Half a Century Later

During my morning ablutions, I listened to my local NPR station per my usual routine (and yes, I am a member of KIOS).  Lynn Neary reported on the 50th anniversary of publication of a favorite book, To Kill A Mockingbird:

Fifty years ago, Harper Lee had the kind of success that most writers only dream about: Shortly after her novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, was published on July 11, 1960, it hit the best-seller lists. In 1961, it won a Pulitzer Prize, and in 1962, it was made into an Academy Award-winning film. It has never gone out of print.

Reading this book is a rite of passage for most adolescents in the US. Mary McDonagh Murphy interviewed writers, journalists, historians, and artists to collect their impressions in her book, Scout, Atticus & Boo. The NPR story also includes thoughts from students who recently read the book.

Many women identify with feisty Scout. My spouse sees Atticus,  especially in Gregory Peck’s movie portrayal, as the ideal father. In the NPR story, Joanne Gabbin, a professor of English at James Madison University in Virginia, saw her own father and grandfather mirrored in another character:

In Tom Robinson, the African-American man unjustly accused of rape, she saw not a victim, but a hero. He reminded her of her father and grandfather — African-American men who put up with untold humiliation in order to take care of their families.

To Kill A Mockingbird touches so many people in so many ways. For me, it illustrates the power of stories. Statistics may demonstrate racism or sexism or poverty other iniquities, but even with glitzy animated graphics they cannot enthrall us as plot and people do. Stories may be fictional, like To Kill A Mockingbird, or completely true, like The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. In either of these cases, the way we come to know the characters and care about them (even if we hate them) helps the lessons stick.

Beautiful, poetic prose helps as well. NPR includes an excerpt from the book. My own favorite image arises when Scout describes grown ladies dealing with the heat of an Alabama summer. They add layers of talcum powder throughout the day, so by nightfall they resemble a frosted pastry. I am paraphrasing, but that picture embedded in my brain over 30 years ago. Every summer it flits through my neurons again during hot spells.

To Kill A Mockingbird hit bookstores a year before my birth. By the time I read it, much had changed in race relations and our attitudes toward mental illness. We still have progress ahead, since iniquities still plague the world.

But I have faith in the power of stories to help us mend our ways.
Click on the images above to see their source.

Use Me

I get a daily mailing from Pink, a web-site (formerly a print magazine) dedicated to women in business. One daily email included the following on shameless promotion via bloggers (excerpt below):

February 17, 2010
Get Blogged About

“Social media and blogs are just as important as traditional media outlets now,” says Amy Binder, president of the $12 million PR firm, RF|Binder Partners. “Some companies don’t want to talk to bloggers, they are afraid of what they’ll say. But they’ll say it anyway, even if they don’t talk to you. That world exists and you can’t ignore it. There’s not one company out there that can afford to ignore online media.”

Bloggers can be your best advocates, says Binder, not only in boosting your branding but protecting your business. Her best tip? Read blogs. “You need to know who is most influential, and who is most substantial. And bloggers take it personally if you pitch them and you’ve never read them.”

So how do you get bloggers to write about you?

WebMarketCentral.com, ModishBlog.com, InformationWeek, BuildaBetterBlog.com and Understanding Marketing suggest strategies like pitching to their niche and becoming a user before you pitch.

Which bloggers are best to pitch in your industry? Check out Technorati for the most commented blogs and Quantcast for most viewed.

The influence of a blog is assessed by page views and comment numbers. A thriving blog brings in readers who care and want to discuss the content. In the excerpt, they are called “users” rather than “readers” because of the interactive nature of the blogosphere.

I write these posts for me. Writing helps me think, and it gives me an outlet for anger, humor, and awe. I put it out here on the web because I hope it will make someone else think as well. I also hope my users feel free to comment, even if they want to tell me I’m an idiot! And if they want to do that peudonymously or anonymously, so be it!

