleball, even though it is painful. It does hurt I hurt during or hurt after. Hurt, I hurt during or hurt after but I can't not do anything, you know, and it's I'm grateful that I'm able to do it in any capacity that I can, even though I really wish I had my old arm back. Admittedly, because I'm so competitive, I would love to play at such a higher level with having the full capacity of my athleticism. My body, but that's, you know, might not. Lettuces in my body, but that's a, you know, might not, um, but I never get that opportunity and it's okay. Oh, this might be a. This is a kind of a long intro, so sorry, I uh, I figured I'd just let everyone know where I'm at with this and what's going on, but so that's where I'll be going and I'm I'm sure to keep everyone updated. Um, as always, if you're interested in working with me, I'm a counselor. I work with people and individuals, couples, in one-on-one settings, primarily over Zoom. So just head over to wwwnicoberazacom. Please consider leaving the show.
Speaker 2:A five-star written review on Apple and Spotify. And also I'm working on a little pickleball business, done with the business plan, done with the pro forma and looking for investors into a pretty lucrative opportunity, honestly, in a spot that doesn't have a facility yet and would love to open one, and I have a very unique take on Pickleball Club and the design. So if you're interested and you don't even have to be an investor, even if you have something that you Investments don't have to be your thing, but if you have, you know some idea of how crazy pickleball is blown up in that. Uh, you know it's such a community sport it's. It's such a good sport for people all ages to just get out and meet people. You don't have to be competitive. It's just a great social sport that has a very low bar of entry. Thing you can do with your kids, things you can do with your family. I think you do with your friends, meet new friends, meet new community members. I mean, it's just such an awesome sport. Guys Like, go out there and play. Um, really can't recommend it enough, uh. But if you're interested in investing in this, shoot me a DM on Instagram or send me an email via my website and reach out and, who knows, maybe I'll run you through the business plan and let you know what I'm thinking and maybe you'll be one of the people that is a founder of this. I'm going to see this thing through to fruition and I just I'm so excited about it. I'm going to keep pushing until I get it done and I just think it's an incredible opportunity. So if you're interested in being an investor or founder, let me know, just reach out.
Speaker 2:All right, I rambled for a while there with that intro, so this episode was recorded a long time ago. It was actually when I was in my bus, so you got to see that on Instagram kind of the studio I had set up in the bus, which is super cool. I since then sold it, but I had my friend Leah Elson on, who is a scientist and an author. She discusses scientific literacy, women in science and her new book. She emphasizes the importance of scientific literacy and the decline of it in the US. Leah believes that scientists have a responsibility to communicate science in a way that is understandable and relatable to the general public. She also highlights the need to rebuild trust in science and show people that science is not scary or abstract, but rather a tool to understand the world and improve their lives and the lives of others. Leah shares her own journey in science and how she balances her athletic background with her scientific pursuits. She discusses the importance of science and how it is often misunderstood and misused and contrived to manipulate as well, too, and then she emphasizes the need for science to be accessible to everyone and for scientists to engage with the public in a meaningful way.
Speaker 2:Just really appreciate Leah coming to the show. So sorry, leah, this took so long, but I really appreciate your patience and, obviously, our conversation. I really enjoyed it when we chatted. And she talks about her new book, which was she might even be working on a new book now, but this was a while ago. Her new book then was there Are no Stupid Questions in Science what a lovely title and her goal of inspiring awe and curiosity in adults. She addresses the issue of underrepresentation of women and marginalized groups in STEM fields and the need for support and inclusivity. She talks about her future plans, including writing more books and creating organizations to support marginalized groups in stem. Just again, really appreciate leah elson coming on the show. Um, you should listen to this one. It's got some great info. She's very passionate about her work and, uh, obviously an incredibly intelligent human being, and we have a great conversation around a topic that's very dear to my heart.
Speaker 2:As many of you guys don't know, I was really just into science from 17 through 22. I worked in research labs. My undergrad is in environmental science and biochemistry and worked in labs my whole life. But the young life and I really wanted to get my master's and PhD and contribute to research and I have a research background and was able to work in that world and work on peer-reviewed articles and work in various labs that utilize my talents as a climatologist or environmental scientist and learned a lot honestly, just about how to see the world and asking big questions and how to quantify data and quantify those questions Really.
Speaker 2:If you think about science, it's really asking a question and then deriving or devising a method to test that question against other biases to see if, like, we can prove with all of our current knowledge because, again, facts can change and science can evolve and change that this is the you know thing that happens more often than not or it doesn't happen at all. Right thing that happens more often than not or it doesn't happen at all, and science is really a sort of level of analytics that tells you like you have a 90% chance of this happening or 100% chance of this happening or 30% chance of this happening, and it's really just a way to understand our world, whether in a physical space or a social space, and again you got to separate the two. There's physical sciences and there's social sciences, like psychology and sociology, and physical sciences like biology, chemistry, physics, but then there's also some intertwining of those things and I think it's such a beautiful part of just being a nerd in general is thinking about these things and just how incredible life is, right. I mean, we breathe out, you know, carbon dioxide and then the trees take it in and make oxygen for us, and there's this incredible cycle that exists within life and within animals and within the planet. And I think when we understand that more, we start to gain a deeper appreciation and we start to understand that we have much more responsibility than I think all of us realize to be caretakers, since we're sentient beings, since we're conscious, and not just consumers, not just users, right, but also givers, and I think that's also an underlying lesson to how we relate, to how we should show up in relationships too. Right, be inquisitive, think, feel, choose, as Dr Caroline Leaf would say.
Speaker 2:So without further ado, it's my conversation with Leah Elson from a long time ago, but here it is. Thank you so much, leah. I hope you all enjoy. So, lee Ellison, thank you so much for joining me on Star of the Eagle, feed the Soul. I know it's been a while trying to get you on. You've been so incredible with scheduling and I know I've been all over the place while moving into a moving vehicle as my home and having a lot of other life stuff going on with the health stuff. So thank you for being patient and I'm excited to chat with you about your life's work and about science and about women in science today and scientific literacy and your new book that just came out. So thank you.
