You must have noticed this blog post is posted two weeks after the anticipated final week blog post. This is because the final class of this module was postponed to allow other groups finalise their vodcasts and submit in-time for the class video viewing. Following complete submission, this week we finally had the last class of communicating science module during which we got to see the each other’s video projects. I thought all the groups did so well despite the constraints we were presented with. I particularly appreciated each group’s level of creativity considering we all could not meet with each other and shoot as initially planned. One group presented a similar topic- climate change as my group. Like that wasn’t nerve-racking enough, they actually did a very good job. We both approached the topic in different aspects and I loved that I could actually relate with what they discussing in their video since my research was in the same area. And with all videos viewed, it had finally come to the end. We had reached the end of the road with no more lecturers or assessments to look-forward to except this final blog post.

As I sit to write this post, I want the atmosphere around me to feel calm and special. I tune to my relaxing piano instrumentals and my coffee to within my reach. I remember my first day in the communicating science class and how far I have grown since then. This module excited me for a number of reasons; it was definitely out of my usual classes; and I never said this, but I had a colleague who did this course last year and she shared with me how she enjoyed it. She told me I would love it too since it was different, diverse and fun. I took her words for it and embraced this chapter of my postgraduate studies way before it even began. I remember feeling anxious and challenged by the assessment modalities for the module as the professor explained. We would have to deliver a presentation, create a blog, write a press release and produce a vodcast, he described! I had made presentations prior to this class but the rest were unfamiliar to me and I wondered how I would ever do them. Today, I have written a press release, learnt how to create a blog and made a vodcast. The press release was honestly my favourite piece of assessment – I found it quite straightforward and easy to do. Contrarily, weekly blogging was not as easy. Most times I was met with back to back deadlines from other classes that made it quite challenging to keep up with regular blogging. For someone who isn’t much of a writer, this was rather hard and almost never-ending. However, I found it useful to document my learning process throughout this module. I like the idea of having a personal blog and I am looking forward to pursuing it further. As for the vodcast, it was something in between. I definitely appreciate the skills it has equipped me with for I know they’ll come in handy.

My most memorable moments during this course includes the abrupt one minute presentations we had to make during the lecture on public speaking. I still remember how I was picked to speak first, and how long that minute lasted. It was a good exercise and oh how I wish it helped me with my live presentation, which was quite a disaster. My previous presentations during this master’s course were rather good, but during this particular day I stood there like I had never made a presentation in my life. I can never forget the disappointment I felt right after the presentation and all I know is I do not want to feel that way again.

The concept and experience of having guest lecturers was my ultimate highlight for this module. Their journey from different careers to communicating science inspired me to consider this for a career. I am not entirely sure what and when I will venture into but it is something I have at the back of my mind. The workshops gave me a chance to engage directly with key aspects of the module for example the workshop on film-making was my favourite. I learnt so much about film-making in a few hours and got to make a short film too- of course the film was terrible but the experience was worth it. It helped me with preparations for the vodcast group project, and I was not afraid to engage with technology as opposed to when I had just joined the class.

I was sad that we did not get to have face-to-face meetings for the remaining workshops of the module, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was hard to keep my motivation up for online studies as well as assessments especially under the gloomy atmosphere. With increasing levels of my anxiety, fear and worry, I was ready to throw in the towel and head back home. Unfortunately, going home was not an option due to restrictions on travels, meaning quitting was not an option. Looking back at my first blog post, I remember promising myself not to give up, I am embarrassed to have thought of quitting. I had to complete what I started despite the unsettling situation. Keeping my mind clear of overwhelming news was my best strategy to keeping calm and focussed.

As I conclude this detour into communicating science, I take with me the importance of keeping an open mind and embracing diversity in terms of my career. With this, my train of thought is enhanced and I am ready to explore new career avenues life has to offer.

The world is my oyster!! And with this, I sign out.

It is hard to believe this will be the last week of the communicating science class. It feels like it was just yesterday that I walked into my first class, excited and full of expectations for the new journey I was about to begin. As I look back as to why I signed up for the class to begin with, I realise it was not just to improve on my public speaking or writing skills but I was searching to broaden my career horizons. Sure I am working towards becoming a laboratory scientist which I enjoy but I hoped to explore other avenues in science. Throughout this module, the guest lecturers taught me that it’s not uncommon to venture into other careers other than what you laboured most to study. Passion and interests can change with time and understanding that helps you prepare for any twists in life.

