Science Communication &Science Funding

Brian NordFermilab and University of ChicagoUEC DC Trip Sci Comm TrainingFebruary 8, 2018

Making a connection to make a difference

Have we stopped dreaming?

Schedule of Topics

• Meeting 1: Preparations make for a good visit

• Meeting 2: The Conversation

• Meeting 3: The Broader Context

Feedback

• Share your voice here!

• Annotate the Presentation Live

• Comment in Google doc

• Evaluation: Google form

Meeting 1

• Overview of the visit

• Recurring themes in science communication

• Research and prepare for an office visit

• Initial contact to the office: phone and email

• Elements of the pitch: The Ask, P5, and more

Let’s zoom in on A day in the life

Timeline: Preparation

Visit (March 7-9)

Identify Connections

Make Travel Arrangements

Make Appointments

Immediate Follow-up Emails

Long-term Communication

• Start studying current politics and budget news.

• Review available UEC Materials

• Research Offices

• Keep up-to-date on politics, the budget, news out of your assigned offices

• Practice relevant sci comm skills

Timeline: Trip

Tues, March 6

• Arrive.

• Check into hotel.

• Prepare.

• Get dinner.

• Try to sleep early.

Wed, March 7

• Get up early.

• Go to URA HQ.

• Go to the Hill.

• Get dinner.

• Prepare/work.

Thurs, March 8

• Get up early.

• Go to the Hill.

• Get dinner.

• Try to get lunch or bring snacks. Keep up the energy!

• Flu season is up this year. Take appropriate precautions.

Fri, March 9

• Check out of hotel.

• Go to the Hill.

• Return to hotel for bags.

• Depart.

Timeline: Office Visit

1:54: Arrive at office.

• Meet with Secondary.

• Review the strategy for the office.

• Arrange packet materials.

1:59: Enter office.

• Introduce yourself and state you have an appointment.

• Offer your cards.

2:00: Meeting.

2:30: Depart office: go to next appointment.

Hill Environment

• Prepare for the weight: Some people carry laptops.You’ll be carrying a lot of packets. Dress professionally, yet comfortably.

• It’s a work place: it has wifi, a cafeteria, and airport-like security at the main entrance. Have your professional attire ready before you get to the offices.

• Energize! Hydrate and eat to keep up your energy. The days are long.

• Give yourself time to get from place to place: Distances between offices can be large and locations (e.g., office numbers) can be non-intuitive.

Overview science communication principles• Tailor to your audience

• What is the value proposition that you bring to the table?

• How do you connect to them, through shared interests

• A clear (and coherent) message

• Example: “please fund the government.”

• Why? Because we help your state/district in a unique, and we do it with fiscal responsibility.

• A genuine and compelling delivery

• Tell as story: Narrative is the fundamental element of communication

• Professionalism in speech and attire.

• Let it come from Being genuine shows through.

Take a moment

• Think about when you’ve participated in a science communication event, how did you prepare?

• When you’ve attend an event, what patterns, behavior, methods did you see?

• What kinds of methods did you use? In most cases, in science communication, you’re telling a story.

• While we discussing this today, think about how you prepare a story and tell it.

Research: Preparing for an Office Visit

• Tailor to your audience: What are the congressperson’s priorities?

• Craft the message: What to talk about in the contact and the visit?

• Craft the delivery: How to tell your stories?

Research: What are the important issues for a given office?

• Serving constituents and improving their lives• Jobs • Services• Resources

• Passing a budget (on time)• Re-election• Areas of expertise or interest

(e.g., education or passion projects) of congressperson or staffer that you’ll be meeting

Money

Where to find information• Congress web sites

• www.senate.gov, www.house.gov

• Congresspersons’ web sites

• Committee assignments, issue pages for a given congressperson

• Public statements on policies

• e.g., Tammy Duckworth, Randy Hultgren

• Voting records:

• govtrack.us

• News and social media:

• The Hill

• Twitter

Follow the money: Committee Assignments

Appropriations

Authorization

Appropriations

Authorization

What are the funding pathways through DOE/NSF? It is critical to know if you’re assigned to an office in one of these committees.• Department of Energy (DOE):• House Energy & Water Devel.• Senate Energy & Water Devel.• House Science, Space & Technology/Energy • Senate Energy & Natural Resources/Energy

• National Science Foundation (NSF):• House Commerce, Justice, Science • Senate Commerce, Justice, Science • House Science, Space & Tech/Research & Tech • Senate Comm., Science & Transp./Space, Science &

Competitiveness

Follow the money Funding by State and District

• VERY important.

