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The Story Collider

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Meisa Salaita: "Hey, Can I Borrow Your Notes?"

November 1, 2019

Away from her boyfriend for grad school, Meisa Salaita starts to fall for a chemistry classmate who's her complete opposite.

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In Chemistry Tags Meisa Salaita, love, chemistry, college, graduate school, grad school, breakup, heartbreak, Story Collider producer, Season 9

Eva Higginbotham: Choosing Myself

June 15, 2018

After her father, a well-known intellectual, passes away, neurobiology PhD student Eva Higginbotham tries to live up to his academic standards.

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In Neuroscience Tags Eva Higginbotham, fathers, family, graduate school, grad school, neuroscience

Lyl Tomlinson: Falsely Accused

April 13, 2018

Neurobiologist Lyl Tomlinson is startled when he's accused of stealing cocaine from his former lab.

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In Biology, Neuroscience Tags Lyl Tomlinson, graduate school, grad school, mentor, Black in STEM

Cather Simpson: The Bright Light of Fame

January 26, 2018

As a graduate student, Cather Simpson is excited to present her work -- but then her adviser lies about it.

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In Chemistry, Physics Tags Cather Simpson, lab work, mentor, adviser, graduate school, grad school, chemistry, physics, honesty

Neer Asherie & Deborah Berebichez: My Second Love, After Physics

July 28, 2017

Two physicists, Neer Asherie and Deborah Berebichez, find love after thirteen years.

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In Physics Tags physics, Neer Asherie, Deborah Berebichez, love, college, grad school, two-body problem, couple, pair stories

Bianca Jones Marlin: It's Because She's Black

March 26, 2015

On the first day of grad school for her PhD, a fellow student tells Bianca Jones Marlin that she doesn't really belong there.

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Tags Bianca Jones Marlin, diversity in STEM, racism, graduate school, grad school, season 5

Adam Becker: How To Save Your PhD Supervisor

March 4, 2015

When Adam Becker realizes a visiting film crew is made up of geocentrists, he has to prevent them from exploiting his adviser's work.

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Tags Adam Becker, season 5, misinformation, cosmology, astronomy, grad school, graduate school

Bethany Brookshire: A Perfect Mentor

January 12, 2015

Lost after arriving at grad school, Bethany Brookshire is happy to finally find a perfect mentor.

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Tags Bethany Brookshire, season 5, mentor, grad school, graduate school, adviser

Daniel Engber: Distracting Mark Cuban

August 1, 2014

Daniel Engber risks derailing his PhD by constant daydreaming, until his neuroscience research gives him a idea that will revolutionize the NBA.

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Tags Daniel Engber, season 4, neuroscience, sports, grad school, graduate school

Margaret Geller: Mapping The Universe

May 21, 2014

As a grad student, Margaret Geller is invited to a private island off the coast of Maine by legendary physicist John Wheeler and his wife, for a trip she'll never forget.

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Tags Margaret Geller, graduate school, grad school, hero, John Wheeler, physics

Rowena Fletcher-Wood: Diffraction

January 20, 2014

As a chemistry student, Rowena Fletcher-Wood has to reconstruct the structure of chemicals, and a relationship with a friend, by interpreting complex data.

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Tags Rowena Fletcher-Wood, chemistry, friendship, grad school

Aditi Nadkarni: How to impress your graduate advisor

July 28, 2013

As a new, super competitive, graduate student Aditi Nadkarni thinks she has the perfect way to impress her advisor and labmates ... until one night it spirals a tiny bit out of control.

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Tags Aditi Nadkarni, season 3, grad school, graduate school, lab work, lab accident

Colin Jerolmack: How a sociologist became The Pigeon Guy

February 17, 2013

Colin Jerolmack was floundering in grad school until he found deep insights into human nature... from pigeons.

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Tags Colin Jerolmack, season 3, pigeons, birds, grad school, sociology

Ari Daniel Shapiro: Narwhal tagging in the arctic

October 28, 2012

As a grad student, Ari Daniel Shapiro has to tag some narwhals to collect data. The problem: it's in the arctic, the devices have never been tested, and if he fails he'll never be able to do research again.

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Tags Ari Daniel, narwhals, animals, graduate school, grad school, research, field work, arctic, biology, zoology, season 3, Story Collider producer

Ben Lillie: The Impostor Heart Attack

December 12, 2010

For Ben Lillie, the terrors of grad school found expression in a form that no one had warned him about.

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Tags Ben Lillie, Story Collider founder, grad school, anxiety, Season 1

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