GCC workshop

Making the Case for Your Research in Your Abstract, Introduction and Literature Review
WHEN: February 17, 5-6 pm
WHERE: Steinberg Auditorium, Baker Hall A53

This workshop will teach you 4 steps that make the case for why your research is an essential contribution to the field. These 4 “moves” turn your research into a compelling narrative and highlight the importance and innovation of your work, especially when communicating to a non-specialist audience. These well-established moves can help you structure the abstract, introduction and literature review of journal articles and papers, in both the sciences and humanities. They can also be applied in various other contexts, including conference presentations, application materials, and grant proposals. Pizza will be provided. Visit cmu.edu/gcc to sign up.

PeerJ Computer Science

New journal, just announced: PeerJ Computer Science. Now accepting preprints and  open for peer-reviewed article submissions beginning February 12. Read PeerJ’s blog post to find out why PeerJ feels the time is right to launch a new journal to address the needs of the computer science community.

The Libraries underwrites CMU authors’ lifetime membership in PeerJ to support open access publication in biological, medical—and now, computer—science.

 

New database: dataZoa

dataZoa: A universal translator for data series on the Web:  drag-and-drop any of the 3 billion live data series in economics, health, energy, demographics, environment, finance, and more.  It updates automatically, and provides software to build graphs and charts. Start by creating an account using your CMU email address.

Database: Religion & Philosophy Collection

Religion & Philosophy Collection: Key theological and philosophical resources spanning over 100 years. Covers world religions, major denominations, biblical studies, religious history, epistemology, political philosophy, philosophy of language, moral philosophy and the history of philosophy. Contact Ethan Pullman if you have questions.

Database: Statista

Statista: An international statistics portal that integrates data on media, business, finance, politics, health, demographics, and many other areas, from 18,000 sources, most of which are private. Highly findable and usable data – on its own and nicely packaged in reports and dossiers with graphics and charts, fully downloadable, with ample metadata and sourcing information. Contact Roye Werner if you have questions.

Feb. 24: Clear Thinking Made Visual

February 24, 2015, 5-6:30 PM
Baker Hall 235B
The PCR Team

With every figure, slide, and talk, we are building a scientific case – perhaps for the existence of a particle, for the necessity of a policy, or simply for the validity of a control. Yet many of our common practices in presenting information actually obscure the case we’re making. In this workshop (designed for the AAAS 2015 conference), we will discuss fundamental principles for structuring information that apply at all scales, from the lone data figure to the entire talk. Attendees will learn how to apply principles of attention and visual design to turn presentations into what Edward Tufte calls “clear thinking made visible.”

This is the second in a three-part series on preparing strong presentations for audiences outside your field.

Register here.

CMU’s Public Communication for Researchers is a professional development program to teach communication skills to graduate students in fields of research. The goal of PCR is to help participants learn and practice communicating science to people of any background. “We just want to feel comfortable talking about our work to the media, the voting public, and our grandmothers.”

 

 

Mar. 24: The Presentation Games

March 24, 2015
Scaife Hall 214 (tentative)
Tony Eng (MIT)

This is the third in PCR’s 3-part series on preparing strong presentations for audiences outside your field.

Workshop 1: Being in the Moment
4-5:30 PM 

One of the most difficult aspects of live presentations is focusing on the audience and not on your content or your delivery. In this workshop, we’ll try to get you out of your head and into the moment by playing some games, many of which come from improvisational theater.

Workshop 2: Delivery
5:45-7:15 PM

Good delivery consists largely of getting rid of habits, but sometimes we aren’t even aware of what our habits are. In this workshop, we’ll help you identify an area to improve and to find ways to make your delivery more effective.

Register for either or both of the workshops here.

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CMU’s Public Communication for Researchers is a professional development program to teach communication skills to graduate students in fields of research. The goal of PCR is to help participants learn and practice communicating science to people of any background. “We just want to feel comfortable talking about our work to the media, the voting public, and our grandmothers.”

Help 4 3MT @ GCC

Have you signed up for the Three Minute Thesis challenge, to engage an audience and communicate your PhD thesis research in just 3 minutes? The GCC in Hunt Library has your back!

Watch our video on creating a successful 3MT presentation (also available on our Handouts and Resources page, under “Online Video Series”). Make a tutoring appointment to get communication tips and help creating your slide, or to practice delivering your presentation in our private conference room.

Learn all about 3MT. Qualifying rounds for 3MT@CMU will be scheduled during February and March in Posner Center. The final championship round is set for April 7, 2015, in Rashid Auditorium. All rounds are open for anyone to attend.

Data Services Librarian

Lisa D. Zilinski has joined Carnegie Mellon University Libraries as Data Services Librarian. Her research experience and interests include data management principles, vocabulary development, knowledge transfer, data education, and information dissemination and access practices. “With her knowledge and skills, Lisa will make an invaluable contribution to addressing the issues related to data management at CMU,” said Director of Scholarly Publishing, Archives & Data Services Gabrielle Michalek. Zilinski comes to Pittsburgh from Purdue University Libraries, where she was an assistant professor of library science and a data specialist in the Research Data Division. She holds a BA in Psychology from Florida Atlantic University, an MS in Human Resource Management from Nova Southeastern University, and an MS in Library and Information Studies from Florida State University. Contact information: ldz@andrew.cmu.edu, 412-268-6107, HL 240. Zilinski replaces Steven Van Tuyl.

 

NEW: Statista

Statistics on populations, industries, economics, media, opinion, politics, lifestyles, and many other topics. Easy to use. Downloadable with publication rights. Reports and graphic displays available.