Eight and a half ways for a researcher to communicate in the Net

Miquel Duran @miquelduran http://miquelduran.net miquel.duran@udg.edu
Eight and a half ways for a researcher to
communicate in the Net
Miquel DURAN
Institute of Computational Chemistry and Catalysis
Universitat de Girona
miquel.duran@udg.edu @miquelduran
Increase your research competitiveness using Web 2.0 tools – 60th ICREA Colloquium - 11/3/2014
This presentation is available at http://slideshare.net/quelgir

#Selfie: it’s all about reputation
(Not a CC image)

Another #selfie: #moocaton Málaga 7/3/2014

What has changed recently in (y)our
neighborhood?
• Almost everyone has now a smartphone
(mobility)
• High bandwidth (video consumption)
• Ease of video production and streaming
• And the Internet of things

This is me
• MicroCV at twitter: University professor. Research in Quantum Chemistry.
Digital Science Communication, Magic and Science, MOOCs, TEDx events,
Open Knowledge
• Full Professor of Physical Chemistry at Universitat de Girona. Research in
quantum Chemistry - Nonlinear optical properties of molecules, two-
electron densities, and weak molecular interactions.
This is me too
• I like magic, railways, lateral thinking, food markets,
humour, mountain biking, languages, …
• Best friend: our cat Auri
https://twitter.com/arnauduran/status/441597227241177088/photo/1/large
And this is even me

This is me…
• And my archive…
• And my laptop
• And my tablet
• And my smartphone
• [And my smartwatch]
• i.e., …

This is me and my digital circumstances
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikebabcock/3600077025/

But…
This is also me
my battery
my plugs
my WiFi
and my 3G
Is it sustainable?

On Social Networking and Academics
• We would like scientists to
– understand wholly that communicating their
research and taking care of new knowledge
(content curation) is a key feature towards their
future,
– because of its intrinsic interest and social service,
– but also as a requisite to new project calls places
by the different research agencies

@LSEImpactBlog
http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/

Warwick Knowledge Centre
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/knowledge/

There are two kinds of rankings:
(1) bad, and (2) very bad
• Metrics unknown
• Metrics perhaps useless
• What about Klout, Kred, PeerIndex, …?
• What about simpler outcomes?
• New: Altmetrics (open publishing)

Disruptive change at universities? Maybe not
(yet)
• The web 2.0 must transform the university, rather
that be added to its routine activity
• Strategic attitude – changing University via
conversations, via social networking
– Professor-researcher 2.0
– Professor-researcher: director, actor or secondary person?

Indeed, ther is a quadruple level in branding
and reputation
• Institutional / university level
• Departmental / Research Institute level
• Research Group level
• Personal level
• Different brands
• Reputation hindered by current economic downturn

Science Communication 2.0
• Communicating Research – 4 levels at least
– Refereed Papers
– Communications in General Science Journals
– Dissemination of Science and Research
– Talking to young people
• Different formats:
– Classical article
– Video (YouTube Generation)
– Website / mobile / Social (the newest generation)
• Socialization through facebook, twitter, flickr, instagram, youtube,
tumblr, pinterest and any other system that may appear right today

But we also have facebook, youtube, flickr,
etc etc
• Our blog/website shoud be our main asset
• Facebook and other social networks are used to
amplify our website, to engage in conversations and
to share content
• The Web 2.0 Culture spreads fast amont students, but
not so much among researchers (I don’t have time for
that)
• Days should be longer than the current 25 hour limit!

Do research groups communicate?
• The 3 worlds (individual, group and
isntitution) communicate differently!
• Everythink depends too much on
individual attitudes.
• The Web 2.0 Culture is an attitude!
• The current economic difficulties prevent
enthousiastic involvement in
communication, e.g. in Science Outreach
activities

What about academic units (departaments
and institutes)
• Departments, even though they gather most
part of research force, are too focused on
teaching. Communication of research is scarce
• Research Institutes communicate slightly
better, but few of them use English as their
primary language
• Use of English and amount of communication
is related to Internationalitzation

What about researchers?
• Almost no one communicates his/her current
research
• Some communicate key aspects of their
academic/research life
• Much easier if related to Social Science
• Hard Science is difficult to communicate
• Struggle in Humanities: yet thinking in a move
toward Digital Humanities

Responsible Research and Innovation: How
do we receive feedback?
• RRI: Key element of Horizon 2020
• Meetings with Research and Innovation stockholders (i.e.,
companies, private sector)
• Meeting parents and families at outreach activities
• By means of online activities
• Bringing young students to the University/Research Center,
practical activities
• Formal interaction with other Public Institutions,
government officials, elected citzens
• Above all: be active!

So let’s try 8+ ways
to communicate in the Net!

