{"id":58545,"date":"2023-05-15T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-05-15T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/?post_type=embletc&#038;p=58545"},"modified":"2023-06-14T11:13:03","modified_gmt":"2023-06-14T09:13:03","slug":"terra-incognita-exploring-new-horizons-in-scientific-ethics","status":"publish","type":"embletc","link":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/embletc\/issue-100\/terra-incognita-exploring-new-horizons-in-scientific-ethics\/","title":{"rendered":"Terra Incognita: exploring new horizons in scientific ethics"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Science, technology, and ethics have always been closely intertwined concepts.&nbsp; <em>Science<\/em> allows systematic investigation of nature. <em>Technology<\/em> applies the knowledge so gained for human benefit. And <em>ethics<\/em> provides governing principles for moral conduct. Advances in science and technology often demand a reexamination of the associated ethical standards, while changes in our collective ethical consciousness can affect our approach towards scientific research and its applications.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The ethics surrounding scientific research, therefore, form part of the bedrock of modern research endeavours and ensure that the highest standards are maintained as we extend the frontiers of human knowledge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Recognising the importance of this field, particularly in the context of current global concerns and challenges, EMBL\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/course-and-conference-office\/events\/sns23-01\/\">next Science &amp; Society conference<\/a> will examine the breadth of ethical issues in the life sciences through the lens of molecular biology research. The conference, titled \u2018Terra Incognita\u2019, will be held virtually on 19 and 20 June 2023 and will feature a dazzling array of speakers from a wide range of backgrounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;The Science &amp; Society Programme helps create a platform for dialogue and debate,\u201d said Lucia von Bredow, EMBL Bioethics Manager and Science &amp; Society Lead. \u201cIt\u2019s a collaborative initiative, within which we try to facilitate an exploration of the societal context in which scientific research operates.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As one of the previous attendees, Chris Dye from the University of Oxford, stated: \u201cThe excellent EMBL Science &amp; Society conferences are a terrific opportunity for scientists at all career stages, and from anywhere in the world, to join wide-ranging debates on the practical, ethical, and social implications of today\u2019s research.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Bioethics and beyond<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>EMBL\u2019s Bioethics Office provides the organisation with guidance on ethical issues arising in research, coordinates training via the Ethics Academy, and delivers an external engagement programme on the ethical, legal, and social implications of EMBL\u2019s research via Science &amp; Society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are many ways to approach ethics in scientific research. For example, the Ethics Academy at EMBL categorises ethics-related training into three major areas. The first is bioethics \u2013 standards that apply to the usage of biological material, involving environmental, biosafety, and biosecurity aspects, among others. Second, there is data ethics, which deals with the ethics of emerging technologies, data protection, and records management. And finally, there\u2019s workplace ethics, which deals with institutional culture; equality, diversity, and inclusion; and research integrity.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In order to navigate this vast field, the Terra Incognita conference takes an innovative approach, by distilling these concepts down using two specific case studies. The first case study deals with technology ethics, and will be kicked off with a keynote address by Sandra Wachter, Professor of Technology and Regulation at the Oxford Internet Institute at the University of Oxford. Wachter\u2019s research deals with the legal and ethical implications of AI, Big Data, and robotics as well as Internet and platform regulation.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With the recent popularity and rise in the use of generative AI like ChatGPT, this session will come at an opportune time to reexamine the ethical concerns related to the usage of such technology. This session also includes talks by science historian Mathew Cobb from the University of Manchester, EMBL group leader Jan Korbel, and Nikola Biller-Andorno, Professor and Director of the Institute of Biomedical Ethics of the University of Zurich, Switzerland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The second case study will deal with the ethics surrounding the use of organoid systems to aid research in molecular biology. EMBL is a leader in this field, particularly with several groups based in EMBL Barcelona pushing the boundaries of organ-on-chip and microphysiological system research. The session will present different perspectives on organoid use ethics, beginning with a keynote address from Insoo Hyun, Director of Research Ethics at the Harvard Medical School, USA. It will also feature talks by EMBL Barcelona group leader Talya Dayton, Fruzsina Moln\u00e1r-G\u00e1bor from the BioQuant Zentrum, Germany, and Madeline Lancaster from the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOrganoid and embryo modelling research represent two rapidly moving areas of science, where the ethical and policy issues are unfolding in real-time alongside the science. It is therefore crucial that conversations among policymakers and ethicists occur proactively with researchers who are at the cutting edge of such work,\u201d said Insoo Hyun.