This came via Beth, and I think it's utterly appropriate for us!
What do you think?
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
6/18/08 meeting - recap of UTES project with NSF officers
Craig Forster invited me to a meeting with NSF program officers Anne-Marie Schmoltner and Rich Behnke who were seeking follow up on NSF-funding on the UTES project. Team members presented their findings and their subsequent work with Synergy funding for the urban systems EHBE initiative. NSF was particularly interested in the interdisciplinarity aspect of the work and much of the discussion addressed this issue.
Anne-Marie Schmoltner started off with the question - does NSF drive interdisciplinarity or do universities and researchers?
Presenters included:
Dave Richerson – K-12 Education outreach
Eric Pardyjak – Airshed Dynamics
Steve Burian – Urban Hydrology
Beth Dudley-Murphy – Remote sensing mapping and interpretation of urban land use and vegetation
Craig Forster – water/energy use, urban system model, interdisciplinary team dynamics
Carol Werner – Community engagement, public transit behavior
Phil Emmi – modeling urban sprawl-feedback processes
Eric Pardyjak of Mechanical Engineering was particularly positive about his experience with the interdiciplinarity of the project, and pointed out that he felt supported by his department and acheived tenure even though his work would be considered outside the "traditional" boundaries of his field. The NSF-supported work that he did with the UTES project in fact changed his career course, putting him in contact with colleagues that he would not have expected. He feels that the sort of problems that engineers face are naturals for interdisciplinary work, and is positive that campus sustainability studies initiatives can serve as a catalyst for this type of thinking.
I spoke briefly about the Office for Interdisciplinary Studies and the role of the AVP.
Craig Forster presented on interdisciplinary research team dynamics drawing on Jessica Thompson's graduate work (a former student of Tarla Rae Peterson), pointing out that the dynamics which tended to stabalize and promote effective work included institutional support, a competent facilitator, and successful proposals that brought in new money.
The NSF officers were very impressed and put forth the possibility of members of the team presenting their experiences with interdisciplinary research team dynamics to a wider NSF audience in DC.
Anne-Marie Schmoltner started off with the question - does NSF drive interdisciplinarity or do universities and researchers?
Presenters included:
Dave Richerson – K-12 Education outreach
Eric Pardyjak – Airshed Dynamics
Steve Burian – Urban Hydrology
Beth Dudley-Murphy – Remote sensing mapping and interpretation of urban land use and vegetation
Craig Forster – water/energy use, urban system model, interdisciplinary team dynamics
Carol Werner – Community engagement, public transit behavior
Phil Emmi – modeling urban sprawl-feedback processes
Eric Pardyjak of Mechanical Engineering was particularly positive about his experience with the interdiciplinarity of the project, and pointed out that he felt supported by his department and acheived tenure even though his work would be considered outside the "traditional" boundaries of his field. The NSF-supported work that he did with the UTES project in fact changed his career course, putting him in contact with colleagues that he would not have expected. He feels that the sort of problems that engineers face are naturals for interdisciplinary work, and is positive that campus sustainability studies initiatives can serve as a catalyst for this type of thinking.
I spoke briefly about the Office for Interdisciplinary Studies and the role of the AVP.
Craig Forster presented on interdisciplinary research team dynamics drawing on Jessica Thompson's graduate work (a former student of Tarla Rae Peterson), pointing out that the dynamics which tended to stabalize and promote effective work included institutional support, a competent facilitator, and successful proposals that brought in new money.
The NSF officers were very impressed and put forth the possibility of members of the team presenting their experiences with interdisciplinary research team dynamics to a wider NSF audience in DC.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Meeting Adendum
Hello everyone,
I forgot to mention something during yesturday's a-team tech meeting. Reports suggest that Instant Messaging software can help increase productivity. I think this is something that would be great for our office and particularly our team. Here are a few programs I suggest for us to use:
Google Talk - I know that this was kind of a pain for us to use in the beginning, but hear me out. Google Talk is something I like to refer to as a "gateway program." The interface may not be working for everyone, but it can be used in parallel with other programs, such as:
Adium (Mac Only) (This is the program I use for my instant messaging.)
Digsby (PC and Mac)
iChat (Mac Only)
All of these programs allow you to use their messaging service, but also pull from other messaging services and compile them into one list. For example, I have an AIM account and a Google Talk account. Instead of having both programs running at the same time, I run Adium, and I can access both lists from one place. I also like Adium because it is infinately customizable, you can choose your own layout, sounds, notifications, etc. Digsby works the same way, but is also PC compatible.
So, how do we do it?
To get started, I recommend creating a Google Talk account. Beth and Lorelei already have this, and it's simple to set up, so don't fret Heidi. Just go here and choose a login name and all that. It will ask you to embed the chat window in your homepage or download the full program, it doesn't matter what you choose, as long as you activate your account.
Next, download one of the programs listed above, I strongly recommend Digsby for PC users, and Adium for Mac Users, but any of the listed programs follow the same steps to do the same thing-
The program will ask you for an account name, just use the same one you used for Google Talk to avoid confusion. The program will then load, go to file>Add Account (this could be under File or Preferences if on a Mac). You should be able to pick GTalk from a list, then input your Google Account information and go go go. This is only one of the myriad options available to you though, so please let me know if you need help picking one or setting it up. =)
I forgot to mention something during yesturday's a-team tech meeting. Reports suggest that Instant Messaging software can help increase productivity. I think this is something that would be great for our office and particularly our team. Here are a few programs I suggest for us to use:
Google Talk - I know that this was kind of a pain for us to use in the beginning, but hear me out. Google Talk is something I like to refer to as a "gateway program." The interface may not be working for everyone, but it can be used in parallel with other programs, such as:
Adium (Mac Only) (This is the program I use for my instant messaging.)
