The Aspiring STEM Geek

Hi everyone, welcome to The Aspiring STEM Geek! The podcast is a casual conversation with a guest about science, technology and other related topics.

The Aspiring STEM Geek is a technology podcast hosted by Adrian Dolinay, with 30 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Adrian Dolinay hosts The Aspiring STEM Geek, a technology show with 30 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  Episode #31

  Ice Class Vessels with Rob Hindley - #31

  Sep 28, 20261h 34m

  In this episode I talk with Rob Hindley, the Head ofConsultancy and Technology Development at Railotech. The focus of this episode is on the design of ice class vessels. Rob starts the conversation by defining ice class vessels and ice breakers. Then we do a deep dive into the topic; wediscuss the service life of ice class vessels, the mariners who crew the vessel, the arctic conditions the vessels encounter, the properties and behavior of different types of ice, the design and engineering behind the vessels, the common energy sources used to power vessels, the industry for ice class vessels and much more. I hope you enjoy! ARTICLES: Ice Management: https://railotech.fi/app/uploads/2018/08/arctic_passion_news_2011_0.pdf U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star marks 50 years ofservice, begins Operation Deep Freeze 2026: https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/4385905/ Froud Number (Froud scaling laws): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Froude_number Fram Museum: https://frammuseum.no/en/ WEBSITES: Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers: https://sname.org/ BOOKS: Through Ice and Fire by Sarah Laverick CONNECT: LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrian-dolinay-frm-96a289106/ GitHub: https://github.com/ad17171717 X:https://twitter.com/DolinayG Odysee: https://odysee.com/@adriandolinay:0 Medium: https://medium.com/@adriandolinay PODCAST: Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aspiring-stem-geek/id1765996824 Audible: https://www.audible.com/podcast/The-Aspiring-STEM-Geek/B0DC73S9SN iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/202676097/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/60dPNJbDPaPw7ru8g5btxV |-Video Chapters-| 0:00 – Intro 1:40 – Defining ice class vessels 4:07 – Ice breakers 6:46 – Escort Icebreaker 7:53 – Service life of ice class vessels 9:55 – Vessel size categories 12:15 – The mariners who crew ice class vessels 15:08 – The different types of ice 20:15 – The mechanics of ice 22:22 – Avoiding ice 24:20 – Gliding through ice 26:50 – Getting stuck in ice 32:23 – Specialized material on the hull of ice class vessels 34:09 – Propulsion systems and the energy fueling ice class vessels 40:58 – The tradeoffs considered when designing a vessel 44:15 – Maintenance of an ice class vessel 48:03 – Prototyping vessels 52:54 – Scaling up prototypes 57:55 – Finland’s maritime ecosystem 1:03:16 – Maritime regulations 1:13:48 – Customer base for ice class vessels 1:15:36 – Arctic shipping routes 1:20:07 – Getting started in the ship building industry 1:22:47 – Rob’s most memorable experience on a vessel he engineered 1:24:29 – Coldest temperature Rob has experienced 1:27:01 – Places and activities in Finland 1:29:25 – Book recommendation 1:31:12 – Conclusion