Speaker 3:Well, Nico, thank you so much for having me. It's a pleasure to be here.
Speaker 2:Absolutely no. I'm excited. I had been looking for someone on the interwebs to have on to talk about science and scientific literacy and then, when your profile popped up on my Instagram I can't remember this much months ago now I was like this is the person you got to get her on, so let's just jump right into it. Can you start us off with a little bit of background on on how you got to where you are scientifically and you know? Obviously you know women in the field are a minority, right and like, what inspired you to get into this level of science? What do you do specifically like? What do you research now? How do you do specifically Like what do you research now? How do you like what you know? What capacity do you work in? And and kind of start us off a little bit of background of of like, how did Leah become? You know this scientific icon, if you will.
Speaker 3:No, no, no. Small feat of a question, start now.
Speaker 2:Start off swinging. That's what we do on this show, Leah.
Speaker 3:I love it. So, uh, you I was. I was always sort of the quintessential science geek. I think I had an aptitude in science very early. I was the curious kid and one of the anecdotes that always comes up is that I was so heavy into it that when kids were starting to like get their first boyfriends and have their first kiss, I was raising brine shrimp to study their morphology through development. Like that. That was my jam. So science had always been a passion.
Speaker 3:And when I got to college, as we all do, you kind of scramble to find your, your place in the world Right, and I was an athlete and I'm a ham in front of the camera and so I kind of just slid into sports casting and it was an easy thing and I wasn't sure where I was going with my life in general. And during that time my dad got cancer and it was very aggressive and he was undergoing all of these radical procedures kind of back to back to back. And I was on the sidelines one night and we were going live and I've got the production team in my head and I've got my little mic and I'm standing there on the field and they're counting me down three, two one. And when we go live, there's this moment where my eyes kind of glaze over and I remember thinking in my head like what the hell am I doing with my life right now? You know, after having all these terrible things going on at home medically, I was like I could be using my gifts for something so much more impactful. So I quit the very next week.
Speaker 3:This was like when I was 21 and I did some soul searching, sought the counsel of you know friends that know me probably better than I know myself in many instances and sort of redirected my focuses back into the sciences. And since that time I mean it's been, you know, a lot of, a lot of academia and I've now I'm about to enter my 15th year as a researcher and specifically I focus in upstream medical research and where I am currently is in peripheral nerve repair and regeneration and I'm a clinical development scientist, which means I am sort of a think tank leader. So I sort of scour the globe for patients that historically have had really poor outcomes with nerve repair which I think speaks to you a little bit with your current shoulder things as well and so I scour the globe for people that are sort of suffering post-surgically and identify niches of patients that we can potentially help with better surgical algorithms or better identification of symptoms, et cetera. And that's where we are. This brings you to present day.
Speaker 2:Dude, that was a perfect, concise description of where you come from, where you've been. It's interesting. I wouldn't expect anything less from someone who's scientifically minded very concise, straight to the point, all the details, all the necessary details. So you started off as a nerd, as did I 100%. But you also have this athletic background which I feel like is really unique about you, because a lot of times when I was growing up I was into card games, I was into chess, I was into science. I was really into all this stuff. But I was also a very good athlete, very athletic kid, always bigger, stronger. You're taller too. Right, you come from a volleyball background.
Speaker 2:Like, how did you blend those two things together? Because it's not common. I mean, especially when we were growing up right In the 80s and 90s, it wasn't very common. Maybe it's more common now. Maybe it's cooler, right To be, like you know, do better in school, be a nerd, right being a science and also being an athlete. Now it just wasn't common.
Speaker 2:Like I remember being around fellow athletes athletes when I was in like grade school, middle school and like most of my athletic friends probably weren't the greatest or didn't really pay attention that much or really focused on sport and then most of my nerdy chess club, you know, pokemon playing friends or you know, let's just say they probably couldn't, couldn't shoot hoops. You know, and like how did you balance that as a young kid? Because that's, it can be really awkward. You know it can be really awkward to live this like kind of dichotomy of a life at a young age where you're, where you're interested in these two things that are sort of polar opposites of society. You know, athletes are kind of held on this pedestal in many ways in society and then of course scientists are, depending on what your community you're in. But most scientists or any person does research is mostly considered kind of nerdy glasses wearing. You know that. You know what I'm saying. I'm saying these archetypes, right, but how did you balance?
Speaker 3:that as a young person.
Speaker 3:You know, I think I've always been. I've been a person who has a pathologic desire to excel, is what I say. You know, it's sort of this. I had sort of a troubled home life growing up and so one I found that being involved in multiple things simultaneously was a method of escapism, but it also was sort of me proving to myself like, no, I am good and I am worthy. And you know, a student and a really great academically inclined kid was a healthy way for me to sort of channel some of that energy. I was also in student government and you know, so it's kind of like you. You know, it was like chess and student government and all these things. You know, you sort of just you take all of that because it makes you feel good and it bolsters your identity you know what I mean when you may not be getting that kind of bolstering at home, so you sort of forge it on your own Right and I'm like I'm just going to make this big undulating community of weirdos from different spheres, you know.
Speaker 2:Yeah, totally, and we kind of have an interesting in common. We both graduated from San Diego state, so we're both Aztec alumni and um, that was that's kind of neat, I would. I would say. And how did you feel like your experience there? You know, before we get into like the stem stuff women and women in stem and scientific literacy how do you feel like your experience at stake? That's what you did. Your undergrad sort of shaped the rest of your graduate pursuits because, like you've, you've done a lot more education past that too and obviously, like san diego state has its own reputation for, yeah, it's good in the sciences but it's also a party school. It's a huge school right in san die Diego, california, beautiful place to be like. How did you feel like your undergrad shaped that?