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Leading ethics discussions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition to the case studies, the conference will feature discussions on ways to involve the public in discussions about ethics and science. This session will be led by a keynote address from Richard Milne, Deputy Director of the Kavli Centre for Ethics, Science, and the Public, University of Cambridge, UK, and will feature a roundtable on scientists\u2019 role in ethics-related discussions, as well as a debate on better involvement of underrepresented groups in the discussion of ethics.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;The ethics of research in genomics and the life sciences is hugely important \u2013 it affects not only how we do science, but why and for whom,&#8221; said Milne. &#8220;It\u2019s also important that this isn\u2019t just left to ethicists and social scientists alone, but that we all work together as part of a multidisciplinary community.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;As Europe\u2019s unique intergovernmental life sciences research organisation, a consideration of ethical issues in scientific research is of key importance,\u201d said EMBL Director General Edith Heard. \u201cIt is also essential for our mission to integrate and support the life sciences across Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lucia von Bredow agrees. \u201cIt is not only essential for EMBL to play a leading role in discussions around ethics, but it is also important for us to set the bar high, and strive to meet the standards for the highest quality ethical research. It is our aim that EMBL serves as a model of best practice for research ethics in a European context, and this conference is one of many steps in our road towards achieving that goal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The conference is free to attend and open to everyone. Registrations are now open until 16 June 2023. Find <a href=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/course-and-conference-office\/events\/sns23-01\/#vf-tabs__section-programme\">more information here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>EMBL\u2019s upcoming Science &#038; Society conference takes a deep dive into the ethical considerations surrounding the use of technology and organoids in life science research.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":124,"featured_media":58725,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","tags":[4718,847,492,1004,92,13968,60,1708],"class_list":["post-58545","embletc","type-embletc","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-conference","tag-diversity","tag-ethics","tag-event","tag-organoids","tag-science-and-society","tag-virtual-event"],"acf":{"featured":true,"show_featured_image":false,"field_target_display":"embl","field_article_language":{"value":"english","label":"English"},"article_intro":"<p>EMBL\u2019s upcoming Science &amp; Society conference sets the stage for a deep dive into the ethical considerations surrounding the use of technology and organoids in life science research, as well as other ethics-related questions of importance.<\/p>\n","related_links":[{"link_description":"Terry Incognita: navigating ethical boundaries in the life sciences","link_url":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/course-and-conference-office\/events\/sns23-01"},{"link_description":"Science and Society","link_url":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/science-society\/"}],"source_article":false,"in_this_article":false,"press_contact":"None","article_translations":false,"languages":"","embletc_issue":[{"ID":58531,"post_author":"124","post_date":"2023-05-15 12:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2023-05-15 10:00:00","post_content":"","post_title":"Issue 100","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"issue-100","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2023-05-15 13:01:59","post_modified_gmt":"2023-05-15 11:01:59","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/?post_type=embletc-issue&#038;p=58531","menu_order":0,"post_type":"embletc-issue","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"embletc_in_this_issue":[{"ID":58547,"post_author":"77","post_date":"2023-05-15 12:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2023-05-15 10:00:00","post_content":"<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Professor Dame Janet Thornton is one of the world's pioneers in structural bioinformatics. Her incredible career and active voice on many topics, including science in Europe, open data, and women in science, have inspired scientists the world over.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As the Director of EMBL\u2019s European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) between 2001 and 2015, Thornton led the growth of the institute from 160 to over 600 people. She currently leads a research group at EMBL-EBI, studying the biology of proteins and ageing, and is a leading voice in the scientific community, having undertaken leadership and governance roles in the Royal Society, European Research Council, ELIXIR, and many other organisations.