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  Episode #30

  Data Center Cooling with Kelley Mullick - #30

  Aug 28, 202651 min

  In this episode I talk with Dr. Kelley Mullick a data centerexpert and the CEO and co-Founder of Avayla Consulting Group. The focus of thisepisode is on the technology and methods used to cool data centers. We startthe episode discussing Kelley’s academic background as a chemist and breakinginto the data center field at Intel. Then we get into data center cooling. Kelley explains themetrics used to evaluate the thermal performance of data centers, the overallincrease in compute power usage in the AI age, common cooling methods such asair and liquid cooling, how data center operators determine the optimal coolingmix for their facility, the costs of retrofitting a data center with moreadvanced cooling technology and much more. I hope you enjoy! ARTICLES & PAPERS: Kelley’s PhD dissertation: https://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1324247960 CPU Cooler: Liquid Cooling Vs. Air Cooling: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/gaming/resources/cpu-cooler-liquid-cooling-vs-air-cooling.html Alibaba is developing its own immersion cooling tech: https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/alibaba-is-developing-its-own-immersion-cooling-tech/ Hybrid Liquid Cooling Is the Only Way to Stop AI fromBoiling Over by Kelley Mullick: https://thesiliconreview.com/2025/11/hybrid-liquid-cooling-is-the-only-way-to-stop-ai-from-boiling-over Cool It: Team Tackles the Thermal Challenge Data CentersFace: https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/liquid-cooling-doe-challenge/ Americans Oppose AI Data Centers in Their Area: https://news.gallup.com/poll/709772/americans-oppose-data-centers-area.aspx How is Switch Building AI-Ready Sustainable Data Centres?: https://datacentremagazine.com/news/how-is-switch-building-ai-ready-sustainable-data-centres BOOKS: Nancy Drew Series MUSIC INTRO/OUTRO: massobeats - chamomile (https://youtu.be/YFuAgsA4bNI) CONNECT: LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrian-dolinay-frm-96a289106/ GitHub: https://github.com/ad17171717 X:https://twitter.com/DolinayG Odysee: https://odysee.com/@adriandolinay:0 Medium: https://medium.com/@adriandolinay PODCAST: Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aspiring-stem-geek/id1765996824 Audible: https://www.audible.com/podcast/The-Aspiring-STEM-Geek/B0DC73S9SN iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/202676097/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/60dPNJbDPaPw7ru8g5btxV |-Video Chapters-| 0:00 – Intro 1:32 – Kelley’s interest in STEM and the arts 2:23 – Studying chemistry in undergrad and grad school 6:17 – Defining what a data center is 7:13 – Kelley’s time at Intel 9:33 – Why compute needs to be cooled 10:33 – Metrics to measure the thermal performance of a data center 13:39 – Colocation operator vs hyperscalers 14:55 – AI and increased compute power usage 20:15 – Components outside of compute that contribute to a data center’sthermal load 20:48 – Data center cooling methods 26:16 – How data center operators determine the optimal cooling architecture 29:17 – Data centers outside of the United States 31:40 – The potential best path for data center cooling 34:28 – Feasibility of retrofitting data centers with more advanced cooling 37:54 – The public’s view on data centers 40:43 – Kelley’s ideal data center policies 44:25 – Things to do in Ohio 46:48 – Book recommendations 48:16 - Conclusion

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  Episode #29

  NASA and Aviation with Nancy Currie-Gregg - #29

  Jul 15, 202649 min

  In this episode I talk with Dr. Nancy Currie-Gregg, a formerArmy aviation officer, NASA astronaut and current Professor of Practice, Industrial & Systems Engineering and Aerospace Engineering at Texas A&M University. In the episode, we discuss how Nancy became interested in aviation at a young age, her decision to join the Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, Nancy’s work as an Army Aviator, her time as a NASA flight simulation engineer, attending the Astronaut Candidate Training Program, the experience of taking off into space, her role as a flight engineer across fourNASA space missions, the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, Nancy leading the Space Shuttle Program’s Safety and Mission Assurance Office after the Columbia disaster, her recommendation to aspiring Astronauts and much more. I hope you enjoy! ARTICLES: STS-57: https://www.nasa.gov/mission/sts-57/ STS-88: https://www.nasa.gov/mission/sts-88/ Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) Report (2003): https://govinfo.library.unt.edu/caib/news/report/volume1/default.html The Challenger STS-51L Accident: https://www.nasa.gov/challenger-sts-51l-accident/ What we know about the midair plane and helicopter crashnear Washington, D.C.: https://www.npr.org/2025/01/30/nx-s1-5280198/plane-crash-washington-dc-helicopter-potomac Neil Armstrong, Ohio teachers inspired astronaut NancyCurrie-Gregg: https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/usa250/2026/04/12/nancy-currie-gregg-astronaut-challenger-explosion-ohio/89441020007/ BOOKS: The Challenger launch decision by Diane Vaughan Normal Accidents by Charles Perrow MUSIC INTRO/OUTRO: massobeats - bonsai ( https://youtu.be/BgjrxtC_WlE ) CONNECT: LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrian-dolinay-frm-96a289106/ GitHub: https://github.com/ad17171717 X:https://twitter.com/DolinayG Odysee: https://odysee.com/@adriandolinay:0 Medium: https://medium.com/@adriandolinay PODCAST: Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aspiring-stem-geek/id1765996824 Audible: https://www.audible.com/podcast/The-Aspiring-STEM-Geek/B0DC73S9SN iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/202676097/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/60dPNJbDPaPw7ru8g5btxV |-Video Chapters-| 0:00 – Intro 0:21 – Nancy’s interest in math and science growing up 1:09 – Studying Biological Science and joining Army Reserve Officers' TrainingCorps 4:55 – Army aviation school 8:17 –Helicopter Instructor Pilot 10:22 – NASA Simulation Engineer 14:54 – NASA’s Shuttle Training Aircraft 19:14 – Fault injection in flight simulation 21:57 – NASA’s Astronaut Candidate Training Program 24:56 – Space Transportation System 57 (STS-57) 32:16 –Space Transportation System 88 (STS-88) 37:00 – The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster and the aftermath 41:38 – Breaking into the space industry 43:56 – Book recommendation 46:34 – Conclusion

