Welcome to this Mini-Series on The Grand Challengers Podcast! The topic of generative artificial intelligence (AI) has been in all our minds over the past few years and is gaining even more momentum with rapid advancements in text, audio and video. Google recently released NotebookLM, a powerful research-support AI that can generate not only summaries of sources that we feed it, but also entire podcast episodes. This Mini-Series will explore the power of NotebookLM, our live reactions to its outputs... and a deep dive into some of the topics that we have covered on the show. We feature previous guests, who are here to join in on the fun!

Episode #1 delves into "Cooling Establishment Time" - Lucas Gobatti (ep39) and I run this research paper through NotebookLM and record our reaction to the deep dive discussion it produces.

Full Reference to the Paper: Gobatti, L., Bach, P.M., Scheidegger, A. and Leitão, J.P., 2023. Using satellite imagery to investigate Blue-Green Infrastructure establishment time for urban cooling. Sustainable Cities and Society, 97, p.104768. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2023.104768

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Funky Fortune by Danny Shields (Check out more of his tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7vRFEGMyTTfeCtc8qiUB82?si=dygdqu9IQLSFYNvVzPNu5w)

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:26 Guest Intro
2:30 How this experiment works
3:49 Guest prior experience with AI
4:41 The human summary
5:55 Live Reaction
54:37 Post-Discussion
59:54 Thoughts on the future of AI
1:01:27 Final remarks

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

João P. Leitão, Senior Researcher at the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science & Technology (Eawag), Professor at ETH Zurich and the first guest of this podcast returns for a Part 2 to reflect on the podcast 40 episodes later, more fun topics about Portugal and major research topics that we did not cover on the first episode including urban drainage asset management, urban heat mitigation and the central role that water plays in adapting cities to climate change and an uncertain future. As a newly promoted Professor, we also look at what Joao's research plans are with his team going forward into a rapidly changing world.

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Starsky by Alex Keren (Check out more of his tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5vZ3lENfDLjkln8scBJ8mW)

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
2:04 Guest Intro and Reflections on the podcast
4:45 The return of salted cod (Bacalhau)
7:02 Portuguese Wine and Cork
9:23 A curious case of inheritance
13:30 Getting into the science
14:58 Updates in the world of flood models
16:42 Rainfall intensities & flood volumes
19:12 Balancing model complexity and insight
22:54 Joao's preferred term for BGI
24:29 Urban drainage asset management
29:03 Encouraging more data exchange and joint learning
31:05 Speaking a different language in disciplines
33:11 Leveraging time zones for research productivity
37:34 Beginning our journey on urban heat together
42:12 Uchimizu
49:03 Is GIS becoming more relevant?
52:21 The next stage of Joao's research
54:32 Q&A Start
54:59 If you had a magic wand?
58:29 What do you define as innovation?
1:00:51 Favourite childhood memory
1:03:58 What would you like to be remembered for?
1:04:53 Easter Egg: A not German joke
1:06:57 Final Message
1:07:57 Outro

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

Lucas Gobatti, PhD research at ETH Zurich and the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag) goes deep into how Albert Einstein, Benedictus de Spinoza and Karl Marx have shaped his worldview and connection to cities and nature. As a trained architect, civil engineer and urban planner, we discuss how he balances science and spirituality in his research on urban heat and stormwater management and how we can improve the liveability of cities in the global north and south, particularly in Switzerland and Brazil.

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Starsky by Alex Keren (Check out more of his tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5vZ3lENfDLjkln8scBJ8mW)

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:59 Guest Intro & Books
6:38 Einstein, Spinoza, Spirituality and the Laws of Nature
13:20 Karl Marx, spatial inequalities and cities
17:28 Late Marx, Kohei Saito and the three displacements
21:19 Microsimulation and agents as Lucas' entry point
24:17 From Altruism to Green Roofs and Stormwater
27:23 Brazil's Nature-based solutions Trajectory
30:13 Shedding light on a different planning landscape
35:08 Lucas' Urban Heat Research - Cooling establishment time
39:48 Lucas' Urban Heat Research - Role of water and irrigation
43:31 Experimenting with microclimate models
46:03 The Brasilandia District Project
50:10 Next steps in Lucas' Research
52:10 Q&A Start
52:26 What do you define as innovation?
54:46 Key event, book, person
59:49 Time Management
1:07:54 Favourite childhood memory
1:09:49 Biggest challenge in career to date
1:13:14 Advice for young professionals
1:15:37 What would you like to be remembered for?
1:23:35 Where can people find you?
1:24:35 Final Message
1:25:31 Outro

