Grad Chat - Queen's School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs
Hosted by CJ the DJ (Colette Steer), this is a 30 minute radio show featuring a graduate student or postdoc each week. Each episode is an opportunity for Queen’s grad students and postdocs to showcase their research to the Queen’s and Kingston community. From time to time, CJ the DJ also interviews an alum or interview grad students in relation to something topical for the day. Grad Chat is a collaboration between the School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs and CFRC 101.9FM
Episodes
Join KM on the FM and Suyin the DJ Bear for a discussion of events, workshops, and support services on campus to explore in 2026.
Join KM on the FM and Suying the DJ Bear for a review of Grad Chat in Fall 2025.
Join Dr. Chikezirim Nwoke, a SSHRC postdoc in Geography and Planning, for a discussion of his research “Tech-in-to-the-Future” which explores immigration, Black youth empowerment, and digital technology in Canada’s shifting economy.
Join Ramtin Mojtahedi (Computing) for a discussion of his PhD research on deep learning approaches for liver cancer segmentation, tumour-type classification, and survival prediction from contrast-enhanced CT imaging. Ramtin is open to discussing his research further and can be reached at ramtin.mojtahedi@queensu.ca.
This week, join Barb Lotan, Manager of Sexual Violence Prevention & Response Services, to learn about the many supports and services the office provides to the Queen’s community.
Join Emily Croft (Art History) for a discussion of her dissertation research on the development of archaeological museums in Sardinia, Italy between 1861-1939.
Join Rachel Korchinsky (Chemistry) for a discussion of her PhD research which utilizes forward osmosis followed by reverse osmosis for the removal of contaminants of emerging concern using a CO2-responsive draw agent. Rachel also discusses her work as a member of Q-ACS (the Queen’s University International Student Chapter of the American Chemical Society).
This week, join Emily Ferguson (Kinesiology) as she explains her PhD research on mitochondrial responses to skeletal muscle-disuse and other exciting projects happening in the McGlory Lab. To learn more, check out https://www.queensu.ca/grad-postdoc/research/share/grad-chat .
Join Kana Ogawa (Translational Medicine) for a discussion of her Master’s research on the generation of alternative transcripts as a means of regulating phosphorylation in sonic hedgehog medulloblastoma. For more information check out the Grad Chat webpage on Queen’s University School of Graduate Studies & Postdoctoral Affairs website – https://www.queensu.ca/grad-postdoc/research/share/grad-chat
Join Mateus Karvat Camara this week for a discussion of his Master’s thesis exploring how collaborative perception can be used to improve autonomous vehicle operation under adverse weather conditions. For more information check out the Grad Chat webpage on Queen’s University School of Graduate Studies & Postdoctoral Affairs website – https://www.queensu.ca/grad-postdoc/research/share/grad-chat
This week, join Alicia Cuzner for a discussion of her Master of Education research on decolonizing education in the classroom, specifically in the National Capital Region. For more information check out the Grad Chat webpage on Queen’s University School of Graduate Studies & Postdoctoral Affairs website – https://www.queensu.ca/grad-postdoc/research/share/grad-chat
Join CJ the DJ for a very special episode with Queen’s University Chancellor Shelagh Rogers! The show focuses on the importance of strong communication skills, storytelling, and being a good listener. Chancellor Rogers also shares about her career in radio and TV which all started at CFRC. For more information check out the Grad Chat webpage on Queen’s University School of Graduate Studies & Postdoctoral Affairs website –...
Join Jessica Caravaggio (English) for a discussion of her research Fantasy, Fandom, and Feminist Community-Building which explores the connections of young adult fiction, feminist theory, and fandom studies in different communities of readers.
For more information check out the Grad Chat webpage on Queen’s University School of Graduate Studies & Postdoctoral Affairs website – https://www.queensu.ca/grad-postdoc/research/share/g...
This week’s show is hosted by Suyin the DJ Bear. Suyin the DJ Bear interviews CJ the DJ, Colette Steer, and KM on the FM, Katie-Marie McNeill, about Grad Chat’s history and future. As you may have heard, CJ the DJ is retiring from her role at Queen’s University, and she has passed hosting duties of Grad Chat to her colleague KM on the FM.
For upcoming interviews check out the Grad Chat webpage on Queen’s University School of ...
A social choice represents the collective decision of the individuals based on their preferences over the alternatives. There are societal services operated by governmental or non-governmental organizations which implement a social choice model. For example, the allocation of shelters to homeless individuals considers both the preferences of homeless individuals and the shelters. However, the preferences of such vulnerable populati...
With Canada’s aging population and rising immigration rates, this research explores the unique transportation challenges faced by older adult women—both local-born and immigrants—in mid-sized Canadian cities.
For upcoming interviews check out the Grad Chat webpage on Queen’s University School of Graduate Studies & Postdoctoral Affairs website.
Nithikaa looks at the effect of the Parent-Administered Sensorimotor Intervention (PASI) on the developmental outcomes in infants born preterm at 18 months of age and to determine the long-term impact of this program.
For upcoming interviews check out the Grad Chat webpage on Queen’s University School of Graduate Studies & Postdoctoral Affairs website.
Nikta’s research for my dissertation, titled “Queer Remembering: Fractured Memory and Haunted Futures in Contemporary Novels of the Black Diaspora,” focuses on the contemporary re-imagining of archiving Black pasts and futures in Afrofuturist, diasporic, fantasy novels. The authors and texts that I examine refuse the fluidity of time and truth, opting for fantastical representations of space and history. These alternative rep...
Danielle studies triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), an aggressive breast cancer subtype associated with poor survival. Unlike other subtypes for which there are targeted therapies, treatment options for TNBC are limited. In order to better understand the biology underlying TNBC, she studies a family of proteins called calpains.
For upcoming interviews check out the Grad Chat webpage on Queen’s University School of Graduate...
The Arctic is host to cold, hypersaline, perennial springs that flow through 600m of permafrost. I studied 44 samples from cores, sediments, filtrates and microbial mats from these springs. Surficial life at these springs has been studied for decades, but this is the first investigation that looks at the deep subsurface life. This is of interest as a Mars analogue site for deep subsurface life on Mars.
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