This week I have finally gotten analytics into my blog. I will now be able to see how many people are looking at my stuff, among other wonderful, googley things. I hope I can make this blog better for me and for my users. Oh, it will remain a collection of whatever catches my fancy, but I will know more. And for a researcher, data rules!

Happy Twitterversary!

At 21:20 CST today I will celebrate one year of tweeting.

When I enrolled, I could not comprehend the value of these short comments. Little did I know how twitter would become a part of my existence, complete with friends and colleagues who make me happy and sad and angry.

Until you try it, the whole concept sounds utterly ridiculous. What can you say in 140 characters, really? And how many people do you really reach?

At the time I write this, nearly 200 people follow my thoughts on twitter. If I tweet something particularly notable, my followers may retweet it, with the potential to reach thousands of tweeple in a manner of minutes. That impact is far broader and faster than an email chain.

I am now well over 2000 tweets. Some are interesting, many are drivel. But I have enjoyed them all.

Like Questions at a Beauty Pagent

When applying for residency, the one portion of the application form with any potential for individual expression was the infamous personal statement. Having reviewed about a million of these now, I appreciate how mundane they can be. It is sort of like asking Miss USA contestants their opinions on world peace.

Now, for the first time in 26 years, I find myself constructing a personal statement.

As part of the recent changes at NIH, this component has been added to the humble biosketch. We now have to “briefly” explain why we are the best-est, most-qualified, ideal person to play our role on the project proposed.

The simple truth, that I am the person interested enough to propose this work, just won’t cut it.

How about “the voices in my head keep telling me to do this.” No?

“I am a gift from the gods about to impart new critical knowledge to your world.” Perhaps a bit over-the-top (although members of my family might find this one completely in character).

I finally played it straight. I listed my experience with the relevant techniques that have not yet been applied to a novel exciting model, and my clinical background that fits the question at hand. So predictable!

It should be bloody obvious from the proposal that I am the ideal person to pursue this question in this manner at this time. If it is not, then I have not written it right.

By the way, I am fully in favor of world peace. May I have a tiara now?

Photo courtesy of PhotoXpress.

“Don’t Be Such a Scientist:” Part Two

Last week I wrote about Randy Olson’s book Don’t Be Such a Scientist. Now that I have finished the read, I want to revisit Chapters 3 (Don’t be such a poor storyteller) and 4 (Don’t be so unlikeable). These chapters touch on current issues in the blogosphere.

In chapter 4, Olson expresses dismay about the foul language and intolerance displayed in evolution posts on ScienceBlogs:

The voice that came through in all of these blog posts, and even more intensely in the comments of fellow evolutionists, was not just offensive; it was also incredibly condescending and arrogant.

In this chapter, Olson concerns himself with likeability of scientists; in other words, maintaining civility within the discussion (a topic at SciOn later this week). He does have a point; people are unlikely to listen after you have called them fuckwits.

Unfortunately, a reasonable civil discussion violates chapter 3; let’s face it, conflict is essential for a good story.  People don’t pay to watch two guys glare and name-call in the ring; they want to see punches! Conflict sells and drives blog traffic (and income); the only way to make this bigger is to make it a nude-mud-wrestling grudge match (although I doubt most of the contributors on ScienceBlogs should be seen nude).

Let’s face it: some of those conflicts in commentary are damn entertaining! Virtual evisceration is sort of like “Shark Week” for readers, especially when you agree with the sharks! The danger, though, is that less aggressive species get scared off, leaving only those voices in complete agreement (see this post by Isis for more on this danger). You end up preaching to the choir (egads, a scientist uses a religious analogy), and you have to work even harder to generate conflict, leading to fights among the choir (this is why there are no longer any moderate republicans).

Unfortunately, I don’t have the solution to this problem (if I did, do you thing I would be plugging away on this post?). I try to stay civil on my little soapbox on the web, and I have to remain civil in ASN Kidney News, the magazine I edit. I do allow my inner snark to appear when I’m commenting on others’ sites.

