Dear Optics & Photonics Enthusiasts,
We, the SPIE Chapter Cambridge, would like to invite you all very warmly to our upcoming BBQ and Science Improv workshop in the beautiful gardens of Leckhampton! No need to bring anything, we will provide drinks and food! When: Tuesday, 15th June, 4 pm onwards Where: Leckhampton Gardens, Corpus Christi College To keep track of numbers and ensure a (covid-)safe meeting, please sign-up to show your interest on Eventbrite using this link: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/spie-bbq-improv-workshop-tickets-157458385269 We are looking forward to a fun afternoon with you all! Kind regards, Sascha on behalf of the SPIE Chapter Cambridge Sascha Feldmann President, SPIE Chapter Cambridge
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Due to the ongoing Corona pandemic, the chapter - within both its past and current committee - had to make the hard decision to postpone all planned events until it is safe and feasible again to host these.
We are looking forward to a bright future with plenty of social interactions and knowledge exchange with you! This event was planned to be a get-together of the SPIE Student Chapter community and enjoy one of the last summer days in a relaxed atmosphere, while also working on their soft skills. To this end, we organised a BBQ to take place in the beautiful gardens of Leckhampton in Cambridge.
Once everybody had settled in and grabbed a drink and a burger (feature committee members: don’t forget veggie options! There was a big demand for it and luckily, we were prepared.), we started a workshop on science improvisation, led by Dr. James Dolan. He is as scientist with background in nano-photonics who worked on metamaterials in the past, but now also is the first Junior Research Fellow in Science Communication in Cambridge. In the workshop we could all learn a great deal of how to pitch our research out of the blue to people without a science background, but also in general how to engage with a newly made contacts in a more natural way and picking up what they tell you about themselves in order to make them listen to what you have to say more actively as well. Overall it was a great afternoon with lots of networking, good food and fun and we received very positive feedback from participants asking us to organise such a workshop again in the future. In April 2019, the Cambridge SPIE student Chapter organized an interdisciplinary networking event focussing on post-PhD career options at the Department of Chemistry (Bristol-Myers Squibb Lecture Theatre, Cambridge, UK). Five speakers from different sectors (industry, academia, start-ups, consulting) who received a doctorate in an optics-related field were invited. We asked them to share their experiences in working in their respective sectors and to give advice and recommendations to the audience how to best utilize their PhDs and apply/proceed in their working field. Every speaker had a five-minute long introduction talk to give details about their career path and their current working environment. Afterwards, a 1-hour panel discussion took place, which gave the audience the opportunity to ask questions.
In terms of some takeaways, the panellists seemed to be split in regard to whether or not one should participate in many extracurricular activities (or even internships) during their PhD, for advancing future career prospects, but everyone was in agreement that the connections and networks they had built during their time in Cambridge had been invaluable for later successes in both securing and being successful in their professional endeavours. Milan and Hannah also spoke about the importance of mental health during the later stages of one’s PhD, emphasizing the importance of not being afraid to talk about it and seeking help when necessary. Hannah pointed out that one should not rush into something else straight after their PhD, and take the opportunity to reflect and perhaps take a break (if possible) before embarking into something new. The event closed with a wine and canapés reception giving the audience the possibility to directly network with the speakers and with other people from the audience. The feedback from both, the speakers and the audience, was very positive. Due to advertisements on social media platforms, on posters, and emails within different departments, the event has been very well attended. A lot of questions were asked by the audience and audience and speakers interacted closely during the networking session. Almost everyone stayed until the event closed at 9pm. At the Cambridge Academy for Science and Technology, Emma Brown, Lina Hacker, Jonghee Yoon and Rajesh Shahapure from the VISIONLab alongside Sascha Feldmann and Philipp Köhler from the SPIE Student Chapter, showcased many fun activities, demonstrating how we can use light and sound to visualize cancer in the body. These activities captured the interest of all ages! Among the activities were 3D glasses, to demonstrate polarisation of light and how we can use this property of light to distinguish between healthy and cancerous tissue.
Many of these activities were sponsored by an SPIE Education Outreach Grant awarded to the University of Cambridge Student Chapter. We attend many Cambridge outreach events throughout the year, so keep a look out for us if you want to learn more about what we do! Thanks to our sponsor, volunteers and attendees for making this fun and educational day possible. On Friday 28th September, the SPIE student chapter introduced optic-related science to the general public at the European Researcher`s Night in Cambridge. The European Researcher’s Night gives scientists the opportunity to promote and showcase their research.
