I’m a Scientist, Get me out of here
Psychology Zone, 1st-26th November 2021
I greatly enjoyed being a part of I’m a Scientist, Get me out of here. I’m a Scientist is an online, free, student-led STEM enrichment activity. It connects school students with scientists through energetic real-time text-based chats. The Psychology Zone is funded by the British Psychological Society. I was honoured to be voted psychologist of the week by the school pupils.
You can check out my profile here.
Anukarniya: The Role Models
Anukarniya: The Role Models podcast, 15th September 2021
I was delighted to be invited onto the Anukarniya: The Role Models podcast. Translating from Sanskrit to mean “the exemplary one,” Anukarniya is a podcast series supported by the One Million Women in STEM campaign and MENSA India that seeks to make the voices of role models heard & reach millions of young girls. On the podcast, I discussed navigating academia as a first generation student, dealing with failure, and the importance of prioritising mental health.
You can check out the podcast episode here.
Tourette Syndrome Research Newsletter
University of Nottingham, September 2021-present
I greatly enjoyed creating a newsletter for the purpose of disseminating the findings from the Tourette Syndrome research produced at the University of Nottingham with members of the public. The newsletter also informed recipients of all upcoming studies and how to get involved. I took a proactive lead in designing the layout and generating the content of the newsletter. I was keen to ensure that all interesting research news was described using language appropriate for a lay audience. Over 200 people received the newsletter.
Summer Scientist Month Online 2021
University of Nottingham, August 2021.
For the second year in a row, Summer Scientist Month has entertained children aged 4-17 throughout August with fun online games designed by researchers from the School of Psychology at Nottingham. I greatly enjoyed the opportunity to inspire children’s curiosity in science at this event through the three games that I designed.
TICfest 2021
Tourettes Action, 20-22nd August 2021
I was thrilled to volunteer at TICfest 2021. TICfest is an annual event organised by Tourettes Action. It is a residential weekend event for families that aims to bring people in the Tourette Syndrome community together for fun, rest and fellowship. At the event, I greatly valued the opportunity to present my research to members of the public and answer their insightful questions. I also enjoyed helping run the various games and activities that were available for children throughout the event.
Soapbox Science Bristol 2021
Soapbox Science, 22nd June 2021
I am thrilled to have been given the opportunity to speak to members of the public about my research at Soapbox Science Bristol 2021. I delivered a talk titled, “Are you in control of your actions?” and attended a Q&A. The event was popular with members of the general public. For my information about Soapbox Science, click here.
Creative Reactions
Pint of Science, 1st May-30th June 2021
Creative Reactions is the science-meets-arts branch of Pint of Science that encourages collaboration between artists and scientists to showcase research creatively. I collaborated with international award-winning artist, Stephanie MacKenzie on this project. Stephanie created a series of artworks to convey the essence of my research to the general public. Stephanie’s art was then showcased in an online art exhibition as part of the Creative Reactions event.
Understanding and Supporting Research into Tics and Tourette Syndrome – online webinar (co-host)
Tourettes Action, 3rd March 2021, 7:30-8:45pm.
I was thrilled to be given the opportunity to co-host a webinar on “Understanding and supporting research into tics and Tourettes Syndrome” with a colleague from the University of Surrey. The session was created in association with Tourettes Action and was aimed at members of the public. The main aim of the session was to answer some of the key questions that potential volunteers had about getting involved in research around tics and Tourette Syndrome. During the webinar, we discussed the research ethics review process and the different types of studies that volunteers can get involved in. We also answered some frequently asked questions and closed with a Q&A session. The session proved to be popular with 52 attendees, and attendees commented that they found the session interesting and insightful.
Interview with One Million Women in STEM
One Million Women in STEM Campaign, January 2021
“Don’t worry if things end up being a bit confusing in the beginning. Confusion does not indicate failure, it is merely the first step on the path to learning.”
– Quotation from One Million Women in STEM interview with Hannah Slack.
I was interviewed by One Million Women in STEM, a campaign that aims to provide visible female role models in STEM to the next generation of girls. In the interview, I discussed my career, my passion for science and psychology, and offered some advice for the next generation of female scientists.
Inspiring Women in STEM Project
University of Nottingham, January-February 2021.
I was thrilled to take on the role of mentor for a group of undergraduate students within the faculty of science as they participated in the Inspiring Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths) Project. The project involved creating a 30-minute video highlighting a hidden female STEM hero and discussing the benefit of choosing STEM courses/careers. The video was distributed to local secondary schools in the Nottingham area with the aim of encouraging female students to choose STEM subjects at A-level/university and consider STEM careers. As a mentor, I helped guide the students through the project, offering advice and guidance where appropriate. Through my role, I enhanced my project management, prioritisation, communication and delegation skills.
A-Z STEAM Career Scicomm challenge
Lifeology/Letters to a Pre-Scientist, December 2020.
Last December, I was keen to take part in Lifeology’s December Scicomm challenge. The challenge was to describe your career in child-appropriate language (max. 180 characters) and design a digital image to accompany your description. My submission was selected for use in a free online flashcard deck designed to help children learn about different careers in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Maths).
Public Engagement Committee Member
University of Nottingham, November 2020-present.
I am a member of the Public Engagement Committee at the School of Psychology and represent all postgraduate’s views on public engagement activities. My main roles include developing resources to encourage others within the school to participate in public engagement and helping to organise public engagement events through the year. Here is an example of a game that I created for others to use at public engagement events.
Summer Scientist Month Online 2020
University of Nottingham, August 2020.
During Summer Scientist Month, children aged 4-17 were able to sign up to the summerscientist.org website and play fun online games designed by the researchers. By taking part, children learned about the mind and brain. I designed and ran three online games at this event. I also assisted the organisers of the event by volunteering to score the questionnaire data collected from the parents of all 300+ event participants. The scored data was then distributed to all the researchers involved in organising games for the event.
Summer Scientist Week 2019
University of Nottingham, 30 July-3rd August.
During Summer Scientist Week, families can come to the University and play fun games designed by the researchers. By taking part, children (and parents) get to learn about how the mind and brain work by experiencing real science first-hand. I ran a motor timing game throughout at this event. I greatly enjoyed encouraging children to engage with science and explaining psychological concepts to children (and parents) in a simplified, exciting way.
Psych & Neuro 101 educational blog
Psych and Neuro 101, 2016-present
I created an online learning resource designed to encourage both students and members of the general public to engage with psychology and neuroscience. In the first year of the project, I managed a team of writers and wrote material for the website myself. I also designed the appearance of the website, maintained the website and ran various social media pages associated with the website. The website is still active today. It has gained many positive reviews from students and members of the general public alike. I accept written submissions from scientists and students in psychology and neuroscience. Through this, I hope to encourage others within the academic community to get involved with science communication.
Hannah Slack 