Libsyn Directory

#14 Period policies: Exploring the debate on menstrual leave | WeAreSTS

Release Date: 07/25/2022

#30 Don’t Look Up! How Hollywood Imports Science Policy into Films | WeAreSTS

WeAreSTS

Hollywood chooses to portray experts in particular – sometimes peculiar – ways. Those choices have profound impacts on how audiences think about subjects as diverse as dinosaurs, robots, and climate catastrophes. But do those portrayals also change the way we think about the experts themselves and the process of expertise? Does Hollywood play some kind of under-the-table role in teaching us which experts to trust? That’s the theme for today’s podcast. Today, we listen in on a conversation between three experts here in STS who study science policy making as a process. They talk about a...

#29 Can Comedy Help Us Tackle Conversations About Climate Change? | WeAreSTS

WeAreSTS

Ever heard of climate change comedy? Here’s the idea. The climate crisis dominates our news. But more and more, messages about action are ignored. Fatalism is growing. People seem frozen with the scale of the problem. It’s clear we need new ways to tackle these tough conversations. In this episode, STS’s very own Grace Tyrrell explores the growing niche of climate change comedy. With her guest Dr Matt Winning, an environmental researcher and comedian, Grace shows us how climate change comedy works and she explores the question of how these two ideas can fit together. Grace is finishing...

#28 Promising Potential for Generative AI at University: Is it a Personal Tutor for Every Pocket | WeAreSTS

WeAreSTS

Mandy dives optimistically into the world of artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on education as we know it. Think ChatGPT and all those related tools called generative AI. Along the way, we touch on some fundamental and relevant concepts from science and technology studies - including the Turing Test and technological determinism - that can help us gain a more nuanced understanding of emerging technology and big tech. With insights from UCL experts and others in Silicon Valley, we explore the incredible potential of AI to enhance university education, plus we dip into some of the...

WeAreSTS

The assignments students do in STS modules today are nothing like what they used to be. These days, they build portfolios with all sorts of things: short writing, long writing, posters, blogs, in-class presentations. Add to these, projects like podcasts, film clips, campaign strategies, briefing papers, debates, and full-on project proposals. Research of different kinds. They all require hard work, creativity, and rising to the challenge. We diversify our curriculum because we know the future holds work as varied as we do ourselves each day. We want our students skilled up, practiced, and...

#26 Women in History of Science Through 53 Original Sources | WeAreSTS

WeAreSTS

Women in the History of Science brings together primary sources that highlight women’s involvement in scientific knowledge production around the world. Drawing on texts, images and objects, each primary source is accompanied by an explanatory text, questions to prompt discussion, and a bibliography to aid further research. Arranged by time period, covering 1200 BCE to the twenty-first century, and across 12 inclusive and far-reaching themes, this book is an invaluable companion to students and lecturers alike in exploring women’s history in the fields of science, technology, mathematics,...

#25 Are We Over-Hyping Mindfulness for University Students? | WeAreSTS

WeAreSTS

Chances are you’ve had something to do with “mindfulness” recently. Maybe you’ve been sent to “mindfulness” training. Or, perhaps you’ve been listening to a mindfulness podcast. Or, perhaps you’re using a “mindfulness” app, such as HeadSpace. In this episode, Franziska Link investigates the growing use of mindfulness therapies at universities, such as UCL, in their provision for student support and welfare. What good are they? What do they involve? What are the pros – and the cons – of this approach. Franziska interviews four people with quite different relationships to...

#24 Who Are Museums REALLY Speaking For (And What About The Rest of Us) | WeAreSTS

WeAreSTS

Alex Hancock explores how research about museum collections is helping to connect British museums with more of the publics they claim to support. His emphasis is on decolonisation, engagement, and white European power. Ultimately, how do structural inequalities manifest in our museums, and how do we move to a new set of relationships? Alex undertook this project for the STSNewsRoom in summer 2021. His reporting focused on two specific events. First, Alex discusses with Tannis Davidson the “” exhibition at UCL Grant Museum of Zoology, which explores legacy of empire through objects in the...

