Thank you for joining us at the first workshop of the research communication series. My name is Dr. Jacob Moore - I'm the URC here in CBS. [Talk about qualifications?]. Today, we're going to spend some time talking about how scientists communicate with other scientists, as well as give you some time to apply some of the principles we discuss to your own research.

Before we get started, quick show of hands - who is currently preparing for a research presentation? Conference? Lab? Poster? Verbal? Written?

As I'm sure you've seen through working in your labs, scientists communicate with other scientists in a variety of ways:

The primary method of conveying new results to other scientists is through peer-reviewed publications in journals like Science, or field specific publications. Or, maybe you are creating a funding proposal to persuade funding agencies to give you money for your research.

Scientists also give oral ppt presentations, whether at conferences, or local lab meetings. These can range in length from from 5 minute "flash talks" to 1+ seminars.

Poster presentations are another medium of communication,

...as are blogs, and even twitter!

While each category presents a different set of challenges and best practices, there are numerous commonalities.

And, more specifically, however you are communicating, and whatever you're communicating about, there's one thing to always keep in mind.

All communication, whether you're catching up with a friend or presenting your scientific research, is ultimately about telling a story. The more successful a storyteller you become, the more successful your science communication will become.

You need to engage your audience, and give them a reason to care about what you're talking about.

The first thing you need to determine is with whom you are communicating, as the content of your story will change depending upon your answer. Are you communicating with colleagues in your lab? Are you talking with peers in your classes? Are you chatting with your Great Uncle Joe back at home, who has no scientific training?

Have students write down the audience for their presentation. If they don't have something specific coming up, have them workshop a presentation for the U of M UR Symposium.

Next, before you think about HOW you will be telling your story, you first need to decide what your story is about. This is the main message, or the point that you want to convey to your audience.

Ask yourself: "Why are you telling this story?"

If you are giving a lab presentation: Describe the effectiveness of a new method or protocol (or troubleshoot).

If you presenting at a conference: Describe new results that fill a particular knowledge gap in your field.

If you are writing a grant: Convince funding agency that your work is important and should be funded.

If you are talking to a layman: Help a patient understand the science behind a particular diagnosis/treatment. / Share something cool about science, and why it's important.

Have students write down the audience for their presentation. If they don't have something specific coming up, have them workshop a presentation for the U of M UR Symposium.

So, you now know what you want to say, and who you want to say it to. Next, you need to figure out how you are going to tell your story. I'm not talking about the format (poster, ppt, etc.), but rather how you assemble your ideas into a logical flow that will engage your audience and communicate your main point.

One way to think about the structure of your story is to go back to what you learned in English classes about the Hero's Journey. This image here is an adaptation of the Hero's' Journey by Brian Harmon.

1. You: The idea is that you start at the top with the protagonist, and their current situation.
2. There is something the protagonist needs,
3). So they leave on an adventure to find it, venturing into unfamiliar territory
4) The protagonist searches for what they need
5) Find it,
6) Take what they need (and likely pay a heavy price)
7) return to where they began
8) but are in some way changed.


This basic idea was adapted by scientific researcher and communicator, Tom Houslay.

1. The protagonist is you, the scientist! This is also where you talk about the state of your current field. (What you emphasize depends upon your message and audience)
2. There is a need. What are the gaps in the knowledge in your field?
3. Where does your research take you? That is, what question are you trying to answer.
4. How are you searching for answers? These are your materials and methods.
5. What did you find? These are your results. (If you don't have results yet, think about your expected results).
6. What are you taking from what you found. This is where you interpret your results.
7. Return to the state of the field. How do your results fill the gaps in knowledge that you sought to address?
8. How does your journey (e.g. the science you did) change or influence your field. That is, why is what you did important?

If we think about this in terms of a scientific paper, we get:
1-3: Introduction
4: Materials and Methods
5: Results
6-7: Discussion
7-8: Conclusion

1. Oyster populations, which are important species in coastal ecosystems, have declined globally due to coastal development, overfishing, pollution, and disease, with many populations at less than 15% of their historic size. While major efforts are underway to restore damaged populations, many restoration efforts are unsuccessful.
2. There is a need to better understand characteristics of oyster populations to develop better restoration strategies.
3. Specifically, I investigated how the ages and sizes of individuals within the population affects the ability of the population to survive.
4. To do this, I created some new mathematical models to describe oyster populations.
5. I found that the number of individuals of a particular age and size differed between populations that survived and those that didn’t.
6. These results indicate that the number of individuals of a particular age and size in a population can predict the health of a population.
7. By predicting population health, we can better understand and create restoration strategies.
8. Understanding the age and size of individuals in a population is important for restoration success, and thus restoring damaged oyster populations.

Have students brainstorm bad things about this poster (or others that they've seen).

- Landscape
- Short, catchy title
- “Sans serif” fonts that are legible from a distance
- Limit yourself to 1-2 main ideas
- Limit text (500 words)
- Use graphics and bullet points as much as possible
- 2-3 colors, max
- Use boxes around text to structure sections
- use symmetry
- Ideas should flow logically
- 25-40% of poster white space
- PowerPoint great tool to create posters

Have students brainstorm bad things about ppt slides that they've seen.

- Slides are visual aids
- each one should enhance your presentation
- One message per slide
- Everything on slide should be referenced, and legible
- Use color for emphasis and clarity
- On average, send 1-2 minutes per slide

Outline slides for talk, or layout of poster

Communicating your research with posters from U Libraries:
https://www.lib.umn.edu/apps/instruction/posterdesign/

Applying Harmon’s Story Circle to Scientific Research:
https://tomhouslay.com/2016/02/05/applying-the-story-circle-to-academic-wri...

Scientifically Speaking:
https://www.nature.com/scitable/ebooks/english-communication-for-scientists...

Communication Learning in Practice for Scientists:
http://www.clips.edu.au/

Presentations: Billboard science. Nature
https://www.nature.com/naturejobs/science/articles/10.1038/nj7387-113a

How to avoid Death by Ppt
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iwpi1Lm6dFo