Speaker 3:So San Diego state was that was sort of the pivot point in my life and I didn't really start my heavy academic science career at San Diego state. So my undergrad is split between SDSU and Harvard, so I San Diego state was sort of the. It was the opportunity for me to like, get out of my house, get into my own space, sort of figure out what, what I loved and the things that made me passionate. Um, you know, meeting different people. There are so many professors there from departments you probably wouldn't think of, like the literature department. Uh, I don't know if you took, I mean, he was like a one-on-one course.
Speaker 3:It was a professor, william Nericho he might even be listening to this, he follows me but he taught literature and he taught like one of those big, you know how you had those like enormous 300 person lecture halls and you know he singled me out quite early on and was like you should be teaching. And so there's these little nuggets that I garnered from San Diego state, sort of like massive curriculum that they offered, that are non-scientific. That sort of shaped what I'm doing now in the sciences. So the teaching aspect I got opportunities to do that there. Um, you know, being a part of the world of sports casting there has allowed me to now present science on camera and um. So I picked up a bunch of interesting tidbits that are an aside from science but nonetheless have supplemented what I'm doing now scientifically.
Speaker 2:So I don't know this background of you. You were a sportscaster at San Diego State.
Speaker 3:I was a sportscaster while I was there, but I was sportscasting for it was local San Diego news, I want to say channel 10, um, smaller. But then also I was the pub sports publicist and did some sports casting work for the arena football team in San Diego which was around for, I want to say, three seasons. It was the shock wave and they played in Cox or, but I think it's still Cox arena at San Diego state. I don't know if they've changed sponsors.
Speaker 2:It's called via house arena now. Yes, so the state, I don't know if they've changed sponsors it's. It's called viejas arena now. Yes, so they changed sponsors. I think you might have been out of there. Yeah, it's been a bit, but that is super cool. I think that that probably I mean, as you said, it probably helped you a lot. You know, speak well on camera. I think it's funny because science actually got me, uh, got me, into being a much better public speaker.
Speaker 2:Because when I was a senior in high school, there was this class called research methods, which was an AP level class. You had to get into it and it was at my high school Tucson high magnet school shout out to that school. I love that school and I had this incredible teacher, margaret Welch, who was a scientific researcher and she wanted to teach high school and basically brought this, this super cool idea, to a a magnet. You know, uh, this super cool idea to a a magnet. You know, uh, kind of more ghetto school, but we had a ton of brilliant kids, um, where it was really like. The idea was, you know, a student would come to you with a idea of what they wanted to research and then she would help you pair with a researcher or a pi at the university of arizona or even another school in arizona to be involved in some research they're doing, but at a pretty high level, right, because you'd basically go and do research with these folks and it was super cool, it was super rad, it was a full year.
Speaker 2:I chose to get into climatology and environmental sciences and I worked with Dr Michael Crimmins, who is a very well-known climatologist that worked in the Office of Arid Lands at the University of Arizona and at a super young age, right, like I, got really into writing a research paper, was on a published paper and had to do presentations in front of all these actual you know, phd scholars, at that young of an age, without a college degree, right, uh, won a bunch of awards, the science, uh, the southern arizona regional science fair, and then went to the the arizona regional science fair, and I think I don't think I know for a fact that those experiences gave me like a level of confidence that you know I otherwise wouldn't have had, speaking in front of people intelligently that way. Right, I'd always been an athlete. I get to speak about baseball, basketball, football, no problem, right, I was always a musician, so I had that confidence of playing music and singing in front of people, no problem. But when it came to like speaking intelligibly about you know deep scientific theories and things you know, it really helped me have that confidence at a young age.
Speaker 2:And so when I got to state, it was like, oh, presentations, speaking in front of like my fellow classmates, not a problem, because I've already spoken in front of like lecture halls of actual professors and you know, I think that it's such a, it's just such a beneficial experience to have in it, whether it's sports casting or going into a class like that research methods class at a young age, to put yourself in that position of being really uncomfortable because you're super uncomfortable, you're super nervous, right, but having the right support and the right teachers behind you, I mean it honestly changed my life for the better.
Speaker 2:I feel like that you can probably speak to the newscasting, you know, it's why you're so good on Instagram. It's like, yes, you understand the science, you're, you're incredibly smart in the scientific realm, but you also have to be a good communicator, a good public persona as well too, to be able to, you know, communicate that science to the greater public, and I think that's really what you do so well, and probably, like you, know the reason why your, why your book is such a cool piece as well, too.
Speaker 3:I think it's awesome that they offer that course to you in high school because, beyond just being comfortable with lecturing etc. I think it's really important to show more of the general public the process and the methodology of research because especially now there's such a PR problem in the sciences and there's a lot of distrust for scientific methodology and I feel like people are under the impression that it's a bit more abstract than it really is. But I think showing people the rigor of what it takes to get published and, more importantly, what it takes to get people to convene on a singular conclusion is sort of as a field at large, is a tremendous feat and I think a lot of that could inspire more people. But I love that they gave you that opportunity. I think that's fantastic.
Speaker 2:No, I agree, it was really a blessing. I didn't realize how important it would be at that age. I was really appreciative of the experience. But then as I got older and you know, just getting to the job market and just you know, even starting things like this podcast, like it's helping so many facets of my life in communication, right, um. So one of the things I really want to talk about on the show for a long time is scientific literacy and the fact that in this country, among many, many countries, scientific literacy has been declining for a long time.