Perhaps being a medical doctor is good training for this sort of conflict; if a teenager asks me about getting tattoos, I can say no, absolutely not, tattoos are stupid. Or I can talk to them about the safety issues surrounding the procedure, not to do it on the day they get hemodialysis and receive anticoagulation, and then discourage it (in med school I saw the effects of time and gravity on most tattoos, and it isn’t pretty). Most of the time, the latter approach has prevented or delayed the onset of tattooing without alienating my patient. Of course, the first scenario would make a much better story… especially if s/he gets the tattoo and returns to shoot up my clinic.

Photo courtesy of PhotoXpress.

What I’m Reading (& EVERYONE Should Read)

A few years back EB featured a movie, Flock of Dodos. This film exploring the “debate” between evolution and intelligent design was captivating, educational, and entertaining. Its creator, Randy Olson, inspires me. A tenured professor, he left academia, attended film school at USC, and now makes movies about science.

Think Michael Moore with a PhD. In short, this is the career path of my dreams. That or writing the Great American Novel, developing the screenplay, and winning the Oscar for it. But I digress.

When I saw Olson’s book on communicating science, I had to read it immediately. Yesterday I read a review, downloaded it to my Kindle, and devoured about 40% of its virtual pages already.

Don’t Be Such a Scientist provides the answer to the real question facing science today!

A number of scientists with good communication skills kvetch about the public’s lack of literacy. Most seem focused on educational policy and getting “the facts” out there in an accessible way. If we provide the data, the public will “get it.”

Dr. Olson debunks this attitude almost immediately. Through amusing stories of his experiences in acting and film classes, as well as life under the Hollywood sign, he illustrates a major problem: most of the public engages in issues through feelings, not through thought, something similar to my prior post on the book Unscientific America:

Ultimately, two antithetical forces are at work here. Science demands testable facts to support its theories. Religion is based on faith which requires belief without proof. Having grown up in the bible belt, I can tell you that new earth creationists are not swayed by the fossil record or any other evidence you present regarding the reality of evolution. They believe.

Olson’s book discusses ways to relate to the public on this visceral level so they care about the science. Important issues need to be more visual and emotional; the opposite tactic that most scientific groups pursue!

It brought to mind several other books I have read dealing with science and exploration around the turn of the last century. Thunderstruck was the most recent of these, a story of the invention of wireless communication by Marconi intertwined with a murder mystery and transatlantic flight. What these books all had in common?

Scientists had to put on a show.

Federal funding for science? Just not there except for weapons in time of war. No, those who “discovered” stuff had to be independently wealthy or appeal to wealthy donors. Explorers and inventers would give demonstrations of their discoveries in hopes of acquiring funds for their next venture.

I am trying to imagine the last manuscript I read as a show. It would never make it to Broadway… As a movie, it would not even hit the direct to DVD market. On YouTube? Fuggedaboutit!

I have always acknowledged my creative streak, my desire to “put on a show.” Editing a magazine has been a much better fit than a journal, simply because we have to make it visually exciting (getting doctors and scientists to write for a magazine has been a bit of a challenge, but that’s another story). Olson’s book fits with my own, admittedly biased, viewpoint on the problem with science dissemination. If I didn’t have a grant to write (speaking of boring scientese), I would finish perusing the book right now.

By the way, Dr. Olson, I would love to work on a movie. Call me- we’ll do lunch (isn’t that the Hollywood way?).

Tweet the Week in San Diego

Those planning to attend Renal Week, the annual meeting of the American Society of Nephrology, are invited to Tweet the Week. A lot of those signing up for the activity have not tweeted before. Some of the nuts and bolts of the service are obvious after the sign-up process, but there are ins and outs of the Twitterverse that may not be readily apparent.

Basics of Twitter

So you have a screen name (if not, click on the logo below; all you need is a valid email to sign up). Now it is time to create your profile page. Try to come up with a photo or image of some kind to represent you online. Put some information about who you are, but nothing you don’t want strangers to see. For an example, click on the Tweet the Week logo below; it will take you to the RenalWeek profile.