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  Episode #28

  Welding with Estevan Ortega - #28

  Jul 1, 20261h 53m

  In this episode I talk with Estevan Ortega, a welder and welding instructor at Santa Fe Community College. We first discuss how Estevan got into welding. Then Estevan explains what welding is, the equipment utilized, the science of welding, different welding processes such as MIG, TIG and STICK, the industries welders can work in, specialized fields such as welding for national labs or underwater welding, the salaries of welders and much more. I hope you enjoy! Estevan’s Art Welding at Globe Fine Art: https://globefineart.com/artist/estevan-ortega ARTICLES: A Comprehensive Guide to Groove Welding: https://www.lincolntech.edu/news/skilled-trades/welding-technology/comprehensive-guide-groove-welding Lunch atop a Skyscraper: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunch_atop_a_Skyscraper Rail safety investigators release final report on deadlysouthern Colorado derailment: https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/rail-safety-investigators-final-report-deadly-pueblo-colorado-derailment/ The Santa Fe Opera brings non-traditional applications ofwelding studies to high school students: https://www.santafeopera.org/company/press-news-media/welding-at-the-opera/ BOOKS: King James Bible Dante’s Inferno by Dante Alighieri Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy MUSIC INTRO/OUTRO:Music: massobeats - familiar places (https://youtu.be/M0NqWjmUl4Q) CONNECT: LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrian-dolinay-frm-96a289106/ GitHub: https://github.com/ad17171717 X:https://twitter.com/DolinayG Odysee: https://odysee.com/@adriandolinay:0 Medium: https://medium.com/@adriandolinay PODCAST: Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aspiring-stem-geek/id1765996824 Audible:https://www.audible.com/podcast/The-Aspiring-STEM-Geek/B0DC73S9SN?source_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdp iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/202676097/ Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/60dPNJbDPaPw7ru8g5btxV?si=26e034e416f446d8 |-Video Chapters-| 0:00 – Intro 1:03 – Estevan’s Interest in engineering and the trades growing up 2:27 – How Estevan got into welding 4:13 – Defining welding 6:19 – Equipment that novice welders learn to use 7:09 – Welding personal protective equipment (PPE) 10:01 – Thermal cycle of welding 13:12 – The big four welding processes 16:44 – Orbital, Laser welding and advanced technologies 20:28 – Welding material forms 27:39 – Welding joint types 28:52 – Base and filler metals 32:19 – Welding in the field vs welding in a shop 35:57 – Thermal cutting 37:24 – Welding in Alaska 40:00 – Welding symbols 42:06 – Identifying welding defects 48:03 – Walking through a real world example of a welding job 54:16 – If you are older what are your options in welding? 58:37 – Which industries currently have a high demand for welders? 1:02:07 – Working for national labs and high tech companies 1:07:01 – Hyperbaric (underwater) welding 1:12:13 – Where Estevan’s welding students find work 1:17:28 – How welding salaries compare to other trades 1:21:24 – The gender gap in welding 1:27:02 – How to get started in welding 1:31:41 – If Estevan could work in a different field it would be… 1:36:29 – Estevan’s work with a local high school at the Santa Fe Opera 1:39:24 – Estevan’s art 1:43:16 – Best activities in Santa Fe 1:46:41 – Book Recommendations 1:51:00 – Conclusion