Speaker 2:You know, if you look at the level of our language, level of like the english language for the modern adult, it has like decreased. I remember like there was, there's this like study where, like every president from like this the 50s onward to present day, has spoken at like almost a grade lower or something like that. There's, there's some sort of graph. I'm reading that someone did like a language study on the level of english language. Right, even our presidents are speaking outwardly, facing to the public and and of course, this is just a symptom of society. It's a symptom of education, public education, of a lot of things failing economically as well too, and the importance of scientific literacy is more prevalent now more than ever, just because the problems are being exacerbated as our population grows, as we have more climate issues, we have more water issues, we have more water issues, more resource issues, things we need to actually survive, breathe, live, procreate, do the things that keep the species going right, and so a lot of folks. They just don't. They can't read science, they don't understand science right, and I hesitate to blame it on the education system, because it's not really a fault of the education system. It's really a fault of, like, the entire system and how it operates. Where it's like what's being funded, what's being prioritized, where do we place our value? Right, most of us are sort of stuck on our phones and kids are very good at navigating TikTok but might not be so good about posing a deep philosophical question and I'm generalizing because there's plenty of brilliant, brilliant people, young people as well too. But if we just look at, like again, regular, regular, you know line graph, it's been declining our scientific literacy in the US specifically. This seems to be like something you really focus on.
Speaker 2:I think it's something that like, if I can use this word, scientific influencers that actually are scientists, like yourself are sort of the pole bearers of the banner of like, hey, we need to start to communicate this on a more understandable level and make science cool and make it understandable and also encourage the younger generations to be like no, we need scientists. We need scientists that also are, you know, people that can communicate to others, that aren't just hiding in a cubicle all day. Of course we need folks that want to do both, but, like, we need scientific communicators, right? People that are going to take you know communicators, right? People that are going to take you know cornerstone science, regurgitate it and spit it back out in a more, like you know, understandable form for the majority of the public. But we also need a value change, right, we need a value shift.
Speaker 2:We need people to really understand the principles and the mechanics of the scientific process, because science we throw that word around like science is really a way of thinking, it's a way of asking questions, it's a way of inquiry, right, and that's why, like, even if you're not a scientist, if you like professional scientists, I should say if you think scientifically, you're probably a better problem solver.
Speaker 2:Right, it doesn't. I'm not saying that science can solve all your relational problems. Don't. No one go run a run off and think that you're going to be this analytical human being and be great at relationships. That's not fucking true. But I think that we have to be able to understand our own bias. That comes from a scientific mind. Right, look for these loopholes, and oftentimes I find even the most scientific thinkers they can get lost in thought. A lot right, because they're over thinkers for a way. But from your perspective, like where is scientific literacy right now in the US and where do you think it's going, and what do you think is going to be responsible for sort of increasing our scientific literacy here?
Speaker 3:Well, I think scientific literacy. It's been shown in multiple international evaluations of us versus other developed nations that we're sort of mid to lower pack rank and one of the things you know, especially now, post COVID, in this very science wary environment, I see that scientific literacy continuing to plummet because the public is now not only disinterested but also distrusting only disinterested but also distrusting, and that's a huge issue. And I always you know it's easy for scientists, I think, as anyone when someone is sort of giving backlash to something that they're passionate about or, in the case of science, something that someone dedicates their entire life to, it's sort of a knee-jerk, psychological reaction to turn your back on them. But I always challenge my colleagues if the public and the public at large in the US has a sixth grade reading level, if the public does not understand our science, it is not on them, it is on us, because we are the experts and we are the ones that have been, I would say, honored enough to lead this charge, and so it's our job to communicate it in a way, lead this charge, and so it's our job to communicate it in a way that's palatable, and it's our job to communicate it in a way that evokes the kind of passion that you know this science earns right.
Speaker 3:Science is amazing and wonderful, and so really the way to, I think, bolster that again is one. Two, which is a huge problem that I'm fighting now trying to reestablish that trust, trying to reestablish that sense of public awe, because if you backtrack to the 60s, during the space race, we had an entire nation that was gripped and rallied around it. Scientists and engineers and everyone loved science, and we have gotten away from that. And so one of the things that I think we can do is show people that science is not scary. Vaccines and conspiracy theory and all of this. Science is actually really cool and it can teach you about your own body and your place within the world, and it can teach you about you know why you do the things you do or what you're experiencing, etc. And so a lot of it is making it relatable rather than big, scary big brother, conspiracy theory science.
Speaker 2:Right, right. So, like any relationship where trust is broken, right, I think that we have to look at, like, why it was broken. And I and I know for a fact that in a lot of instances in the US there was political connotation with, with scientific inquiry, right. There was political connotation with, with scientific inquiry, right, and I think, because of one person falling on the other side of the spectrum, it's to me like, well, I don't believe that politician, so I'm therefore I'm not going to believe the science they're promoting, right, and I think it's really dangerous when we have a society like that. And I think that's what you're speaking to. It's it's our job as scientists. I'm not a professional scientist anymore, but obviously, with the degrees, I still consider myself a scientist and I think, as scientists, it really falls on the onus of the science practitioners to be able to communicate in a way like, hey, this has nothing to do with politics, right, this is science.
Speaker 2:And so of course, there are mistakes in science, absolutely Science. We take the best approximation we can, a bunch of us agree on it, and we say, okay, that's probably the right thing right now, but of course things change, things evolve over time. Things are always changing in our world. Right, we have some sort of new development, some sort of new testing mechanism and all of a sudden we found something out that we didn't know 10, 20 years ago, because we simply just couldn't test that way. Because we have better testing tools now and that's going to continue to progress, just as we grow as human beings. And, of course, we'll never understand everything in the universe. It's impossible. We're finite, limited human beings, limited beings, but we can do some amazing things.
Speaker 2:And I think that when we create this community of distrust because of political or underlying economic connotation, a lot of folks that don't that sort of don't trust scientific evidence actually have a problem with, like, they'll bring up, like this funding thing. Okay, well, these, these scientists are bought and paid for by, you know, x, y and z corporation. Right, I hear the, I hear the pup barking um and uh. And you know it's interesting, because I feel like a lot of people will just say this because they're angry at at how the country's being ran or they're angry at politicians or local elected officials or whatnot, and they don't really know what that means Like, oh, this scientists are bought and paid for, absolutely.