#23 Journalism from STS Science Communication Master’s Students 2022 | WeAreSTS

WeAreSTS

We sampled undergraduate projects in a previous episode. Now, it time for the Master’s students. Today’s episode offers a sampler of student-made podcasts. These were created by Master’s students in our science journalism module, run by Dr Jean-Baptiste Gouyon. The assignment was straightforward: imagine you’re working for a news magazine. Create a three-minute feature about a recent piece of research at UCL. The piece must include a short interview segment, and it must make sense within the context of the show. They have a tight deadline, and they have to work pretty much with the...

#22 Thinking About Internationality: Is Science the Same Everywhere? | WeAreSTS

WeAreSTS

It’s one of those fundamental tenets taught to every student: science is international; it’s the same everywhere, it respects no borders; the work is the same no matter where or when you are. Assessing this idea is a core task in STS. Our philosophers, historians, and sociologists work overtime on case studies to explore internationality. Our policy and communication experts grapple with variations and work to understand where there is consensus and where there’s consensus. In this episode, Beatrice Han (BSc Sociology and Politics of Science student) investigates science and...

#21 Responsible Media Coverage: Hype in Our Stories About Chatbots | WeAreSTS

WeAreSTS

Is AI sentient? Do machines have souls? I’ve got an even better question: are these questions the most important ones we should be asking? Headlines claiming machines could be alive are definitely eye-catching. But hype does not come unaccompanied: misinformation, fear, and fake news are close friends with sensationalism. They target audiences who probably know enough about the topic, but not enough to critically analyse the information fed to them. Understanding the role the media plays in opinion-making about new science and technology is vital when we are dealing our own decision making...

More Episodes

As someone who prides herself on being interested in women’s health and progress related to it, Sofia Sancho still had no idea what “menstrual leave” was when it suddenly was all over the news earlier this spring.

Menstruation is a regular physiological phenomenon, happening to the vast majority of people with uteruses. Many people manage their periods just fine, but for some they can be extremely debilitating. For them, being able to take some extra days off work every month to manage symptoms can be a big relief. However, the policies have received a lot of critique. They can be difficult for companies to adopt in a viable way, and researchers worry that the sociocultural norms and stigmas that exist surrounding menstruation will lead to the policies doing more harm than good.

In the episode, Sofia invites you to join her on a deep dive into the world of menstrual health policies, as she explores the debate surrounding them. Why are they important? Why are they so controversial and debated? And how is any of this related to STS?

Sofia dearly thanks her guests Ms Lorren Rea and Dr Shema Tariq for helping her on this quest.

This episode is created as part of the STSNewsRoom 2022.

Want to learn more?

Literature cited in the episode:

https://profjoecain.net/14-period-policies-exploring-the-debate-on-menstrual-leave-wearests/

Featuring

Reporter and original research

Sofia Sancho

Interviewees

Ms Lorren Rea

Head of Employment Policy at UCL

Dr Shema Tariq

Clinical Research Fellow/ Honorary Consultant in Sexual Health and HIV

Host

Professor Joe Cain
Professor of History and Philosophy of Biology

https://ucl.ac.uk/sts/cain

Music credits

Intro and Exit music

“Rollin At 5,” by Kevin MacLeod

https://filmmusic.io/song/5000-rollin-at-5

License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

Music within the episode

“Cool Jazzy Brass & Vibraphone” by M33 Project

https://freemusicarchive.org/music/m33-project/single/cool-jazzy-bass-vibraphone/

License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

Podcast information

WeAreSTS is a production of the Department of Science and Technology Studies (STS) at University College London (UCL). To find out more, or to leave feedback about the show:

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/sts/podcast

This site also includes information for how STS students and staff can get involved with our programme.

Editing and post-production by Professor Joe Cain, unless otherwise noted.

WeAreSTS producer is Professor Joe Cain.

Twitter: @stsucl #WeAreSTS

TOPICS