March 2020 GIDAS Newsletter
Due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, it is obviously an uncertain time, and many of us may be feeling anxious, stressed, or isolated. Here are some tips for how you and your GIDAS members can continue to feel connected and positive in the next few weeks.
Digital Meeting Platforms
Are you looking for ways to hold GIDAS meetings online? Download the Zoom Client for Meetings here. Zoom offers video conferencing, screen sharing, and chatroom functionalities all in one–for free! Club members don’t have to install Zoom on their computers to join meetings, but it will make hosting and joining easier. Instructions for setting up and using Zoom are available here.
Public Health Resources/COVID-19 Updates
The World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control, and Johns Hopkins University websites all have reliable info on the COVID-19 worldwide situation and effective health measures individuals/groups can take against the virus.
Also check out these math models recommneded by Dr. Inhan Lee, miRcore President on COVID-19:
YouTube video: Exponential growth and epidemics
The Washington Post Article :Why outbreaks like coronavirus spread exponentially, and how to “flatten the curve”
Wellness Tips (share these with your club members!)
• Share your feelings about the current situation with friends/family/GIDAS members/miRcorers. It’s okay to feel anxious or stressed–know that others feel that way too, and that knowing more about the science may help relieve your stress (see above WHO, CDC, and JHU links/YouTube videos).
• Maintain a regular sleeping and eating schedule.
• Exercise regularly–if you can’t go outdoors, sit-ups, push-ups, stretches, yoga, and other indoor exercises are still possible!
• Check out (digital) books: My personal favorite platforms (all free!) are Overdrive, Project Gutenberg, and the Internet Archive.
• Keep studying, especially if your teachers are still posting assignments.
Ideas for Club Activities/Discussions/Social Media Polls or Posts
• What are your favorite [books, movies, TV shows, songs]?
• How do you feel about the COVID-19 outbreak? What do you know about it?
• (after watching videos/reading websites): What did you learn? How do you feel now that you have this new knowledge?
• Play Kahoot! — not just GIDAS-related, but any for fun Kahoot! as well (e.g. Trivia)
• Conference Abstract Prep
Notice about Abstract Due Dates
Abstract rough drafts are due April 12, 2020. Final drafts are due April 19, 2020. Those who submit their abstracts by April 12 will have priority in getting peer review and help from university GIDAS members in improving their abstracts.
Conference Prep Resources
Abstract Format (official formatting guidelines)
High School Research Conference Poster Examples (Poster Examples)
General Info about Conference: https://www.mircore.org/2019-conference/
Note: The date of the 2020 Research Conference is pending review. We will continue to reevaluate in the context of the COVID-19 situation.
Sincerely yours,
Eleanor
miRcore Volunteer Program President
Huron GIDAS President
miRcore Volunteer Recommendations
• March trilogy (graphic novel, multiple authors)
• Bone series (graphic novel, Jeff Smith)
• The Door Within (Wayne Thomas Batson)
• To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
• Candide (Voltaire)
• The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexander Dumas)
• Between the World and Me (Ta-Nehisi Coates)
• I Am Malala (Malala Yousafzai)
• The Cactus (Sarah Haywood)
• 1984 (George Orwell)
• The Girl Who Drank the Moon (Kelly Barnhill)
• The Woman in Cabin 10 (Ruth Ware)
• The Awakening (Kate Chopin)
• Silent Spring (Rachel Carson)
• The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (Robert A. Heinlein)
• The Farewell (2019)
• Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
• Office Space (1999)
• Vinland Saga (Summer 2019 Anime)
• What Happened to Monday (2017)
• Always Be My Maybe (2019)
• Goodfellas (1990)
• Gattaca (1997)
• Re:Zero (Spring 2016 Anime)
• The Incredibles (2004)
• Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
• “I decided to memorize the dictionary. I got through six pages before I got too bored. I learned next to nothing.”
• Trust Me, I’m a “Biologist”
• “What’s the difference between a poorly dressed person on a bicycle and a well dressed person on a tricycle? Attire.”
• “Why should you save your pennies? Because it makes good cents”
• xkcd
• “Medieval medicine wasn’t always on point, but those medieval physicians sure had a sense of humour!”
• “Twin 1 is in prison for 20 years. After 10 years, he calls his twin.’Hey, remember how we always said we finish each other’s sentences?'”
• “We really need to stop talking about mitosis… it’s such a divisive issue!”
How to Use Zoom and Navigate MVP Google Drive
How to use Zoom
Zoom is a free platform that offers video conferencing, screen sharing, and chatroom functionalities. You can seamlessly set up online meetings, send out invitations for people to join, and add meetings to your Microsoft Outlook/Google Calendar using Zoom. All miRcore volunteers are expected to have Zoom installed for use in group research meetings and committee meetings.
You can download the Zoom Desktop application (the “Zoom Client”) for Mac or PC here: here.
Instructions for setting up and using Zoom are available here.
The Zoom application is also available for mobile devices: Zoom at the App Store and Zoom on Google Play
How to Navigate the miRcore Volunteer Program’s Google Drive Folders
At the beginning of each volunteering season, miRcore volunteers receive access to several Google Drive folders containing resources for research, fundraising, and other miRcore activities. Depending on the folder, volunteers will have “View only” or “Editing” permission in each Drive folder.
Please see this presentation (courtesy of Rhea Cong, miRcore Volunteer Program Vice President, 2019-20) for details on how to navigate the Drive system and set up research folders for your research group: https://docs.google.com/
Google Drive Hierarchy (Folders and Subfolders)
• 2019-20 MVP Resources
• Useful files
• RNA division
• Practice Data
• Meeting Slides
• 2019-20 MVP Research
• MVP RNA
• MVP DNA
• MVP online
• MVP general
• Fundraisers
• miRcore Officers 2019-2020 (this folder is accessible only to miRcore Officers)