In the twelve weeks, I have essentially acquired practical communication skills through journalistic writing, public speaking, TV and video production using of various tools and platforms. Most of which were new and now stand as potential new careers outside the world of laboratory science. I know any of these skills will come in handy someday in the future.

Tomorrow as a class, we’ll all remotely connect online for the last time to see each group’s film projects. I am excited to see the other group projects and nervous for mine. I think we did well as a group and I hope it pays off. Its sad that we’ll not meet physically, most likely ever, but I am glad we’ll have a vodcast to remind each other of the time we shared.

My absolute favourite movies are the one with extra footage showing the filming bloopers. Do you remember this one?

And this one?

I am tempted to fill this blog post with rush hour blooper GIFs because they stir up so many fun memories from back in the day. As a family we watched this movie so many times, that we memorized the actors lines and talked over the movie as it played. It was this rather queer love for the same movie that brought us siblings of very different personalities and interests together. Bloopers are hilarious and they show that filmmaking is not necessarily simple or perfect. A lot of effort accompanied by mistakes goes into production of what we later see as a perfect film. Shooting the film for my vodcast assessment helped me practically appreciate the effort that goes into filming and the desire to perfectly recreate what you envision. You have to be willing to make all the possible mistakes to become comfortable in front of the camera.

The submission date for vodcast assessment was drawing closer, I knew it was time to shoot my section of the group film project. As a group, we assigned each other sections to research about, shoot individually which would then be merged to make the final film. Of course this all came into play because we could not physically meet to work on the project due to the public health restrictions on group gatherings. To prepare for my shoot, I followed the key aspects from Leon’s lecture on film making i.e. Idea, preparation, shoot, edit and output. The idea was to create a short narration of the consequences of climate change on the planet. With my draft script in place, choice of locations, I had to secure equipment (either an iphone or iPad) as I did not own any. Luckily I had housemates willing to lend me their gadgets, they are really nice individuals that I am grateful for.

The most memorable time for me while shooting was the fact that my friend/housemate volunteered to be my cameraman for the entire shoot. We went through my lines together, agreed on the type of shots to take and she never once complained about me messing up my lines, which I did a lot. It amazing that I had such a support system around me because it really was not as easy task. For this, I am indebted to them. The major challenge I faced was during the editing and sharing of the final output file with my team. The video and audio fell out of sync each time I exported the film from iMovie application. None of my group mates faced this challenge which led me to believe I must have done something wrong. We tried troubleshooting but nothing worked. I started to panic and that did not get me anywhere either. So we agreed to cut-out all the desynchronised clips and improvise with voice-over shots. But this meant most of the raw footage I laboured so hard to shoot was not going to appear in the final film. I was heartbroken and stressed. I am certain there was away to resolve the issue if only I had time to do it. My team needed to finalise the film and move on to other aspects of their studies, my kind housemate needed his iPad back. I felt the pressure and finally had to pull the plug, it was either that or inconvenience everyone.

I anticipated this assessment would be my biggest challenge based on my limited creative skills but it all came down to technology. From the film making and TV production lectures, I remembered the lecturers assuring us to expect to face all kinds of challenges. It is to be expected that sometimes things do not work out the way we wish for them to and by accepting that, it allows us to be more creative and explore other solutions. Its was an amazing experience that challenged me all through but indeed it is true, you can do anything as long as you set your mind to it.

As I prepared for this two part lecture series, I spent so much time searching for my once enthusiastic and motivated self to sign in to blackboard and access the panopto recordings baring last year’s recorded versions of these lectures. I was not motivated at all. In a class setting, the lecturer takes command of the session as well as the audience’s attention. And as much I zone out sometimes, it’s not so long before I am drawn back in by a question he/she asks simply because I do not want to be caught absent-minded. I have always believed a lecturer can tell who is attentive or not because they have the best view of everybody’s face and body language. Online studying is different for me, the fact that I am in control does not simply translate to wanting to do the right thing. The fact that it’s not even a live presentation makes me procrastinate the more. But luckily, I still have my conscience haunting me. The voice at the back of my mind reminding me to keep my focus has not completely faded out, so I am thankful for that.

