Adelphi Research Day is the best day on campus.  I was a session chair of some really cool talks mostly on Computer Science and Chemistry.  But there some other gems in there as well.

The students are amazing!  The research was great! The best part of being a session chair is you must listen to each talk and develop a good meaty question. AND I LOVE IT! So much good discussion today.

Professors Lempert and Liu are amazing! Thank you for all of your hard work putting this great event together. I remember when I was a AURC co-chair. I was running around non-stop in full panic for the entire conference. Professors Lempert and Liu looked cool, calm and collected like there were no issues at all. I know better. But still great job and doing it with style too!

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Now to the part were I proof I am an old cranky professor. I do think it would be helpful to have a discussion on conference etiquette before the next research day. We could make some funny do and donts tiktoks. Here were some things that happened today that got me a little squirmy.

• Students should show up for the entire session.  Your talk may start at 1:15 but if you are speaking you are expected to be there for the entire time (e.g., 1-2).  You are expected to engage with the speakers in your session.  No one should give a talk to an empty room.
• You should arrive to your session at least 15 minutes early and make sure that everything is set up correctly and in order – before the start of the session – even if you are the last speaker.
• Do not wait outside of a talk until its done.  And don’t come barging in making a ton of noise.  Just come in and quietly sit in the back.  When talk is over you can move up.
• Make sure you know how to download your presentation from a thumb drive (or google drive), how to use Windows Explorer, and know how to operate Powerpoint. They are super valuable skills that employers expect you to have. You may not know, and that is fine. But it is something you should ask your research adviser or friends about before the conference.
• Check the schedule for conflicts.  If you are scheduled to speak in the same session more than once (even at different times) contact the conference and let them know you need to reschedule. Make sure you can stay in the session for the whole time. Less is more on this front. It is better to have one very good presentation than three separate ones on different things and being stretched too thin.
• Do not barge into an ongoing talk and interrupt the speaker, unless, of course, it is an emergancy.
• Don’t trust a friend to set up your presentation.
• I love that parents are coming to the talks and they are excited about your research.  THAT’S AWESOME!  But you are still expected to sit there for the whole session even if you mom comes.  The research conference comes first.  (within reason of course)
• When the session chair looks for the next speaker, the speaker should be ready.

Conferences are a conversation. You speak. Then I speak. Then the person next to me asks a question. Then you speak. Then it is your turn to listen while they speak. The conversation is important and the whole reason we do the activity. Its one way we learn.

Holy Cow! I have made it! I am a 50+ professor who rants about etiquette! I am sorry I will take my show off and hit myself in the head. 🙁