Scripps Students Lead Fourth Annual Symposium

The fourth annual Scripps Student Symposium (S^3) continued its student-led legacy of hosting a one day conference filled with diverse, interdisciplinary research from graduate students at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography. With more than thirty original presentations displayed in the Robert Paine Scripps Forum for Science, Society, and the Environment, S^3 offered a chance for students to learn more about the work of their peers, wield the support of the entire Scripps community, and facilitate future collaboration on new scientific ideas. (View photo gallery.)

The fourth annual Scripps Student Symposium (S^3) continued its student-led legacy of hosting a one day conference filled with diverse, interdisciplinary research from graduate students at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography. With more than thirty original presentations displayed in the Robert Paine Scripps Forum for Science, Society, and the Environment, S^3 offered a chance for students to learn more about the work of their peers, wield the support of the entire Scripps community, and facilitate future collaboration on new scientific ideas. (View photo gallery.)

In 2014, a group of eight visionary students created the Scripps Student Symposium as a way to not only build a close association of scientists within the institution but to also provide a platform that exhibits the latest projects that conducted beyond each respective research division.

Students now expect this conference to be held every year, thanks to the efforts of the symposium’s organizers. This year, the four students who led S^3 were Kaitlin Creamer, Jessica C. Garwood, Gabriel Castro, and Brian Stock.

The 2017 conference included three oral sessions and two poster sessions for students to showcase their research. The poster sessions provided a more informal and discursive interaction that allowed students to sell their elevator pitches and answer questions from the public. The event concluded with a talk given by Scripps alumna and distinguished keynote speaker Loren Shure of MathWorks. An art show and social hour followed the day of festivities.

“The symposium is a great exercise in science communication. I was quite impressed with the quality and clarity of the presentations this year; everyone made nice efforts to communicate their research to non-experts,” said Stock, a marine biology PhD student and one of the symposium’s principal organizers.

According to students, the rewards of presenting at the symposium are widespread. Some students strengthen their presentation and public-speaking skills by communicating their research to new audiences. For others, it builds a greater appreciation of the discrete topics at Scripps that range from sea ice formation and marine ecosystems to seismology, ocean biodiversity, and climate change.

“For a lot of students, S^3 also provides a platform for introducing graduate students to conference formats, such as putting together and presenting a poster or oral presentation. It helps students build their CV and gain confidence in their skills with public speaking,” said Kate Nesbit, a second-year PhD marine biology student.

Attendees of the event were Scripps faculty, staff, undergraduates, graduates, and the general public who were all able to cast their vote on the best oral and poster presentations, emphasizing the importance of community involvement. These votes determine the lucky winners who received cash prizes funded by UC San Diego’s Graduate Student Association (GSA), the SIO Student Committee, the SIO Graduate Department, and a generous $1,000 donation from an anonymous donor.

“To see students, faculty, and staff take time out of their busy schedule to make this a success and hear about fellow students’ research, even if not directly related to their work, makes me feel part of a strong and caring community,” said Garwood, one of the principal organizers of the event.

The winners of the event were:

Best Poster:

• Ben Whitmore, a fifth-year biological oceanography PhD student, presented the development of a new tool, Zooglider, that analyzes zooplankton predator-prey interactions under the Ohman lab.
   
• May-Lin Paulsen, third-year marine chemistry and geochemistry PhD student, calculated how the CO2 system in coastal and estuarine waters can be understood by estimating the presence of major “minor” alkalinity to learn about what type of environment and environmental conditions yields particular attention.

Best Talk:

• Camille Pagniello, an applied ocean sciences PhD student, utilized the Fish Optical and Acoustic Sensor Identification System (FishOASIS) to record and identify a low-frequency fish chorus of an unknown species in the kelp forest of South La Jolla Marine Protected Area.
   
• Margaret Lindeman, a second-year physical oceanography PhD student, created a model that shows how ice-ocean interactions could generate supercooling, driving a secondary sea ice formation process.
   
• Kaitlyn Lowder, a fourth-year marine biology PhD student, studied how California’s spiny lobsters can defend themselves against predators despite reduced pH conditions that can affect their close- and far-range distances.

Following the student presentations, Scripps Associate Director Bruce Applegate introduced UC Ship Funds, a program that provides graduate and undergraduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and early career researchers the chance to conduct independent research onboard a Scripps research vessel.

Keynote speaker Shure, who currently works with MathWorks’ Application Engineering team, closed out the event with her presentation, “The Power of And.” Shure received her PhD in marine geophysics in 1982 and has worked at MathWorks for the past three decades, during which time she has co-authored some of the designs of the MATLAB language. Her keynote address was an educational forum in which she discussed her unorthodox career path and provided examples of her work on MATLAB. Following the talk, Shure engaged in a Q&A with inquisitive students.

Creamer, a marine microbiology PhD student and one of the S^3 organizers, felt inspired by the presentation.

“I think it was fantastic to hear what opportunities lie ahead of us after Scripps, especially from a distinguished alumna like Loren who talked about how she combined her passions and interests into a highly successful career at MathWorks,” said Creamer.

- Katherine Aranda

Related Image Gallery: Fourth Annual Scripps Student Symposium