Blogging
• My blog Edunomia http://edunomia.net
• My mesoblog edunoming http://edunoming.wordpress.com
• My microblog (twitter) @miquelduran
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cambodia4kidsorg/267060150/

Social networking
• General and specific (scientific)

Science dissemination

Magic (->personal skill)
The Magic of the Periodic Table of the Elements, G4G11 Atlanta 3/14
Magic, Science and Confessable Secrets, new MOOC at #MiriadaX

Open Science
• Sharing, Collaboration, Cooperating
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100477638@N03/10204741904/

TEDx-style talks
Marcel Swart (ICREA): “I’m a chemist – and proud to be so”

Video as a new basic personal skill

MOOC
• Another way of Science Communication
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mathplourde/8620174342/

(1/2 way!) make others communicate
http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisperriman/9276563408/

• Communicating, disseminating, promoting
Science and Research should be one of the
keys taks of a Senior Researcher
• Junior Researchers should acquire those skills
and attitudes during their Ph.D. period
• And do not forget: Content is king! Without
content, there is nothing to share

And now what?

In Search of Lost Time
(Why do academics work so much?)
• Inside Higher Education 3 March 2014http
://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2014/03/03/essay-why-faculty-members-work-so-
much
• As I am writing this article, I should be writing
something else: an email to an editor, an email
to an author, a letter of recommendation,
notes for tomorrow’s classes, comments on
students’ papers, comments on manuscripts,
an abstract for an upcoming conference, notes
for one of the books I’m working on. I cannot
remember the last time I ended a day having
crossed everything off my to-do list.

Matt Cutts’ TEDTalk: Try
something new for 30 days
• Is there something you've always meant to do, wanted to do, but just ...
haven't? Matt Cutts suggests: Try it for 30 days. This short, lighthearted
talk offers a neat way to think about setting and achieving goals.
http://www.ted.com/talks/matt_cutts_try_something_new_for_30_days

Why don’t you … ?
• Why don’t you blog once a week? You’ll be surprised about its value
after some time!
• Why don’t you shoot a #selfie every now and then?
• Why don’t you start a Scientifc Insragram, Tumblr, Flickr… or
Youtube. Your Science city. Your trips.
• Why don’t you tweet about an article or idea on your field of
knowledge found in the Internet?
• Why don’t you tweet about your Group? Group meeting, congresses,
conferences, talks, papers…
• Why don’t you attend “Ciencia en Redes”, Madrid, 8 May 2014?

ISCiCo
• Scientific Communication Course (master level), in English. Wiki
http://iscico.wordpress.com
• Hey… We got 30K views of the 5 PPT files in Slideshare! Our most-
viewed file: >9.000 times, cf. my most-cited paper >900 times.
• Content:
– This is me and my digital circumstances
– Let's communicate!
– Let's collaborate!
– Metrics and outreach
– Good practices

Investigación Científica 2.0.1:
Claves para una sociedad digital
• MOOC to start its second edition in the forthcoming weeks at #MiriadaX. In Spanish
• 2500 registrants one year ago, 400 completed
• https://www.miriadax.net/web/sociedad_digital
• Promotional video:
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Up_LcDkBzSY
• Módulo 0: Presentación.
• Módulo 1: Elementos del proceso investigador.
• Módulo 2: Reputación en el ámbito investigador.
• Módulo 3: Nuevos espacios de publicación digital.
• Módulo 4: Eficiencia y eficacia del proceso colaborativo y comunicador. Impacto académico y
en la red
• Módulo 5: Divulgación y diseminación del conocimiento.
• Módulo 6: Ejemplos de buenas prácticas en el uso de Internet.

Small personal plan
• Personal communication environment (PCE)
• Communication plan
• Task list
• Easy goals
• Simple metrics
• Share with the public

Cards as an analogy for science communication
• So many games and tricks!
• So many ways to
communicate science!

Stephen Macknik and Susana Martínez-Conde in “Sleights of Mind”
• Clarke’s 3rd law: Any sufficiently advanced technology
is indistinguishable from magic
• Agatha Heterodyne paraphrase: Any sufficiently
analyzed magic is indistinguishable from science
• Girona’s corolary: “any sufficiently complex social
network is indinguishable from magic”
Stephen Macknik and Susana Martínez-Conde, “Sleights of Mind. What the
neuroscience of magic reveals about our brains”. Profile Books, London 2011

I’d love to talk about, but did not have time
to…
• Storytelling
• Branding
• Leadership
• Common goal
• Social networks clone Social classes at the
University!
• One must fight against the digital divide!

OK - and now what?
• Let’s movilize
• Let¡s change
• Let’s move
• Let’s do thinkgs well
• Let’s concentrate
• Let’s keep freedom
• Let’s catalyze a positive attidude
• Let’s (place here your favourite call to action)

Some ideas to take away
• Web 2.0, Social Networking, Communicating Research – is just an attitude
• There is a paramount task yet in involving and motivating (good) researchers, research
groups and academic units in communicating (well!) Research and Science.
• Dissemination of Research and Public Outreach is hindered by current issues.
• There is a high pressure (Publish of Perish, Transfer or Die, etc.) that does not free time
enough to get involved in Public Outreach and Dissemination activities
• A proper system of Rewards could be established to catalyze and promote Science and
Research communication.

Key ideas to (tweet and to)
take away
• Key idea: Education is not a
preparation for life. Education is life
itself
• Let me introduce you to my favourite
chemist – Panoramix
• Thank you!
• This presentation is available at
http://slideshare.net/quelgir

Eight and a half ways for a researcher to communicate in the Net

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