Considering I was not excited about the lectures, I did not anticipate much from them. I simply thought they would be related to what goes into advertisement of scientific innovations, research and other aspects as well as production of science radio shows just as we learned in the science TV production. During Gemma’s lecture, I found myself going back a couple of times on the panopto recording because I didn’t quite catch what she was saying. She talked really fast and it was difficult to keep up throughout the lecture. But I found my ground and slowly had to catch up. Since she was a guest lecturer, it meant she had to tell us about her career journey into communicating science -my favourite aspect of this module (as I always point out). I appreciated when she pointed out the paying challenges that comes with taking a career in communicating science. That was an important aspect for anyone considering going into this field and it is indeed necessary to diversify into other aspects and not just focus on one aspect such as writing.

Gemma’s lecture focussed on marketing and how science is advertised today. Previously advertisements were made to capture the customer’s attention by use of attractive videos, packagings, soundtracks etc to get them to buy a product or get engaged but today like Gemma put it, adverts have to touch people’s emotions. It has become really important to make an ad that moves people, gets them curious and involved rather than just offering focussing on the product. Adverts about health, saving the planet or endangered species etc have major impact on people because they can relate to it and want to help. From the three adverts Gemma showed in class, the NHS blood donation and the Always #Likeagirl campaigns were more relatable and most likely drew a lot of attention from the general public. Ad campaigns in science today follow pursuit to evoke thoughtful-thinking, learning, reason to help and sometimes just fun, in the general public. And we see more people getting involved to simply support it. I was not particularly happy with the long discussions or explanation of some examples in the lecture because it was driving us away from the main point.

Part II focussing on radio production and interviews by Max, was equally informative and interesting. Like visual ads campaigns, radio and podcasts are used today to communicate to target audiences. Of recent, I am not particularly a huge fan of radio but I have certainly tuned in a few times to science talk shows, of which one was facilitated by a colleague. Back when I was growing up, radio was rather popular because of the health education talk shows for adolescents that they hosted. At my school, we had an hour dedicated for such shows to engage students with various aspects related to health. Most of the shows were actual interviews with health experts who tailored the information specifically for the young adults hence its popularity in schools. Max, discussed some interview tips which I appreciated not for the upcoming vodcast assessments, but also for my future career and podcast, which I plan to try out someday.

So, although I started these lectures uninspired, I am glad I actually found my focus and completed both sessions because they turned out to be fun and informative. Kudos to me!!

Before I embarked on my lecture on the internet, wikis and podcasts this week, I had to prepare for an online exam that involved reviewing a scientific article about the COVID-19 pandemic. This motivated me to research more about the topic and what has been written so far now that legitimate papers for reference are available. I felt I could share a few already known information about the pandemic from what I was reading.

On the 31st of December 2019, as people across the world prepared to usher into the new year/decade, the World Health Organisation was being notified of a cluster of pneumonia cases of unknown source in Wuhan, China. The disease quickly spread to various provinces within China and found its way to other countries and continents. Scientists in China isolated the virus from an infected patient and identified it as a new strain of coronavirus, that was later named SARS-CoV-2.

It’s emergence after the SARs-CoV in 2002 and MERS-CoV in 2012 marks the third introduction of highly pathogenic and large scale coronavirus epidemic into the human population in the 21st century. The WHO named the disease COVID-19 and in January 2020 officially declared the COVID-19 epidemic a public health emergency and global pandemic. As of 1st of March, 87137 cases were confirmed globally with 2977 deaths and a month later on1st April, the numbers reported by WHO skyrocketed to 823,626 confirmed cases with 40,598 deaths worldwide. The pandemic comes 11 years later after the H1N1 (swine flu) pandemic that lasted 16 months.

Scientists describe the SARs-CoV-2 as a single stranded enveloped virus with a set of genes encoding the virus structural and non-structural proteins that allow the virus to enter and interfere with an individual’s immune system. The SARs-CoV-2 affects the respiratory system and common symptoms reported include fever, malaise, cough, sore throat, headaches and shortness of breath. The infection has been shown to be asymptomatic in some individuals but present with mild and severe symptoms in others. The elderly and individuals with other underlying chronic illnesses are more at risk of having the infection rapidly progress to acute respiratory distress syndrome, respiratory failure and death.

The virus is thought to spread through the respiratory tract by droplets, respiratory secretions and direct contact although it was also found in feces and blood of patients with severe disease in China. The virus incubation period is 14 days and it’s contagious during this period. More about viral transmission is still being researched but in the meantime we are advised to wash hand thoroughly with soap and water, avoid large gatherings, cover mouth when coughing, when sick wear a mask and self isolate. Although currently no tests are prequalified by the WHO, the gold standard clinical diagnosis method is nucleic acid detection by molecular techniques using nasal and throat swab samples. Clearly, there is still a lot more to be discovered and like the H1N1 pandemic, this could take longer than we want it to.