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

Patricia Cuervo Uría, Regional Delivery Manager at Binnies in the UK, Chartered Planner and fellow member of the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM) discusses her experience in planning for flood risk and discussing the impending challenge of mental health in relation to climate change. With over 18 years of experience in delivering local government services and implementation, we reflect on some large-scale infrastructure and small scale sustainable drainage projects across London and delve deep into the limits to planning and the power of stakeholder engagement.

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Starsky by Alex Keren (Check out more of his tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5vZ3lENfDLjkln8scBJ8mW)

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:59 Guest Intro and a London Walk
5:07 From Biology to Planning
13:37 London's Water in Context
15:46 Flooding and Flood Risk in London
23:26 The Thames Tideway Tunnels
29:46 Stakeholder Involvement in Planning
36:30 From city council to consulting - a change of hats
39:37 What about SuDS?
47:48 Empowerment from the Grenfell Tower Fire
56:15 Mental health and climate change
1:00:09 Patri's current endeavours
1:04:06 Q&A Start
1:04:54 What is innovation?
1:06:32 Key Event, Book person
1:09:22 If you had a magic wand?
1:10:50 Time management
1:12:44 Favourite childhood memory
1:14:43 Advice for young professionals
1:16:48 What would you like to be remembered for?
1:19:21 Where can people reach you?
1:20:05 Final Message
1:20:39 Outro

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

Brett Ferrin, Vice President of Sales North America at Traffic Logix discusses the evolving and more complex nature of traffic safety management and gives insight into the many ways we can ensure safety on our roads for vehicle operators and other users. We discuss the implications of rapidly exploding amounts of data and the potential of artificial intelligence to revolutionize and upheave safety planning including driverless cars, generating new insights from data and changing human behaviour in general. Brett also reflects on his career and how several career changes have helped him gain a rich body of knowledge around traffic safety, planning and management.

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Starsky by Alex Keren (Check out more of his tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5vZ3lENfDLjkln8scBJ8mW)

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:59 Guest Intro and Languages
7:10 Getting into traffic and Traffic Logix
10:23 The complexities of traffic
12:42 Vision Zero
16:38 Design with human behaviour in mind
23:43 Leveraging real-time data insights
25:03 NIMBY and the complexity of urban planning
30:49 Traffic Calming Measures
41:31 Future Challenges for Traffic Calming
43:35 Influence of AI on the transport system
49:21 A question of human control and freedom
52:25 When nothing changes, nothing changes
54:12 Brett's Future Trajectory
56:48 Q&A Start
57:15 What inspires you?
58:27 Key moment, book, event
1:02:49 If you had a magic wand?
1:04:34 Biggest challenge to date
1:07:57 Time Management
1:10:38 Advice for young professionals
1:12:31 Where can people find you?
1:13:48 Final Message
1:14:29 Outro

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

To finish off 2024 and reflect on the 35 episodes of The Grand Challengers Podcast so far, here is a very special episode. Guests from across the show got to ask me a question of their choosing and I have compiled them into a special episode titled "Tables Turned". In this episode, we look into 22 questions relating to the origin story and plans for the podcast, what it has taught me, my life and career choices, me answering my own questions and advice I can offer. Join me in this beautiful moment of looking back on the past two years of the show and hear about the challenges and fun times that I have experienced!

The podcast will return in 2025 with brand new episodes, brand new guests and even some familiar faces! Until then, I hope you enjoyed the listening experience so far and that this episode perhaps awakens your curiosity to check out the collection of existing stories offered by many inspiring individuals across broad ranges of topics.

