Communities Happenings is a weekly post with news of interest to NPG’s online communities. The aim is to provide this info in one handy summary. Listings include tweetups and conferences which we’re attending and/or organising as well as new online tools, products or cool videos. We also occasionally flag up NPG special offers and competitions plus updates about NPG social media activities such as new accounts you might want to follow. Do let us know what you find most useful!
There’s also more to come as we will be continuously updating the Facebook page – do let us know if there is something you would like to see. Finally, if you are not doing it already, make sure you click the “like” button and join in the conversation!
Friday Science Quiz
Our Friday Science quiz has now moved! After having spent the last few weeks enjoying the hospitality of the Nature London blog, the Friday Quiz has a brand new home right here. A warm welcome to all new players, and a big welcome back to old hands.
Stay tuned for this Friday’s quiz which will certainly test those brain cells!
Science Tweetups
For those in Cambridge, UK, the next #camscitweetup will take place this on Thursday, 16th August from 7pm at the Flying Pig pub. All are welcome to join in for an informal chance to meet other locals interested in science.
Yesterday we unveiled our new account on Pinterest, the pinboard-style, photo-sharing website which enables users to create and manage image collections. Find the Nature Publishing group page here: we’ve created over a dozen boards showcasing some of the cover art, photos and diagrams from our website and journals. Make sure you follow us and get re-pinning!
SoNYC
Science Online NYC (SoNYC) is back after our summer break! The next event will take place on Monday August 20th from 7:00 PM. This month’s event is held in collaboration with the New York Academy of Sciences and we’re going to be focusing on science PhDs. Does the current PhD system need revamping to better equip researchers to continue in academia or to pursue other careers after graduating?
To tie in with the event we are running a mini-series of guest posts on Soapbox Science. We’ll hear from a variety of contributors about how the current system works, where the gaps are, which additional skills they think PhD courses should incorporate and what their personal experiences have been. First up is Alison McCook, a science writer and Comment editor at Nature. Her posts looks at the current state of the PhD system:
At the moment, the state of the PhD system is somewhat unclear. Are we training too many young scientists, or too few? And are we preparing them for a long, lustrous career, or using them as primarily temporary, cheap labor?
Even without clear answers to these questions, some researchers and administrators are already taking action to try to tinker with the formula for training new scientists.
Follow and join in the conversations online using #PhDelta and share your thoughts in the comment threads on the blog posts too.
Remember, you don’t have to be in NYC to take part in SoNYC– the event will be also be live-streamed and live-tweeted so do join us online.