You also have to make a choice about whether or not to protect your updates. If you do not, anyone on Twitter can follow you and see what you put out there. You can go through your list of followers every so often and block anyone you want (like the half-naked women whose profiles list their favorite sex act), but you will also encounter a broader, more interesting swath of people this way. If you protect, then only people who you approve can see your updates; however, this means you will have to manually OK each and every follow.

For Tweet the Week, we have chosen to keep the feed closed. Some of the followers are closed, but most are public. RenalWeek is following all of the participants. Anything tweeted by RenalWeek will be visible only to official followers. 

Specific Tweet the Week Issues

If you are tweeting something general on your public feed, anyone who follows you will see it, including RenalWeek. If you want to send a message to RenalWeek that you only want the Tweet the Week crowd to see, you can direct message it. Do this by placing “D” in front of the screen name: D RenalWeek. If it is something of interest to the RenalWeek crowd, it can then be retweeted. Most twitter clients allow you to repeat someone’s tweet; this is how stuff “goes viral” and spreads quickly.

Mechanics of Twittering On the Go

You can tweet from a computer, and there certainly will be internet access in the San Diego Convention Center. Most stuff worth chatting about does not happen when you are near a screen. Luckily, Twitter was made for the mobile world, with a character limit shorter than a standard text message. You can register your cell phone and have tweets texted to you; this may drive you crazy after a while. You can also set it up so you can send tweets to the service via text message. Your usual text fees apply, so figure out ahead of time what this may cost you.

If you have a smart phone, you are in luck. BlackBerries, iPhones, and Pre’s all have Twitter clients that make participation easy and fun. There are too many to list here, and more popping up every day; a quick Google search will take you to lots of choices.

Even if you decide to limit your tweets to your laptop, you may want to check out a dedicated Twitter client. Many will let you group your followers or work with multiple accounts. I am using TweetDeck, and I have my personal account (PHLane; feed shown on the blog page above) and the RenalWeek account for Tweet the Week. A bunch of these are available; some may be downloaded via the Twitter web site, and there is a Wiki that lists many more.

I hope you decided to attend RenalWeek and to Tweet the Week with us. If you have any specific questions, ask in the comments below so others can share your answer.

Blogging from the Airport

I am seated in Eppley Airfield in Omaha, awaiting my first flight of the day. CNN plays on the television, another story about H1N1 flashing by. The accompanying footage has a bench with a lot of pretty colored liquids being pipetted from flask to flask.

It does not resemble any virology lab I have seen. And no one is masked in the footage…

I guess I am thinking too hard again. Time to traipse through security and wait at the gate.

Photo courtesy of PhotoXpress.

Upgrades and other lies

I live by my BlackBerry. I have a lot of duties that take me off of my main campus, and away from my desk even when I am there. My BlackBerry lets me keep up with patients, family, lab, and administrative messages. I can communicate by phone, email, text, or tweet just by thumb typing.

Until a few weeks ago, all was electronic bliss. Then I noticed that my calendar was funky. Appointments I entered on the BlackBerry wouldn’t show up on my desktop. I started re-entering appointments on the computer, then deleting them on the BlackBerry. Annoying, but doable. I let my IT guy know, and he said it was probably the result of a ….

Key spooky music here:

SERVER UPGRADE

Everyone seemed to have some sort of synchronization issue; so far, I was the only calendar complaint.

He waited a few more weeks, then suggested that I wipe my device and reassociate it with the server. Now, wiping a BlackBerry requires reinstalling a bunch of software and tracking down registration codes. It is not to be done lightly, but I was game.

So last week we did the deed. I almost have everything registered again, but now I have a new problem. When I delete emails on the BlackBerry, they do not delete on the desktop client. The settings clearly state to “delete on handheld and desktop.” I am at a loss.

