How ethical are synthetic biology and cloning? How can AI be used to address healthcare disparities? What unintended consequences could it have? Why are scientists releasing billions of mosquitoes to the wild?
You can expect some of what will be discussed to look like those questions -- none are limited to biology and I will be receptive to topics you guys can offer! Please participate in this informal series, ready to learn, for fun!!
My hope with this series is that you not only improve your scientific literacy but also your communication and critical thinking skills, which will be applicable in any field you choose to pursue, science or not. Towards the end of the series, we will provide dedicated learners with an exciting FUN project that you WON’T want to miss!
General Structure of Meetings (may vary):
1) Concise overview, key aspects, relevance and current implications of topic
2) Random breakout rooms; each group will explore a specific aspect of the topic in more detail
3) Reconvene: Each group (representative or shared) will share their key insights (this will be important for the guided discussion)
4) Guided discussion with prepared critical questions based on everyone's input; there will also be follow-up questions
5) Your final thoughts/reflections; summarization of main insights, questions, and conclusions
6) Topics you want to see in the future: put them in the chat!
7) Post-meeting discussion forum with a burning question in the SHW group chat related to the topic (short ~1-2 sentence response)
Expectations and Prerequisites: Just come ready to actively learn and contribute from and to the discussion. Whether you have all the science experience in the world or just beginning to see what science offers, everyone is welcome to engage and have fun in our informal series; all you need to bring to meetings is your enthusiasm for science!
