Science is more than equations and experiments. In Alex the Physicist & Friends, Dr. Alexandra Mitchell shares candid conversations and personal reflections on careers, creativity, passions and discovery, revealing the fun and relatable side of science.
Anne L'Huillier: Watching electrons and winning Nobel Prizes mid-lecture
Hi Darling!
This week I'm bringing you a conversation with Anne L'Huillier, to talk about the science of attosecond pulses… and the very human journey behind them. Anne is a French-born physicist who works as a Professor in atomic physics at Lund university in Sweden and was the fifth woman to ever win the Nobel Prize for Physics.
In this interview we discuss the physics behind watching electrons and how attosecond light pulses help us to 'film' them. Anne's path into physics, her love of teaching and the reality of being a woman in physics over the last 40 years. And, of course, Anne describes what it's like to be a Nobel Laureate and the moment she got the call - in the middle of teaching a lecture!
This is a conversation about physics and teaching but also resilience, curiosity and the human side of being one of the top scientists in the world.
Until next time, Darling!
@alexthephysicist
8 Mar 2026
International Women's Day: What it's really like to be a woman in STEM in 2026
Hi Darling!
Happy International Women's Day!
In todays episode I am going to discuss what its really like to be a woman working in science, technology, engineering and maths in 2026. Using personal experiences from myself and people in my community I explore the problems and the power that comes with being a gender minority in STEM.
Through stories, survey responses, and honest reflection, we’ll talk about the patterns many women still encounter in scientific workplaces today. From subtle microaggressions and being underestimated, to structural barriers that still exist within academia and industry. But this episode is not just about the problems. It’s also about resilience, community, and the incredible women who continue to shape science despite these challenges.
This conversation is about awareness, accountability, and moving the needle toward a more inclusive scientific culture for everyone.
Whether you work in STEM yourself, support someone who does, or simply care about the future of science, I hope this episode sparks thoughtful conversation and encourages positive change.
Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences for this episode. Your voices matter.
If this episode resonates with you, please consider sharing it with a colleague, lab mate, or friend. Conversations like this are how change begins.
You can join in the conversation through my social media @alexthephysicist
Until next time, darling!
12 Feb 2026
Kelly Weerman: The Double Life of a Neutrino Physicist and National Athlete
Hi Darling!
In this episode I sit down with experimental particle physicist Kelly Weerman, who works on the Japanese neutrino experiment KamLAND-Zen and is also an athlete in the Dutch National Wushu team.
We talk about what doing a PhD actually feels like behind the scenes: burnout, motivation, imposter syndrome, and learning how to build a sustainable relationship with work. We also explore her research detecting neutrinos deep underground in Japan, the subsequent trips she got to take, and how training as an athlete shaped the way she approaches science.
A conversation about science, identity, balance, and the reality of building a life in academia. Kelly is a true inspiration.
Until next time Darling!
@alexthephysicist
24 Jan 2026
Wormholes, Academia & What Scientists Really Do
Hi darling!
This week I discuss what it is actually like to work in academia and research and the science behind 'stranger things'... Are scientists “still in school”? Do professors just teach all day? And is the science in Stranger Things even remotely realistic?
In this solo episode of Alex the Physicist & Friends, I break down what a career in science and academia really looks like, from PhDs and postdocs to permanent academic positions. I talk honestly about the pros, cons, instability, freedom, pressure, and misconceptions that come with working in research, especially in physics.
We also dive into the real science behind Stranger Things, unpacking wormholes, spacetime, exotic matter, and how much of sci-fi is grounded in real physics (and where it definitely takes creative liberties).
Alongside that, I share life updates from California and Stanford, what I’m currently working on in gravitational wave research
@alexthephysicist
9 Jan 2026
Julia Bauman: Inside a Genetics PhD and the Reality of Science TikTok
Hi Darling!
This week I sit down with Julia Bauman, a genetics PhD student at Stanford University. Driven by curiosity about what makes people who they are and a desire to help treat diseases like Alzheimer’s, which has affected her family, Julia began her path on a pre-med track before realising research was where her passion truly lay and choosing a PhD over an MD. Alongside her research Julia makes science publication explainer videos on TikTok, where she has built a following of over 33,000 as a science communicator.
