Tiny machines

It's been a while since I posted, so I thought it was about time I wrote something. And what better to write about, than what I spend every day working on!

If you studied biology in school may remember this: DNA to RNA to Protein.

Proteins do almost everything in the cell. Anything you can think of, a protein does it.

Generate energy? Protein.

Shuttle things around? Protein.

Repair damage? Protein.

At any one time, a cell has tens of millions of proteins, all working to keep the cell healthy and functioning as it should. It's a mind-boggling operation, and it is happening in every one of your cells right now. When you consider that you have trillions of cells (there are more cells in your hand than there are people on earth!), the staggering complexity is difficult to grasp.

The cell needs to make all those proteins, and it needs instructions so it can make the right ones at the right time. These instructions are encoded in your DNA. Each "instructional" section of the DNA is called a gene, and every protein is encoded by a different gene. Every cell in your body has its own copy of the DNA (with some exceptions), and it is very precious. If the DNA gets damaged you lose the instructions for the proteins, and the cell will probably die as a result. Because of this it is stored in the nucleus, away from most of the things that could damage it. The problem is, proteins can not be made in the nucleus, so the cell needs a way to get the instructions for the proteins out of the nucleus, and into the body of the cell, the cytoplasm.

Life has come up with an ingenious solution to this problem: the cell can make a "photocopy" of the instructions of the protein it needs, and it can take that out of the nucleus. This "photocopy" is called mRNA, and it is then used to make as many copies of the protein that a cell needs. That way the DNA is kept safely locked away, but the cell can still make the protein. The process of "photocopying" the DNA to make mRNA is called "transcription".

I like to think of the DNA as an enormous book, that is kept behind lock and key in a special room in a library. There is only one copy of the book, so it is kept safe, away from all the people that work and visit the library. The problem is, people need the information that is in the book. In fact the book describes how everything works in the library, so without that information, the library would completely fall apart.

To get around this, a small number of trusted people can photocopy pages from the book, and they can then be passed to the workers in the library so they can carry out the instructions. If the photocopy gets damaged it isn't a problem; another photocopy can just be made.

In this analogy the photocopy is mRNA, and in reality, when it gets taken out into the cytoplasm, that is only the start of making a protein. The mRNA has to be transported to little machines called ribosomes, and the ribosome reads the mRNA, and produces the protein. This process is called "translation" because the cell is translating the instructions contained in the mRNA into a functional protein.

All of the tens of millions of protein in every cell are made like this, and the tiny machines (ribosomes) are at the centre of it all. They are amazing things; every single cell that has ever existed had ribosomes in it. Every animal, plant, fungus, and bacteria has ribosomes, all busily making protein from mRNA, sustaining all life in the process. And these ribosomes are what I spend my time studying.

Like everything in life, how they work is extremely simple and complex at the same time. The ribosome is shaped vaguely like a burger bun, with two parts, and it attaches mRNA with one part above and the other below. The mRNA then feeds through the ribosome until it has all been read. At the same time it is reading the mRNA, the ribosome is also making the protein (which is coming out the top of the ribosome in the gif above), so when it is finished reading, it is also finished making the protein.

For a long time it was thought that this process of reading an mRNA and producing a protein (translating the mRNA) was a pretty passive one. If the cell needed a lot of a protein, it would make lots of mRNA, and as a result, the ribosomes would make lots of protein. While that is true, we now know that it is not the only way a cell can make more protein, and that ribosomes have an important role in making sure that the correct amount of protein is being produced. If one ribosome is reading an mRNA, it will produce one protein. But if 10 ribosomes are reading the same mRNA, they they will produce 10 proteins. If a ribosome takes 20 seconds to read the mRNA, it will only produce half of the protein compared to one that takes 10 seconds. These (and many other subtleties) give ribosomes extraordinary control of the fate of the cell, and we are only beginning to understand this.

It's not an exaggeration to say that understanding ribosomes is key to understand all life. They carry out one of the most key processes in life, but there is still so much we do not understand about them. We also know that many diseases hijack ribosomes, including cancer, so increasing our knowledge is obviously important, and that is what we focus on in my lab. Tiny, beautiful, complex machines, that are so important that life wouldn't exist without them. And people wonder why I love my job so much!

