HGSAC hosted a coffee hour on Friday December 2. Students were able to socialize while enjoying  some fresh hot chocolate and doughnuts from Dunkin.  It was a great way to end the week and warm up on a cold December afternoon.

On December 1st HGSAC held a workshop on how to make an effective ppt presentation. The workshop was led by Dr. Michael Alley. Dr. Alley is a professor of Mechanical Engineering at Penn State and has published a plethora of books and articles discussing what makes an effective science presentation. Dr. Alley is a proponent of the assertion-evidence approach, which has presenters center their talks around the message not the topic.  To begin the workshop he asked attendees what presentation impressed them the most and why. Two attributes were consistently mentioned,  the presentation was well organized with a strong introduction and the speaker showed excitement about the topic.  Alley emphasized the main goal of a scientific ppt presentation is to be “understood, remembered, and believed”. Keeping that goal in mind he used the analogy that a presentation is like climbing a mountain. The presenter needs to successfully guide the audience through the material, or in this analogy up the mountain.  Alley provided examples of effective presentations and explained how to incorporate those techniques into one’s own presentation. 

For more information about Dr. Alley, his publications, and presenting resources please follow the links below:

• Dr. Alley’s Penn State page
• Writing as an Engineer or Scientist
• Presenting as an Engineer or Scientist
• Assertion-Evidence talks

On Tuesday November 8 HGSAC hosted a round table with IQVIA representatives Justine Wetzel and Deanna Passaretti. IQVIA utilizes bioinformatics to perform metadata analysis on de-identified prescription data, patient medical records, and healthcare claims.  Compiled reports are then provided to life science and healthcare industries. Justine and Deanna discussed the mission statement of IQVIA, important studies performed by IQVIA, and of keen interest to Huck students, job and internship opportunities. 

For more information please visit the IQVIA website: https://www.iqvia.com/

HGSAC hosted a coffee hour on Friday October 21. Students were able to socialize while enjoying  some fresh hot coffee and delicious pumpkin muffins on a chilly October day.  Coffee hours are always an enjoyable way to break up the work day and meet with other Huck students. Rumor has it the next coffee hour will have hot coco and some yummy baked goods so we hope to see you there!

HGSAC’s Guided Arboretum tour on October 5th, 2022 was led by Robert Witkowski, a second-year graduate student in the Plant Biology program.  The event started with cider and donuts, a wonderful way to warm up on an autumn evening! The beginning of the fall season made for the ideal weather to experience  the unique flora (and fauna) that the Arboretum housed. The H.O. Smith Botanic Gardens at the Arboretum  is home to a whopping 106 families, 334 genera, and 1,130 species of plants.  The tour took students through the children’s garden, made with the theme of discovery and a gateway to childhood. There Robert talked about  local crops grown in the garden (which donates its food to the local food pantry) and cave formations found in Pennsylvania. Then we went through the brand new pollinator’s garden where we learned about the importance of bees and birds and how to encourage them to live on your property.   The final stop was the sensory gardens, which we were encouraged to revisit in the spring.

The Huck Graduate Student Advisory Committee (HGSAC) hosted the annual welcome back picnic on September 10th at Sunset Park. The picnic was a fun way to start the semester and welcome back  Huck students. Everyone was able to enjoy the beautiful weather with lawn games and food straight from the grill!