Tuesday 20 May 2014

Students planning their Nobel Sessions for new academic year

Here at Plymouth in the Biological Sciences and Biomedical & Healthcare Sciences Schools, we have a vibrant postgraduate student community that organises a variety of talks, discussions and events both inside and outside the university.

Every other week starting from 16th October 2014 there will lunchtime sessions (1-2pm) (free cake and tea provided) covering a wide variety of topics from speakers including undergraduates to PhD students and post-docs. The aims of the sessions are to broaden understanding of The Nobel Prize winning research, which underpins so many of the technologies, medicines and discoveries that we rely on in everyday life (see the Nobel Prize website for more information). The sessions also provide a platform for students to practice their presentation skills in a relaxed, friendly atmosphere and improve their science communication. Moreover, attending and presenting at these sessions looks good on your CV and may make the difference in that next job interview!!

Outside of university we also run annual ‘Science in the News explained’ evening sessions during Science Week (blog) which are aimed at the public and held at the nearby Plymouth Museum and Art Gallery. In addition to this we have also contributed to an S-factor (S for Science) event in a local secondary school, where several students presented Nobel Prize winning research. A panel of 'experts' (staff and pupils) and the pupil audience then questioned the speakers, and the audience voted for the most important discovery (more details are on another School Blog). For their efforts the presenters were kindly awarded a year’s subscription to Nature magazine.

To find out where and when our talks are held please visit our University or Facebook page for more information. If you would like to get involved by attending or presenting please don’t hesitate to contact Rebekah Simpson (rebekah.simpson@plymouth.ac.uk) or Kirsty Lloyd (kirsty.lloyd@plymouth.ac.uk).