As a first-year Master’s student at Trent University, I have never been more aware of the problem that plagues researchers from all disciplines: communication. More specifically, the struggle to communicate our hard-earned results and ideas beyond the narrow scope of our field. For example, I’m studying grassland birds in the Environmental and Life Sciences program. The classes I have taken have been largely with students studying animal-based biology or ecology. The people that ask for my opinion or from whom I seek advice are others doing ecological studies. With a bit of luck, my finished thesis will be read by my committee members, who are ecologists, and perhaps be split into two or three papers which will be published in journals read by (you guessed it) ecologists and biologists. Opportunities to share my findings with students in other disciplines or with the public are few and far between, and this extends to most arts, humanities, social science, or natural science fields. This seems counterproductive to what I consider to be the goal of any research: to discover something and share that knowledge with the world.

At Trent University, the Symons Seminar Series is helping to overcome this communications hurdle. Named for Professor Thomas H.B. Symons, the founding president of Trent, the series is a celebration of graduate research aimed at bridging the gap between the many disciplines represented by Trent’s graduate programs. At each of the seven monthly seminar events, two graduate students (one from the arts/humanities/social sciences and one from natural sciences) present their research in a way that is understandable and engaging to audience members from any background or education level. Presenters are judged on their communication skills, presentation style, and research ability, with one student selected to receive the Symons Award of Excellence. The winning student is invited to give their talk again at the end-of-year Gala.

The seventh annual Symon Seminar Series Gala was held on Friday, April 13th, 2012 at the Peterborough Naval Association, and truly achieved the goal of bringing people from multiple backgrounds together. Professor Symons and his wife, Christine, were in attendance, along with Mayor Daryl Bennett, Dean of Graduate Studies Joan Sangster, members of Trent faculty, staff, and students, and Peterborough community members. Professor Symons himself said, “The Graduate Student Association does a superb job in bringing its students together from different fields of research and different parts of the University, and it really culminates in that evening.” Julia Smith (Ph.D. candidate, Canadian Studies) also commented, “The Symons Gala provides a unique opportunity to bring together graduate students and faculty from across the disciplines.” This year’s winner, Simon Pond (M.A student, Anthropology), captivated the audience with his encore presentation entitled “Visual Information and the Evolution of the Mind”. Congratulations were also extended to this year’s runner-up, Keith Munro (Ph.D. candidate, Environmental and Life Sciences) as well as to the other speakers who gave fantastic talks over the past seven months.

Each year, a guest speaker is invited to give a keynote address at the Symons Seminar Series Gala and this year, attendees welcomed Dr. Jennifer Gardy, head of the Genome Research Laboratory at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control and an adjunct professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of British Columbia. Appropriately, Dr. Gardy is also very involved in the field of science communication, having written the Nerd Girl blog for The Globe and Mail as well as having appeared on television shows such as Project X and The Nature of Things: Myth or Science. Her Gala talk, entitled “Don’t Pee in the Centrifuge: Lessons I’ve Learned from Hosting Science Television”, provided valuable insight into the world of communicating research to the public. Her engaging and humorous way of speaking made her presentation a pleasure for all. Kaiti Nixon (M.Sc. student, Environmental and Life Sciences) remarked, “She had a very witty way of describing the pursuit of higher education, even poking fun at public perceptions of science and the sacredness of good graphs.” Dr. Gardy underscored the motivations behind the Symons Seminar Series, reinforcing the idea that practicing your communication skills (such as by presenting at the Series) will help you get scholarships and jobs. She also emphasized the importance of tailoring your communications to the audience, and keeping your message uncomplicated and clear, which are skills honed by giving a successful Symons Seminar Series talk. With a combination of entertaining speech and pertinent points, Dr. Gardy was an excellent choice of speaker for the Gala.

For more information on the Symons Seminar Series, please visit http://trentgsa.ca/symons-seminar-series or email symonsseries@gmail.com. The 8th Symons Seminar Series will be seeking abstract submissions in September and seminars will begin in October 2012.