Please, all you Loughborough researchers, check your email for the message from Katryna Kalawsky containing the link and grab yourself a suitable beverage during whenever you have a bit of a break and let us know what you think. The researcher development process needs this brief input of yours to ensure the right things happen to continue researcher development.

I’m not going to repeat the survey link here, as it’s just for Loughborough researchers, and the blog is open to all, but if you’ve deleted the email and you need a reminder, email Katryna with this link.

Thanks!

The article on data visualisation tools by Brian Suda (3rd May 2013) caught my eye, with categories on:

1. cleaning up data
2. chart creation and inspiration tools
3. mapping
4. timelines
5. learning more (including a link to a wonderful film on teaching to see)
6. practice makes perfect

Worth a look, imho…

This is a concept I really like. No, not because it sounds like an excuse to stop work, but because I recognise it in my working life. Stepping consciously away from a problem and thereby allowing yourself to reframe it or describe it in a different way is just another tool in your kit of stuff that makes you good at what you are.

The productive pause doesn’t necessarily mean doing no work – BBC Horizon’s ‘The creative brain – how insight works’ (47 minutes in) suggests if you go and do something simple and menial, you ‘switch off’ parts of the brain that are involved in higher mental processes. When you return to needing to be creative, your brain is better able to respond to the problem.

Have a read of ‘The value of taking a productive pause‘ by Art Markman, and see what I mean.

• highlight the range of initiatives that departments can develop to support researchers who share a particular protected characteristic
• offer guidance on how to embed equality and diversity considerations within institutional and departmental practices that may affect selection rates to the REF

It would be great if any findings from this could be considered under Objective 2 on the career progression of BME (Black and Minority Ethnic) staff.

Get involved

To develop this guidance document we would like to hear responses from BME researchers to the following questions:

1. What policies/practices/procedures (PPPs) within HE do you think are supportive to the career development of BME researchers?
2. Are there any specific initiatives that you are aware of that have had a positive effect on the career development of BME researchers?
3. What PPPs within HE do you think are hindering the career development of BME researchers?
4. How can any PPPs within HE be changed to support the career development of BME researchers?

All responses should be directed to Chris Brill at chris.brill@ecu.ac.uk or 0207 438 1021, although if you contact Abida Akram in Staff Development, too, I know she’d be interested.

ECU is clear that the views and experiences of BME researchers will be crucial to shaping this work.

Come and network with colleagues whilst picking up a hint or tip on a wide range of research-related topics. Each slot is a manageable coffee-break-sized 30 minutes – just enough time for a breather before you return to your desk refreshed and informed!

1. Making Mendeley work for you – Wednesday 20^th March
2. How to manage your research data – Wednesday 27^th March
3. New to LUPIN? – Wednesday 3^rd April
4. Going for Gold open access – Wednesday 10^th April

All sessions will be held in Library Training Room 1.

For more information and to book please visit the Library’s Staff Workshops page:

http://www.lboro.ac.uk/services/library/events/workshops/staffworkshops/

The sessions are:

Finding research information, 5th March 2-4pm;
Assessing your research impact with bibliometrics, 7th March, 10-12 (for anyone not going to the Research Staff Conference!);
Increasing the visibility of your research, 11th March, 10-12;
Improving your research impact through open access, 13th March, 2-4pm.

You can sign up for all of these, as well as seeing the details of all of other staff workshops via: http://www.lboro.ac.uk/services/library/events/workshops/staffworkshops/ 

#jointhe5000 – the Loughborough University 5k road race

If you’re spending too much time at your desk – like me – the opportunity to get out and about is good for both physical and mental well-being. Mindful that yesterday was University Mental Health and Wellbeing Day, I know I find that physical activity helps me to manage myself better when it comes to the competing challenges of the workplace. Let’s face it, it can all be a bit fraught sometimes.

So when I saw twitter messages about the Loughborough 5k road race, my first reaction was, “yikes, that sounds a bit too racy for a 40-something – and it’ll be full of skinny, whippetty types in club vests, all serious expressions and calf muscles like golfballs”. I mentioned this to a colleague in Marketing and was firmly put in my place. “It’s a mass participation event – a fun run. Get out there and have fun. That’s an order.” (They can be a bit excessively ‘on-message’ in Marketing.)

I’ve checked out the Lboro press release and the Loughborough Sport page and, well, it looks like a laugh. And that’s what it’ll be, afterwards. It’s only 5k around campus, if you invite friends along it’ll be an event – you’ll have shared something you can talk about afterwards, be it the amazing campus crocuses or the pain in your non-golfball-shaped calf muscles. And for a while, work won’t matter. That’s got to be good for work-life balance…

See you there?

 It involves 20-30 minute webinars followed by Q & A with the teachers (and students) during March, April and May,  in the first instance.

 This is a really efficient way of ensuring teachers remain up-to-date with cutting edge scientific research and to inspire their students.  If you can provide an engaging presentation about your research, or would like further information, then please contact:

Steve Jones

Professional Development Leader

Science Learning Centre East of England

s.l.jones2@herts.ac.uk<mailto:s.l.jones2@herts.ac.uk

 You will need to be available for one of the two remaining training heats, the briefing session and the grand final date in case you win through to compete for the top prize of £2000.

 2013 Dates

Briefing session                Monday 8 April – from Loughborough University or via Webinar

 Training heat 1                  Sunday 28 April – Wednesday 1 May       Holiday Inn Leeds/Brighouse
Training heat 2                  Sunday 12 May – Wednesday 15 May     Holiday Inn Milton Keynes
Training heat 3                  Sunday 2 June – Wednesday 5 June        Holiday Inn Coventry                     FULL

Grand Final                         Wednesday 19 June                                       Birmingham Science Park, Aston

2013 Fees

Standard fees from 1^st February                                                £800.00 per person (9 funded places still available)

You may apply in teams of 4 – 6 people, or if you want to apply as an individual, pair or group of three, we will allocate additional team members as necessary.

Further information can be found on our website www.engineeringyes.org

Keep up to date with events by following us on twitter https://twitter.com/EngineeringYES

Engineering YES – researcher brochure

Please apply directly using the form on our website at www.engineeringyes.org

 If these terms are a mystery to you and you would like to know more about how to make your research more visible or simply how to find information for your own research more effectively, why not take some time out of the office or lab and come along to one of the Library workshops for Academic and Research Staff in March or July. They are all designed specifically for staff and research associates, with excellent feedback from attendees in previous years.

 “Really useful to understand impact of research”

“All great!”

“Practical session and useful advice.”

“Good pace and nice to try things straight after being introduced rather than all at end.  This was a very good session introducing a range of different resources.”

This year’s workshops are:

• Finding research information;
• Assessing your research impact with bibliometrics;
• Increasing the visibility of your research;
• Improving your research impact through open access.

 To find out more about the sessions and book, please visit the Library webpages.