• Find the DOE and NSF funding information for the state. This information is crucial for them to justify support in many cases.

• https://mbaumer.github.io/us_hep_funding/

• DOE: https://science.energy.gov/universities/sc-in-your-state/

• NSF: https://www.nsf.gov/about/partners/states/index.jsp

Where to find information: Details

• Past trip reports off the UEC wiki

• Who: names of staff members, or members themselves that we met with

• What: what questions did they ask, information that piqued their interest, etc.

• Linkedin page of staffer

• What is their educational background and work history. This could provide topics for small talk or an avenue for connecting to the science.

• Do not use personal(-ish) information. Don’t be blatant. This should be a chill move.

Review Materials and Packet

Please support funding for High Energy Physics in FY2018 by sponsoring: • $860M for High Energy Physics within the Department of Energy’s Office

of Science in the Energy and Water Appropriations bill

• $7.8B for the National Science Foundation in the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill

These funding levels for high energy physics within the DOE Office of Science and the NSF are vital to maintain U.S. leadership in the field, to move forward with the world-class scientific projects of the P5 strategic plan, including the Large Hadron Collider and Long Baseline Neutrino Facility/Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment physics programs, and to meet scheduled commitments to our international partners.

Particle PhysicsMakes aDifference in Your LifeGlobal science, local impact

Particle physics is a global discovery science

central to the modern innovation ecosystem.

It drives national, regional, and local progress

in science and industry. And it improves

your quality of life.

Building for DiscoveryStrategic Plan for U.S. Particle Physics in the Global Context

usparticlephysics.org

Advance the High-Luminosity LHC (HL-LHC) accelerator and detector upgrade projectson schedule, continuing the highly successful bilateral partnership with Europe. This is P5’s highest-priority near-term large project.

Advance the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility (LBNF) and Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), working with interna-tional partners to move forward with the engineering design, construction site prepa-ration, and long-lead procurements. This is P5’s highest-priority large project in its time frame.

Support the existing construction projectsenabling the next major discoveries in par-ticle physics, including the ATLAS and CMSupgrades, LSST, DESI, Mu2e, Muon g-2, LHCb, LZ, ADMX-G2, and SuperCDMS-SNOLAB.

Balance scientifi c research with facility operations and the carefully selected port-folio of small, medium, and large projects that together facilitate the success of the community’s strategic vision.

The P5 Report provides the strategy and priorities for U.S. investments in particle physics for the coming decade.

The top four priorities in 2017

Particle physics is both global and localScientists, engineers, and technicians at more than 160 universities, institutes, and laboratories throughout the U.S. are work-ing in partnership with their international colleagues to build high-tech tools and components, conduct scientifi c research, and train and educate the next generation of innovators. Particle physics activities in the U.S. attract some of the best scientists from around the world.

These carefully chosen investments will enable a steady stream of exciting new results for many years to come and will maintain U.S. leadership in key areas.

P5 One-pager Physics Makes a DifferenceThe Ask

• The request and the value propositions.

Review Materials and PacketLHC is cool

DUNE is cool

KNOWLEDGE

How

did the cosmos evolve to

look the way it does today?

∞

How

do matter and energy

combine to m

ake everything?

∞

Is symm

etry a coincidenceor a condition of nature?

∞

Are there hidden extra dim

ensions?

∞

How

does gravity fit into quantum

mechanics?

∞

Are there new states of m

atter?

TECHNOLOGY

Particle physicists pioneer new

technologies that improve our lives:

∞

World W

ide Web

∞

PET scans∞

Big data m

anagement

∞

Silicon sensors∞

Touch screens

∞

Microelectronics

∞

Supercomputing

∞

Cancer therapies∞

Im

proved electromagnets

∞

More effi

cient industrial

processes

Technologies developed today for LH

C upgrades will im

prove science and society in the years to com

e.

EDUCATION

The big questions in physics inspire kids to pursue careers in STEM

fields.

