Weekly PDA Newsletter - February 26, 2017

[Meghan Huber]

*Dear MIT Postdocs,We were glad to see many new faces at our monthly
meeting last week!  It’s great to hear all of your ideas and input on how
the PDA can help make the everyone’s postdoc experience even better. If
you’ve thought about attending in the past, we’d love to see you at our
next meeting, which is only a few weeks away :)You can also share your
input by filling out a quick survey about the recent events hosted by the
PDA Community Building committee. It's short, and your feedback would help
us improve our events in the future.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/QND2566https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/QND2566
<https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/QND2566> Hopefully everyone is enjoying
this wonderful weather!Cheers,Meghan-----Dr. Meghan HuberCorresponding
SecretaryPostdoctoral Association of MIT (PDA)Follow the MIT-PDA on social
media!MIT-PDAwebsite <http://pda.mit.edu/>Facebook
<https://www.facebook.com/groups/44093460815/>Twitter
<https://twitter.com/MITPDA>Instagram
<https://www.instagram.com/mitpda/>LinkedIn
<https://www.linkedin.com/groups/2506720/profile>Boston-PDAwebsite
<http://bostonpostdocs.org/>NEXT MIT-PDA MEETINGMonday, March 13,
201712:00pm Rm E25-101Lunch will be provided!REGISTER HERE
<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1-vT1gzgyik3JHFWaRgQwAVeVoiaoQFK7iP2MO4dtKwo/viewform>Please
join us for our monthly MIT-PDA meeting! Get involved with any of the
various committees (e.g., sports, advocacy, committee, community building)
and have your voice heard. This is a great opportunity meet your fellow
postdocs on campus! MIT-PDA NEWS AND EVENTSEventsPostdoc SoccerHosted by
the MIT-PDA Sports CommitteeInterested in playing soccer with your fellow
postdocs? Join the soccer mailing list
<https://groups.mit.edu/webmoira/list/soccer-pda> and the sports facebook
group <https://www.facebook.com/groups/1499342643696472/> to stay
up-to-date with playing times! For soccer, it is critical that you check
the Facebook book group and note your availability on the poll. Events are
subject to cancellation if there is insufficient attendance.Date and Time
Tuesday, February 28, 9:30-11 PMLocation Zesiger Mac CourtPostdoc
VolleyballHosted by the MIT-PDA Sports CommitteePlease join the PDA this
Friday for soccer!! Enter through the Vassar street entrance and the
attendees at the gate should let you through if you say you are with the
PDA and present MIT ID. There are bathrooms in the facility where you can
change or come with someone with a membership who can give you access to
the locker rooms. Spouses and significant others of postdocs are welcome
free of charge. Friends and colleagues may join only if they have an
athletics membership (otherwise you may need to pay a 1 time entrance fee
that is around $15). Anyone can join for the Muddy afterwards (you just
need to be with someone who has MIT ID) providing you are 21 or over. Note
the Muddy is cash only if you want to buy drinks. Please also add yourself
to our sports Facebook group
<https://www.facebook.com/groups/1499342643696472/>!Date and Time Friday,
March 3, 7:30-9:00 PM, followed by pizza at the Muddy at 9:30 PM.Location
Zesiger Rockwell North CourtWeekly Board Game NightsHosted by the MIT-PDA
Community Building Committee, MIT-GSC, and CSAILMIT-PDA, along with GSC and
the CSAIL departments, are happy to announce that we will be having weekly
board game nights on Friday evenings. Please contact Jon Gjengset
(jon at thesquareplanet.com) if you have any questions regarding the venue or
the time.Date  Friday, March 3, 6 PMLocation Stata Center, 32-D463 2017 MIT
Postdoctoral Association Vendor FairHosted by the MIT-PDA Fundraising
CommitteeMark your calendars! On Tuesday, March 14th, 2017 the PDA will
host a vendor fair in the "student street" of the Ray and Maria Stata
Center. This is a great opportunity to meet sales representatives of a wide
range of companies (start-ups as well as the big players) where you
typically order goods and equipment for the laboratory. This is the chance
to meet the real people behind the products and not only the checkout
webpage of the eCatalog. Join us and get in touch with companies and your
fellow PostDocs. More details to come!Date and Time  Tuesday, March 14,
Time TBALocation Stata Center  PDA Event Feedback SurveyPlease take a
