Tag Archives: Communication

articles, Community, Events for Students, February 2018, Mentoring & Outreach

Notes from the North – Collaboration and Communication

February 22, 2018 Jess Davis-Knowlton 1 Comment

March is just around the corner, so there are just a couple of weeks before the CMDB and Genetics program students and faculty will be joining me for a weekend in Portland! As much as I want to advertise for the retreat and mention that it is student driven in that talks will be on topics selected by students, the day is structured based on student feedback, and the Saturday night social trivia session was voted in by students, I don’t want readers from other programs to feel left out of my article’s audience. Note on image: lobster coloration really can display Tufts support, the pattern occurs in bilateral gynandromorphs (half male, half female) where one side has normal black/brown color and the other side has a rare color mutation causing a blue carapace. The chance of a half blue/half brown lobster may be as little as 1 in 100 million.

Now, the real reason I mention the retreat is that over the last three months I have been collaborating with student and faculty colleagues at three separate campuses along the New England coast to help bring this retreat together. It has required learning and practicing organizational skills, shared decision-making skills, delegation, and diplomacy. These are all skills worth cultivating for anyone who may participate in scientific collaboration, so it is helpful to seek out collaborative experiences early in a scientific career. Here is how helping to plan a retreat becomes practice for collaboration and communication:

Integration of multiple viewpoints. One of the great advantages of working as a group toward a common goal is that collectively the group has abundant experience to draw from in order to propose ideas and predict where problems may arise. While planning the CMDB/Genetics retreat we felt it was important to be respectful of all organizer opinions and concerns and at the same time try to incorporate as many ideas from the retreat participants as possible. This of course meant instances when compromise and diplomacy were necessary. Delegation of point people for specific tasks also helped mitigate conflict because one person has had primary responsibility while others advise.

Faculty as peers as well as advisors. Speaking of advising, I have found that a benefit of helping to organize such a large event for the CMDB and Genetics programs has been the need to interact with many faculty and staff in a capacity slightly different from that of my usual student role. Over the course of our academic careers our view of academic mentors shifts from their being “sages on the stage” in high school, undergrad, and early graduate school, to being approachable human beings with advice that ranges far beyond the scholarly later in graduate school, post-doctoral fellowships, and early career. The increase in responsibility that comes with becoming a peer as well as an advisee is not something I think consciously about very often, so this has been a valuable exercise in examining the evolution of these relationships. Recognition of this changing role can facilitate collaborative scientific work because it gives you confidence in your value to a project.

Interaction at a distance. The CMDB/Genetics retreat brings together students and faculty from four campuses in two states, making it imperative that we utilize methods of communication that are speedy and reliable. Now imagine if we were on different continents! For the most part this has meant heavy reliance on email, but we have also found it helpful to setup online video conferencing for regular face-to-face interaction. Meetings can be tricky to schedule for groups comprised of very busy individuals, and it is easy to fall into the trap of holding too many, however they are important for quickly refocusing the group after a period of productivity. Another tool we have made extensive use of that is suitable for both near and far collaborative efforts are online workspace platforms such a Google Drive that allow multiple users to work and edit simultaneously. This is especially helpful in generating a living record of how the group’s ideas and priorities change over time. I think one of the greatest lessons I have learned from helping to organize the retreat has been realizing the importance of keeping a centralized record of decisions. It has allowed the retreat planning committee to understand the logic that got us to a particular point, and then guided us as we moved forward on a number of occasions.

The best way to improve any set of skills is to go out and practice them, so look for those collaborative opportunities!

articles, Community, Events for Students, May 2017, Mentoring & Outreach

Now what? Science Activism Beyond the March

May 17, 2017 Nafis Hasan 2 Comments

The effects of the March and the outpouring of support for scientific research and evidence-based policymaking are already showing, as exemplified by the increase in NIH funding approved by the Congress instead of the Trump administration’s proposed cuts. However, this should not make us complacent in our demands. The EPA’s scientific advisory board is being replaced by representatives of agencies it is meant to regulate, climate change action is still being hindered and the environment is increasingly threatened, and the anti-vaxxers just succeeded in invoking an outbreak of measles in Minnesota. As Dr. Harris Berman, along with the deans of other medical schools in Boston, recently wrote “We must harness this energy and ensure that the March for Science on Saturday marks the beginning of closing the rift that got us here in the first place”, we should also ensure that this march becomes the global movement it is meant to be. The enthusiasm & sense of urgency that brought out the scientists out on the streets on April 22 should be harnessed to battle the anti-science hysteria currently spreading across the nation. The only way to do it would be to not isolate, but engage the public, to whom we have a responsibility for putting their faith in us, in meaningful ways to improve science literacy through relevant communication. Here we present some additional resources for you to get engaged in science activism after the March:

