Preparing for Poster Day 2004

1. Preparing for Poster Day 2004 A Workshop for Summer Interns at the National Institute on Aging by Cherilynn M. Reynolds, Ph.D. July 12, 2004

2. Poster Day Purpose • To showcase the outstanding research conducted by the summer interns in the NIA intramural research program in poster format • To give summer interns the opportunity to present and discuss their findings with the scientific community • To provoke and promote networking opportunities and scientifically and intellectually stimulating conversations between interns and NIH scientists

3. Poster Day • When? Tuesday, August 3, 2004 - 1:00 - 5:00 p.m. • Where? Gerontology Research Center Lobby, Conference Room 1-117, and Conference Room 1-D-12. • Format? Poster space provided measures 4’ x 4’. (Space for the Poster Day program will be 3.5’ x 3.5’) • Dress Code? Work Casual and Business Professional.

4. Poster Day • Posters should include: • Title • Author names and affiliation • Abstract • Introduction • Materials & Methods • Results • Discussion/Conclusions

5. Poster Format • Title - Name of the Research Project • Abstract – Brief summation of entire project • Introduction - What was the scientific question? Background and rationale for the question • Methods - What techniques did you use to answer your question(s)?

6. Poster Format continued • Results – What did you observe? Display of results such as tables, graphs, and photos • Discussion/Conclusions – What do you think the results mean? How do your results relate to the broad picture? • Future Directions – What do you plan to accomplish with the project? What is the next step?

7. Poster Format Poster Title • Dimensions of Poster Title: 3ft long and 10 inches wide. • How to display the Poster Title: Be sure to include the title of the presentation, the institute, and laboratory/branch where the work was completed, the author names, and the name of your school, college or university.

8. Poster Title • First impressions are strong impressions; a title ought therefore to be well studied, and to give, so far as its limits permits, a definite and concise indication of what is to come. - T. Clifford Allbutt • What makes a good title? • A title that uses the fewest words possible that adequately and accurately describes the contents of the poster. • A title where the words are chosen carefully. Few people will read the entire poster, but the title will be read by many people.

9. Poster Day • How to display: • poster title • author names • author affiliation (Institution or Laboratory, City, State, where research was conducted) Werner Protein Interactions In Base Excision Repair Pathways Mark Sinclair1, Alex Brown1, and Dora Smith* 1Laboratory of Molecular Pharmacology and Drug Design, National Institute on Aging, GRC, NIH, 5600 Nathan Shock Drive, Baltimore, MD 21224 and *Department of Molecular Biology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21226

10. Poster Day • Names of Authors • The authors should normally be listed in order of importance to the experiments, the first author being acknowledged as the major contributor, the second author being the primary associate, and the last author possibly the senior advisor/mentor.

11. Poster Day Who should be an author? • Persons who did the majority of the work (technically and intellectually) - 1st author • Persons who supervise the project and provides financial and intellectual support for the project - (senior author) • Persons who contribute by collecting or providing some data or vital materials (collaborators)

12. Poster Day • Authors of research posters • Authorship should be based on a substantial intellectual contribution. The list of authors on a poster serves multiple purposes: it indicates who is responsible for the work and to whom questions regarding the work should be addressed. • The listing of authors should include those, and only those, who actively contributed to the overall design and execution of the experiments. • An author of a poster should be defined as one who takes intellectual responsibility for the research results being reported.

13. Poster Day • How to display: -poster title -author names -author affiliation Werner Protein Interactions in Base Excision Repair Pathways Mark Sinclair1, Alex Brown1, and Dora Smith* 1Laboratory of Molecular Pharmacology and Drug Design, National Institute on Aging, GRC, NIH 5600 Nathan Shock Drive, Baltimore, MD 21224 and *Department of Molecular Biology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21226

14. Poster Day • How to display: • poster title • author names • author affiliation (Institution or Laboratory, city, state, ZIP code where research was conducted) Werner Protein Interactions in Base Excision Repair Pathways Mark Sinclair1, Alex Brown1, and Dora Smith* 1Laboratory of Molecular Pharmacology and Drug Design, National Institute on Aging, GRC, NIH 5600 Nathan Shock Drive, Baltimore, MD 21224 and *Department of Molecular Biology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21226

15. Poster Day • Abstracts • The scientific abstract serves the purpose of providing the reader with a brief summary of each of the main sections of the paper: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, and Discussion. • Descriptions of experimental results in abstracts for meetings should be supported by existing data. • “A well-prepared abstract enables readers to identify the basic content of a document quickly and accurately, to determine its relevance to their interests, and thus allows the reader to decide whether they need to read the document in its entirety” (American National Standards Institute, 1979).

