Workshops

The Communication Fellows run and design regular science communication workshops for the BDC community. Ultimately, the Comm Lab hopes to empower scientists to successfully convey the impact of their work through clear scientific communication.

The Art of Scientific Storytelling

Find the story. Tell a scientific story. Adapt to your audience.
Audience: Anyone conducting research.

Have you ever presented an exciting scientific finding only to see your audience’s eyes glaze over? How can we get others to feel engaged in our research, while successfully conveying to them why our work is important? Simultaneously drawing from Pixar’s “Finding Nemo” and Jean-Luc Dumont’s “Trees, Maps, and Theorems,” this workshop will help you identify your scientific story and to provide the tools to present your research in an engaging way.
Post-Workshop Resources

Illustration

Guided graphical abstract workshop and an introduction to Adobe Illustrator.
Audience: Anyone conducting research.

Have an idea for a figure or graphical abstract, but not sure how to make it a reality? Comm Lab Fellows will help you generate a high-quality graphical abstracts for your research project. We walk through the basics of good figure design, using color theory to your advantage, and how to get the most out of Adobe Illustrator.
Adobe Illustrator Tips sheet

How to Read a Scientific Paper

Communication Fellow
Audience: early graduate students, undergraduates, high school students.

Scientific papers are a primary way knowledge is shared in a field, however  new readers may find the structure of academic writing dense and confusing. We walk through the key parts of scientific papers, and how to get the information you need from a paper without spending a week reading supplemental methods.
Quick tips handout (from Rhiannon Morris)

Scheduling a workshop

If you are interested in hosting one of these workshops for your group, or have an idea for another workshop you’d like to see, please contact the Comm Lab Director.