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  Episode #27

  Data Centers with Jonathan Koomey - #27

  Jun 15, 20261h 32m

  In this episode I talk with Dr. Jonathan Koomey, the founder of Koomey Analytics and a former researcher and scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Labs. The focus of this episode is on data centers. We first start with Jon’s interest in the history of science which he studied at Harvard for his undergraduate. We go over Jon’s PhD thesis on why cost-effective energy efficiency measures may not be adopted in new office buildings. Then we get to data centers. Jonathan discusses the difficulties in obtaining the energy usage data for data centers, the tradeoff between innovation and understanding energy use, limitations of AI in research, a phenomenological model named Koomey’s law that Jon developed, GPUs, software to develop more energy efficient AI models, energy efficient vs inefficient data centers, how companies decide where to build data centers & much more. I hope you enjoy! Koomey Analytics Website: www.koomey.com PAPERS: Jon’s PhD Thesis: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/268339858 Estimating Bitcoin Electricity Use: A Beginner’s Guide: https://coincenter.org/estimating-bitcoin-electricity-use-a-beginners-guide Implications of Historical Trends in the ElectricalEfficiency of Computing: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/224128141 Characteristics of low-carbon data centres: https://www.nature.com/articles/nclimate1786 Separating fact from fiction in data center electricity forecasts: A guide for regulators: https://gridlab.org/portfolio-item/data-center-load-forecast-report Electricity Demand Growth and Data Centers: A Guide for the Perplexed: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/report/electricity-demand-growth-and-data-centers/ ARTICLES: Data center energy use: truth versus myth: https://www2.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Archive/data-center-energy-myth.html Koomey’s Law: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koomey%27s_law 2024 United States Data Center Energy Usage Report: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/32d6m0d1 To better understand AI’s growing energy use, analysts need a data revolution: https://www.cell.com/joule/fulltext/S2542-4351(24)00347-7 BOOKS: The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman Reinventing the Bazaar by John McMillan Linked: The New Science of Networks by Albert-László Barabási TEXTBOOK: Turning Numbers into Knowledge: Mastering the Art of Problem Solving by Jonathan Koomey VIDEO: China and AI Supply Chains: DeepSeek, Huawei, Transformers,Robotics, and More with TP Huang: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAXOP5gt_5I&t=689s CONNECT: LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrian-dolinay-frm-96a289106/ GitHub: https://github.com/ad17171717 X:https://twitter.com/DolinayG Odysee: https://odysee.com/@adriandolinay:0 Medium: https://medium.com/@adriandolinay PODCAST: Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1765996824 Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/B0DC73S9SN iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/202676097/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/60dPNJbDPaPw7ru8g5btxV |-Video Chapters-| 0:00 – Intro 1:39 – Jon’s interest in science and energy 2:37 – Energy issues in 2026 7:24 – Jon studying the History of Science at Harvard 10:19 – Jon’s research at UC Berkeley 11:38 – Jon’s PhD Thesis on energy efficiency in new office buildings 19:51 – Rated power vs. actual power draw for hardware 26:32 – Why is energy usage not well measured by tech manufacturers? 28:05 – Critical thinking and the limitations of AI 34:05 – Koomey’s Law 38:59 – CUDA the software behind Nvidia’s GPUs 40:53 – AI software development in China 43:50 – Efficient vs inefficient data centers 49:47 – The shift from On Prem to Cloud 51:39 – How do companies decide where to build data centers? 57:24 – Data centers in the AI age 1:02:19 – Will the US and China dominate in data center compute? 1:05:35 – Does the type of AI algorithm affect energy efficiency of datacenters? 1:08:54 – The issues with assumptions about AI 1:17:38 – Jon’s ideal data center policies 1:24:59 – Book recommendations 1:29:51 – Conclusion

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