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":58961,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/image-85-1024x684.png\" alt=\"Cake in the shape of a series of books with years written on their spines.\" class=\"wp-image-58961\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Thornton's celebration cake for her stepping down as Director of EMBL-EBI. Credit: Robert Slowley\/EMBL<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<!-- \/wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>In recognition of Thornton\u2019s upcoming retirement&nbsp;in summer 2023, we reflect on some of her highlights and achievements during her time at EMBL.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading -->\n<h2><strong>Structural biology and bioinformatics<\/strong><\/h2>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Thornton has seen the field of structural biology change completely. When she started her career, there were only about 20 known protein structures, and now there are over 200,000 structures in the Protein Data Bank (PDB), and over 200 million predictions by AlphaFold. Her work at EMBL has been highly interdisciplinary, interfacing with the fields of structural biology, bioinformatics, biological chemistry and chemoinformatics.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":58959,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/image-84-1024x644.png\" alt=\"Female scientist giving a lecture from a podium.\" class=\"wp-image-58959\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Thornton giving a speech at the EMBL-EBI 20th anniversary celebration.  Credit: Robert Slowley\/EMBL<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<!-- \/wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Thornton started her career by trying to predict protein structures from their sequences. She spent years characterising and analysing the new protein structures as they were determined and stored in the PDB. She is also well known for developing, with Roman Laskowski, the widely used <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ebi.ac.uk\/thornton-srv\/software\/PROCHECK\/\">ProCheck software<\/a> for checking the quality of protein structures. Together with her colleague Christine Orengo, Thornton also introduced the CATH classification of protein structures, which provides information on the evolutionary relationships of protein domains. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cathdb.info\/\">CATH<\/a> now exists as an open-access database and is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The recent structure predictions by AlphaFold by DeepMind, based on deep learning approaches, have delighted Thornton, together with the fact that more than 200 million predicted structures are now openly available at EMBL-EBI in the <a href=\"https:\/\/alphafold.ebi.ac.uk\/\">AlphaFold Database<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading -->\n<h2><strong>Investigating Enzymes<\/strong><\/h2>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Thornton's <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ebi.ac.uk\/research\/thornton\/\">research group<\/a> at EMBL-EBI is developing robust search, comparison, and annotation tools for enzymes,&nbsp; which are available as open-access algorithms and web tools for quantitative similarity searches between enzyme reactions. Recent work from the group has led to several exciting new knowledge-based approaches for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC9842563\/\">investigating the evolution of enzymes, most recently at a mechanistic level<\/a>.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m very lucky to work with such brilliant minds every day,\u201d said Thornton. \u201cMy team at EMBL-EBI is truly an outstanding group of scientists. They\u2019re passionate, driven, and never fail to inspire and surprise me.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading -->\n<h2><strong>Data sharing across Europe<\/strong><\/h2>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Thornton led the establishment of <a href=\"https:\/\/elixir-europe.org\/\">ELIXIR<\/a>, an intergovernmental organisation that brings together life science data resources from across Europe. Its goal is to ensure sustainable funding and harmonise data resources within the bioinformatics ecosystem, making it easier for scientists to find and share data, exchange expertise, and agree on best practices.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cThe launch of ELIXIR was the first step towards building a distributed infrastructure for biological information throughout Europe,\u201d said Thornton. \u201cBy providing public access to the wealth of knowledge generated by the global research community, ELIXIR empowers researchers in academia and industry to solve some of society\u2019s most pressing problems.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":59001,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/DSC_5297-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"Two people (male and female) standing in front of a building.\" class=\"wp-image-59001\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Janet Thornton and then UK Minister for Universities and Science David Willetts at the opening of the EMBL-EBI South Building and ELIXIR Hub.  Credit: Robert Slowley\/EMBL<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<!