16. Poster Day • Abstract Form • 1) No abbreviations • 2) No references • 3) Past Tense is used because it refers to work done The Abstract should: • 1) state the principal objectives of the investigation • 2) describe the methods employed • 3) summarize the results • 4) state the principal conclusions

17. Poster Day • Organization of Your Poster A good format to use is the IMRAD format. • 1) Introduction • 2) Methods • 3) Results • 4) Discussion/Conclusion Section

18. Poster Day Introduction A) Purpose The “Introduction” should supply sufficient background information to allow the reader to understand and evaluate the results of the present study without needing to refer to previous publications on the topic. Note: Cite original articles rather than reviews.

19. Poster Day • Introduction B) Proper Organization 1) Clearly state the purpose of the research project. 2) Provide current knowledge in the area and most important background information to orient the reader. 3) State the methodology used in the investigation. 4) Principal results of the investigation should be provided. 5) The principal conclusion(s) suggested by the results should be stated. Much of the Introduction should be written in the present tense because here you will be referring primarily to your research question and the current knowledge relating to it at the start of your work.

20. Poster Day • Materials & Methods A) Purpose This section describes and defends, if necessary, the experimental design. It basically tells the reader, what materials and protocols or methods were used to produce the results of the project. Enough detail should be provided so the experiment(s) can be repeated.

21. Poster Day • Results A) Purpose The “Results” are the products of your experimentation. This section constitutes the new knowledge that you are contributing to the scientific community.

22. Poster Day • Results Section • Results can be presented in the form of tables and figures. Tables and figures should stand on their own. • Formal tables and figures are numbered and have a title. • Figures are typically composed of some form of graph (line, bar, divided bar, pie), photograph, or other illustration that is representative of your results. • Legends also accompany the figures, which describes what the figure represents. • All graphs should be labeled clearly and descriptively with the appropriate units of measure. • Most of the space on your poster will be used for results so do this section with precision and care.

23. Poster Day • Discussion/Conclusions A) Purpose The “Discussion” is designed to explain the meaning of the results. B) The Discussion should: 1) Show how your results and interpretations agree or contrast with previously published work. 2) State your conclusions as clearly as possible. 3) Show how your results have advanced the body of knowledge in your field.

24. Poster Day • Preparing the Poster • Poster Day is Tuesday August 3, 2004, 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm. Presenters must be standing by their posters by 1:00 pm SHARP!! • All posters must be placed on assigned boards by 12:00 pm on poster day. • The title should be readable from a distance of 5 feet (1.5 m). • The text type should be bold and black. (A type size of 18-24 points is suitable for text.)

25. Poster Day • Preparing the Poster • A poster should be self-explanatory, allowing different viewers to proceed at their own pace. • Lots of white space throughout the poster is important. Refrain from cluttering the poster board. • A poster should contain highlights. • Keep the text to a minimum and emphasize the graphics (charts, graphs, photos, etc)

26. Poster Day • Poster Presentation (notes) • You will have approximately 7 minutes to discuss your poster with each institute administrator. • Give a brief summary of your research project, including hypothesis and research goal(s). • Describe your results in detail (majority of presentation) • Summarize your findings and mention the future directions of the project. • Use the remaining time to entertain questions.

27. Poster Day Title of Presentation Names of Authors Affiliations Abstract Introduction Fig. 1 Fig. 4 Methods Fig. 2 1 2 3 4 Table 2 Conclusions 1. 2. 3. Table 1 1 2 3 Fig. 3 Your results may be presented in the form of illustrations, photos graphs, tables, equations or schematics.

28. Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS) • The ABRCMS is a national conference designed to encourage undergraduate students to pursue advanced training and careers in the biomedical sciences. • ABRCMS 2004 Theme - “Meeting the Biomedical Research Challenges of the Future: A Celebration of Achievement” November 10-13, 2004 Dallas, TX *ALL MARC students are required to attend and present at the ABRCMS meeting. Meeting information and abstract submission information can be obtained from the ABRCMS website: http://www.abrcms.org

29. IMPORTANT DATES AND DEADLINES FOR ABRCMS • Abstract Submission Opens:           April 15, 2004 • Abstract Submission Deadline:       September 10, 2004 (12:00 Midnight PST) • Notification Letter Distribution:     October 1, 2004 • Advanced Registration Deadline:   October 20, 2004 • Poster Presentation Sessions:          November 11-13, 2004 • Oral Presentations:                          November 13, 2004

30. Poster Day • The following references were used in the preparation of this presentation: Day, Robert. How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper. 4th Edition. The Oryx Press, 1994. Fischer, Beth A. and M. Zigmond. Writing Research Articles. 2000 Sides, Charles. How to Write and Present Technical Information. 2nd Edition. The Oryx Press, 1991. The information found in this presentation is to be used as an example and guide only.