In this conversation, we talk about her journey from medicine to research, the motivations behind her science communication, and the challenges of balancing content creation with PhD life, as well as her uncertainty around how it might evolve in the future.
Follow Julia on TikTok: @60_secondscience
Thanks for listening!
@alexthephysicist
31 Dec 2025
New year, New season!
Hi Darling!
Happy new year!! New year, new season of Alex the Physicist & Friends!
A new season means a new format and I'm changing up the solo podcast episodes, bringing you more of the chaos, more of the science and just generally more fun. New features include Dr Darlings hotline, weekly updates (in life and in science), Darling's Delight and the Chaos forecast. This week I discuss my 2025 and what I have planned for 2026, power laws (thanks Uri), vacuum bags and NYE plans! Can't wait to take you on this journey with me this year, bring on the chaos.
23 Oct 2025
The Quantum Shaman: do quantum crystals and chat GPT have consciousness?
Hi Darling!
This week I sit down with Dr Aaron Breidenbach, a Stanford physicist, Nature-published scientist, and self-proclaimed Quantum Shaman. Aaron’s research into exotic magnetic crystals could hold the key to the next generation of quantum computers, but his curiosity doesn’t stop there.
These crystals aren’t just lab-grown, amazingly, they occur naturally in the Atacama Desert, one of the most remote and mysterious places on Earth. The indigenous Atacameño people, whose traditions are deeply animistic, believe everything is conscious... even the mountains themselves. Aaron is heading there to see if these two worlds can meet: could the physics of his crystals and the spirituality of the desert reveal a shared understanding of consciousness?
We talk about quantum computers, consciousness, AI, and whether matter itself might be aware. Aaron shares why he thinks a computer made from his crystals could one day be conscious and how he plans to use psychedelics and indigenous wisdom to understand what physics alone can’t explain.
If you’ve ever wondered where science ends and spirituality begins, this one’s for you.
You can follow Aarons jouney here: thequantumshaman.wordpress.com (https://thequantumshaman.wordpress.com)
This is the final episode in series 1 of Alex the Physicist & friends, I'll be back with more in a few weeks time!
@alexthephysicist
13 Oct 2025
What I lost & what I found when I moved across the world
Hi Darling!
After two international moves, from the UK to Amsterdam and more recently to California, I've learnt a thing or two about the process. There are inevitable losses and incredibly tough moments but there is also exciting new places and brilliant new friends. In this episode, I share the raw side of moving countries: the loneliness, the heartbreak, and the growth that comes after everything falls apart.
@alexthephysicist
6 Oct 2025
Behind the Scenes: At a Gravitational Waves Conference
Hi Darling!
Have you ever wondered what a science conference is like? Come behind the scenes with me at a LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA (gravitational wave detectors) collaboration meeting. I'll take you around the conference (and into the pub), describing what I'm up to and talking to other scientists about their conference experiences, which gravitational wave emitter they would be and the case of the stolen blueberry muffin.
Big thanks to all of the scientists who got involved in this episode:
Mike Landry, Jenne Driggers, Matthew Todd, Bram Slagmolen, Disha Kapasi, Tomislav Andric, Derek Davis, Lucy Thomas, Lauren McDermott (& of course Nako), Brian Lantz & others in the pub!
@alexthephysicist
25 Sept 2025
Mattia Emma: Physics and Philanthropy, Building a Girls’ School in Kenya
Hi Darling!
This episode was recorded on a hike in the Rocky mountains with Mattia Emma, a gravitational wave astrophysicist who is finishing up his PhD at the Royal Holloway in London. Mattia shares how a summer volunteer trip led him to setting up the Storm Project, an NGO to support a girls boarding school in a remote part of Kenya. We discuss the many times he was told he was 'too young' by accountants and lawyers, the creation of a league-winning basketball program at the school, and the challenges of COVID which led to teaching being provided on WhatsApp.