Digsby (PC and Mac)
iChat (Mac Only)
All of these programs allow you to use their messaging service, but also pull from other messaging services and compile them into one list. For example, I have an AIM account and a Google Talk account. Instead of having both programs running at the same time, I run Adium, and I can access both lists from one place. I also like Adium because it is infinately customizable, you can choose your own layout, sounds, notifications, etc. Digsby works the same way, but is also PC compatible.
So, how do we do it?
To get started, I recommend creating a Google Talk account. Beth and Lorelei already have this, and it's simple to set up, so don't fret Heidi. Just go here and choose a login name and all that. It will ask you to embed the chat window in your homepage or download the full program, it doesn't matter what you choose, as long as you activate your account.
Next, download one of the programs listed above, I strongly recommend Digsby for PC users, and Adium for Mac Users, but any of the listed programs follow the same steps to do the same thing-
The program will ask you for an account name, just use the same one you used for Google Talk to avoid confusion. The program will then load, go to file>Add Account (this could be under File or Preferences if on a Mac). You should be able to pick GTalk from a list, then input your Google Account information and go go go. This is only one of the myriad options available to you though, so please let me know if you need help picking one or setting it up. =)
Monthly Advancement Reports
Hi all,
Rachel is going to post the report outline somewhere, and we can all update it. Heidi, do want to give us a monthly "deadline" for doing this? Can it be posted to Google Docs? Also, in this vein, what is our status on IM'ing? are we supposed to be logged into a certain IM? Because. I have a feeling this would be a better IM than blog post, right?
Rachel is going to post the report outline somewhere, and we can all update it. Heidi, do want to give us a monthly "deadline" for doing this? Can it be posted to Google Docs? Also, in this vein, what is our status on IM'ing? are we supposed to be logged into a certain IM? Because. I have a feeling this would be a better IM than blog post, right?
What is Lorelei doing today?
Hi all,
I'm still just trying to get the hang of this blog thing and how best to use it. I read the links that Rachel gave us to read, but, they were tips for bloggers who would be writing about something that someone else would actually like to read for fun, not just for work. Nevertheless, although it is just work, I thought it might be nice for me to update you all on my work that is "outside" of what the A-team in general is doing. Today I have my earplugs in and am working on writing up a synopsis of the meeting held yesterday by the Ad Hoc Committee on University Undergraduate Curriculum. On Monday, I was working on editing and scrutinizing a list of courses which could be included in the Sustainability Studies Curriculum. Beyond that, I've been coordinating a meeting for a new Visual, Information, and Technical Literacy task force that's been called by Joyce Ogburn from the Library, and Robert. I've also been talking to all of the advisors and others I can find about promoting the Interdisciplinary Studies pilot course, Health Care in America, and doing the administrative round up of reports for last year's ID studies seed grant recipients. So, that's some of what I do in case you were curious. (Hmmmm... how can I turn all of this into part of my job description that I need to write for Heidi.)
Bye!
Oh, PS, for those of you who have noticed the new yellow earplugs.... I wear them when I need to concentrate, usually on writing or reading. It seems to work really well for me. I hope it doesn't bother you all too much... I'm certainly not trying to be anti-social or block you out. Of course just tap me if you need anything. And, yes, I know I look dorky, but hopefully you'll still want to work with me.
Bye again!
I'm still just trying to get the hang of this blog thing and how best to use it. I read the links that Rachel gave us to read, but, they were tips for bloggers who would be writing about something that someone else would actually like to read for fun, not just for work. Nevertheless, although it is just work, I thought it might be nice for me to update you all on my work that is "outside" of what the A-team in general is doing. Today I have my earplugs in and am working on writing up a synopsis of the meeting held yesterday by the Ad Hoc Committee on University Undergraduate Curriculum. On Monday, I was working on editing and scrutinizing a list of courses which could be included in the Sustainability Studies Curriculum. Beyond that, I've been coordinating a meeting for a new Visual, Information, and Technical Literacy task force that's been called by Joyce Ogburn from the Library, and Robert. I've also been talking to all of the advisors and others I can find about promoting the Interdisciplinary Studies pilot course, Health Care in America, and doing the administrative round up of reports for last year's ID studies seed grant recipients. So, that's some of what I do in case you were curious. (Hmmmm... how can I turn all of this into part of my job description that I need to write for Heidi.)
Bye!
Oh, PS, for those of you who have noticed the new yellow earplugs.... I wear them when I need to concentrate, usually on writing or reading. It seems to work really well for me. I hope it doesn't bother you all too much... I'm certainly not trying to be anti-social or block you out. Of course just tap me if you need anything. And, yes, I know I look dorky, but hopefully you'll still want to work with me.
Bye again!
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
A-Team Tech Meeting
Rachel is helping us understand the functionality of the new tools. I've learned that I can use Google calendar to "overlay" everyone's events, including the Universities, to look at them when I want and when I don't want to. I've also learned that I can use the blogger to keep track of the steps I take or any developments on the projects I'm working on, and I think this will be better than just using the project tracker. Thanks Rachel!
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