# Grad School Time Capsule with Joshua and Zach

- Show: [The Amp Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour)
- Published: 2022-12-05
- Length: 1h 59m
- Episode: 611
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach
- Listen: https://theamphour.com/611-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach/

## Summary

Joshua Vasquez of the Allen Institute and Zach Ferdinand of Commonwealth Fusion Systems reflect on their graduate school journeys, contrasting a 2019 recording with their current industry roles. Vasquez details the development of Jubilee, an open-source multi-tool CNC machine, focusing on kinematic couplings and the challenges of documentation. Ferdinand discusses his work at MIT on diamond rotors for NMR and his current role at Commonwealth Fusion Systems building high-field fusion magnets using high-temperature superconductors.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach#t=0) Introduction: Joshua Vasquez and Zach Ferdinand
- [2:16](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach#t=136) 2019 Context: Jubilee and Neurotinker Origins
- [5:07](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach#t=307) Zach at MIT: Reconfigurable Systems and Fab Labs
- [7:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach#t=462) Joshua at UW: Jubilee and Kinematic Couplings
- [13:20](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach#t=800) Sourcing Kinematic Components and Misumi
- [24:31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach#t=1471) Zach's NMR Work: Diamond Rotors and Micro-Machining
- [32:08](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach#t=1928) Grad School Challenges: Funding, Pressure, and Burnout
- [59:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach#t=3542) Current Roles: Allen Institute and Commonwealth Fusion Systems
- [1:32:05](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach#t=5525) 2019 Flashback: Motivations for Returning to Academia

## Topics

- [Mechanical engineering](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/mechanical-engineering)
- [Materials & manufacturing processes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/materials-and-processes)
- [Design for manufacturing & NPI](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/design-for-manufacturing)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)
- [Sourcing & supply chain](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sourcing-and-supply-chain)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies, companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Jubilee (product)
- Allen Institute (company)
- Commonwealth Fusion Systems (company)
- Neurotinker (company)
- Baltech (company)
- Misumi (company)
- E3D (company)
- Prusa (company)
- SolidWorks (tool)
- KiCad (tool)
- Alibaba (other)
- eBay (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Ep 273: A Tube Snoot, Dynamic Button Blobs, and Tokamaks Aren't Whack](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2024-05-31-ep-273-a-tube-snoot-dynamic-button-blobs-and-tokamaks-arent-whack) (Hackaday Podcast)
- [Ep 204: Cesium, Colorful Cast Buttons, and CNC Pizza](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2023-02-03-ep-204-cesium-colorful-cast-buttons-and-cnc-pizza) (Hackaday Podcast)
- [Ep 382: Glueballs, Borg Cubes, and Supersonic Trebuchets](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2026-08-14-ep-382-glueballs-borg-cubes-and-supersonic-trebuchets) (Hackaday Podcast)
- [The Future of Energy - Part 3: Fusion Energy](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2022-08-30-the-future-of-energy-part-3-fusion-energy) (Additive Snack)
- [Ep 112: We Have an NFT, Racing a Mobius Strip, and Syncing Video with OpenCV and Blender](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2021-04-02-ep-112-we-have-an-nft-racing-a-mobius-strip-and-syncing-video-with-opencv-and-bl) (Hackaday Podcast)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-12-05-grad-school-time-capsule-with-joshua-and-zach. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to The Amp Hour.