SPIE outreach officer Lina Hacker together with VISIONLab members Emma Brown, Ayaka Shinozaki, Jonghee Yoon, Judith Weber and Calum Williams used this chance to reach out to the general public and share their passion for optics. Entertaining activities for both adults and children were offered, demonstrating how light can be used to detect cancer. Visitors could see the world in rainbows by using diffraction glasses, could experience the transformation of light to sound by using the popular ‘photophone’ or could measure their own blood pulse by using pulse oximeters. There was plenty of time for visitors to ask questions about optic-related concepts and how they are applied in current research. The SPIE student chapter was happy about the purely positive feedback they received – they could successfully share their passion for science and hopefully inspire a new generation of researchers! Benefits:
Leadership workshop: Traveling to a new country all by yourself can be a daunting experience. Although I have traveled to a lot of previously, I realized I was always accompanied by a friend or a colleague on most of my trips. This trip however, was going to be my first trip alone. I was nervous ever since we took off an hour late from London. I somehow made it to my connecting flight in time, but unfortunately (or fortunately) my flight from Dallas to Los Angeles was delayed by 3 hours. This meant that I was going to miss the last train at night (10:20pm) from Los Angeles to San Diego (my final destination). Since the delay was due to a maintenance issue by the airline, they offered me a hotel room to stay for the night and I could take the first train in the morning to San Diego. A couple of hours late, but I finally made it to the leadership workshop! And all that nerve-racking travel seemed so worth it! It was a day full of exciting activities with chapter officers from all across the globe. In groups of 7-10 people we got to interact and perform tasks with a team full of young leaders. From tackling situations like handing over the chapter to a new committee to running a chapter efficiently we discussed and concluded on best strategies to overcome challenges with SPIE Student Chapters. Jean-Luc Doumont, led the workshop with great enthusiasm while teaching us the dos and don’ts for becoming a successful leader. It was a fruitful day full of activities that helped all the 180 of us to mingle and get to know each other! Outreach Games: Following the networking and workshop activities on Saturday, it was our chance to demonstrate our chapter outreach kits to a global audience on Sunday. With over 20 stalls in place, the exhibition room was ready to host audiences with varied backgrounds. Iliya Stoev, CUSPIE (Cambridge University SPIE Chapter) member, helped me set up our outreach stall called ‘The Colour and Sound of Cancer’ Using a few Pulse Oximeters, a digital stethoscope and a modulated light torch, we demonstrated the use of light in detecting cancer. The pulse oximeters were used to demonstrate how the simple principle of light absorption was used to measure the amount of oxygen in one’s blood. Followed by that explanation, we conveyed how the absorbed light can be detected in our bodies through ultrasound detectors instead of light detectors. Although the background noise in the room made it very difficult for to demonstrate the functioning of our photophone, we had a great time explaining the importance of optics in earl detection of cancer. Chapter Mixer: Outreach activities, although crucial, are only a part of what we do as student chapters. There was a lot more we needed to share about our chapters and learn from other chapters. SPIE gave us the opportunity to do so at the Chapter Mixer. An evening of poster sessions where we presented posters about the activities we carry out in our respective chapters. University of Cambridge, being one of the youngest chapter present, received a lot of attention especially for having reached various departments across the University with our activities. Conference Presentation: Being actively involved with various networking and chapter activities during the evenings, we had our mornings booked with scientific talks. As it was a conference with representation from various fields, the SPIE Conference app made sure that we were aware of all the relevant talks happening at every hour of the day. Personally, as I work on fabricating solution processed tandem solar cells, while developing theoretical models to understand the potential of my devices, there were a wide range of talks that appealed to me. From industrial (III-V) tandem solar cells to multi-junction organic tandem cells, it was an incredible experience finding out about all the issues we have been solving as a community in this field. Finally, I had the opportunity to present my work on solution-processed tandem solar cells to a room full of experienced researchers. It was my first ever conference talk and the most fulfilling experience I’ve had so far in my science career. I received a lot of encouraging suggestions and comments on what the future holds for my research project.