-- \/wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading -->\n<h2><strong>Inspiring the next generation<\/strong><\/h2>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As an advocate for women in science, Thornton has spoken openly about what can be done to support all scientists throughout their careers. One impact of this includes the establishment of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sanger.ac.uk\/about\/equality-in-science\/janet-thornton-fellowship\/\">Janet Thornton Fellowship<\/a>, which funds researchers who have taken a career break. Throughout her career, Thornton has also supervised a large number of PhD and postdoctoral researchers including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sanger.ac.uk\/person\/teichmann-sarah\/\">Sarah Teichmann<\/a>, Head of Cellular Genetics and Senior Group Leader at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, and <a href=\"http:\/\/www0.cs.ucl.ac.uk\/staff\/d.jones\/\">David Jones<\/a>, Professor of Bioinformatics at University College London.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"align\":\"left\",\"id\":59003,\"width\":268,\"height\":357,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignleft size-large is-resized\"><img src=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Janet-holding-her-medal-by-a-wall-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Female scientist holding an award.\" class=\"wp-image-59003\" width=\"268\" height=\"357\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Janet Thornton holding her medal after she was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2012 Birthday Honours for services to bioinformatics. Credit: EMBL<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<!-- \/wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cI think every scientist, but perhaps especially women, needs to decide how they will deal with their work\u2013life balance. There is no \u201cright\u201d way to do this \u2013 different solutions suit different people,\u201d said Thornton. \u201cA scientist has about 50 years to do their research; taking a short time out of that time to be at home for whatever reason should certainly be possible.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>&nbsp;During her career, Thornton also stood out as an exemplary public speaker and science communicator. Her regular appearances in the press, explaining complex concepts in an accessible and engaging way, shared her wonder for the molecular world beyond the many colleagues, collaborators and mentees who have had the privilege to meet and work with Thornton in person.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cI have much enjoyed my career as a scientist and would advocate it as one of the best jobs I can imagine,\u201d said Thornton. \u201cI have met and worked with brilliant people at Oxford, Birkbeck, UCL and EMBL and enjoyed being part of a joint endeavour to discover the fabulous world of protein structures.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:acf\/vfwp-divider {\n    \"id\": \"block_6454c5bcde5e7\",\n    \"name\": \"acf\\\/vfwp-divider\",\n    \"data\": {\n        \"is_container\": \"1\",\n        \"_is_container\": \"field_5ec3be037f09c\"\n    },\n    \"align\": \"\",\n    \"mode\": \"preview\"\n} \/-->\n\n<!-- wp:acf\/vfwp-card {\n    \"id\": \"block_6453a57aa2c38\",\n    \"name\": \"acf\\\/vfwp-card\",\n    \"data\": {\n        \"image_source\": \"media_library\",\n        \"_image_source\": \"field_602ba83883d48\",\n        \"image\": 58957,\n        \"_image\": \"field_5ebd3243ee8ec\",\n        \"title\": \"Celebrating 100 issues of EMBLetc.\",\n        \"_title\": \"field_5ebd3243ee989\",\n        \"subheading\": \"\",\n        \"_subheading\": \"field_603b4403d386e\",\n        \"text\": \"This snippet from EMBLetc. issue 8 (August 2001) discusses Janet Thornton taking up the mantle of EMBL-EBI leadership.\",\n        \"_text\": \"field_5ebd3243eea26\",\n        \"link\": {\n            \"title\": \"\",\n            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/www.embl.org\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/04\\\/issue08.pdf\",\n            \"target\": \"\"\n        },\n        \"_link\": \"field_5ebd3243eeac3\",\n        \"style\": \"bordered\",\n        \"_style\": \"field_5ebd3244102b1\",\n        \"image_ratio\": \"default\",\n        \"_image_ratio\": \"field_61d41d4bcbbee\"\n    },\n    \"align\": \"\",\n    \"mode\": \"preview\"\n} \/-->","post_title":"Janet Thornton retires: a pioneer in structural bioinformatics","post_excerpt":"In recognition of Janet Thornton\u2019s retirement, we look back at some of her biggest accomplishments in shaping the field of bioinformatics.","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"janet-thornton-retires-a-pioneer-in-structural-bioinformatics","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2023-05-15 12:24:36","post_modified_gmt":"2023-05-15 10:24:36","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/?post_type=embletc&#038;p=58547","menu_order":0,"post_type":"embletc","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":58549,"post_author":"16","post_date":"2023-05-15 12:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2023-05-15 10:00:00","post_content":"<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p><em>By Tom Furnival-Adams,<\/em>&nbsp;<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/alumni\/\">Alumni Relations Officer<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Veli Vural Uslu completed his PhD in the Spitz Group at EMBL Heidelberg from 2009 to 2015, including a short stint as a bridging postdoc. Today, he is the writer, director, and organiser of various science-themed theatre plays, and the founder of TAP (The Awesome Potatoes) Science Theater Heidelberg, where he has trained and worked with 70 scientists from 34 countries since 2015. Here, he discusses some of his early inspirations and why he believes science communication is an important skill for every scientist.