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Astral Dance by Jimit (Check out more of Jimit's tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0hc1IxPxpmUgEIZGGUGrvm?si=z_uif82xQoqAqUy8KpB7JQ)

Chapters:
0:00 Preamble
0:21 Intro
1:36 Introducing the special episode
3:34 Why the podcast
5:28 The Ivory Tower
8:05 How long
9:37 Bloopers or not
11:54 A guest wishlist
15:41 An expanded guest wishlist
19:03 Effect of the podcast on oneself
21:24 How the podcast gives me hope
23:17 How have things changed across the production
26:41 Life and languages
28:43 Why Engineering, what else
37:22 Moving countries
41:18 Home is where the heart is
42:34 Staying in Switzerland
45:35 More general life advice
49:39 From my own PhD supervisor
51:25 My questions thrown back at me
51:45 If you had a magic wand?
54:09 Advice for young professionals
1:00:37 Wrap up - support the show
1:02:20 Outro

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

Yannick Back, Research Fellow at the Unit of Environmental Engineering, Innsbruck University shares an alternative way of looking at planning for urban heat mitigation, which is the intrinsic link between water and energy fluxes. We discuss how Yannick has harnessed the power of remote sensing (both aerial and satellite data sets) and geographic information systems to develop new ways of assessing and mitigating urban heat in cities. We also hear Yannick's take on what is needed for alpine areas and the world to adapt to the challenges of climate change.

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Starsky by Alex Keren (Check out more of his tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5vZ3lENfDLjkln8scBJ8mW)

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:59 Guest Intro and Ice Hockey
5:16 Austria, not to be confused with Australia
11:46 Getting into urban heat
18:33 How a geographer integrates with engineers
26:41 The rapid fine-scale approach and thermal comfort
35:20 Adding computational fluid dynamics
38:59 Surface energy fluxes - an alternative perspective to heat
45:27 Is there a “magic” number for urban heat mitigation?
50:31 The essential ink between water and energy
54:07 Key future challenges for alpine regions
55:58 The global data availability question
58:37 Yannick’s future research plans
1:00:34 Urban climate models vs. data ubiquity
1:02:51 Q&A Start
1:03:13 What inspires you?
1:05:18 Key event, person, book
1:07:57 If you had a magic wand?
1:11:04 Biggest challenge in career to date
1:14:59 Time management
1:17:08 Advice for young researchers
1:17:52 Where can people reach you?
1:18:58 Final Message
1:21:39 Outro

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/

Denise Mitrano, Assistant Professor in the Environmental System Science Department at ETH Zurich sheds some light into the topic of plastics pollution, from macro and micro to nano. Trained as an analytical chemist, we hear how Denise is using her skills to better understand how we can quantify, replace and reduce the sources for better environmental and human health protection. We also reflect on the role that science needs to play in future legislation around environmental protection and some tips on being an academic in a very dynamic discipline.

Podcast Intro/Outro Song: Starsky by Alex Keren (Check out more of his tunes over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5vZ3lENfDLjkln8scBJ8mW)

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:59 Guest Intro and getting out of your comfort zone
6:25 Discovering environmental chemistry and nanomaterials
13:17 Contaminants of emerging concern
16:16 Denise’s journey to Switzerland
18:00 Plastics 101
24:53 Two historical examples of plastics management
27:23 Can we create a plastic-free world?
30:36 Denise’s Research Pillar 1 - Analytical
34:40 Denise’s Research Pillar 2 - Transport and Fate
41:23 Metal-doped Microplastics
47:39 Denise’s Research Pillar 3 - Policy and Regulation
51:43 Denise’s Future Research Trajectory
57:43 Q&A Start
58:00 What inspires you?
58:56 If you had a magic wand?
1:01:16 Key event, person, book
1:02:59 Time management
1:05:07 Biggest challenge in career to date
1:07:44 Advice for young researchers
1:08:44 Where can people reach you?
1:09:07 Final Message
1:09:45 Outro

Detailed shownotes over at: petermbach.com/podcast for more in-depth information about each episode.
Join the community over at: linkedin.com/company/tgcpodcast and let's connect across the world!

Subscribe and listen to the podcast (and do please leave a review/rating) on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Your subscription/follow will greatly help the show grow and reach a wider audience.

Hosted by Peter Marcus Bach (www.petermbach.com), follow me on:

• X (fomerly Twitter): @petermbach
• Instagram: @petermbach87
• Subscribe to my channel on YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PeterMarcusBach/