couple of minutes to answer the following survey about the recent events
hosted by the PDA Community Building committee (Valentine’s Social and
Swing Dance Night). It's short and your feedback would help us improve our
events in the future.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/QND2566https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/QND2566
<https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/QND2566> Postdoc Orientation SessionsThe
PDA offers Postdoc Orientation Sessions open to all postdocs at MIT. Topics
covered include: - Data on postdoc population at MIT - MIT oversight of
postdocs- Defining postdoc expectations- Differences between fellows and
associates- PDA structure and initiatives- How to get involvedThe sessions
will be typically the 1st and 3rd Monday of each month at 12pm (45-60min)
in E49-5145. Lunch will be provided. The dates for the semester are as
follows: February 27, March 6, March 20, April 3, April 24, May 22. If you
are interested in participating, you can register via Atlas or here
<http://web.mit.edu/training/course.html?course=CDT21061c>.GLIMPSE (PDA
PInG Initiative)              If you would like to be interviewed by
GLIMPSE podcast or would like to help with the podcast (music, logo,
artwork), please contact us at glimpse.podcast at gmail.com
<glimpse.podcast at gmail.com>. For more information, please visit us at:
http://glimpse.mit.edu/ <http://glimpse.mit.edu/>OTHER MIT AND LOCAL
EVENTSThis WeekDisney Tech TalkHosted by MIT Global Education & Career
DevelopmentDISNEY IS COMING TO MIT! Join us for a tech talk featuring Katie
Bassett- Manager, Research & Development. Katie will cover, in depth, some
of the amazing projects developed by the Disney Consumer Products &
Interactive Media's research & development team! Pizza will be served.Date
and Time Monday, February 27, 1:00pm-2:00pmLocation E19-202Registration
Advance Registration is required on CareerBridge
<https://www.myinterfase.com/mit/student>Quiet Power: Learning to Lead as
an Introvert by Dr. Heidi KasevichHosted by MIT Global Education & Career
DevelopmentQuiet Power: Learning to Lead as an Introvert Dr. Heidi Kasevich
of Quiet Revolution will discuss our current understanding of the
introversion-extroversion spectrum and how we can use self-awareness, along
with existing data, to optimize our ability to lead in today’s world. In
addition to the well-known connection of introversion response to outside
stimulus, Dr. Kasevich will also discuss biological differences in decision
making. Registered users will be provided access to the Quiet Revolution
assessment tool prior to the seminar. Snacks will be served.Date and Time
Monday, February 27, 3:00pm-4:00pmLocation E25-111Starr Forum: The Fight
over Foreigners: Visas & Immigration in the Trump EraHosted by the MIT
Center for International Studies, and Myron Weiner Seminar Series on
International MigrationStarr Forum panel discussion to address the
migration issues in America under the new administration and President
Trump. Panelists Include: Baher Azmy, Legal Director at the Center for
Constitutional Rights; Laura Rótolo, Staff Counsel at the ACLU of
Massachusetts; Jia Lynn Yang, Deputy National Security Editor at the
Washington Post; Justin Steil (Moderator), Assistant Professor of Law and
Urban Planning at MIT. Can't attend in person? Watch it on Facebook live or
on-demand on YouTube. Find more details at:
https://cis.mit.edu/events/starr-forum-fight-over-foreigners-visas-immigration-trump-era
<https://cis.mit.edu/events/starr-forum-fight-over-foreigners-visas-immigration-trump-era>Date
and Time  Tuesday, February 28, 5:00-6:00pmLocation E51-115, Wong
AuditoriumDiscover Your StrengthsHosted by MIT MindHandHeartYou possess
many unique, natural talents, which represent the very best of you, they
are your greatest opportunities for success in college, your career and
your personal life.  The Clifton StrengthsFinder measures the presence of
34 talent themes. This session will allow participants to take the Clifton
StrengthsFinder and find out their top five talent themes and how to
capitalize on this knowledge in college, their lives and careers.
Participants will need to preregister for this session ahead of time and
take the Clifton StrengthsFinder.  Participants will receive a code and
directions to take the Clifton StrengthsFinder once they have registered.
