Our guest this week, Daniel Smilovitch, completed his Master's in Occupational Therapy (OT) at McGill University and is finishing up his first year as a professional in the field. He weaves a compelling narrative, taknig us back to his humble beginnings in a barebones basement rat lab, through the intensive, hands-on program in OT, and finally to a day in the life of a working occupational therapist. So fasten your diapers, cause we're about to make a g'day out of bidet!

Whether you're an undergraduate student curious about research or a career in OT, or a regular listener of the show excited to jump back in after an extended hiatus, or or anything in between, this chat is sure to entertain and to inform. Sit back, relax, and enjoy!

THE MENU:

ACADEMIC PATH (0 - 35)
Schmoozing
Psychology Background
The Rat Lab
Semi-Natural Environments
A Turning Point S/O Joe Inhaber (Episode 56)
A Desire for Change
Demographics of OT
The CASPER Test
Career Crossroads: The Bird Problems Problem
The Butterly Effect
Community, Compassion and Communication

WHAT IS OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY? (35 - 51)
"How do we get people to do the things that they want to do?"
Branches of OT (1/2)
Autonomy and Independence
PEO: The DSM of OT
Task Breakdown
Interacting Factors
"They've tried to make me go to rehab..."
ADLs and IADLs
Equipment
Branches of OT (2/2)
Internships x4
OT RESEARCH (51 - 1:03)
The Cognitive Stimulation Toolkit
Brain Games and Wii Games
Tailored Research, World Cafes & OT-ception
Context, Parameters & the Validity of Research
ON THE JOB (1:03-1:15)
The OT's Interdisciplinary Team
The PT-OT Bifecta
Imposter Syndrome
Dreams of Expertise
Sensation, Mirror Therapy, Dysphasia
THE CLOSER (1:15 - End)
Your Role with a capital "R"
The Plea

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Cover Art:Youssef Naddam via Unsplash

This is my second solo podcast, and features the full recording from a talk I gave at the "Seeking Success" event organized by the Center for Conscious Awareness. It's packed full of great quotes, as well as some of the main themes and takeaways from my non-linear academic and creative paths!

Quotes
1. If you find a path with no obstacles it probably doesn't lead anywhere. - Frank A. Clarke
2. Success is moving in the right direction, not getting 100% on the first try. - Karen Gazith
3. We should always be asking ourselves: is this something that is or is not in my control. - Epictetus
4. We fail when we stick to something that's not a good fit. - Seth Godin
5. Someone is sitting in the shade today because somebody planted a tree a long time ago. - Warren Buffet
6. The biggest risk of all is not taking one. - Mellody Hobson

Timeline
0:00 - Introduction
1:23 - Quote 1
1:39 - Academic Path
6:37 - Intro to Success
8:28 - Your Success is Not My Success
9:07 - Framing
9:52 - First Steps: Reflection Before Action
10:34 - Quote 2
10:52 - Taking Action
11:22 - Expectations & Their Violation
12:23 - Management & Chunking
15:31 - Note-taking
16:04 - Self-Auditing & Flow
18:59 - Quote 3
19:20 - Control
21:25 - Newton's Law of Motion in the 21st Century
26:21 - Quote 4
26:34 - Failure
28:41 - 4 Things To Do Before Your Quit, #1: Take Your Time
30:46 - #2: Struggle a little
31:37 - #3: Make mistakes
32:31 - #4: Don't blindly follow your dreams
33:19 - After You Quit: Say Yes
34:26 - Slido on Failure
36:15 - Connecting
37:14 - #1: Don't Reinvent the Wheel
38:38 - #2: Keep It Organic
39:07 - #3: Embrace Rejection
40:50 - Quote 5
41:30 - Mindfulness
41:44 - #1: Balance
42:44 - #2: Moderation in Self-Awareness
43:36 - #3: Energy Release & Regeneration
45:27 - Quote 6
45:50 - Takeaways & Closing Remarks

///
Episode Cover Photo by Everett Bartels on Unsplash

Éamon Callison, originally from Denver (elevation ~5280 ft), is finishing his PhD in Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University. He completed his Bachelor’s degree in Biology and Philosophy of Science at Washington University in St. Louis, followed by an MPhil in Human Evolutionary Studies at the University of Cambridge. His dissertation work has focused on understanding the form and function of the human chest. He is interested in how humans have evolved to breathe during sustained endurance activities, like running, and how selection has affected how we use our ribs to inhale and exhale. To answer these questions, he has measured thoracic motion in humans, dogs, and goats, examined lots of bones, measured human fossils, and worked in the Peruvian Andes (elevation ~14230 ft). We're extremely lucky to have him on the show -- and trust me when I say: he delivers!

Sneak Peek

Q: What do coyotes, pigeons and humans have in common?
A: They're all massively adaptible and flourish in different environments.

Q: Why am I a biped?
A: UBER Eats didn't exist 7 million years ago.

Q: Are there as of yet unknown biological mechanisms that could confer even greater ventilation ability in humans?
A: *nerding out so hard you need to take a breather* yes and no...