Physics students cultivate skills in:

∞

Data collection &

processing∞

Statistical interpretation

∞

Critical analysis∞

Technology R&

D∞

Collaboration

Physicists bring these skills to a w

ide range of industries:

∞

Computing

∞

Medicine

∞

Finance∞

Applied research

∞

Data m

ining

PARTNERSHIP

The LHC unites 10,000 scientists

and engineers from m

ore than 60 countries and 500 institutions. This includes:

∞

1,700 US researchers

∞

94 US universities

∞

7 national laboratories

US scientists design and build:

∞

Advanced electromagnets

∞

Detector com

ponents∞

Cryogenic system

s∞

Softw

are ∞

Big data analysis tools

US contributions enable the

LHC research program

to keep m

aking discoveries.

Uni

ted

Stat

esRe

sear

chat

the

Larg

eH

adro

nCo

llide

r

cern.ch/un

ited-states

Particle Physics is DiscoveryScienceExploring the Universe

The challenge of particle physics is to discover

what our world is made of and how it works

at the smallest scales. Particle physics explores

the undiscovered universe from the tiniest

particles to the outer reaches of space.

Physics is cool

ORIGIN OF MATTER Discover what happened after the big bang: Are neutrinos the reason the universe is made of matter?

The world’s best neutrino detector, located almost a mile undergroundThe mile-deep LBNF caverns to be constructed at the Sanford Underground Research Facility will house the huge, 70,000-ton par- ticle detectors of the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment. The deep location will shield the experiment from the cosmic rays that bombard earth’s surface, while neutrinos easily travel through the rock to reach the supersensitive DUNE detectors.

Sanford Underground Research Facility, South Dakota

1 MILE / 1.6 KM

An international mega-science project in the USThe Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment will be the world’s flagship neutrino project, driven by the ingenuity and expertise of scientists in 27 countries. More than 140 labora-tories and universities are contributing to the development of particle accelerator and detector technologies for DUNE in the quest to understand how our universe works. The pro-posed Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility will provide the huge caverns, buildings and infrastructure for hosting the project in the United States.

Deep Underground Neutrino Experimentat the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility

BLACK HOLE FORMATION Use neutrinos to look into the cosmos and watch the formation of neutron stars and black holes in real time

UNIFICATION OF FORCES Move closer to realizing Einstein’s dream of a unified theory of mat-ter and energy

What is a neutrino?Neutrinos are all around us. They are the most abundant matter particles in the universe. Each second, a trillion neu-trinos pass through our bodies, yet very little is known about them. In nature, neutrinos are produced in great quantities in the sun and other stars. In the laboratory, scientists can make neutrinos and their antimatter counterparts—antineutrinos—with particle accelerators to learn more about the role they play in the universe.

HIGH-PRECISION TRACKSThe DUNE detectors will employ liquid-argon technology to record particle tracks with unprecedented precision. The technology is key to searching for new subatomic phenomena and transforming our understanding of neutrinos and their role in the universe.

NEUTRINO OSCILLATIONSThe distance between Fermilab and the Sanford Underground Research Facility is ideal for learn-ing more about the origin of matter: it will give neutrinos and antineutrinos enough time to oscillate and reveal how matter and antimatter behave differently.

Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Illinois

800 MILES / 1300 KM

The world’s most intense particle accelerator for neutrino researchDUNE needs neutrinos and antineutrinos. Lots of them. The powerful particle accelerator complex at the Department of Energy’s Fermilab is the perfect tool. The Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility at Fermilab will produce the world’s most intense neutrino and antineutrino beams and send them 800 miles (1300 kilometers) straight through the earth to the DUNE detectors—no tunnel necessary.

Design by Sandbox Studio, Chicago

The scie

nce

Example of Research: Senator Gary Peters of Michigan

Michigan!

• I went to grad school at University of Michigan!

• Go Blue!

• State in letter

• Small talk

Committees

• Armed Services, Homeland Security

• Commerce Science, Transportation

• Guiding the conversation toward priorities

• Showing tech that helps security

Op-Ed’s, Press Releases

• APS Physics

• Self-driving cars

• “I saw the op-ed Thank you for your support.”

• “ooooh dang, that some bizness!”

Issues

• Strengthening rural communities.