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3><strong>What were some of the early inspirations that brought you into the fields of science and science communication?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I come from a very, very small town in Turkey. I was initially interested in mathematics, because we didn\u2019t have easy access to laboratories. I went to a very rudimentary school, and mathematics gave me something accessible to play around with. I used to participate in Mathematics Olympiads, but I didn\u2019t have a way to explain some of these abstract concepts to people. So, I turned to the natural sciences, because with them, there was always something that I could catch people\u2019s attention with. That\u2019s how I started learning biology and chemistry. Then I went to university for molecular biology and genetics, and I realised that this was the field for me.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My parents were both teachers, of history and mathematics respectively. They had a subscription to the only popular science magazine in 1990s in Turkey which included puzzles and interviews with people. Looking back, this was my way of finding out what was actually taking place in the world of science at the time. It was just the right moment for me to discover this magazine, at a point where I wanted to play, but also to discover more.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3><strong>Can you tell us about some of your experiences at EMBL?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I first came to EMBL to visit a friend. We hiked from the guest house in Boxberg through the forest to this giant science complex, and I found it a very emotional experience. On that trip, I learned about the freedom and opportunities at EMBL. Later, when I joined the EMBL PhD programme, Francois Spitz, my advisor, introduced me to the puzzle of chromatin organisation. The eye, the skin, the heart \u2013 they all have the same DNA, but different gene expression patterns. My advisor explained it to me as a puzzle, and that really got me interested in developmental biology. I found it really amazing that EMBL provided this space for people to reflect on how they feel about their subjects, and to bring their emotions and their personality to this very solid scientific structure.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3><strong>Were there any defining moments or key lessons you took away from EMBL?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a presentation skills course during my time there, and this was really the turning point where I realised that you <em>don't<\/em> have to be a talented public speaker, or have a certain type of personality, to go in front of people. There are methods to do it, and you can learn and train those skills. So I started doing lots of small-scale communication work and taking courses. Another turning point was one of the John Kendrew Award talks, delivered by the 2013 winner Katharina Ribbeck, who is now a group leader at MIT. She spoke about how you really need your own niche in science to progress. This was the first moment when I asked myself: what is going to be my mission? I think this is also why I value receiving this award myself, ten years later, so much.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3><strong>How did you first become involved with theatre?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It first started at university, when I began assisting a friend who was a director. I wasn\u2019t very much interested in theatre, but I really liked the atmosphere there, as the people were very relaxed and expressed themselves easily and creatively. So, I immersed myself in it to get a taste of the atmosphere rather than actually having an artistic interest in theatre.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>That\u2019s also what brought me to the EMBL Theatre Club; I thought the environment would be really nice. We produced three plays in three years, and it was interesting to see how people reacted to this work. For example, the dramatic plays always get more appreciation back in Turkey, but at EMBL, I think people preferred comedy. So, I found theatre fascinating and a very good place to be creative and reflect on that creativity. When you\u2019re in the director\u2019s seat and the play starts, the only thing you concentrate on is the performance of the cast and the reaction of the audience. It is, therefore, a very good observation point. I would see how people reacted to certain things, and we would then play around with that in future performances. So it\u2019s really a place where you can give yourself feedback and create something new.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":59007,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/KSalat2-1024x684.jpeg\" alt=\"Group photo of theatre actors and workers.\" class=\"wp-image-59007\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The team behind Kartoffelsalat, a play of five sketches, written by different members of The Awesome Potatoes. Credit: Veli Vural Uslu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<!