So I beg my administration to quit upgrading. It rarely seems to improve anything.

The photo was taken from Wired.com via Google Images. Since their web address shows prominently, I have linked to them, and I am giving them credit for the image, I hope that they will not complain about my probable copyright violation…

How I’m Wired

I just read a column about how anyone who is cool has an iPhone. Now, as a 48-year-old woman, I doubt that I meet the definition of “cool” in any way. However, I am as wired (or more so) than my 16- and 21-year-old offspring!

My workhorse is a year-old BlackBerry Pearl (I would picture it here, but I can’t take a picture of it with it so…). It works seamlessly with the BlackBerry server at my work, keeps me up to date with FaceBook and Twitter (seriously, if you don’t have UberTwitter, download it NOW), and runs the clinical software for one of my hospitals. I have tweaked available apps to do my patient billing, I get weather and real-time sports updates, and I can carry around photos of my kids, pets, and husband. I would like to be able to double its memory, and there are downsides to the compressed keyboard, but I love the little gizmo.

What my Pearl could not do was read Kindle files. It’s screen was pretty small for reading anyway. And I have a netbook I can use for documents. Why did I need another e-toy?

Then my boss showed me the Kindle app on his iPhone. The screen is big enough to read clearly, and an iPod Touch is at least $100 less than a Kindle. My old iPod’s battery was only lasting about 20 minutes, and I just got a $200 honorarium. The stars were aligned for the purchase of the bad boy at right, now wrapped in a purple silicone case.

I downloaded a bunch of books, and some “fun” apps (none of which cost more than $2.99). I then packed my bags and took off for a 4-day business meeting.

The Kindle reader is a blessing. I became aware of a book I wanted to read soon immediately, so I downloaded via the hotel’s lobby hotspot. In a package smaller than a paperback I brought 3 novels along. And I can listen to music while I read.

I have found some games I like, but most of the apps available don’t appeal to me. That’s OK, I am not their target market. I don’t need iBeer to feel cool; I can buy real beer when I want to feel cool! Web sites are easier to read on the bigger screen, though, especially in landscape format.

I still prefer an actual keyboard to the on-screen version. Even with the compressed one on the Pearl, I’m a fairly fast thumb-typist. With the iPod Touch, I am reduced to one-finger work with lots of errors, even in landscape mode. Way slower, for me, than the Pearl interface.

For right now, I am OK with two devices. Together they take up less space than my first cell phone! I don’t have enough memory on a BlackBerry to ditch my iPod, and it’s screen is too small for ebooks. My weeks with the Touch confirms the keyboard difficulties I experienced in the store when the iPhone debuted. Besides, there are apps for work that I just can’t do with an iPhone!

I am due for a new device about the time the BlackBerry Magnum is supposed to debut. Now there’s a cool device for a hot, middle-aged babe like me!

Ears vs. Eyes: Learning to Love Podcasts

I am a visual person. I remember faces and I remember names, but I can’t always put them together again. I often find the very act of making a list allows me to remember what I need, even though the list gets left in the car. I can still see what I have written in my mind.

The popularity of audio books escapes me. I read fast, and I process things so much easier by seeing them than by hearing them. A multi-chapter book would require a recap at the start of each commuter session (or a long enough trip to listen to the whole book in one session).

A couple of years ago, I won an Ipod Nano. I quickly transferred a bunch of CDs and set up my Itunes account. I am not fond of listening through headphones, but my new car has a Ipod jack. The podcast, however, has only recently gotten my attention.

Other faculty have been creating podcasts that physicians can download to answer specific questions. I didn’t get it, because I wouldn’t remember what I listened to long enough to benefit (see first two paragraphs). I far prefer to access an online “written” reference, especially if its presentation is friendly for my BlackBerry screen. Other physicians began downloading these short updates, though, and they still seem to be popular.