Back to the lecture, I appreciate that it emphasised one important point, that is, the use of trustworthy sites for information especially during this time. I am limiting my sources of information to major health organisations, scientific journals and renowned news outlets such as the BBC. Today, fake news is occupying the internet and it only takes a single click to be captivated by them. Different platforms can be used positively to impact change and the examples in the lecture were really good. Following the workshops, I checked out the ‘Because science’ videos on youTube and I was blown away. The videos are simple, creative, hilarious and really appealing. The shots were equally simple and of great quality. These would definitely be good tips for our vodcast, although there’s not much to make fun of when talking about climate change.

As I look outside my window everyday, I look forward to everything returning to normal. I look forward to seeing the busy traffic along Euston road, the crowds at Great Portland street station or the early morning coffee queues at Pret cafe. I long for the fast paced London lifestyle, with everyone moving about their business like nothing else mattered. The park, filled with joggers and people walking their dogs. Now, it’s a ghost town. I look out the window and see the apocalypse. I know I mentioned in my previous post a few ways I am keeping myself sane during this time but I can not seem to shake off all the blues.

With each day that goes by, the situation seems to get worse with more COVID-19 cases and deaths across the world. The widespread transmission of the disease doesn’t seem to be slowing down. This week, more African countries previously with no cases, reported increasing numbers of patients testing positive for the COVID-19 virus. Now up until last week, the risk of transmission of the virus in Africa was not taken seriously by most leaders. False information spread like wildfire in communities and governments were not keen on sensitising people about the high risk of the disease. As I looked through social media, I noticed a couple of sites and individuals telling people the virus was not real or even if it were, the African ethnicity was immune to it. Sadly, such information was quickly taken up and today health organisations estimate the pandemic could have a significant negative impact in the continent as it already has a fragile health system.

Now this worries me because of my family back home. The wave of panic is sending people and the economy into a turmoil. With limited health facilities and resources to care for sick people, it is almost certain that a coronavirus infection could be a death sentence. As key measures like imposed curfew and country lockdown, to slow spread of the virus are now being implemented, I believe it’s also necessary to recognise the significant hardship it will have on the common man who depends on a day’s wage for basic needs.

Anyway, putting that all aside I still have to keep focus on my education. But how does anyone concentrate under these circumstances? As I listen to Andrew Steel’s lecture on scienceogram, I found myself lost in deep thoughts and it took me longer to cover the material than I had planned. However, I found his use of infographics in the presentation slides as genius and I want to learn to make such exciting presentations. I must admit, I think it would have been much more interesting for me if it were in a classroom with everyone else. But I will just have to get used to this new reality.

In the last couple of weeks, between the four walls of my room and a few areas of the house I live in, there is not much change of scenery. I guess it’s for my own good, like they have advised. We should all stay at home and maintain social distance in order to avoid further spread of the virus. We should self-isolate and keep to ourselves, they say. As a scientist, I do not dispute these measures. However, with all that is going on I also think people need some sort of outlet to avoid getting depressed and anxious while in isolation.

The world is screaming so loud from all directions and I believe taking sometime to yourself to just block some of this energy out, helps. So, aside from working on my assignments, I take off time to reconnect with my family and friends and talk about anything else but the pandemic. I am rediscovering my love for dance by taking up classes once a week at my house (baring in mind all cautionary measures), I am listening to good music all the time and exercising -in my room mostly. It is very refreshing and since then I have stopped worrying much. Communications from the university are really reassuring and encouraging

However, it’s a bummer that I won’t get to tour London as had I initially planned. I still hold on to my year’s to do list and hope I get to write it off before my time’s up and I have to return home.

Remember when I said I was slightly worried about the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic? Well this week, my level of worry sky rocketed to an 8 out of 10. With more increasing cases not just in the UK but globally, governments are taking strict measures to reduce on social contact as much as possible and sadly it means schools had to shut down till further notice. Unfortunately, some of us here for the sole purpose of receiving an education, the future is now blurred. How long will this last? Will I get to do my research project? Will I graduate this year? I have all these questions in my mind.

As the days go by, emails and texts continue to flow in from university, home office, house of residence, the NHS, friends, family, church etc…and I am overwhelmed by all this information. The streets are deserted, shops out of basic groceries and most of my housemates left for their home countries and family. Everything is coming to a stand still and I must admit, the situation is quite surreal. The only option I have left is to embrace the couch potato within me and wait this out.