-- \/wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3><strong>Can you tell us about the beginnings of your own theatre group?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>When my time at EMBL was over, I remember feeling rather lonely and lost. I started putting up these posters around Neuenheimer Feld, hoping that some people were interested in joining a theatre group. Seven people, plus one person that I knew from EMBL, turned up to the first session. I led a few exercises and it turned out that we resonated immediately. Our meetings were sometimes to discuss theatre and sometimes simply an outlet for expressing emotions, which is a really integral component of theatre. We put on our first play in an amphitheatre-style classroom at Heidelberg University with 177 seats and no stage. We took these classroom tables and put them up to make a wall, in order to create a \u2018backstage\u2019. Then we covered the blackboards with decorations. That was how we presented our first theatre play and it was a big success. We were really surprised!<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3><strong>How did you build up the audience for your theatre productions?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Once we started using a professional stage, we had to cover costs. We started selling tickets in the university canteen for two or five euros each. It was crazy; I had no idea that people would be so interested. Our shows were sold out every single time in venues, which could host up to three hundred people in the audience. The first people that came to our shows were the university crowd, and we found that the stories we were telling were really resonating with them. But then word spread around, and we started getting people from the non-scientific world, which was very interesting. They were really interested in the scientific context, which is generally not so exciting for scientists as it\u2019s their day-to-day life. Those people also often stayed after the shows for a drink, and this was deliberately a very comfortable environment where we could meet each other and get feedback. Audience members could ask us about specific topics, and we encouraged random encounters between scientists and non-scientists.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":59407,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Lysistrata1-1024x683.jpeg\" alt=\"Group photo of theatre actors and workers.\" class=\"wp-image-59407\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">More than 25 PhD students and postdocs took part in an adaptation of Aristophanes' Lysistrata by Veli Vural Uslu as actors, dancers,&nbsp;and backstage workers. The complete performance was sold out in Hebelhalle, Heidelberg.&nbsp;Credit: Veli Vural Uslu. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<!-- \/wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3><strong>Do you feel that most scientists understand the importance of communicating the value of their science? Are there any common challenges, and have you found ways to overcome them?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I do feel they understand the importance, but the issue is that scientists are not necessarily born to express themselves. They don\u2019t all want to be put in front of the public and asked to answer questions. This is a common challenge, and one of our group efforts was to organise science communication events where we did not choose the best or most interesting talk, but rather the most interesting questions. We would get the presenter to give a talk and then take questions from the audience, and then we would present awards to the audience for their questions. The purpose was to engage the public and encourage them to enter a scientific discussion.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The events had the atmosphere of a Science Slam or a \u2018pint of science\u2019 evening, always taking place in an interactive venue like a pub or small theatre that allowed the audience to be close to the stage. We realised that the presenters from the theatre did not need further training to explain themselves, because they were already confident being on stage. But when we wanted to convince their very close friends who had worked with them for a long time, it was much more difficult.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>This was how I started getting into teaching science communication to people outside the theatre, in order to make them feel more comfortable on stage. I began reading and practising this myself, and that\u2019s how I ended up in Fame Lab, which is almost like a stand-up show. I won the visual competition in Germany, and went to England to represent Germany in the international final, where I finished second, and I thought: ok, I can do this!<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:acf\/vfwp-embed {\n    \"id\": \"block_64540b8384608\",\n    \"name\": \"acf\\\/vfwp-embed\",\n    \"data\": {\n        \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/embed\\\/4bQ0n_6sUTU\",\n        \"_url\": \"field_5ecbb005d2d93\",\n        \"caption\": \"\",\n        \"_caption\": \"field_5ecbb0e7d2d94\",\n        \"ratio\": \"16 x 9\",\n        \"_ratio\": \"field_5ecbb0f3d2d95\"\n    },\n    \"align\": \"\",\n    \"mode\": \"preview\"\n} \/-->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>From there, I began travelling around Europe to teach scientists to build confidence and reduce fear and anxiety regarding public appearances, often using elements of theatre. In my experience, those who learn these elements have a strong urge to explain their research methods and why their time in the lab matters to the wider community. So that\u2019s why I believe that these theatre-based science communication tools are so important, and that\u2019s why I\u2019m spending time all over Europe sharing these experiences while leading my own research group. This has also now become a part of the curriculum at Heidelberg University. Currently, we are carrying out didactic classroom studies to assess how theatre-based teaching methods improve science education at university level.