TOPICS & CONCEPTS
Breathing & Ventilation
Gestation & Birth
Evolution of the Thoracic Cage
Environment & Culture
Natural Selection: Heritability, Variation & Competition
The Modern Human Timeline
Last Common Ancestors (LCA) & Chimpanzees
Forest Fragmentation & The Evolution of Bipedality
Energy Expenditure
The Treasured Chest
Paleontology
Funnel vs. Barrel
The Expensive Tissue Hypothesis
Shape vs. Function
The Costovertebral Joint: Curvature = Motion
Goats on Treadmills
Vacuums & Negative Pressure
A Visceral Piston
Sprinters & Weight-LIfters
Pump-Handle vs. Bucket-Handle
High-Altitude Adaptations & The Peruvian Quechua
Highlights of Grad School

/// SOCIALS

/// CLOSING REMARKS

Episode Art Background Photo Credit: Jesse Orrico

Does free will exist? Maybe. Regardless, please share your cherished feedback with me at abstractcast@gmail.com!

Liking the show? Drop us a juicy 5-star rating or a written review on Apple Podcasts!

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Episode Art by Me and Nino Liverani & Rishi Ragunathan on Unsplash

Keroles Riad is a former Public Scholar at Concordia University where he received a Ph.D in the Individualized Program (INDI) developing new materials (ex. nanoparticles) for 3D printing. His research leverages novel techinques like Flame Spray Pyrolysis and Stereolithography, among more traditional methods in chemistry, like combustion reactions. He led the “Waste Not, Want Not” initiative on campus for which he received the Quebec Lieutenant-Governor Youth Medal. Since the beginning of “Waste Not, Want Not” in 2016, the Concordia community doubled their annual composting, and each Concordian reduced their annual overall waste by 16%. Outside of academia, Kero's hobbies include reading and playing chess and ping-pong.

TOPICS AND CONCEPTS
Individualized Research Programs
Interdisciplinarity & Collaboration
Nanoparticles
Size Scales
mRNA Vaccines
Pill Coatings
Good and Bad Nanos
3D Printings & Materials
UV & The Light Spectrum
Fire & Water: Wet vs. Other Chemistry
Flame Spray Pyrolysis
Combustion & Oxidation Reactions
Quantum Dots
Color & Energy

/// EXTRAS
Kero's viral article on Nanoparticles and mRNA vaccines here.

/// SOCIALS
Keroles Riad [IG, FB, Twitter, LinkedIn]
@Kerologist [Twitter]
@enufCanada [IG, FB, Twitter, LinkedIn]

/// CLOSING REMARKS

Episode Art Background Photo Credit: Jesse Orrico
Does free will exist? Maybe. Regardless, please share your cherished feedback with me at abstractcast@gmail.com!
Liking the show? Drop us a juicy 5-star rating or a written review on Apple Podcasts!
Want to support the show? Save your $$$ and support us by Following & Subscribing on: Spotify, Facebook, Instagram & Twitter!

Episode Art Photograph by Joshua Newton on Unsplash

Ida Derish is a PhD candidate in the department of Experimental Surgery at McGill University. She is currently spearheading efforts to study patient-specific differences in heart disease under the supervision of Dr. Renzo Cecere, a cardiac surgeon. She's been passionate about science communication ever since starting graduate school and is proud to say that she's been the recipient of multiple presentation awards (2nd place @ McGill’s 3-Minute Thesis competition, 2021; 1st place @ Canadian Cardiovascular Congress, 2020). She is also the co-founder and CEO of GynAware, a start-up that focuses on developing a medical biopsy device that will enable women to make more conscious choices about their gynecological health. A few fun facts about Ida: "I speak Russian, English and French, and I enjoy going mushroom picking in the forest."

TOPICS & CONCEPTS
Fast-Tracking to a PhD
Heart Repair
The Age Factor
Stem Cells
Cell Signaling (e.g. Calcium)
Heart in a Dish
The Placenta
Heart Cells: Cardiomyocytes & Endothelial Cells
Angiogenesis
Heart Disease by the Numbers
The Cardio and The Vascular
Future Therapies
Clinical Trials & Population Representation
Timeline of Experimentation
The Personalized Medicine Paradox
Statistical Significance
Getting Down & Dirty With Demographics
GynAware
Uterine Fibroids
Surgeries: Laparoscopy & Hysterectomy
Urology vs. Gynecology

/// LINKS & CONTACT
GynAware Website Link: http://gynaware.com/
Ida's Email: ida.derish@mail.mcgill.ca

/// CLOSING REMARKS

Episode Art Background Photo Credit: Jesse Orrico
Does free will exist? Maybe. Regardless, please share your cherished feedback with me at abstractcast@gmail.com!
Liking the show? Drop us a juicy 5-star rating or a written review on Apple Podcasts!
Want to support the show? Save your $$$ and support us by Following & Subscribing on: Spotify, Facebook, Instagram & Twitter!