Hopefully, I’ve managed to convince you that SPIE Student Chapters offer a lot more than just individual events. It offers you the opportunity to be a part of an entire community of like-minded scientists who are keen to develop their skills in every sector. Last week the SPIE Student Chapter gathered four of leaders in photonics from around Cambridge. Professor Sir Richard Friend, Director of the Maxwell Centre, Professor Andrea Ferrari, Director of the Graphene Centre, Professor Jeremy Baumberg, Director of the Nanophotonics Centre, and Professor Oren Scherman, Director of the Melville Laboratory gathered to discuss the future of research. Each of the esteemed speakers gave a fifteen minute presentation of their work, and speculated about the future of their research. Following this, the professors took part in a lively panel discussion, with questions directed at the panel from an audience of around 100 graduate and postgraduate students. As well as some serious discussion around the topics of scientific funding and undergraduate teaching, the panel also shared some laughter whilst discussing the pros and cons of their respective fields, and their past interactions. Following the talks, the audience were invited to join the professors at a drinks reception with wine and pizza being provided by the student chapter, a perfect chance for the professors to answer any further questions they had evaded during the panel discussion. The SPIE Cambridge Student Chapter would like to thank the Winton Programme for Physics of Sustainability, the Sensor Doctoral Training Center (CambridgeSense) and the Integrated Photonics and Electronics System Center for Doctoral Training (IPES CDT) for their sponsorship for this event.
Dale Waterhouse, outreach officer of the University of Cambridge SPIE Student Chapter, organised and participated in student outreach event visiting schools in South Yorkshire. The event was a collaboration between VISIONLab and the Student Chapter. To read more about the engaging activities on the day please follow the link to the VISIONLab blog.
We thank SPIE Education Outreach Grant for the support that enabled us to conduct this event and to share our passion for optics and photonics. Last week 6 young principal investigators from 5 departments across the University of Cambridge gathered with an audience of around 50 students to share their top tips for becoming a successful group leader in optics and photonics. After briefly introducing their research in a short flash presentation, the PIs gathered at the front of the lecture theatre to take part in a stimulating panel discussion. Outreach aficionados in the audience were delighted to hear the majority of group leaders recommend outreach and public engagement as a method of enhancing communication skills. Sarah Bohndiek emphasised that the ability to communicate with the public goes hand in hand with the ability to effectively communicate the core ideas of a research proposal, increasing the chances of securing the crucial funding required to run a successful research group. Steven Lee echoed this, explaining that running his podcast, TheScienceShed, had taught him to better convey his scientific ideas. The young researchers also discussed carving out your research niche, though there was disagreement on whether to find your own, with Stefanie Reichelt revealing she had her own microscope at the age of 12, or whether to let your niche find you. Indeed, many niches come in and out of fashion anyway. Alternatively, Emilie Ringe emphasised the importance of finding your niche skill set by imagining a 3 circle Venn diagram of skills. Should only 2 circles of unique skills be currently on this imaginary figure, she explained, you should search for a third, such that the intersection of the three represents a unique skill set only you possess. Hannah Joyce pointed out that you don’t necessarily need to be an extrovert to be enthusiastic about your research and convey that to others, a reassuring message to the more introverted members of the audience. She went on to explain that professional presentation training was available to help us to communicate our research more effectively. Sam Stranks remarked on how the best chances of success can be achieved by making your work stand out as much as possible. Reassuringly though, the PIs were unified in admitting that the majority of academic endeavours result in failure, at all stages and for all people. The key, as cliché as it may be, is to keep trying and never give up! The young investigators also highlighted networking as a crucial aspect of becoming a PI, and the SPIE student chapter gave aspiring PIs the opportunity to do so following the panel, laying on a wine and nibbles. Indeed, attendees took the advice on board, enjoying the outstanding refreshments and food kindly supported by our sponsors, many sticking around to mingle with the PIs and one another for well over an hour after the scheduled end time of the event. The committee would like to extend a special thanks to Sarah Bohndiek, Sam Stranks, Steven Lee, Hannah Joyce, Emilie Ringe and Stefanie Reichelt for giving up an evening to share their experiences. We would also like to thank our kind sponsors, the Department of Physics, The Winton Programme for the Physics of Sustainability, CamBridgeSens, Nano DTC and IPES CDT on behalf of all the attendees and the CUSPIE committee.
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