Speaker 2:There have been some scientific studies that have been funded by special interests, but it's a pretty small amount when you look at it, because most science is funded in completely legitimate ways, for legitimate reasons. Right. And of course, science is a business as well too. Right, there is money to be made in science, but at the core level of research, most research is to look at a problem and to see if, like X, y and Z, is causing or not causing that problem or we're looking for solutions. Right. And I think, as scientists, when we're're trying to rebuild that trust, we really have to reconnect with people and help them understand that. Look, science is here to help the entirety of our species, to help all of us advance. How it's used is a different argument, right, because how it's used is sort of a political, economic argument, but how it's done, it's not changing the scientific process is the ethos of how to look at a problem and try to find a solution, or try to understand why something is happening the way it's happening.
Speaker 3:Of course, and you know it's been weaponized for political gain, unfortunately.
Speaker 3:And really, when you get to the crux of it, because one of the questions I'm asked quite frequently is you know, how do you approach sort of the for lack of a better term trolls on the internet that might comment something about like, oh, you're being paid by Pfizer and I'm like buddy, I'm here in my stained sweatpants, I wish I was being paid by Pfizer, but how do you combat that and a lot of it I try to one use it as a teaching opportunity.
Speaker 3:So, rather than you know, having that knee jerk kind of like oh, you're an idiot, or you know, like trying to clap back at the general public, I try to understand what is the, what is the crux of what they're communicating to me that they feel so compelled to comment under a video.
Speaker 3:And then I try to use it as a teaching opportunity, because I may not be able to sway the opinion of that one person, but when people read through the comments and they see the discourse, I mean I will ultimately get people that will be like actually this makes a lot of sense and I think, at the end of the day, it's not because these people are malicious or they're bad people. Everyone, you know, ultimately just wants to do what's best for them and their family, and so if they're not given appropriate information, they're going to try to fill in those gaps and extrapolate what they know based on their own education, and so a lot of that breeds conspiracy theory and things like that. And so the best thing and I charge my colleagues out there, instead of just clapping back, try to understand the crux of is it fear, is it a lack of understanding? And very calmly just address it. You know, and you'll. You'll find, nine times out of 10, it diffuses whatever trolling is occurring.
Speaker 2:Yep, Absolutely no. I think that's a good approach. So let's, let's jump, let's jump over towards your book. Uh, there are no stupid questions in science. What's the inspiration to write a book like this and what was your hope from writing this book?
Speaker 3:Sure. So the inspiration really was born from this continued collection of questions I received from the public, because I like to think that in the grand scheme even though I do get the odd ended troll I am a pretty trusted authority in science. People come to me, they stay with me because they want to know and they ask me anything under the sun. And, as any good content creator does, as you know, as a podcast host you kind of build a repository of content for future use, because sometimes you're sitting there like what do I post about? Or like am I off schedule this week? You know whatever.
Speaker 3:And so I had this large repository of questions from the public that I just felt like I couldn't adequately explain in a short duration of time in short form, which is what I'm known for. And so I was going through this list one day and I was like man, like this would be so cool to just write in a bit longer form, illustrate, maybe. And I was like somebody should write that book. And then the same thought. I was like dude, I should write that. So I literally Googled, like how do you write a book? And I started this process about three years ago and, um, the hope was to sort of expand the platform in science communication and reach a broader audience and to really just inspire a sense of awe, a little bit of humor, and sort of reconnect adults with that childlike wonder for the world around us. Right Again, this is sort of me trying to repair the relationship between the public and its scientists, right.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. I mean, it's literally what we've just been talking about. So tell me about the. I guess the goal, like the audience goal, from this, like is it a certain age group, is it like a very, very broad spectrum of people, like, who are you speaking to?
Speaker 3:So it's. It's a book for adults. There's a few instances of profanity where it's appropriate, but uh, the surprising thing is, uh, that it has been given to people's children and I was like, just so you guys know, like I drop an F bomb like maybe three, four times, and they're like, oh, it's okay, my kids hear that all the time. But I mean, we've got third graders with it in hand, and so the intended audience was sort of my platform, which is, you know, peaks around like early thirties, like twenties, early thirties, men and women with just broad interests but have some sort of predilection for science, and has now expanded to essentially all age groups, which was very surprising to me but nonetheless, welcome. I love, I love starting them young.
Speaker 2:Do you think you're going to make a? There are no stupid questions in science, like junior, like where it's more written towards a younger demographic.
Speaker 3:So that's actually currently an ongoing project that's being pitched. The hope is to get this integrated into curriculum. A lot of teachers, both in the public and private school systems, as well as homeschooling they have requested it to be integrated into curriculum, and so my publisher and I are currently in the background working on something like that now. So you're predicting the future, Nico.
Speaker 2:It's what I'm here to do, my friend, it's what I do. Um, I'm glad, though we really need stuff like that. I think you know I keep bringing this back to like the younger generation Cause when we were the younger generation, you know and, and I felt like people were really encouraging me to get into STEM I hope that is still the case for most parents, like I was. I was an artist, musician as a kid too, but you know my, you know my. My family always encouraged me to study sciences too, and I think it's so important to be a well-rounded human right. We often just sort of just like, put our kids in this funnel of what they're good at. Oh, they're an athlete, or they're a dancer, or they're a musician, or they're a painter or whatever. Just do that right, do what you're which is beautiful. You should give your natural talents some time and some energy.
Speaker 2:But I think everyone should have a base understanding of the scientific process, the base principles of the physical sciences, because it's like how our world works, especially from our perception, in our words, and I view it as like, if you think about indigenous or native cultures, how elders pass down, you know, like eons of medicine, eons of spiritual teachings and eons of like how to live with the land, how to perceive the land. Like this is what sort of we've made in Western culture and, unfortunately and this happens in a lot of cultures a lot of us are kind of turning like, turn our heads to it because don't? We don't understand it, right. So, therefore, if we don't understand it, we don't need to teach our kids, and I I would hope that anyone listening to this, you know, becomes inspired to either Bailia's book, you know, read it yourself and and also, you know, share it with your kids in a way that they can understand and encourage them, you know, to to ask questions, encourage them to think deeply, encourage them to not stop asking questions, because at the premise of science is to ask questions. However, I will say one of the things is like, as we age, I think we have to think about our questions more.