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3><strong>Do you believe presentation and communication skills should be a core part of a researcher\u2019s scientific training?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Yes. For example, in my experience, when scientists know they will be presenting at a conference, they are anxious and they want to learn more presenting skills. And when they feel comfortable with these skills, and they arrive to present, it\u2019s not a duty but an urge to express themselves, because they can do it in many different ways that fit their personality, and there is no real formula to this. It\u2019s just how they can use the skills to find their own niche of science communication in order to share knowledge with other people.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3><strong>What are your thoughts on the need for communicating failure in science?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, theatre and most other performance arts came to a stop, I had the chance to do some videos, and I was contacted by local, national and international news agencies, like Euronews for some consulting around their communication of the pandemic. Through this, I noticed that the media focused intensely on the BioNTech vaccine, the Moderna vaccine, the AstraZeneca vaccine etc. \u2013 but there were more than 100 companies working on vaccines. What happened to the others? Why weren\u2019t we hearing about them?&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The public assumption was that three or four companies tried to produce vaccines and now they\u2019re pushing their results. And, if you focus only on these, of course, there will be scepticism. It is important that we also focus on the companies that openly failed in their vaccine trials. Giants like Johnson &amp; Johnson and Sanofi, for example, were slow to make progress or CureVac trials did not yield a successful vaccine. If the media had highlighted this more, perhaps there would have been a greater understanding that BioNTech and the others achieved something that was very, very difficult. This is why I think reflecting on failures and celebrating successes makes scientific breakthroughs much easier for people to digest. Failure is still one of the biggest missing fields in science communication in general.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:acf\/vfwp-divider {\n    \"id\": \"block_64540c0c8460a\",\n    \"name\": \"acf\\\/vfwp-divider\",\n    \"data\": {\n        \"is_container\": \"1\",\n        \"_is_container\": \"field_5ec3be037f09c\"\n    },\n    \"align\": \"\",\n    \"mode\": \"preview\"\n} \/-->\n\n<!-- wp:acf\/vfwp-card {\n    \"id\": \"block_645409d02babe\",\n    \"name\": \"acf\\\/vfwp-card\",\n    \"data\": {\n        \"image_source\": \"media_library\",\n        \"_image_source\": \"field_602ba83883d48\",\n        \"image\": 59015,\n        \"_image\": \"field_5ebd3243ee8ec\",\n        \"title\": \"Celebrating 100 issues of EMBLetc.\",\n        \"_title\": \"field_5ebd3243ee989\",\n        \"subheading\": \"\",\n        \"_subheading\": \"field_603b4403d386e\",\n        \"text\": \"The very first John Kendrew awards were presented in 2007, as seen here in Issue 42 of <em>EMBLetc.<\\\/em>\",\n        \"_text\": \"field_5ebd3243eea26\",\n        \"link\": {\n            \"title\": \"\",\n            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/www.embl.org\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/04\\\/issue42.pdf\",\n            \"target\": \"\"\n        },\n        \"_link\": \"field_5ebd3243eeac3\",\n        \"style\": \"bordered\",\n        \"_style\": \"field_5ebd3244102b1\",\n        \"image_ratio\": \"default\",\n        \"_image_ratio\": \"field_61d41d4bcbbee\"\n    },\n    \"align\": \"\",\n    \"mode\": \"preview\"\n} \/-->","post_title":"Merging science and theatre","post_excerpt":"Veli Vural Uslu, winner of the 2023 John Kendrew award, chats about his journey in science and his adventures in science communication. Uslu is the writer, director, and organiser of various science-themed theatre plays, and the founder of TAP (The Awesome Potatoes) Science Theater Heidelberg.","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"merging-science-and-theatre","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2023-05-17 19:33:38","post_modified_gmt":"2023-05-17 17:33:38","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/?post_type=embletc&#038;p=58549","menu_order":0,"post_type":"embletc","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}]},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Terra Incognita: exploring new horizons in scientific ethics | EMBL<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"EMBL\u2019s upcoming Science &amp; Society conference takes a deep dive into ethical considerations on the use of technology and organoids in 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