Technology
STEM-Talk Awarded for Podcast Excellence With the rise of podcasts, shows like “Serial,” “Lore” and “TEDTalks” are gaining national recognition as unique forms of media. Now we can add among those ranks our own local “STEM-Talk” podcast, produced by the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC), which won first place in the Science and Medicine Category at the 12th Annual People’s
“We were just honored to be nominated in our division. It was a total surprise that we won because we are so new,” said Dawn Kernagis, co-host of the podcast and research scientist at IHMC. Kernagis’s research focuses on human performance operation and risk mitigation in extreme environments, such as undersea, at high altitude and in space. IHMC is a non-profit research lab that focuses on technology for “leveraging and extending human cognition, perception, locomotion and resilience.” Only a little over a year-and-a-half old, the podcast is approaching its 50th episode. The People’s Choice Podcast Awards is the longest running premier podcast awards event,
designed to allow fans to show their appreciation by nominating their favorite shows. “STEM-Talk” competed against more than 2,000 shows across 20 categories, and won their category while being honored as a runner-up for the People’s Choice Award—the competition’s grand prize. Former prizewinners of the competition include shows like “This American Life,” “The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe” and “Rob Has a Podcast.” Kernagis said that she was first approached to host “STEM-Talk” not long after she was offered a job at IHMC. Ken Ford, CEO of IHMC and co-host of the program, had long wanted to do a podcast as an informative outreach initiative for the Institute, and asked Kernagis if she was interested.
By Tanner Yea
“We really didn’t expect this,” said Ford. “Our podcast is just a little more than a year old and we’re thrilled to receive this kind of recognition so soon.” The podcast features interviews with scientists, engineers and technologists talking about their cutting-edge research—as well as their careers, passions and motivations. The podcast bills itself as “conversations with some of the most interesting people in the world of science and technology.” “We try to vary the focus on our topics—to physics, to gravitational waves, to geology, to nutritional science, to health and human performance,” said Kernagis. “We don’t just look for people who are doing interesting research, but are nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 51