Season 1

In the introductory episode, Lorena and Alex introduce themselves and share how they got started in computational biology. They talk about their career paths, what drew them to bioinformatics, and some of the challenges and surprises they've encountered along the way.

Alex and Lorena dive into a recent single-cell project where everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. From sample prep issues to contamination, they discuss how to troubleshoot when your data looks nothing like you expected.

Lorena and Alex share the twists and turns of realizing their methylation data wasn't what it seemed. From puzzlingly low mapping rates to unexpected cloud costs caused by unoptimized compute jobs, they highlight how essential clear communication and bioinformatics-aware experimental design are to any successful project.

Alex and Lorena discuss a large bulk RNA-seq project that yielded lasting changes to their group's everyday bioinformatics practices via the creation of parameterized R Markdown code templates.

In this episode, we journey through the real-life challenges of building interactive single cell spatial data visualizations for large projects. Lorena shares her recent adventure turning mountains of data into a web app using tools like Python, R, and Vitessce.

Alex and Lorena dive into modern R programming best practices, covering everything from using renv for dependency management to proper R package structure and testing frameworks.

Alex and Lorena welcome Katie Hughes, their first guest, to discuss her career transition from bioinformatics to product management. Katie shares her journey and emphasizes the importance of curiosity, adaptability, and soft skills.

In this episode, Alex and Lorena tackle the computational challenges of spatial transcriptomics. Learn how BPCells can help you work with millions of cells without needing terabytes of RAM, discover how Banksy's neighborhood-aware clustering reveals tissue architecture.

We sit down with Lina Faller, a veteran in bioinformatics with nearly two decades of experience. Lina shares why computational biologists should keep lab notebooks (yes, even if your "lab" is just a laptop). From reproducibility to institutional memory to the art of "forensic bioinformatics."

Hosts Alex Bartlett and Lorena Pantano sit down with Saranya Canchi, a computational biologist specializing in neuroscience. Together, they explore how to thrive as a self-directed learner in bioinformatics—tackling early challenges, learning through projects, and building problem-solving resilience.

What really happens when a wet lab scientist and a computational biologist sit down to plan an experiment? Lorena Pantano and Alex Bartlett chat with Amulya about the real talk nobody tells you about scientific collaborations.

As our first season comes to an end, we wish all of our listeners a very happy holiday season! In this episode, Lorena Pantano and Alex Bartlett present 12 cool things in bioinformatics. From a tool that will rescue you out of Python dependency hell to one that can generate a functional genome.