Unfortunately or fortunately, school didn’t close completely. Classes were transitioned to online platforms. Yesterday, I attempted to join my first class of the week since the transition and it did not go well. Technology failed and neither one of us that logged in could receive any audio or video of the presentation. My worry is this might also occur during online exams and assessments and we will get penalised for it. I will be using the uploaded slides and recordings to study for my next communicating science class. I hope I can keep up.

It is hard to concentrate right now because everyday you are given reason to worry about something. Today, I hope to stock up some food and basic needs just in case transportation is grounded at some point. Other than that, it’s just me surrounded by my four walls and trying to remain sane.

This week we embark on yet another class in the module- infographics and data visualisation. As I prepared for the lecture and workshop on thursday, I received communication from Professor Lewis informing us the guest lecturer for the lecture would not be available as he had to self isolate due to a recent exposure to COVID-19 virus. Now, I must say since the outbreak of the COVID-19 last year, this was the first time a developed a sense of concern of how much the virus could do. Clearly, the information all over the news should have swayed me to be a bit worried but no. It was like my mind was shielding me from worry, fear and uncertainty of the future with the virus. It was till then that I put myself into the lecturers shoes and realised it could be me the next day. It was not a good feeling. Worry and fear began to creep in.

Anyway, now that the lecturer would not be available we did not totally miss out on class. Professor Lewis stepped in and delivered the lecture. I could not help but relate the topic to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic reports on various outlets. Graphical representation of data speaks louder than the words themselves. Today were are in a state of frenzy and panic because of how information regarding the disease is being manipulated and reported. It goes to say, there are positive and negative consequences to data representation and we have to be careful how we report and perceive it. I also began to realise how I do not ever discern infographics on media outlets I visit for information. It is easy to just assume any information out there is true but whoever is reporting it has a motive on how they want the information to be perceived or they just did not use better tools to represent their data.

Moving forward, this was yet another productive lecture and I love how I always leave class feeling like I have really learnt something new. And as I prepare to undertake my research project, data analysis and representation will be absolutely key in validating my research. I will be applying lessons from this lecture to correctly represent data as well as evaluating data from other articles.

As for the growing pandemic, let’s just say, I am begging my brain to keep calm.

Hey guys! I know it’s been awhile, but it’s feels good to be back. A week of self reflection has been rejuvenating and encouraging. And I really needed it. Why? Well a lot has been going on that’s kept me on my toes and frankly it’s been exhausting. My last post reflects a bit of some of the effects of what’s been going on and I wouldn’t want to repeat the same scenario. So just to reflect on this journey, we finally got to undertake our part one of the assessment by submitting the press release and made our live presentations. I am so glad this is history now and I am just hoping I did well, or at least enough to pass the assessment. Now, on to the next chapter.

Film making class! As I made my way to class that thursday morning, I thought to myself well, am in too deep to quit now – and I promised never to give up so I needed to give myself a little pep talk to get my mind ready for class. The night before I looked at the presentation slides and the accompanying videos sent to help us prepare for the lecture on IPad filmmaking. From the lecture notes, I could tell it was going to be a workshop where we had to make a short film. Have I ever made a film before, no! I don’t believe I have a creative bone in me, and it certainly needs a lot of creativity and flexibility. So, going to class I was already biased I would not like or relate, but I made it anyway. I needed the class to prepare for the vodcast assignment.

So filmmaking basically revolves around the idea, preparation, shooting, editing and the final output. Leon gave us tips on each aspect of the process to come up with a good product. What I loved is that he took time to explain the use of the Ipads as well the softwares and did not assume we all knew how to use them – I certainly needed that. The lecture presentation showed the best use of technology and we were amazed. We also got to learn about various equipment like the tripods used in shooting other than the Ipad or Iphone camera.

And as I had predicted, we were divided in groups of three for the practical workshop. We each had to prepare, shoot, edit and output a one minute film about a randomly assigned day of the week – in less than an hour. This was the first time I was doing this and of course I felt intimidated. Working in a group was difficult, I felt like my colleagues were not bringing any ideas to the table yet we really had to get something done. It was getting frustrating but halfway through the shooting, they were more involved and took ownership of the process. It was nice to envision an idea and bring it to life, though not in a perfect way like in the movies but the experience was great. The workshop was generally interesting and I hope working in a group for the actual assignment will be smooth.