Speaker 2:I think a lot of times is, we'll get into this space society where people would just become like deniers, and so I find this to be evident in like this, like science right, when people are like, know so and so politician promoted this science. So therefore, it's complete bs, like, hey, wait a minute, did you like actually stop to think about like that judgment. Is that just you being biased because you don't like this person, because they're not doing what you want society, or they're not a good person? Are you? Are you sticking science under that person's umbrella as opposed to giving it a fair shake? Because it's completely separate standing thing and I think, no matter what side politically or what spectrum people fall on, I really think we need to sort of come together through science and like have these agreeable things like yes, climate change is a real thing, it's actually happening. It's been happening, right, it's been. And it is anthropogenically affected, right, this is like. These are, these are facts.
Speaker 2:So anyone that's like you can go down the rabbit hole of bullshit on the internet and you can find an anti-argument to everything, right, this conspiracy theory is literally. I mean, you can lose your mind in conspiracy theories on the internet, right, thank you. Internet, um, the internet is a beautiful thing, it's, it's, it's caused some incredible things to happen, but it's also really fucking sent shit sideways for a lot of reasons too, right, and so I think because of that, you know, trying to rehome society, I'm being more like, thinking more analytically, and when people say like think for yourself, yes, think for yourself, but. But you have to also be trained to think. You have to also understand the process of thinking right, because thinking isn't just feeling we're right.
Speaker 2:Thinking is asking for where we're wrong. Right, where am I wrong, where might I be wrong? That is literally thinking like a scientist. Right, that's what scientists do, is they're like I got to find my own bullshit because this, although this experiment looks lovely, it's like I have to run it another hundred times to make sure that I'm not full of shit. You know, and that is really such a beautiful thing when we think of, like, how we exist in a society, because if more people apply those principles, we probably would have a lot less problems. They wouldn't just be nil, they wouldn't not be non-existent, but I think, as a whole, we'd be a lot more ready at being wrong. And I think we live in a society where we're addicted being right, and I think the beauty of science is that it teaches you how to be wrong, and in fact, you should be looking for where you're wrong, because that is how you get better.
Speaker 3:Yeah, of course, and I think a huge distinction for the public, and something that I think was at the crux of why the public was rattled somewhat recently by its trust in science, is that science is not dogma. Is that science is not dogma? You know people have this or had this idea of like, whatever scientists say, that that thing is then true, like into perpetuity, like a scientist says something and then it's forever. But what you need to realize is that science is a verb, it's not a noun, and discoveries are predicated on past discoveries and, more importantly, past failures, and so people need to understand, like you were saying.
Speaker 3:I think it's a beautiful point that we need to understand the process of thinking and we need to separate science from dogma, because science is not meant to be static, and that's the beautiful part about it is it's a repository that builds upon itself through history.
Speaker 2:John Mayer needs to write a new song, dude. We got to get science as a verb out there on the charts. He's got love as a verb already. That love thing is important too. But let's get science in there, baby John, let's go.
Speaker 3:I feel like he'd like it. I feel like he'd dig it yeah.
Speaker 2:He can figure it out, dude, he'll make it a hit. So, okay, so you wrote this awesome book. You just launched it super recently. It's in a bunch of languages, uh, thank the publishing Lords, right, and and I think the response from it is like people are, people are stoked, People are really, really.
Speaker 2:I think it's also the. The reason that you are so popular with being a scientist is because you're you're just very like, you're just a real person. You just laid back, you just you're not.
Speaker 2:I think a lot of people, when they get so many degrees and they become, you know, just so educated academically, they stick themselves in this ivory tower. That's like sort of not accessible to a normal human being. You know what I mean, and I mean normal human being who has like a lower education, who just like doesn't, didn't go to Harvard, doesn't have a PhD, doesn't study quantum physics, you know. And I think it takes special people who are at that level that also understand that we're all just human beings. You know, regardless of our level of education, we're all trying to make sense of life, be better together, and it requires someone like that that really is a communicator, a scientific communicator, right, an artist, if you will, because they have to take this incredibly, like you know, structured, impossibly to decipher Picasso, picasso, dolly painting, and then make it more intelligible and show it like here it's a, it's actually just a picture of a dog, you know, um, and I think that that those, those people are, are rare, you know, and I think, especially in our generation.
Speaker 2:Uh, it's cool to see people doing that, that also take care of themselves physically, that also work out, which is what I want to bring up, because I think that's another, that's another like common thing that people like, oh, scientists are just like you know, nerds that like don't do anything athletically and you also post a lot about your lifting and being like a you know, uh, uh, you know weight Olympic weightlifter and you know lifting heavy fucking weights. So I feel like that's, it's this cool blend, because I feel like it brings you down to earth right, like you're, you're not just this like super scientific nerd, which you are, but you also do these other things right, which I think makes you a more well-rounded person, which, from, like, a consumer perspective, it's like oh, it's a real human being, I'm going to learn something and I get to see someone work out which, again, it's like a total Instagram thing, right, like you know, so um.
Speaker 2:I think that that that just makes you more approachable for most people, cause even if someone's like not into science, I think they probably can get something from your page, because there's other things to relate to.
Speaker 3:Sure, and I think that's what's most important contemporarily about being a science especially. I call myself like a fringe character in the sciences, right, because I mean, if you guys are seeing me on screen, I have a full sleeve of tattoos, I have a nose ring. I'm also a dirtbag surfer, you know, and you know the the interesting thing is that, if you had asked me as absolute guns too, and I'm gonna listen and I'm just jacked out of my mind.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I don't see a lot of scientists walking around with just like.