• Fighting for civil rights.

• Investing in education

• How our science helps farmers

• “I believe that STEM provides opportunities…”

Activity (time-permitting)

1. Choose a congressperson — one that you have a connection to and might have assigned to you as primary.

2. Go to web sites and write down a few notes that connect their issues to our science

Initial Contact with office

• Phone call to request appointment

• Email to request and finalize appointment

First Contact: Phone Call• Me:

“Hi my name is Brian. I’m a scientist at Fermilab in Illinois, and I’ll be visiting the DC in March to discuss public funding of science. I’m hoping to make an appointment with the Congresswoman during the week of March 5th. Would she be available?

• Staff:Ok, I’m going to ask you to email our office scheduler.

• Me:Great, thanks, I’m ready with a pen!

• Staff:The scheduler’s email is christopher.reeves@mail.house.gov

• Me:Thanks so much, have a great weekend!

Second Contact: Email

• What is the request?

• Who am I?

• Where am I and what do I do?

• Where I’m from? (opportunity for connection)

• Background information

• Contact information

Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory  PO Box 500  

Mail Stop 127  Batavia, IL 60150 

  February 25, 2016  

    

  

The Honorable Tim Walberg  United States House of Representatives 2436 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515‐3808 

  Dear Representative Walberg: 

 I am writing to request a meeting with you or a member of your science staff on Wednesday,                                   March 16; Thursday, March 17; or Friday, March 18. I am a postdoctoral researcher at Fermi                               National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) – one of our nation’s premier particle physics                       research facilities – located outside Chicago in Batavia, Illinois. I earned a PhD from the                             University of Michigan for work I conducted over five years with the Dark Energy Survey, during                               which time I lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan. I am a delegate of the Fermilab Users Executive                                 Committee (UEC), which represents physicists from the United States and around the world                         collaborating at Fermilab. 

 Each year, the UEC, together with organizations from the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center in                           California and the U.S.‐based users of the Large Hadron Collider in Europe, visits Washington, D.C.                             on behalf of the U.S. particle physics community. Together, we represent more than 4000                           physicists and students, from 100 universities and from the Department of Energy national                         laboratories. We would like to meet with members of Congress and their staff to discuss the                               importance of continuing federal investment in the physical sciences in general, and in                         high‐energy physics in particular. We also hope to share our enthusiasm for cutting‐edge                         scientific and technological advancements at a time when basic research is of critical importance                           to our nation’s long‐term competitiveness. Our group includes a number of younger scientists,                         including graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, who are among the best and brightest                         hopes for our country’s future as a world leader in scientific innovation. We feel it is especially                                 important for their voices to be heard in Washington. 

 Thank you for considering my request for a meeting. Your office may reach me any time on my                                   mobile phone at (443) 804‐2405, or by email at briandnord@gmail.com. I look forward to                           meeting with you soon. 

  Sincerely,   Brian Nord 

Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory  PO Box 500  

Mail Stop 127  Batavia, IL 60150 

  February 25, 2016  

    

  

The Honorable Tim Walberg  United States House of Representatives 2436 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515‐3808 

  Dear Representative Walberg: 

 I am writing to request a meeting with you or a member of your science staff on Wednesday,                                   March 16; Thursday, March 17; or Friday, March 18. I am a postdoctoral researcher at Fermi                               National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) – one of our nation’s premier particle physics                       research facilities – located outside Chicago in Batavia, Illinois. I earned a PhD from the                             University of Michigan for work I conducted over five years with the Dark Energy Survey, during                               which time I lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan. I am a delegate of the Fermilab Users Executive                                 Committee (UEC), which represents physicists from the United States and around the world                         collaborating at Fermilab. 

 Each year, the UEC, together with organizations from the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center in                           California and the U.S.‐based users of the Large Hadron Collider in Europe, visits Washington, D.C.                             on behalf of the U.S. particle physics community. Together, we represent more than 4000                           physicists and students, from 100 universities and from the Department of Energy national                         laboratories. We would like to meet with members of Congress and their staff to discuss the                               importance of continuing federal investment in the physical sciences in general, and in                         high‐energy physics in particular. We also hope to share our enthusiasm for cutting‐edge                         scientific and technological advancements at a time when basic research is of critical importance                           to our nation’s long‐term competitiveness. Our group includes a number of younger scientists,                         including graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, who are among the best and brightest                         hopes for our country’s future as a world leader in scientific innovation. We feel it is especially                                 important for their voices to be heard in Washington. 