Simon Dubé is a Public Scholar and PhD candidate in Psychology at Concordia University specializing in human sexuality, sex-tech, and Erobotics – the study of human-machine erotic interaction and co-evolution. His work also explores Space Sexology, and how we can integrate sex research into space programs. He is a student representative of the International Academy of Sex Research and a general co-Chair of the International Congress on Love & Sex with Robots. He's that and a whole lot more as you're about to experience in the next 40 minutes. So sit back, strap in and hold on for dear life as we shoot for the stars and beyond on this week's episode of Abstract!

TOPICS AND CONCEPTS
Intro to Space Sexology
Human Behavior & Psychology
Biopsychosociality
Are we having sex in space yet?
Extraterrestrial Habitation
Love Cloud (https://lovecloudvegas.com/)
Space Tourism: Pleasure & Leisure
What are the issues with space sex and reproduction?
The Factor Equation
Space as a Challenge Amplifier
Mitigating Bio-Psycho-Socio-Culturo-Sexual Problems Abroad
Applications of Sex Tech & Erobotics
Vanna Bonta Suits
The Space Problem in Space
Astronauts
The Future of Humanity in Space

/// EXTRAS

Check out Simon et al's most recent publication: The Case for Space Sexology
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00224499.2021.2012639?journalCode=hjsr20

/// CONTACT INFO

Simon Dubé
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/simon.dube.75
Twitter: @SciDub11
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-dub%C3%A9-53ba9012b/

/// CLOSING REMARKS

Episode Art Background Photo Credit: grandeduc / Adobe Stock
Does free will exist? Maybe. Regardless, please share your cherished feedback with me at abstractcast@gmail.com!
Liking the show? Drop us a juicy 5-star rating or a written review on Apple Podcasts!
Want to support the show? Save your $$$ and support us by Following & Subscribing on: Spotify, Facebook, Instagram & Twitter!

From Academia to the Workforce. We discuss Austin L'Ecuyer's transition out of 7 years of engineering schooling and into the working world. You might remember Austin from his star performance on Ep. 21 where we discussed his own Master's research on Turbulence and Fluid Dynamics in great detail -- if you're curious to learn more about that, please check it out!

RESEARCH REVIEW
Turbulence & Turbulent Flows
Checkerboard Fans, Length Scales & Bonus Energy

TRANSITION: ACADEMIA --> WORK FORCE
Engineering Consulting & Drafting
Project Size & Pacing
Feedback
Supervision

LOOKING BACK
P.Eng: Professional Engineering License
Is a Master's worth it?
Mastering Speech & Communication
Specialization & Making a Difference
Collaboration

RECOMMENDATIONS
Application Considerations
Procrastination: Undergrad vs. Grad School

///
Austin's Published Thesis:
[Link Coming Soon]

/// CLOSING REMARKS

Episode Art Photograph from Rut Miit on Unsplash

Does free will exist? Maybe. Regardless, please share your cherished feedback with me at abstractcast@gmail.com!

Liking the show? Drop us a juicy 5-star rating or a written review on Apple Podcasts!

Want to support the show? Save your $$$ and support us by Following & Subscribing on: Spotify, Facebook, Instagram & Twitter!

Noah Sadaka is a Master’s student at Purdue University studying Astrodynamics. He's working on how resonant orbits in the circular restricted three body problem, or CR3BP, can be used in spacecraft mission design. He says that part of what is so exciting about working in this field is that trajectories and orbits originally simulated in the CR3BP are being used to fly actual missions, including the recently launched James Webb Space Telescope and the upcoming NASA Gateway space station around the Moon! To keep himself firmly grounded on Earth, you can find him cycling through Indiana cornfields and trying out new recipes when cooking. Noah's the real deal, so keep those ears open and check out the topics we cover (in chronological order) below:

Topics & Concepts
Apollo 13 & Free Return Trajectories
Burns & Manoeuvres
The Moon & Lunar Vicinity
The (Circular Restricted) 3-Body Problem [(CR)3BP]
What's in a "body"?
Newton's Gravitational Equation
Analytic Solutions & The Relative 2-Body Model
The Bi-Circular Restricted 4-Body Problem
The Parker Solar Probe
Patched Conics
Perturbations
The Rubber Ducky Analogy
Chaotic Systems
Periodic Orbits
Solar System Instability
Resonant Orbits
Lagrange Points
Reference Frames: Intertial vs. Rotating
Pendulums & Equilibrium
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)
The Finale: Conic Motion &

/// CONTACT + EXTRAS
Website: https://noahsadaka.com
Instagram: @NoahSadaka (https://www.instagram.com/noahsadaka/)
LinkedIn: Noah Sadaka (https://www.linkedin.com/in/noah-sadaka-36b4ba10a/)

Episode Art By Lagrange_points.jpg: created by NASAderivative work: Xander89 (talk) - Lagrange_points.jpg, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7547312

/// CLOSING REMARKS
Does free will exist? Maybe. Regardless, please share your cherished feedback with me at abstractcast@gmail.com!

Liking the show? Drop us a juicy 5-star rating or a written review on Apple Podcasts!

Want to support the show? Save your $$$ and support us by Following & Subscribing on: Spotify, Facebook, Instagram & Twitter!