Limited to 20 participants.  Date and Time Wednesday, March 1,
7:00pm-8:30pmLocation 10-105Registration Email mlparker at mit.edu to sign
upScience Shaping Our World (SHOW) Scientist-Entrepreneur Series: Bringing
High-tech to HealthcareHosted by Munevar & Associates, Inc. and Boston
Children’s Hospital Office of Fellowship Training (OFT)     Science Shaping
Our World-SHOW is an ongoing seminar and networking series that highlights
cutting edge, translational, life science research and development. SHOW's
mission is to provide a stage for researchers that are at the cutting edge
of life science innovation and translation whereby they can share their
work and discuss its future application potential in a non-conventional
setting. March will kick off the new season of SHOW focused on the
scientist entrepreneur in collaboration with our new, Commercializing
Technology: New Venture Creation for Life Scientists initiative. This
season SHOW will highlight a variety of life science start-ups created by
researchers addressing a broad spectrum of healthcare need. We will delve
into how they made this transition, the challenges they faced, successes
they have had, and lesson learned from failures. As healthcare costs
continue to rise and unmet need grows scientist-entrepreneurs are called to
take a driving role in bridging bench to bedside through entrepreneurship.
Please join us for an amazing evening of the science entrepreneurship and
networking. Event pre-registration is required with event sign-in beginning
at 5:30 PM. Light food and refreshments will be provided. Cost is $15.Date
and Time Thursday, March 2, 5:30-9:00pmLocation Boston Children’s Hospital,
1 Autumn Street, Auditorium B, Boston, MA Registration Pre-registration is
required: http://www.showmarch2017.eventbrite.com/
<http://www.showmarch2017.eventbrite.com/>Financial Life SkillsHosted by
MIT MindHandHeartKen Davies, Retirement Program Manager in MIT Human
Resources, will lead a workshop addressing financial questions faced by
young adults. Discussion topics may include (but not be limited to): When
to pay off educational loans vs when to invest in a retirement plan, When
to buy a home vs when to rent, and Taking out a car loan vs saving to
purchase a car. Participating in this workshop should help you feel more
confident with your financial management skills and may open your eyes to
facts you had not considered.  Date and Time Thursday, March 2,
7:00pm-8:00pmLocation 2-105Next Week"Non-Resident" Tax Information Session
for International ScholarsHosted by the MIT International Scholars
OfficeThe ISchO will provide general information about federal (U.S.) and
Massachusetts state tax filing requirements for non-resident aliens for tax
purposes and give instructions for using Thomson Reuters Foreign National
Tax Resource.Date and Time Tuesday, March 7, 9:30-10:30amLocation
32-123Trivia night at Aeronaut Brewing Company Hosted by Boston
Postdoctoral AssociationPlease join the Boston PDA for another fun trivia
night. Come compete for team pride and prizes! We'll be begin at 5:15pm
with the formation of our teams and will have our first round of questions
beginning at 6pm. Be sure to arrive by 5:30pm to grab a bite to eat!Date
and Time Friday, March 10, 5:15pmLocation Aeronaut Brewing Company, 7 Tyler
Street, Somerville, MARegistration Register at
http://bpda-trivia-night.eventbrite.com/
<http://bpda-trivia-night.eventbrite.com/>Upcoming DeadlinesFalling Walls
Lab BostonHosted by Falling Walls Lab BostonDo you have an idea? Come to
Harvard April 9th 2017 to pitch it in front of our panel of leading
business leaders and academics for a chance to change the world and win a
trip to Berlin to make it happen. Join the German American Conference for
the first annual Falling Walls Lab Boston hosted at Harvard. The Falling
Walls Lab is a platform for academics, entrepreneurs and professionals from
all disciplines to present their research, work, business model, innovative
project or idea. Each participant has 3 minutes to present their idea on
our stage and the winner will be invited to Berlin in November to pitch
their idea at the Falling Walls Lab finale in Berlin and is awarded a
ticket for the international Falling Walls Conference on November 9, 2017.
Applications can be submitted through the website www.falling-walls.com/lab
<http://www.falling-walls.com/lab>. The application deadline is February
28th. All are welcome to participate and to watch on the 9th. CHECK OUT
THESE SITES FOR ADDITIONAL EVENTS postdocs.mit.edu
<http://postdocs.mit.edu/> (Office VPR)MIT GECD Events
<https://gecd.mit.edu/mit-events>MIT Spouses&Partners Events
<http://spouses.mit.edu/mit-events>MIT Events
<http://events.mit.edu/>Boston PDA Events
<http://bostonpostdocs.org/events-calendar/>Mass-AWIS Events
<http://mass-awis.org/category/events-calendar/>MIT RESOURCES FOR
POSTDOCSMBTA AccessAs a reminder, all postdoctoral fellows and postdoctoral
associates on MIT’s Cambridge campus are eligible for free, unrestricted
subway and local bus access. MIT is providing ID cards with a special MBTA*
chip inside that will provide this access. (*Massachusetts Bay
Transportation Authority). If you received a new MIT ID card on or after
June 21 (or after August 9, in the case of many postdoctoral fellows),
check the back of your ID card. If “Charlie INSIDE!” is written on it, you
are all set, and already have access. If not, you can visit the Card Office
(W20-020) with your current MIT ID card to swap it for one with the MBTA
chip inside it. The Card Office is open between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.,
Monday-Friday.FREE Mindfulness and Meditation Classes from MIT MedicalFind
Some Om Under the DomeMIT Libraries is offering drop-in meditation and
relaxation sessions. Please join us for silent meditation in the Barker
reading room. Sit for a minute, or 30. Beginners welcome - no experience
necessary. Every Monday at noon in the Barker Dome of Barker Engineering
Library (10-500). Please arrive promptly. Registration is required.