Talking science with the public (part 2)

Part 1 of this blog described a few simple things that you can do to make your talk more engaging for the general public, mainly just keeping it simple. That is really all you need, but if you would like to think about it a little more, there are also some techniques you can use to improve it even further.Most public science presentations will involve various strange or fascinating things that you explain to the audience, and that is often enough for a very good talk. Present those facts with enthusiasm and humour, and follow the hints from Part 1, and you can have the audience rapt. With a bit of practice, you can give a very good presentation like this.However, it is also possible to incorporate more of a storytelling approach in to your presentation. No matter how interesting the topic is, if you just give the facts, you risk hitting the limit of your audience’s concentration. If you tell a story, you can keep people’s attention far longer. We are storytelling animals, and if the facts are presented as part of a story, we are far more likely to take them in. So if you are interested in incorporating facets of storytelling into your presentation, here are a few pointers that will help you do that.Before I start I should say that storytelling has many different forms, and what I describe here are simply suggestions. People intuitively know what a good story is, so if something feels right for your presentation, go with it. Aim for something empathic, exciting, and relevant; try to build a bond; most importantly have fun!

The Story Arc

Having a story arc is the most basic of tool in the storyteller’s arsenal, and it very often follows the same pattern. For example:The introductionThis allows people get invested in the story, makes them feel part of it. It can be an introduction to a topic or disease, or an introduction to you, and why you are passionate about your research. Try to include something personal here, something people can relate to and will make them invested in the story.The set upThe set up builds the story towards the climax or the point you want to make. A lot of people describe the state of the field or some of the challenges they faced in the work.The climaxThis is the turning point of your story, usually the breakthrough in the research, or the most important result that you want to talk about. It is the whole point of the talk, and everything that comes after this is about putting this finding into context.The slow downFollowing the climax, you can explain your finding in more detail, perhaps some more evidence for what you have foundThe endIt is effective to finish by describing the new normal. You can describe how your work has changed things, or the implications of your work. Does this suggest a change to treatment of a disease? Or how we think about something? What does this suggest for the future?This may translate to something like this:What I am working on is very important because [blank]. We used to believe that [blank]. This meant that [blank]. While we were studying it we realised that [blank]. This meant that [blank]. This is important because [bank].Or:Start with the purpose; why do you feel compelled to tell this story? Go on to describe the belief that you or society had, followed by how your work has challenged this belief. You can then go on to put this in contect, and describe what greater purpose it serves. Finally you can talk about what the work teaches us.Very often the story arc is a simple progression forward in time. This is effective because there is a logical flow for people to follow, with each movement forward posing questions that will intuitively be answered in the next section.This chronological structure traditionally describes character-based progress, but it could just as easily describe the journey of your field, or your own research. It could be the case that you are the main character, and the story follows your journey through your studies.

The Anecdote

It is important that this forward progression in time is interspersed with reflection, adding detail, context, and emotion to keep people invested in the story. This is called “the anecdote” by Ira Glass, and this video describing it is well worth a watch.Such reflection is vital to storytelling. Try to make the audience feel what you felt. If something was confusing, tell them, and maybe explain why. It is very compelling when our perceptions of reality are challenged or changed in some way. Stories that are not intuitive hold people’s interest! If something was frustrating, describe it. These are the reflections that keep people interested. Using emotion like this helps build a bond with the audience which will always help keep them engaged.This mix of forward progression using the story arc, interspersed with reflections to connect with your audience, is the most well described and reliable structure your story can take.Of course, it is worth emphasising that there are a vast and rich set of techniques used by storytellers. The best talks mix various aspects of storytelling, and there are lots of resources online to help you if you would like to know more. Storytelling is part of our history, and even when simply presenting facts, we automatically frame them to make them more compelling. Use this blog post as an aid, but feel free to ignore it and go with what you think is best. We intuitively know a well told story when we hear one, so follow your gut. And to echo what I said in Part 1, enthusiasm is infectious, so enjoy yourself, and the audience will most likely do the same!There are some good storytelling resources available online. It is a well-studied topic, and lots of people have written great articles about it. YouTube is full of informative videos, and google throws up many great examples. Below are just a sample of them:How to Tell Your Story without Boring Your Audience to TearsThe Science of StorytellingCommunicating your research effectivelyRadiolab (a podcast about science and society, and undoubtedly one of the best storytelling podcasts out there)

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This was written as advice for speakers at the Dutch Pint of Science festival. The 2019 edition of this international event takes place in from May 20 - 22, across 8 cities in the Netherlands. The festival hosts events in 24 countries. More details about your local festival can be found here.

