Each week, the Murray Edwards MCR committee will share some of the opportunities and events coming up around Cambridge.
Please send your suggestions and announcements to mcr-secretary@murrayedwards.cam.ac.uk
Please find the Lent Term Card with all college events here.
Events- Academic and Professional
MCR Open Meeting- 11th Feb 2018 3-5pm (Agenda Items Deadline 8th Feb noon)
The MCR committee is hosting an open meeting with tea and cakes on Sun 11 Feb at 15:00 in the MCR. It’s important for you (yes, you) to come because as a community we’ll be discussing and voting on changes to our MCR constitution. While this sounds formal because it’s part of our constitutional procedure, the meeting itself will be more like a chat over a cup of tea about how to improve the MCR.
This week the agenda and a paper with the proposed changes will be circulated. These changes are necessary to:
- correct typos
- update outdated information
- specify and clarify MCR procedure where needed to improve efficiency and transparency.
You can also submit your own agenda items for this meeting about other issues related to the MCR or college. To do so, please send the item with the names and crsids of the proposer and seconder to Tapoka (MCR secretary: mcr-secretary@murrayedwards.cam.ac.uk) by Thurs 8 Feb noon. If you would like to review the original constitution in advance, you can find it here. We looking forward to seeing you there and hearing what you have to say
Murray Edwards Graduate Symposium- 20th & 27th of February 2018, 4 – 6.30pm (Abstract Submission and General Sign Up Deadline 10th Feb)
Everyone is highly encouraged to present their current research to fellow graduates and college Fellows from across various fields. We will be having up to 10 student presentations (PowerPoint presentation, 7mins – Talk, 3mins – QnA) for each symposium dates. The symposia would be followed by a mixed tables formal hall with the Fellows.
If you are keen on presenting, please sign up here by 10th Feb, with your presentation title and a 100-words write-up about your academic background. Speakers are welcome to invite their Supervisors for the Symposium and Mixed Formal Hall (please do let us know if you will be).
If you’d like to attend the symposia and/or the mixed formal hall, please sign up here by 10th Feb as well.
This year, we’re introducing an interesting and fun component to the symposium – a photograph competition titled ‘ A day in the life of a Cambridge graduate student’ (a photo that best describes your day as a graduate student whether it’s a picture of your work-desk, department, lab, library where you study etc). Everyone is welcome to participate in the photograph competition. All you have to do is bring a 5R (4×6 inches) printed photo along with you to the symposium.
There will be a prize of £50 for the best speaker and all participants will receive a certificate of participation. We will also be giving out a prize for the photograph competition!
Looking forward to having as many of you signing up to present/attend the symposium. It’s promising to be an informative, inspiring and memorable symposium!
How do we End Poverty Cost-Effectively?- 10th Feb, 7:30 – 9 PM
Winstanley Lecture Theatre, Trinity College
https://www.facebook.com/events/177755349490014/
Any economist can tell you that whatever we do, we can’t rely on unlimited resources. Fortunately, Dr Rachel Glennerster is not just any economist.
Dr Glennerster started her career at HM treasury and the International Monetary Fund. She has devoted her time to finding cost-effective ways to alleviate global poverty. As Executive Director of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab at MIT, Dr. Glennerster helped establish the Deworm the World Initiative, a GiveWell-recommended charity which assists in deworming millions of children a year. Now Chief Economist of the Department for International Development in the UK, Dr. Glennerster is aiming to help DFID make effective use of evidence to in the design of its programs and in its advice to governments in the “global south.”
She has co-authored the books Strong Medicine: Creating Incentives for Pharmaceutical Research on Neglected Diseases, and Running Randomized Evaluations: A Practical Guide.
Come along to see how academics can help fight poverty directly through their research. This talk will be of special interest to economists. As always, both students and non-students are welcome.
Make your career matter- 11th Feb, 2 – 5:30 PM
Centre for the Study of Existential Risk-16 Mill Lane, CB2 1SB
https://www.facebook.com/events/149097862466840/
Work out how to find a fulfilling, high-impact career in this free, research-backed workshop run by Jamie and Clare from Effective Altruism: Cambridge, based on 80,000 Hours’ research. You have about 80,000 hours in your career. That means your choice of career is one of the most important decisions you’ll ever make. Choose well, and you can help solve the world’s most pressing problems, as well as have a rewarding, interesting life.
