Social networking for scientists

Anna Sharman Kings College London

December 2013

Social media

• Facebook • LinkedIn • Twitter • Blogs, forums, email lists • Google+, tumblr, reddit,

others?

1. Why?

2. How?

3. Twitter

Anna Sharman

PhD and postdoc

Journal editor

Freelance editor

Consultant

Why use social media as scientist?

• Outreach

• Career

• Learning

• Getting help

Objections

• All about trivia

• Don’t have time

Social media for outreach

• Part of your job if publicly funded

• Your research is only useful if known about

The old way

The old way

The old way

• Not interactive

• Filtered

• No control

• Have to oversimplify

• Can’t do alone

The new way

• Blog post about paper

• Social media to spread word

• Altmetrics to measure

Altmetrics

Advantages of new way

• Smaller barrier to starting

• Interactive

• Can tailor to audiences

Colleagues

General public

• Control it yourself

How to use social media

Tips

• Separate personal/work accounts

• One username

• Real name? Something different? soozaphone

clathrin

agingroy

Apps

• Tweetdeck

• Falcon

• Hootsuite

• Seesmic

• Uber

• Echofon

• Twitterific…

• Twitter app

More tips

• Don’t just broadcast

• Ask questions

• Typos happen

• Don’t let it take over your life

Risks

• Profanity

• Rudeness

• Spam

• Trolls

Libel and contempt of court

Safeguards

• Privacy settings

• Think twice

• Can delete

• Block and report for spam

Twitter

My Twitter history

• Personal account

• @sharmanedit account

• SfEP tweeter 2012-13

• 1500 followers December 2013

Why I love Twitter

• Meet new people

• Gossip

• Profile

• Fits into spare moments

• Conferences

• Fun stuff

Conferences

Fun • #overlyhonestmethods

• #sciencecake

• Emergency kittens

• Bizarre animals

Who to follow

• @Stephen_Curry

• @deevybee

• @Protohedgehog

• @KL_Wheat

• @AnneOsterrieder

• @thesiswhisperer

• @sharmanedit

Key hashtags

• #phdchat - for PhD students

• #ecrchat - for early career researchers

Resources

Is blogging and tweeting about research papers worth it? The verdict

Social Media for Scientists

Using Twitter as a Postgraduate Researcher

Using Twitter in university research, teaching and impact activities

A gentle introduction to Twitter for the apprehensive academic

The age of Twitter

Summary

• Social media can help your career

• If you use it right

• Relax and enjoy it!

Keep in touch

sharmanedit.co.uk

sharmanedit.wordpress.com

@sharmanedit