Talking science with the public (part 1)

I have had the pleasure of helping organize the Pint of Science NL festival over the last 2 years. The festival takes place from May 20th to 22nd this year, and we will have at least 85 scientists talking about their work across 8 cities in the Netherlands. All the information can be found via this link.As part of a speaker's package we put together for the festival, I wrote a few things about how people can make their presentations more engaging for the public. Explaining complex science is sometimes a difficult thing to do, so below are a few suggestions to help scientists make their public talks as good as their scientific ones!Know your audience!A talk for college educated professionals will be very different to one for school kids. Try to aim your talk appropriately. Most of the time these kinds of talks will be for people who are pro-science, so luckily there is rarely a need to persuade people that evolution is real or that the earth is round. However, don't be surprised to be asked when we might finally meet aliens, or to explain telepathy.This is not a conference talk!There are a few simple things you can do to make your presentation better and more engaging for your audience. Remember, unlike at a scientific conference, people are not there to see all your data. The concepts and ideas that underlie what you do are fascinating, and describing them should make up most of your talk. Once you have introduced these concepts to people, you can personalise it a bit more, but it is still worth avoiding presenting a lot of data. Keep it relatively simple and easy to follow.Pointers for making a good talk:Everyone designs their talks differently, but here is a simple example structure that people find easy to follow:

Big picture; why people should care?

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Main points (3 at most), kept simple and interesting

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How your work is helping build a better future

 Big picture; why people should care?Start by showing the audience why they should care about your topic. Show them the "big picture", so they can put your work in the context of their own lives. This helps people relate to the work.Three main pointsWhat do you want the audience to remember from your talk? People have short memories, so stick to 3 main points at most. Focusing on a small number of main points helps you keep the talk easy. Remember, the people attending have little or no exposure to the concepts you are describing, so think about that when you are writing your talk. (If the talk is shorter than 15 minutes, you might want to limit it to 2 main points.)Get to the pointScientists are used to the “Background → Results → Conclusions” structure of a seminar. That should be flipped for a public talk, with the important conclusion coming early, and then expanded.How your work is helping solve the problem?Finish off by emphasising how your work will change things. You want the audience to have a basic understanding of the problem and your solution, but also to have some of the enthusiasm for science that led you to dedicate your life to it! Paint them an optimistic future, and show them how your work is helping us move towards it. This is a balancing act however, as we really want to avoid is over-selling the work. We all hate the “Scientists cure cancer!” headlines that we see in the newspaper, so try to make sure you provide enough realism into your talk!Other practical tips:

1.     You should aim for one slide every 2-3 minutes of presentation at most. This is one of the big differences between a public talk and a scientific one. Talk to the audience; if you have too many slides you will end up talking to the screen.
2.     Use plain language, and try to avoid jargon. Again, remember that the audience don’t know anything about your field. Avoid technical terms or acronyms as much as possible unless you have enough time to properly explain them.
3.      Use visuals. A good image, video, or even live experiment can make it far easier for an audience to follow a complex topic. Be careful with figures from scientific publications, these are often too complex for a general audience. Making your own "cartoon" illustration helps to simplify and keep visuals consistent throughout your presentation.
4.     Metaphors are also a very useful tool for explaining complex ideas. Just try to be consistent and don’t fall into the trap of mixing metaphors!
5.     Convey your enthusiasm. You work on a fascinating topic! The aim of the game is to show the audience how interesting STEM is!
6.      Take your time. As an expert it is easy to get carried away and fly through an basic talk like this. Take it slowly, and remember that people won’t be able to keep up if you are going too quickly.
7.     Speak up, even if you are using a microphone. This sounds obvious, but during a talk there may be a lot of ambient noise, so make sure those people in the back can hear you.
8.     Have fun! Everybody has different ideas when it comes to speaking to the public, so what I have detailed here are just tips to help you out. As you practice you will come to know what works for you and what doesn't. Science is incredible, and that is what we are trying to convey to people! Enjoy it!

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This is Part 1 of a 2-part series (Part 2 can be found here), and was written as advice for speakers at the Dutch Pint of Science festival. The 2019 edition of this international event takes place in from May 20 - 22, across 8 cities in the Netherlands. The festival hosts events in 24 countries. More details about your local festival can be found here.