Three-Minute Pitch Showcases Graduate Students' Impressive Presentational Skills at SLAM Event
Every year, the UC San Diego Graduate Division hosts the Grad SLAM competition, a captivating event where graduate students present their complex research in a clear and engaging manner, aimed at a non-specialist audience. This yearly event promotes public speaking skills, effective science communication, and succinct presentations of graduate-level research.
The topics presented at Grad SLAM 2016 covered a wide range of disciplines, from STEM fields like biology, engineering, computer science, to social sciences and humanities. The competition encourages participants to simplify their messages, focusing on the big picture of their research and why it matters.
While specific winners of the 2016 event aren't available, such competitions generally award a first prize, audience choice, and sometimes a people's choice or other special recognitions.
For instance, Tiffany Taylor of Biomedical Sciences won first place and $2,500 with her presentation "Using 'Central Intelligence' to Fight and Conquer Brain Tumors." Mary Glen Fredrick of Theatre and Dance received second place and $1,000 with her presentation "Making a Monster: Turning Statistics into a Story." Lorenzo Rossini of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering earned third place and $750 with his presentation "A Peek inside the Heart: How the Blood Flows."
To prepare for the competition, Grad SLAM finalists received workshops and one-on-one coaching from the Center for Student Involvement and the Qualcomm Institute. The event was held at the Student Services Complex Multipurpose Room and featured topics ranging from wearable biofuel cells to stimulation of blind eyes to restore vision.
Two notable participants were Scripps graduate student Lynn Waterhouse and Catherine Nickels, a fifth-year PhD candidate in biological oceanography. Waterhouse presented her stock assessment research on the endangered Nassau grouper (a project with REEF and the Cayman Islands Department of Environment), while Nickels shared her research on zooplankton ecology and whale movement in the Nine Mile Bank.
Both Waterhouse and Nickels found the Grad SLAM competition to be valuable and career-expanding, as it helped them to step back and consider the big picture of their research. Waterhouse plans to use the skills gained to teach statistics to wildlife biologists and marine scientists in the future, while Nickels aims for a career in science communications.
Nickels suggested that whales follow krill, a main food source, into populous fishing regions, which can aid in developing adaptive conservation strategies to protect whales. Waterhouse participated in Grad SLAM for the second time, and she believes the skills gained from the related workshops will help her in the future when she begins teaching.
In conclusion, the UC San Diego Grad SLAM 2016 was an exciting event that showcased the research of talented graduate students. If you're interested in finding more detailed information about the 2016 event’s specific winners and topics, it would be best to contact UC San Diego’s Graduate Division or look for archived event pages or press releases related to the 2016 Grad SLAM at UCSD.
Engaging in the Grad SLAM competition at UC San Diego encourages personal growth and learning, as it provides opportunities for students to simplify their complex research and communicate its significance effectively. The event also supports education-and-self-development by offering workshops and one-on-one coaching, helping participants to refine their presentations and improve their public speaking skills.