Speaker 3:22 is dude Just listen, these are concealed carry permit only, okay, um, so you know, I think one of the most important things is visibility, because when I was a child, if you were to ask me to draw or describe a scientist, I would have drawn an old white guy in a coat, you know. And so I think these days, if you are sort of a fringe character, be visible. And I, I do agree with you. You know, a lot of the like success on social media is sort of foreign and strange to me, and it's me just kind of holding on tightly and like trying to stay true to what it is that I've wanted to do and just continue as as this horse just takes off at full speed. But, um, you know, the biggest thing is, and then what's important to me is to be genuine, so that people younger than me are like, oh, here's this regular person. If she can do it and she can be a scientist, I can do it too, and that's exactly what I want. So I'm glad that it's coming through.
Speaker 2:For sure. Let's talk about women in STEM, because that's a thing you're very passionate about. And how do we get more women in STEM, and where does it start?
Speaker 3:I mean, I think a lot of it starts at a young age and encouraging women one to pursue sciences and say, hey, like you are brilliant and you're successful, do it.
Speaker 3:It's not just a boy's field, but, importantly, providing a system of support, because currently only about 30% of researchers worldwide are women and that gender distribution leads to a lot of abuse in the system. Right, there are scumbags everywhere that will seek to sort of take advantage of the power dynamic that they have. And you would think, for some reason, you know, science and medicine gets sort of canonized as this like oh not, but not in science, it would never happen in the sciences. Right, that's an altruistic field, but I can tell you firsthand that that's absolutely not the case. And when I decided to be more vocal about things that I had been through early in my career I mean, I'm talking about TikTok videos where I've got hundreds of women being like yep happened to me or, worst case scenario, they left the sciences because of these instances and so, in my mind, to bring more women into the field, the visibility needs to be there so that it's okay to talk about it and come forward and, more importantly, that you're not alone if it happens.
Speaker 3:And I think that strength and just knowing that, like listen, it may happen. I hope it doesn't, but if it does, you're not the only one and you do have the capacity to come forward.
Speaker 2:I mean true that, sister, because there's a lot of ego, right, and I think that, especially when you, like I said, like the ivory tower in academia, right, like one of my biggest turnoffs with any college professors or anyone that's ever been above me in a research lab or anything, that is, when they get to a point where they think they know all the answers and that is the most unscientific thing possible, right, it's like because you got 10 phds and you went to all these different schools and you have, you know, all these different accolades and you have hundreds of papers published. This doesn't happen to everybody, but some people does, right, your head just keeps to expand. Course, the majority of it is men and I think for a lot of those men, when you have a gal come around who's a minority and she's just plain doing smarter shit than you and doing better research, it can make a. You know, a lot of those people feel very small and insecure inside anyways, and so if someone does that, you know that isn't like you know their peer they can get very, very ego, like you know their peer. They can get very, very ego driven, you know, and then we bring like the sort of like, you know, like sex power dynamics in that too, and there can be some serious problems within science Absolutely, and some serious abuse and some serious like people preventing other people from like their rightful acknowledgement and, you know, getting in positions in the spotlight that they should be Right.
Speaker 2:And it's super unfortunate and, and I think, speaking about it publicly, you just need to speak about it more because I think you know more people need to speak up if they're in a situation like that and be empowered to speak up. But also we need to create a culture where, like this is just not tolerable. You know it's like people should be supported and encouraged, um, no matter what gender, sexual orientation, race you are, you know if you're doing good science, you're doing good work and you're, you know, obviously respectful human being, not treating people like shit. Like you know I'll party to you. You should get what you deserve. You know she'd be put in the in the spotlight to make to make it happen, because I think that's just in any, obviously in any profession, but it's specifically within science and engineering, like I think it is so hard to, and even when we bring race into it, right, like like 30 of women, probably a fraction of those women are minority women as well, too, right tiny, yeah, tiny bit right, that's another thing.
Speaker 2:I think, if we look at, like the, the, the male spectrum, probably majority of those men are white men as well too, especially in the us, and I think you know we should have a scientific community that represents our general community at large. You know, that's really what we should be shooting for and everything, and that's how we know we're doing the most unbiased research too of course, yeah, I was going to say not just for the sheer act of like social representation.
Speaker 3:but if you begin excluding groups, what you're doing is you're excluding a different focus, a different you know way of thinking and you need, for these massive issues that we're trying to tackle as a scientific community worldwide, you need all hands on deck. You need the different ways just because, culturally, people are coming from different backgrounds and different perspectives. You need everybody eating at the same table, because coming together that's how you solve big problems, not the same people in the same group thinking the exact same way of making the decisions, right.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, it's, it's absolutely detrimental just to human progress to not open it up and include everybody and to, like, encourage a larger influx of minority groups if there are like two or three things you could leave behind in all the work that you're doing, you're going to do in the future, what would those things be, as far as like in this community?
Speaker 3:one. It would be bolstering groups that are marginalized in STEM. I would want to somehow either make an organization or to start some kind of movement where that has contributed to sort of a influx of marginalized groups into the field, and I think something I would also like to leave behind is helping the public regain its trust in its sciences and helping to to combine that, because, you know, one of the things that I take great umbrage to is the fact that science has become a thing of privilege. Right, understanding science has become a thing of privilege, and it shouldn't be, because science is the language which colors your understanding of yourself and your place in the world around you, and that shouldn't be something of privilege. Everybody should have that same opportunity.
Speaker 3:So something I would also like to do is to, you know, try to work with, like underserved communities to get more scientific literacy programs going. You know what I mean, because not only does that encourage an influx, but it also just helps make a more informed populace that's not stratified by. Oh well, you're in a higher socio-demographic bracket. So you know, you're going to obviously have better opportunities to understand science and therefore make more informed decisions about your health and your family and everything you. It shouldn't be that way so yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 2:Even when you look at like high schools or middle schools, right, usually the middle schools or high schools that are in nicer areas have more funding, have you know more parents so they have more access to, like you know, different textbooks, different teacher teachers get paid more, so, right, so there's usually you know, some better teachers there and I think we really have to focus on that as a, as a country and obviously as a global community, because everyone should have those opportunities. You know, everyone should should, at least at the bare minimum, be able to make the choice whether to take the class or not.
