Weekly PDA Newsletter - March 5, 2017

Sun Mar 5 17:06:58 EST 2017



*Dear MIT Postdocs,March is a busy month for the PDA! Be sure to check out
all of the upcoming events organized by the PDA committees over these next
few weeks.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
Thursday, March 9, 5:00 - 6:30 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 10, 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 10, 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. Besides all these vendors MIT WorkLife Center, MIT
Libraries, and the International Scholars Office will also be present with
valuable resources for you. There will be a raffle where you can win Amazon
gift cards and PDA T-shirts! And most importantly - we have free food! Join
us and get in touch with companies and your fellow PostDocs.Date and Time
 Tuesday, March 14, 2:00 - 5:00 PMLocation Stata CenterRegistration To join
the raffle you must register via Eventbrite
(https://www.eventbrite.com/o/mit-postdoctoral-association-12804997902
<https://www.eventbrite.com/o/mit-postdoctoral-association-12804997902>) or
on-site.Cooking and Brewing CompetitionHosted by the MIT-PDA Community
Building Committee and MIT Spouses & Partners ConnectRegister to compete
and win a prize in the Cooking and Brewing Competition! Event will be held
on Friday April 14th at 6 p.m. Registrations are open until March
10th.Cooking : http://bit.ly/2l4v1Bv
<https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2F2l4v1Bv&h=ATOkoZVi3JapOc-TjzuO2gYUFZyYPSv8ZjYpwrNWr9VBZf_knzu_HxP6m1TCK4Lq7NmtMS79YFhSHtVBl_OH7cpRhcYQ1tWbHq5168UIpQFeRXL60m2d3RnSMVtfPdb3j1HVe7lgT0YZ&enc=AZMU1ah0p4oNKUCurrYnlwblor7EUzehxRarBDdjVy3rHxRkhn2MSSUKXI1_iVBdxlKULeuEmORHhqsnE8QngheolWVI057M0yJWfefiKEIfb1GOS5_DC6kj6b8OGLYWF2dzrWaKEhUjwDf6QdboAnz69XFTpudTKUkzURvi_RxjuLqkPxnaMt1Ryarn2enRWyY&s=1>Brewing
: http://bit.ly/2lPAJve <http://bit.ly/2lPAJve>New PDA and Strategic Games
Society (SGS) PartnershipMIT-PDA is happy to announce a new partnership for
the board games nights with the MIT Strategic Games Society (MIT-SGS). It
is now free for Postdocs to join the weekly board games nights hosted by
the MIT-SGS. Moreover, you can bring your non-MIT friends for a small fee
of $5 per year. SGS meets every Friday at 7PM in MIT Building 50-316
(Walker Memorial Hall, Floor 3, Room 16) for  board games and card games,.
Gaming sessions typically go until around 12-2 AM. For more information
about the board game branch of SGS, contact the officers.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: 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 WeekMajor League Baseball Advanced Media Statcast Tech Talk at
CSAIL Hosted by CSAIL AllianceMLB Advanced Media’s Statcast system is a
revolutionary tracking technology that gathers and displays aspects of the
game that were previously immeasurable. In its first two years, the system
has calculated nearly 54 million different metrics with data collected by
high-resolution optical cameras and radar equipment installed in all 30
Major League ballparks. MLBAM will discuss how it is using Statcast data to
contextually tell, and visualize, baseball’s most interesting stories,
engaging fans in a multi-platform world. Pizza will be serveDate and Time
Monday, March 6, 4:00 - 5:00 PMLocation G882 (Hewlett Room), Ray and Maria
Stata CenterRegistration Register at http://bit.ly/CSAILMLBTALK2017
<http://bit.ly/CSAILMLBTALK2017>"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 - 10:30 AMLocation
32-123Careers in Data Science and Data Engineering: Insight Data
ScienceHosted by MIT Global Education and Career Development with support
from the Office of the Vice President for ResearchProgram Directors from
Insight Data Science will be leading a discussion on careers in data
science, health data science, and data engineering. Top companies are
hiring data scientists and engineers to help find insights in the petabytes
of data that they collect every day. Scientists and engineers from diverse
fields, including physics, computational biology, neuroscience, math, and
statistics, are playing key roles in transforming the way of working with
data impacts daily life. The Insight Fellows Program is a training
fellowship designed to bridge the gap between academia and a career in
data. Insight provides seven-week, full-time, training fellowships* in
Silicon Valley, New York and Boston. They offer a tuition-free Fellowship,
dedicated office space, and project-based learning under the guidance of
top industry mentors. Over 800 Insight alumni are now working at Facebook,
Apple, LinkedIn, Uber, Netflix, Bloomberg, athenahealth, Merck, Optum Labs,
Biogen and other top companies.In this info session, we will provide a
high-level overview of data trends in industry and describe the Insight
Fellows Program. The session will include time for Q&A, and advice for