<https://medical.mit.edu/community/wellness/classes/mindfulness-meditation>Meditation
for your WellbeingCommunity Wellness at MIT Medical offers drop-in
meditation and relaxation sessions. Sit back and relax - no experience
necessary. Please arrive promptly. A short talk and guided meditation
begins at 12:10 pm. This class is held every 2nd Wednesday of the month,
12:10 pm-12:40 pm. Led by Seth Monk. Registration is required.
<https://medical.mit.edu/community/wellness/classes/mindfulness-meditation>MIT
Writing & Communication CenterThe Center provides free professional advice
about all types of writing and speaking/oral presentations, including
specialized help for non-native English speakers. See their website for
more details: http://cmsw.mit.edu/writing-and-communication-center/
<http://cmsw.mit.edu/writing-and-communication-center/>MyLife
ServicesMyLife Services
<http://o6os.mj.am/link/o6os/xlkt8jnnqpg8/1/-kBne3WjUT8Ww6LEA98gxw/aHR0cDovL2hyd2ViLm1pdC5lZHUvd29ya2xpZmUvbWl0bXlsaWZlc2VydmljZXM>
is a free, confidential, 24/7 counseling, consultation, and work-life
referral service provided by KGA, Inc., a trusted external provider of
employee assistance programs. Postdoc Associates and Fellows are eligible
for services provided by KGA, Inc. through the MIT Work-Life Center and
MyLife Services. You can now access a network of experts who can help with
the challenges of life and work, such as: - Financial planning, debt
management, and legal issues- Personal and work relationships- Sleep and
nutrition- Stress, anxiety, depression, and other emotional concerns- Child
and elder careThis includes 5 FREE confidential mental health counseling
sessions, as well as access to 24/7 confidential counseling services. We
encourage you to learn more about MyLife Services by calling 1-844-405-LIFE
(1-844-405-5433) or going online
<http://o6os.mj.am/link/o6os/xlkt8jnnqpg8/2/y46EmaQ0aMF6d85vixaLTg/aHR0cDovL2hyd2ViLm1pdC5lZHUvd29ya2xpZmUvbWl0bXlsaWZlc2VydmljZXM>.
For more information or to provide feedback, please contact the MIT
Work-Life Center. MIT Spouses&Partners Connect Offers social and
career-related groups and events for your spouse/partner/family. For more
information and event listings, visit http://spouses.mit.edu/
<http://spouses.mit.edu/>. MIT Employee Resource GroupsJoin an Employee
Resource Group (ERG) at MIT!ERGs are employee-led groups formed around
common interests, issues and/or a common bond or background. ERGs host
activities such as lectures, socials, dinners, etc. Both Postdoctoral
Fellows and Associates are invited to join. Current ERGs include: -
African, Black, American, Caribbean @MIT (ABAC at MIT) ERG- Asian Pacific
American ERG- Latino ERG,- Lesbian, Gay, ,Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) ERG-
Millennials ERG- Women in IT ERGCheck out the link for more information and
upcoming events: http://hrweb.mit.edu/diversity/ergs/current
<http://hrweb.mit.edu/diversity/ergs/current>OTHER RESOURCESFree Membership
for the National Postdoctoral AssociationThe National Postdoctoral
Association (NPA) is a member-driven organization that provides a unique,
national voice for postdoctoral scholars. Since 2003, we have taken on the
ambitious agenda to enhance the quality of the postdoctoral experience in
the United States. We have assumed a leadership role in addressing the many
issues confronting the postdoctoral community that are national in scope
and requiring action beyond the local level. Get your free affiliate
membership with the National Postdoctoral Association here:
http://www.nationalpostdoc.org/?page=individual_members
<http://www.nationalpostdoc.org/?page=individual_members>*
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