Now I have become a podcast personality. ASN Kidney News, the magazine I edit, started producing these with the May issue. I chat with the author(s) of something in the magazine, and we post it on the ASN web site and in Itunes. I was thrilled when the first one was downloaded more than 700 times. After all, kidneys are a niche audience. We just posted the second Kidney News podcast; in 10 days it has received >4,000 unique visits and >12,000 total visits!

I have also wandered around the Itunes store to see what other podcasts are out there. I am especially delighted to find my favorite NPR shows. I often miss Fresh Air on my local station; now I subscribe and listen the next morning at work (or on my way home in the car, if I have to do something away from my desk)! For the past year, I have planned Saturday morning rounds so I could hear as much of Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me as possible. If you haven’t tried this one, you do not know what you are missing; it is roll-on-the-floor, pee-your-pants funny. While this level of humor has, on occasion, proved problematic while driving, it is always appreciated. Now my patients don’t have to “wait, wait” while I laugh!

I still don’t remember as much of what I hear as what I read or see. I do appreciate what podcasts can do for the world, though.

By the way, I am a member of KIOS, the Omaha NPR station. Have you joined your local NPR affiliate?

Why I Take Time To Blog

Isis over at ScienceBlogs posted yesterday about blogging and one’s career. Her post first discusses Alex Coturnix and his rules for blogging: (1) A blog post is not a scientific publication; (2) It doesn't count if you publish your data in a blog post; and (3) Your blog usually doesn't generate novel data.

These are important points to keep in mind. While I am a physician-scientist (see photo for proof) I do not discuss my data in Golden Thoughts. If you want to know about my science, you can pull my papers. Or email me, cause I will talk about my hypotheses till the cows come home. Given the frustrations of obtaining funding and running the reviewer mill, no one does science for kicks. Science is a labor of love.

I have on occasion done the “lay science” thing when a topic grabs my attention, and I present it for a different, more general audience. Some folks do this regularly and well (see Uremic Frost for a fine example in Nephrology).

Ultimately, a blog is a personal thing. I love to write. Here I can tell tales or expound on the injustice of the world without annoying anyone (my drinking buddies are quick to point out that my bar stories are waaaay too long). Readers can just click away from my page when they get annoyed. My blog gives voice to thoughts in my head that get in the way of everything else. In a way, it helps me get focused by letting that other stuff out.

I don’t blog everyday because I wish to remain employed. I have stuff to do if I want to be clothed and if I want to eat. But I can’t imagine life without Golden Thoughts anymore.

A Woman of a Certain Age

Earlier today I was lusting over the shoes de jour at the blog of Isis when this ad showed up alongside her words of wisdom:

So we have a woman with gray hair writing on the chalkboard (how old school!) touting online educational opportunities (how… inexplicable).

And then you look to see which programs are being highlighted: Education, Nursing, Health Management, General Studies, and Financial Planning. How… traditional!

Now I grew up in Missouri and got my degrees (BA & MD) from one of the MU campuses (Kansas City). I suspect “women of a certain age” are a growth industry for universities, especially for online education. I suspect these may be popular programs amenable to online learning as well, but I can’t help noticing that they are very traditional pink collar fields.

The whole thing just made me feel, well, weird. I would have shown the potential student at a kitchen table, NOT in an obvious classroom situation. That is sort of the whole point of online education… it’s NOT in the classroom. The tiger tracks are cool, but surely the student could have been standing by a desk at home, perhaps in house slippers.

I also would have liked to see the “mature woman” looking a little nicer. The sweatshirt and jeans with runners is so “Early-bird special at Country Kitchen.” Surely a woman improving her mind and working toward an advanced degree would look a little more put together. Jeans, ballet flats, and a nice fitted jacket?

As a 48-year-old woman whose nest will be empty in a couple of years, I am near the age group this ad targets. I would think one that projects the desired image of an older, professional woman would be more successful.

But what do I know: I’m a doctor, not an advertising guru.