80,000 Hours (80000hours.org), was founded in Oxford to help people find fulfilling, high-impact careers. It has done thousands of hours of research into how to choose a career, alongside academics at Oxford, and advises over 1 million online readers each year. It’s backed by Y Combinator and has been featured on the BBC, NPR and Washington Post.
We’ll cover the key advice in the 80,000 Hours online career guide in a series of short talks, plus there’ll be even more interactive exercises to provide interesting discussion and help apply it to your own career, after positive feedback from last term’s series.
At about 5pm we’ll have ***free pizza and drinks*** and can further discuss plans.
Topics include:
1) What makes for a dream job?
We’ll take you through what the latest psychology research shows is most important to being satisfied at work.
2) How can you make a difference?
What are the world’s most pressing problems, and how can you best contribute to them besides working in charity, medicine, teaching and so on?
3) Two common early career mistakes.
What to look for in your first couple of jobs.
4) How to find the right career for you
We’ll apply research on decision-making to help you narrow down your options, and make a plan for the coming years. And we won’t just tell you to “follow your passion”.
5) How to find a job
The best advice out there on following through on your plan and landing the jobs you want.
Apply for a free space today:
https://80000hourscambridge.typeform.com/to/BXE6S6
Cool Earth – Our Best Chance Against Climate Change?- 13th Feb, 7:30 – 9 PM
Webb Library, Jesus College
https://www.facebook.com/events/1045860515564123/
Cool Earth works alongside indigenous people to halt the destruction of the rainforest, undoing some of the damage that has left half of the world’s rainforest has been destroyed in the last 40 years – an approach that has turned out to be impressively effective.
Giving What We Can rated Cool Earth the most effective charity against climate change, estimating that Cool Earth can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1 tonne with each $1.34 donation.
Matthew Owen, Director of Cool Earth, will be speaking about the charity and how their work with indigenous communities is so effective.
As always, both students and non-students are encouraged to come, and snacks and drinks will be provided. There will also be an opportunity to ask questions after the talk.
Events- Social
MCR Hoodies- 18th Feb
The chance to order an MCR hoodie has come. The hoodies will be grey with the college crest on the left side of the chest.
Please sign up and find payment details here
Social Enterprise- The Cambridge Light Initiative
The Cambridge Light Initiative aims to provide an essential product for most students at Cambridge, promoting road safety while also supporting social and environmental issues. To achieve this, they are currently:
- Producing their own packaging for the lights using minimal quantities of recyclable paper.
- Distributing their bike lights around the university by bike.
- Offsetting the carbon dioxide emissions associated with their supply chain by donating to the charity Carbonfund.
- Donating 10% of their profit to an international solar energy charity, SolarAid (https://solar-aid.org/about/), with the remainder being re-invested into purchasing further inventory.
They have been officially endorsed by SolarAid and we hope to support their work supplying affordable solar lights to remote communities in Africa.
Their lights sell for £5.99 per set (1 x front, 1 x back lights) and their quality is much better than the cheap silicone clip-on lights commonly used around Cambridge.
Contact: Chris Kwok ck471@cam.ac.uk
Careers and Volunteering
Want To Teach in Kenya This Summer?
Cambridge Summer Teachers are recruiting staff for their summer school in Nairobi.
2 weeks in July. Flights, meals, accommodation and trips included.
Undergraduates, graduates, PhD students – all are welcome to apply, they are looking for a mixture of experiences. Applications on a rolling basis.
For more details and the application form please visit: www.cambridgesummerteachers.com or email hello@cambridgesummerteachers.com
Study Participants Wanted
Department of Psychology- £4
They are looking for volunteers aged 18 and over to take part in our Psychology study on how people form impressions about consumer products, and about people.
Participants will receive £4 for a study that takes about 25 minutes.
This study will require participants to refrain from eating for 3 hours before their scheduled time slots. Individuals who would be at risk by abstaining from eating for this amount of time should not apply to take part in this study.
During the study, you may be asked to sample a food product. If you have any food allergies, please contact us first to see whether you might be eligible for participation.
To secure an appointment please sign up here:
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e044bacae29abf58-impression
Alternatively, email the coordinators with preferred times at which you could participate at xeml2@cam.ac.uk (Michelle Lim)
If you would like to run an event please fill out the form to send your ideas and any requests to the committee