Episodes

  • S2N5. Life is well done like that | Pierre-Louis Soulié
    Mar 20 2025

    A new Vega Podcast episode for those who look for reinforcement in daring, exploring, and crafting their unique path.

    We are joined by Pierre-Louis Soulié, a robotics graduate from UC Berkeley, who went on a journey from studying micro-engineering at EPFL to practising product design at Polimi while living, working, and studying across five different countries.

    In the episode, Pierre shares what he learned from operating on the edge between engineering and design, talks about his current lifestyle in San Francisco, and gives notes on the mindset dynamics between the US and Europe.

    All topped with AI recourses, startup aspirations, and, of course, great inspo takeaways.

    Enjoy!

    P.S. If not for that one blog post from the “Ambitious and Driven” curated by Anirudhh Ramesh, this episode would not have happened Would highly recommend to check it out (linked below)!

    Mentions and recommendations from the episode:
    - Interview with Pierre for the “Ambitious and Driven” blog: https://www.ambitiousxdriven.com/p/berkeley-withings-and-leaving-engineering
    - The Human-Centered Design Toolkit by IDEO: https://www.ideo.com/journal/design-kit-the-human-centered-design-toolkit
    - Book “The Creative Act: A Way of Being” by Rick Rubin: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60965426-the-creative-act
    - Book “Siddhartha” by Hermann Hesse: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52036.Siddhartha

    AI resources:
    - ChatGPT (don’t pretend as if you’ve never heard of it): https://openai.com/index/chatgpt/
    - Vizcom: https://www.vizcom.ai/
    - Claude: https://claude.ai/login?returnTo=%2F%3F

    Follow Pierre on social media:
    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pierrelouissl/
    Website: https://plsoulie.vercel.app/
    Instagram: @andeolll

    Show More Show Less
    38 mins
  • S2N4. Space talks | Dimitar Ferdinandov
    Feb 4 2025

    Hey!

    In today`s episode, Dimitar shares some insights into the Space industry. What has happened since the start of 2025? Why space exploration is so important? What does the future of space exploration look like? These are just some of the questions we answer in our discussion.


    Dimitar`s blog:

    Space Brief: https://spacebrief.substack.com/


    Recommended book:

    Madeleine Albright, Fascism: A Warning: https://www.amazon.com/Fascism-Warning-Madeleine-Albright/dp/0062802186


    Recommended podcast:

    The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart: https://www.youtube.com/@WeeklyShowPodcast


    Enjoy :)


    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 7 mins
  • S2N3. Purpose and herbal tea
    Nov 2 2024

    Hey!
    Our “yapping” series are continuing with a cozy episode about finding purpose and not losing yourself in it. Accompanied by some soothing herbal tea. We discuss how different people: our family members, friends, or chess-super-players try to find their callings and pursue a meaningful path. What does one do to find their passion? What if it doesn’t work out? How to stay intact with yourself? Those are the questions we raise and diligently try to find an answer to. To the best of our knowledge and in the chillest manner possible.
    Mentions and recs from the episode:
    - Adam Grant | Organizational psychologist and bestselling author: https://adamgrant.net/
    - Jordan B. Peterson | A renowned psychologist, author, and online educator: https://www.jordanbpeterson.com/
    - Book by Viiktor Frankl | “Man's search for meaning”: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4069.Man_s_Search_for_Meaning

    Show More Show Less
    25 mins
  • S2N2. Backpacking and entrepreneurship | Robine De Haen
    Sep 29 2024

    Hey,

    Welcome to our first guest episode of the second season! We are joined by Robine De Haen - a passionate leader with an entrepreneurial mind. Together, we discuss her experience in organising first-ever SLUSH’D event in Belgium, how a an exchange in China sparked her interest in entrepreneurship, and what it is like to go off backpacking for 3 months in Asia. A very rich range of topics 😉Mentions and recommendations: ⁃ SLUSH’D initiative: https://slush.org/slushd/ ⁃ Entrepreneurship First: https://www.joinef.com/ ⁃ CEO for One Month by Adecco: https://www.adecco.co.uk/about-us/who-we-are/our-purpose-and-impact/ceo-for-one-month ⁃ “Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life” by Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles: https://www.amazon.com/Ikigai-Japanese-Secret-Long-Happy/dp/0143130722Follow Robine on social media: ⁃ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robine-dehaen/ ⁃ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/robine_de_haen?igsh=a2Uzc2llY2h6bTZu

    Show More Show Less
    35 mins
  • S2N1. Summer learnings
    Sep 11 2024

    We randomly started rambling about the realizations we had come to during the summer and decided to record our conversation.

    We talked about the importance of prioritizing your tasks, choosing what to put on your plate, the echo of the industrial revolution in today`s society, and much more...

    Enjoy:)

    Show More Show Less
    26 mins
  • S2N0. New season introduction
    Sep 8 2024

    Welcome back to the Vega podcast! This is the pilot episode of the second season of the podcast, in which we give you an overview of what we have been up to lately, and what is yet to come in the new season.


    Enjoy :)


    Stay tuned, follow us on Instagram:

    https://www.instagram.com/fevenim/

    https://www.instagram.com/astraemulier/

    Show More Show Less
    9 mins
  • S1N18. Space sustainability
    Jul 19 2024

    Welcome to a new series of the Vega podcast, in which we will do content reviews of papers, books and anything interesting we come across. In this episode, we dive into “Sustainability Principles For Space Operations Across the Century,” a paper Slavena and a team of talented scientists and engineers wrote for the International Astronautical Conference 2023. We discuss the principles of sustainability in the space industry and the New Space era.


    You can find the publication here: https://dl.iafastro.directory/event/IAC-2023/paper/77704/

    Show More Show Less
    17 mins
  • S1N17. Full send | Tatyana Ivanova
    Jul 12 2024

    Tatyana is an embodiment of the word "persistence". She has overcome and continues to overcome numerous challenges on her path to becoming an astronaut. She is currently an Aerospace engineering student at Embry-Riddle, does scuba diving and skydiving, and is a super interesting and inspiring person. This episode is a discussion between 3 hard-working engineering students about the ways to reach personal goals, our struggles with finding ways to relax, as well as the challenges that some of Bulgaria's students face. The discussion is long and honest, so tune in :)


    Mentioned in the episode:


    • Book: "Glucose Revolution: The Life-Changing Power of Balancing Your Blood Sugar" https://g.co/kgs/PCTMtov
    • Book: "100 Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez https://www.amazon.com/Hundred-Solitude-Harper-Perennial-Classics/dp/0060883286
    • Book: "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin https://www.amazon.com/Awakening-Kate-Chopin/dp/1503293181
    • Creator: Tom Bilyeu https://youtube.com/@tombilyeu?si=GZfhQctRRU7xiiLP
    • Movie: "Prison Break" https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0455275/
    • Movie: "Whiplash" https://m.imdb.com/title/tt2582802/
    Show More Show Less
    59 mins