Career Maintenance in the 21st Century

Today I heard a story on NPR’s Morning Edition about social media and applying for jobs. That resume printed on heavy bond in a matching envelope is so 20th century… and we are almost a decade into the 21st! Sending a printed job application makes you look, well, old, or at least out of touch.

Some folks have found jobs through FaceBook or Twitter, but the most popular professional networking site is LinkedIn. This site allows you to set up a resume with current and past positions, education, more detailed descriptions of interests and job responsibilites, and a short status update similar to those on FaceBook.

The fun is just beginning! You can add links to your blog or other web pages. Apps let you share travel plans, books you are reading, and PowerPoint presentations or other documents.

The real power of LinkedIn is its networking. Using your places of education and employment, email address book, and interests, the site locates people you may know. You then ask them to “join your network” which is like being a “friend” in FaceBook. You can also ask your primary network contacts (your “friends” to continue the analogy) for recommendations. These can be viewed by others on LinkedIn to support your online resume. My public view is shown below:

Those who have joined LinkedIn can generate a bare-bones resume in PDF format as well.

Once you have set up your primary network and, perhaps, joined some groups, you can then arrange “introductions” via the service. Say you want to meet someone from Company X. You can search for Company X and identify people. The service reports those who are linked to your network. Secondary links are those connected to your primary network, and tertiary networks are one more step removed. You can request introductions via these links and eventually make contact with people.

A number of companies and headhunters use the service to find contacts who may want jobs they have or may be able to suggest appropriate candidates. When you sign up you specify what you want to hear about and how you want to be contacted. I am not actively job hunting, but I get at least one inquiry a month this way.

LinkedIn has been called “FaceBook for Professionals.” It is a useful tool for job hunting and career maintenance. If you are over the age of 18, you probably need a profile!

Selling Your Poster

Above the three Lanes are shown enjoying a fine meal in a New Orleans establishment, after all of our posters are done.

So you have designed and printed your poster. Now you will have to stand next to it for a period of time. This presents a great opportunity for you to present your work one-on-one to those most interested in it. Some people squander the moment.

First of all, dress professionally. This means some sort of suit-like outfit. As I have noted before, if you are showing up on the Nobel short list you can wear jeans to your presentation. Until then, be professional! Read the poster instructions. Show up and stay the whole time.

Those strolling by will generally fall into 3 groups. Most will read the title, perhaps smile at you, and then walk on by. Don't feel bad - they are just looking for another category. Another group are your colleagues. They will come by to see your work, catch up, and otherwise see what you are presenting. The third group are those who are interested in your topic in some way. This is the group for which you prepare.

If someone you don't know spends more than a minute reading your work, smile and say hello. Offer to answer questions. Don't pretend like they aren't there (you would be surprised how often this happens). Try to read their name badge; you may recognize it! Think of this as a golden opportunity to meet those whose work you cite!

Others who decide they are interested in your work will ask you to tell them about it, rather than reading the poster while you watch them. Have the 2 minute summary ready:

• Why we did it
• What we did
• What we found
• What we think it means

Each point requires one or two sentences. "We thought factor X might cause Y. We knocked-out the gene for factor X in mice and found that they didn't develop Y. Factor X may be a new therapeutic target for disease ABC which is characterized by high levels of Y." They can then ask you to clarify what they are most interested in, whether it be how you knocked-out the gene, how you measured Y, or why you think any of this has any relevance to the real world.

Poster presentations present challenges, but they are a great way to have others discuss your work. Remember, this is your chance to present your hot science to the world - not "just a poster."

Scientific Posters: Part deaux

First, the photo at right is from my Louisiana Swamp Tour. He is Big Al, ~13' long and the dominant gator in the Honey Island Swamp. We saw him grab another gator by the tail and toss him 5 feet away. Don't mess with Al...

So you have finished the title and authors for your poster. Now on to the entree, the body of the work. Your poster should be organized into sections like a paper: Introduction, Methods, Results, and Conclusions. Optional sections are references, acknowledgements, and contact information.