This conversation moves from the vastness of the universe to the realities of rural Kenya: the power of education, the challenges of culture and tradition, and what it means to balance cutting-edge science with grassroots change.
If you’ve ever wondered how someone can chase gravitational waves and transform lives on the ground at the same time, this episode is for you.
The Storm Project:
@stormprojectonlus instagram
https://www.linkedin.com/company/storm-project/
https://mattiamaralal.github.io/stormproject/en/ website - in the process of being updated!
https://www.teaming.net/storm donation page
20 Sept 2025
The trip that saved my career
Hi Darling!
Today I share a story from my PhD about a trip I went on to America. This trip changed my whole perspective and I went from considering quitting my PhD to having a dream job in the field.
The paper I mention is now published! You can find it here: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1361-6382/ae0087
@alexthephysicist
14 Sept 2025
GW10 Kip Thorne: From Black Holes to Blockbusters
Hi Darling!
For part two of the GW10 series I sit down with Nobel Laureate Kip Thorne, a founder of LIGO, black-hole theorist, and the science mind behind Interstellar.
We talk about the 50 year journey from a bold idea to the first detection of gravitational waves, the brainstorms that seeded quantum computing and precision measurement, and how collaborating with artists and filmmakers reshaped the way he thinks about the universe.
Kip shares lessons on finding your own niche in science, embracing creativity, and having fun with hard problems whether you’re chasing spacetime ripples or crafting Hollywood blockbusters.
@alexthephysicist
14 Sept 2025
GW10 Barry Barish: Secrets, Strategy, and Spacetime
Hi Darling!
For the final part of the GW10 series I sit down with the second Nobel Laureate physicist Barry Barish, the leader who guided LIGO to the first detection of gravitational waves.
Barry invited me to his home in Santa Monica for my very first interview for the podcast, quite a way to start! We talk about his path from engineering student to particle-physics pioneer, the bold decisions that turned LIGO into a success, and what it was like to keep the 2015 discovery secret while the world waited.
He also shares the excitement (and chaos) of winning the Nobel Prize and offers thoughtful advice on finding joy and purpose in a scientific career.
10 Sept 2025
GW10 A Brief Introduction to Gravitational Waves
Hi Darling! GW10 is a three part series celebrating the 10 year anniversary of the first detection of gravitational waves on September 14th 2015.
In this episode I introduce what gravitational waves are in basic terms and describe their effect and therefore how we detect them. I also discuss my own research in the field and how this could improve our ability to observe the universe, and the future plans for gravitational wave detectors, where we hope to detect astronomical events from closer to the big bang than ever before!
In the following two parts I will be interviewing Kip Thorne and Barry Barish about the first detection, their careers and winning the Nobel prize.
This episode is dedicated to Rainer Weiss, the third Nobel prize winner for the first detection, who sadly passed away just a couple of weeks ago. Rai was a pioneer of the field and we benefitted heavily from his insight and brilliance. The entire gravitational wave community will miss him dearly.
Some videos showing the 'fabric of spacetime' demonstration are linked below:
https://youtu.be/MTY1Kje0yLg?si=tl_IMLXDL00um_Uj
https://youtu.be/dw7U3BYMs4U?si=KM1kem8QjZY5qf_o
3 Sept 2025
Ali James: from Lacrosse to LIGO
Hi Darling!
Ali and I connect over lasers, lacrosse, LIGO and nationalizing the railways.
Despite meeting at university in the UK, we are now both working in California and have been working on some projects together for LIGO - the gravitational wave detectors in America. In this conversation we reminisce on some fun times (and some interesting interactions), explain what it's like to work in academia and discuss our journeys to where we are now.
@alexthephysicist
3 Sept 2025
My physicist origin story
Hi Darling!
Welcome to the podcast! Thank you so much for listening.
Today I introduce myself, the podcast, why I've started it and what I hope to achieve with it. I will also tell my 'physics origin story' - how I got into physics and the start of my journey so far.
@alexthephysicist
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