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Dr. Ariel Furst is the Paul M. Cook Career Development Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She received her B.S. degree in chemistry from the University of Chicago and her PhD in chemistry from the California Institute of Technology. Afterwards, she was awarded a Beckman Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship, and she conducted postdoctoral research at the University of California, Berkeley before joining the faculty at MIT in 2019. Ariel has received a variety of awards during her career, including the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award, the Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, the Marion Milligan Mason Award from American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Women in Chemical Engineering Rising Star Award from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), and the Outstanding Mentor Award from the MIT Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program. She was also named a Scialog Fellow for Negative Emissions Science. In our interview, she shares more about her life and science.
People Behind the Science Podcast Show Notes
Life Outside of Science (3:06)
In her free time, Ariel and her husband enjoy experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen. She also likes to spend time outdoors hiking, jogging, and doing fun activities like apple picking with her lab members.
The Scientific Side (4:13)
In her research, Ariel has been using microbes to address problems surrounding human health, environmental remediation, and sustainability. They focus on energy equity by developing new technologies that are accessible to people who haven’t had access to technology but are negatively impacted by it. She is also working towards energy justice by developing technology and approaches to remediate prior harms to marginalized communities.
A Dose of Motivation (5:35)
“If you try it once, and it doesn’t work, try it again. If you try it a second time, and it doesn’t work, try it a third time. If it doesn’t work a third time, go take a break and head home for the day.”
What Got You Hooked on Science? (8:43)
When Ariel took her first chemistry classes in high school, she was not a fan. She didn’t like that every session in the lab portion of the class had a predetermined outcome. There were no elements of excitement or discovery. However, during high school, Ariel had an opportunity to experience scientific research first hand working in a research lab at a nearby university. The experience was transformative. When she enrolled in college at Wesleyan University, Ariel liked the school, but she wasn’t finding a research lab that was a good fit for her interests. She decided to transfer to the University of Chicago, and the research she did there really solidified her excitement for science. Ariel worked with exceptional scientists on fascinating projects throughout her training. When choosing her postdoc, Ariel knew she wanted to stay in a particular geographic area to be close to her significant other, and this was the right decision for her situation. She was ultimately drawn to MIT because of the outstanding science and the emphasis on translating science into real-world solutions that could improve people’s lives.
The Low Points: Failures and Challenges (20:06)
As a graduate student, Ariel worked on four different projects in her first year, but none of them were really going anywhere. During her committee meeting in her second year, Ariel’s committee told her she needed to start over with new projects because none of the current ones were panning out. She left the meeting feeling defeated and like she had wasted two years of hard work. A few frustrating months later, Ariel had developed new projects, and everything she worked on progressed much faster. She developed control experiments and moved forward more efficiently than would have otherwise been possible if she hadn’t had the knowledge and expertise from her prior failures. Learning to fail fast was a valuable lesson. Even though Ariel didn’t publish her first research paper until her fourth year of graduate school, she has had a successful career since then. It is important to remember that everyone’s PhD journey is different, and it’s how you handle the hard times that will determine your success.
A Shining Success! (24:39)
One of the platforms that Ariel’s team has developed allows them to put particular proteins on the surface of microbes. She does this genetically rather than by chemically attaching or isolating and purifying the proteins. Though the genetic approach was developed initially because she didn’t want to spend her Saturdays as a postdoc purifying proteins, this approach has proven to be tremendously valuable, has important benefits over other methods, and can be applied to a variety of projects in her lab. On the remediation side, Ariel’s group has worked on microbes that can degrade pesticides, forever chemicals, and plastics, and they have developed methods to use microbes for recycling rare earth elements and metals. Ariel and her team have also pioneered new chemical coatings for microbes to protect them during manufacturing and enhance their functions. For example, they developed microbes that can replace chemical fertilizers and increase crop yields.
Book Recommendations (6:50)
Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou, Crying in H Mart: A Memoir by Michelle Zauner
Most Treasured Travel (32:21)
A particularly inspiring and memorable trip that Ariel took for science brought her to Kyoto, Japan. She attended a science and technology conference there that brought together academic researchers, industry scientists, and policymakers. Having conversations with policymakers and understanding how they look at problems was really eye-opening. It has helped Ariel figure out what metrics they need to hit with their projects and what success would look like for policymakers. In addition, Ariel stayed a few extra days after the conference to see the city, and she enjoyed exploring the wide variety of temples in Kyoto. They were incredibly beautiful and surprisingly unique. Each temple had its own purpose and aesthetic.
Quirky Traditions and Funny Memories (35:07)
In graduate school at Caltech, there was a softball league that many of the labs participated in. Ariel’s lab was on a five year losing streak, and they didn’t win a single game the entire time she was there. They didn’t take these losses too seriously, and it was a lot of fun to hang out with the group every week and get to know people in the lab better. In her current lab, Ariel and her team plan a variety of different events throughout the year. For example, they had a fantastic time at an axe throwing excursion. Everyone had to choose a nickname, and the axe throwing got so intense that one of the boards fell down while they were there. The venue let them keep it, so they all signed the board, and it now has a special spot on the wall in Ariel’s office.
Advice For Us All (39:09)
The advice Ariel gives and the stories she shares are from within the framework of her own survivor bias as a faculty member at a great institution with an amazing lab. Everyone’s experiences and perspectives are different, so if anything doesn’t resonate with you, disregard it. No two paths are the same. Also, make sure to make the time and space for yourself. Your mental and physical health are key for ensuring that you can be the best scientist possible. Try to find an environment where that is honored and supported.
Support for this episode of People Behind the Science was provided by New England Biolabs, Inc.