those interested in transitioning to careers in data science and data
engineering. Learn more at: insightdatascience.com
<http://insightdatascience.com/>. [*Note: The Insight Health Data Science
program requires a full time commitment for seven weeks. Postdocs who are
considering applying could pursue this after the conclusion of the MIT
appointment or must consult with their PI about the possibility of taking a
leave of absence from the Institute in order to participate; unfortunately,
individuals who are in the US on a visa sponsored by MIT cannot take a
leave of absence. The program is also open to graduate students who are
about to finish their PhDs.]Date and Time Thursday, March 9,  2:30 - 4:00
PM Location 3-270Registration Email info at insighthealthdata.com with the
subject line “Insight MIT Info Session”Trivia 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, 5:15 PMLocation Aeronaut
Brewing Company, 7 Tyler Street, Somerville, MARegistration Register at
http://bpda-trivia-night.eventbrite.com/
<http://bpda-trivia-night.eventbrite.com/>Next WeekPractice Mindfulness to
Improve Well-being and ResiliencyHosted by the MIT Work-Life CenterThis
program introduces the basic principles and practices of mindfulness, a
concentrated state of awareness that helps people see and respond to
situations with greater clarity. Individuals who employ the techniques of
mindfulness in their work are able to monitor moment-to-moment
effectiveness, respond promptly and appropriately to difficulties as they
arise, and remain open to new ideas and perspectives. Participants will be
introduced to meditation practices that will teach them how to be more
focused, creative, and resilient in all aspects of their lives. Presenter –
Paul R. Fulton <http://hrweb.mit.edu/worklife/seminars/bios#Paul>, Ed.D.,
M.S.; Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Mindfulness-Based Learning and Founding
Member, Institute for Meditation and PsychotherapyDate and Time Tuesday,
March 14, 12:00 - 1:30 PMLocation 76-156Registration Register at
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/practice-mindfulness-to-improve-well-being-and-resiliency-registration-31296326154
<https://www.eventbrite.com/e/practice-mindfulness-to-improve-well-being-and-resiliency-registration-31296326154>Exploring
PhD Career Options in Higher Education: A PanelHosted by MIT Global
Education and Career DevelopmentAttendees will learn about career options
for PhDs that are not faculty positions at research-intensive universities.
This includes teaching-oriented faculty positions at colleges and
universities, teaching and online learning, and additional areas.Date and
Time Tuesday, March 14, 5:00 - 6:30 PMLocation 4-270Registration
Pre-registration requested via CareerBridge
<https://www.myinterfase.com/mit/student>.Basics of Scientific
WritingHosted by the MIT Office of the Vice President for ResearchDr. Sonal
Jhaveri (Science Program Director, Postdoc and Graduate Student Affairs
Office, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute) will discuss the basics of how to
write a research paper that is targeted for publication in a professional
journal. Dr. Jhaveri is an MIT alumna (BS, MS). She received her PhD from
Harvard University, has been Principal Investigator on a number of grants
from NIH, NSF and other private foundations, has co-authored 60
professional articles, and has consulted on a number of science and medical
writing projects. She teaches Science Communication and Language Skills to
graduate and medical students as well as to postdocs at MIT and Dana-Farber
Cancer Institute.Date and Time Wednesday, March 15, 2:00 - 3:30 PMLocation
Singleton Auditorium, 46-3002Registration Register at
https://goo.gl/forms/L8juSBDX2jQI9cUg2
<https://goo.gl/forms/L8juSBDX2jQI9cUg2>How to Optimize Your Professional
Online PresenceHosted by the MIT Work-Life CenterIn this workshop, learn
what it takes to really shine online. In this session, you will explore
what makes a great professional website, how to improve your LinkedIn
profile, and review what other social media platforms have to offer. This
workshop will help you: improve what people see about you online; network
for long-term career success; find a better job; and increase your
industry-specific learning. Presenter – Stephanie Leishman
<http://hrweb.mit.edu/worklife/seminars/bios#Stephanie>, B.A.; Founder,
ApiarityDate and Time Friday, March 17, 12:00 - 1:00 PMLocation
NE49-5000Registration Register at
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/how-to-optimize-your-professional-online-presence-registration-31297358241
<https://www.eventbrite.com/e/how-to-optimize-your-professional-online-presence-registration-31297358241>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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