For a paper, only the most important results are shown in graphic form; in a poster, anything that can be demonstrated in graphic form should be done that way. I guarantee you will remember the photo of Big Al longer than you recall anything else in this post!

Don't use paragraphs of text. Bullet points, like on a slide, are preferred. There is a scientific basis for this- people can typically read ~65 characters without scanning across a line. Columns of text shouldn't be wider than this, or your viewers can get lost!

Font selection is important, but the "rules" aren't as hard and fast as some would have you believe. Arial is not the only option!

• Sans serif fonts (like Arial or Helvetica) facilitate individual letter recognition
• Serif fonts (like Times) help pull words together and may be easier to read for sentences or bullet points (and especially for documents like manuscripts and grants)
• ALL CAPS ARE TIRESOME
• Avoid "cute" fonts; you lose credibility!

The smallest text on a poster should be at least 5mm in height. This translates to 16pt, and is a good size for captions or other details. Important text in the "meat" of the poster should be 20-24pt.

I usually don't include a bibliography on my posters, but I do acknowledge grant funding and provide contact information. The latter is especially important for people who may view your poster when you are elsewhere! If they want to invite you to speak at their place, they can jot an email into their address book and catch up with you later!

Many organizations "require" that a copy of your abstract be on your poster. I have never seen anyone police their posters this closely, the abstract is a block of text that is hard to read, and the meeting participants have access to the abstract elsewhere. I often omit it from the actual poster. I format my posters to 3'x6' even though the standard poster board is 4'x8'. That way I can stick up a copy of the abstract along side the poster, or a few business cards. I can also stand near my poster without blocking it.

Next post: guidelines for (hu)manning your poster.

Why Do We Twitter, ETC?

Why do we blog and text and Twitter and Facebook and email and everything else?

Ever since the first caveman picked up a rock and began grinding things on the wall, we have had the desire to communicate. I have been thinking about this alot, since my husband does not appreciate the current lines of communication. When I send a text or email to someone, he sneers. It seems I should pick up the phone and hear their voice, not settle for the "written" word transmitted electronically.

Last week I went to see the new stage version of Mary Poppins. I do understand that this is not a historical piece, but it did get me thinking about communication in the Victorian era. Pre-telephone people wrote notes. The rich had messengers to deliver these notes when needed. There were multiple mail deliveries each day. Mass media was the spoken voice or newspapers. When events occurred, paperboys hit the streets with special editions to get the word out. Those who could not read or afford the paper had to settle for what the boys yelled or what others told them.

The telegraph allowed our thoughts to be transmitted over longer distances, but the telephone was the next big change for personal communications. Remember the movie Meet Me In St. Louis? The family is excited and shocked that a boy is calling the older sister, Rose, long-distance. There is discussion about a possible proposal and whether or not one should marry a boy who would propose via an "invention." Sounds like my husband's attitude to email, text messages, and the whole social web!

Mass communications also changed through the 20th century, with the spoken word replacing text for immediate dissemination of news. TV and radio replaced the paperboy and the special edition. Newspapers became a once or twice a day publication. Now we are watching many of these papers die as the internet becomes the source of indepth news that they once provided. We can still get our immediate needs met with TV or radio, but we often go online when we want more than can be broadcast.

Personal communications have also changed, moving back to the written word. Fax machines first allowed us to send printed pages quickly, but soon we were emailing and texting information without ever printing it.

So in this brief, rather unresearched history of communications we have come around to written communications again. Some will last, like posts online, and others will evaporate into the ether as soon as the text screen is cleared.

So what will I tell my husband after this mental exercise? Things change - get over it! Some thoughts still require a face to face meeting (I put proposals, break-ups, and really bad diagnoses that I share with patients in this category). Because email and texts do leave a trail, some private conversations should be done face to face or by phone. Otherwise, I believe that anything I can say I can write. Or tweet.