Communicate Your Science – Increasing visibility of scientists and science among the general public would help to shore popular support for scientific research. The #ActualLivingScientist campaign on social media helped dispel the alienation between the scientific community and the people who support their work. Share the importance of your work by writing or speaking about it online or offline. For example, check out The People’s Science’s new initiative, The Field Project, where researchers are encouraged to write a brief summary of their work for the “broadest possible audience”. Talk about your work and how you got into scientific research through our “Humans of Sackler”. Or even better, write for us if you want to practice your writing and communicating skills. Visibility Matters!
Volunteer in Science Outreach – The greater Boston area provides ample opportunities for science outreach programs, especially with large-scale events like Cambridge Science Festival. On a smaller scale, you can volunteer for the BIOBUGS, the Brain Bee, the annual mentoring opportunity at Josiah Quincy Upper School and more. Keep an eye out for emails re: these events & more from the Sackler Graduate Student Council.
Engage in Policy Action – Since the election, scientists have started to take on political action themselves. One such group is 314 action, who seeks to elect “more leaders to the U.S. Senate, House, State Executive & Legislative offices who come from STEM backgrounds”. The Union of Concerned Scientists, who have been fighting for evidence-based policy to solve social & environmental problems since 1969, hosts an advocacy resource where you can learn how to take action with or without getting involved with the organization. If you would like to write about policy, this writing program by Rescuing Biomedical Research can be your first foray into that world. You can also get involved with the new student organization at Sackler, Scientists Promoting INclusive Excellence #@ Sackler (SPINES), which seeks to increase visibility of minority scientists among other goals.
Educate Yourself – If you are not sure on how best to participate in science activism, you can start by learning. Follow the official March for Science blog to learn how the movement is advancing. Check out this online class being offered by faculty from University of Michigan on how to “more effectively discuss knowledge”. Get involved with the Emerson Science Communication Collaborative between Emerson media students and Sackler students. For an even extensive gamut of resources, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has an online toolkit for you to start getting involved!

If you know of any other organizations or groups involved in science literacy, education, outreach & communication, please leave us a comment below!

articles, arts & culture, Community, Events for Students, GSC, GSC career events, GSC social events, May 2017

ICYMI: Sackler Speaks Flash Talks Competition

May 15, 2017 Jessica S. Elman

The second annual Sackler Speaks Flash Talk Competition, which took place on April 24, 2017 at 5PM in Sackler 114, was an exciting opportunity for Sackler students to practice their science communication skills in front of an audience and panel of judges. Snacks, wine, and beer were served, and Aaron Bernstein (CMP, 4^th year), always the dazzling host, emceed the event.

The speakers had 3 minutes to give a presentation on their research, with the option of an accompanying PowerPoint presentation. The judges were Stefan Gross, director of enzymology at Agios Pharmaceuticals and a graduate of Claire Moore’s lab, and Jonathan Garlick, a Sackler professor whose lab focuses on regenerative medicine using iPSCs.

The event had five participants who spoke in the following order: Dominique Ameroso (Neuro, 2^nd year), Julia Yelick (CMDB, 4^th year), Linus Williams (MD/PhD, 1^st year), Brad Gardiner (CTS, MS student), and Alex Jones (Neuro, 5^th year).

Every speaker brought something different to the table, but just from watching the presentations the audience got a fantastic sense of what works best for a flash talk. Some common mechanisms that most helped speakers get their points across were the use of similes to simplify complicated scientific concepts and effective use of animations and imagery in the slides, as opposed to plain text.

The judges had fifteen minutes to discuss and finally announced the winners: Julia Yelick, Dominique Ameroso, and Brad Gardiner came in 3^rd, 2^nd, and 1^st place, respectively!

An informative discussion on what makes a great flash talk followed, led by Garlick and Gross. They both strongly agreed on the following points:

Start with the punch line to grab the audience’s attention.
Use your body language to communicate with the audience- don’t just cross your legs and lean on the podium! Face the group, make eye contact, be excited about what you’re talking about.
Are you addressing the question of, “So What?”
- Is what you’re talking about relevant to your life? Is it personal? Is it easy for someone on the outside to understand why it matters?

The significance of this event taking place just two days after the March for Science should not be lost on us—the importance of clear and logical communication of scientific endeavors and achievements is obvious, especially in light of the proposed cuts to science funding. The more curiosity we pique in explaining our research, the more likely we are to receive support and funding.

All in all, the event was a success, but it would be great if more students volunteered to participate next year! This is a great opportunity to practice communication skills with your colleagues and even people from outside of the university. Keep an eye out for the announcement next year and challenge yourself to participate and possibly win a prize!