 Thank you for considering my request for a meeting. Your office may reach me any time on my                                   mobile phone at (443) 804‐2405, or by email at briandnord@gmail.com. I look forward to                           meeting with you soon. 

  Sincerely,   Brian Nord 

Scheduling appointments• Email:

1.Initial email with a few sentences and the cover letter.

2.Follow-up emails as needed e.g., every few days until you hear from the office

3.When the congressperson isn’t available, you’ll be offered a meeting with a staffer. (Woo hoo! You got a meeting)

4.Plan the time carefully.

• Timing:

• Plan 30 minutes for the meeting and for getting to the next location.

• Avoid going back and forth between House buildings and Senate (give yourself >20 minutes)

Read an email correspondence between Rob Fine and a staffer.

Elements of the Office Pitch

• Gratitude

• The P5 Report

• The Ask

• What you do

• Bringing it together

Gratitude

• Thanks

• For your time

• For your support

• For your interest

• To …

• Receptionist

• Staffer

The Ask• A very concise request for funding:

• e.g., Please pass the budget

• e.g., Please sponsor $860M for HEP within the DOE’s Energy and Water Appropriations bill

• Most of the time, this is when the staffers start writing.

Please support funding for High Energy Physics in FY2018 by sponsoring: • $860M for High Energy Physics within the Department of Energy’s Office

of Science in the Energy and Water Appropriations bill

• $7.8B for the National Science Foundation in the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill

These funding levels for high energy physics within the DOE Office of Science and the NSF are vital to maintain U.S. leadership in the field, to move forward with the world-class scientific projects of the P5 strategic plan, including the Large Hadron Collider and Long Baseline Neutrino Facility/Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment physics programs, and to meet scheduled commitments to our international partners.

Particle Physics Project Prioritization Panel (P5)

• Written by High Energy Physics Advisory Panel (HEPAP) https://science.energy.gov/hep/hepap/

• Based on and distilled from 2013 Snowmass Community input process

• Similar to Decadal Survey for Astronomy

• Why is P5 useful?

• It can prevent/ease internal conflict amongst the advocating institutions.

• Sends, a simple united message about HEP prioritizes

• The Report

What you do

• You have a unique domain of expertise.

• You have a unique story and a unique passion.

• Your work brings knowledge to the world, and it changes lives.

• Your science/work/journey is one of the best ways for an Office to connect to our Ask.

How do we put all this together?• “Thanks for your time today, and your support for physics and science.

It goes a very long way.”

• “We’ve been hard at work the last year, and we just wanted to give you an update on where we are.”

• “The field has had a steady focus for the last few years, and we’re following a long-term strategy that’s lined out in the P5 report from 2013.”

• (if they’re not familiar with P5, give brief explanation)

• “To continue this work, and maintain stability for research and STEM education, we’re asking the Congresswoman to sponsor a funding level of X.”

• “When you do this, it supports new technology that helps with homeland security, and makes our computing more efficient and safer.”

Suggested activities• Read:

• Vannevar Bush’s Science: The Endless Frontier

• Read how the budget works

• Watch:

• Neil DeGrasse Tyson on the NASA Budget: We Stopped Dreaming 2

• Research:

• Research and take notes on one two different offices, one Senate and one House.

• Practice narratives about science:

• Write down one compelling narrative for your science topic

• Write down one compelling narrative for someone else’s science topic.

• Chat with a non-scientist about science, possibly using the compelling narrative you’ve written.

Next time

• Review from last time

• Review the office visit

• Conversation

• Building the pitch from the elements

• Delivering the pitch

• Long-lasting connections with follow-up

• The Hill environment and professional interactions

Learning Objectives

• Big picture of the office visit

• Recurring themes of science communication

• What is your current skill set?

• Motivation for extensive preparation

• Best practices in preparatory research for office visits

• Main elements of the Pitch

• If you didn’t learn these things, tell me in the feedback.

Feedback

• Share your voice here!

• Annotate the Presentation Live

• Comment in Google doc

• Evaluation: Google form