Speaker 3:You know, whether to show up to class or not of course and you know and and it has downstream implications, because you know, I have a background in oncology and one of the most heartbreaking things is that you can take like the same, you can take the same type of cancer in the same age group and control for everything but ethnicity. And you know, like black Americans have such worse outcomes because they are being seen at a later stage. They don't have, they're not coming from a position where they necessarily have a greater understanding, because inner city schools typically don't fund STEM programs and so their mortality rates for the exact same cancer in the, with all other variables being controlled for, are, you know, significantly, horrifically worse just by virtue of ethnicity. It's the only contributing association and that is unacceptable. That should be absolutely unacceptable, and so that it starts with education and it starts with empowering these patients with knowledge about their bodies, etc. So they can help physicians make better choices for their long-term care, for for something even like cancer, which every under the sun, everybody cancer horrific.
Speaker 3:Everybody is leveled and equalized under the umbrella of cancer Right, and so we need to make sure that everyone's getting the same opportunities to, to heal and absolutely.
Speaker 2:I couldn't. I couldn't agree more with that. So where can people connect with you? Where can they get your book? How can they learn more about you? And what's next? I know you talked about possibly this kid's book, but you have so much going on. What's next for you?
Speaker 3:Well, what's next for me is I've got 13 more book ideas. When I wrote there Are no Stupid Questions in Science, it was my first book, it's my debut, and it was just an idea that I had to write a book. But in the process of writing, I found this deep passion and love for communicating in this format. So there are going to be more books on the horizon. I'm already working on books two and three that are a bit different from their own stupid questions, but still the same shtick, the same corny jokes you can expect, but just a little bit more long form and investigative. You know, but just a little bit more long form and investigative. You know.
Speaker 3:I am still continuing to take this public science platform forward. I would love to start an organization I'm looking into doing it now of how to bring young people getting into STEM together. How do we create an organization where, if people don't have resources or mentors, how can I help connect them? There are great organizations like this that exist on university campuses but maybe not necessarily are as readily available, and so, being a person that's sort of becoming more and more spotlighted, I would love to try to funnel people into something like that, if I can just kind of grassroots connections and, you know, just continuing on my research journey. You know, in nine to five I'm still doing scientific work. So I would love to just continue to contribute to the field of peripheral nerve repair where I can.
Speaker 2:And playing some more magic too.
Speaker 3:And playing Magic, the Gathering, obviously, obviously, obviously, as we talked about earlier.
Speaker 2:So dope, love it, love it. Awesome, leah, I mean it's just, people can buy your book on Amazon or if they go to your Instagram, your website, right, they can buy through that. Can you like plug everything right now.
Speaker 3:Yeah, of course. Yeah, so my book is available everywhere books are sold. We are in big brick and mortar Barnes and Noble Books, a Million Target, walmart, et cetera. You can buy it on Amazon. I also narrated theated, the audiobook, so we're in all formats as well. If you don't want a hardcover, you'd rather listen to somebody talk to you on your road trip? I'm everywhere and you can connect with me, uh, basically everywhere. It's easier to just google leah elson and you'll find everything. I'm indexed, so you'll find it's a good hub to find me she is everywhere, literally.
Speaker 2:you're like siri dude. You're like you're like Siri dude. You're like you're like Google, everywhere, literally. It's when you ascend Literally, and I am the.
Speaker 3:I'm the walking science Google for friends and family too, so that's accurate I love it.
Speaker 2:If you don't know, if you don't follow Leah, she does like a you know question thing most weeks that you can just ask her you know any sort of scientific question and she usually has some sort of quippy answer to it, which is cool. I dig that, you know. I do that obviously on the relational social side and it's cool to see you doing that with the science because you know you can go in on her page and submit a question and get a cool answer and engage with her that way.
Speaker 3:We're like brothers in arms, like cousins in the sciences, doing the thing.
Speaker 2:I've always wanted a blonde headed blue eyed brother. So there we go. Blue-eyed brother. So there we go. Um, dude, it is, it is. Uh, it is so good to share some time with you. Um, as a fellow nerd and lover of science, uh, you know, it's inspiring what you're doing. I'm super happy that you got this book out. I'm excited to read it myself. Um, everybody, go go buy the book, check it out, give her a follow and, uh, if you liked this episode, feel free to reach out to her.
Speaker 3:I'm sure if you want to if you want to follow her along for some some more books, probably in the near future too, fingers crossed.
Speaker 2:I know it's a lot of work. I don't mean to throw that out lightly, cause I'm I'm about to hopefully really get on my own here and and and trying to get an editor lined up and do all that jam. And it's going to be I'm really looking forward to it Obviously a completely different uh, you know topic than what you're talking about, although I will have some science in it. Um, they won't just be focused on science, but I'm I'm really excited. But my book's going to be real small thinking real small, real short, you know. Lots of pictures, maybe some coloring. It'll be. It'll be pretty, pretty straightforward.
Speaker 3:That sounds like it's right up my alley, to be honest. So you're going to crush it.
Speaker 2:Perfect. Thank you, my friend. It's beautiful to spend some time with you and I look forward to have you on again when you got the next book coming out and we'll have another chat.
Speaker 3:Thank you so much for having me Happy means.
Speaker 2:I wish people could realize all their dreams and wealth and fame, so that they could see that it's not where you're going to find your sense of completion. Everything you gain in life will rot and fall apart and all that will be left of you is what was in your heart in your heart, in your heart.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much for tuning in to Star of the Eagle Feed the Soul. Please leave us a five star written review on Apple and Spotify podcasts. It's a free way you can give back the show and show your support and, as always, if you want to work with me one-on-one, head over to wwwnicoborazacom.