Timothy Lupinek Thank you for your feedback. I do agree, this piece is incredibly subjective. I was frustrated and angry as a student researcher to see a fellow researcher and friend treated this way. My opinion that she was chastised stems from the fact that the poster was moved without consulting the researcher or faculty mentor and that the signs were hastily written and placed in the viewing room the morning of the event. The researchers had submitted their work months before the event, with a detailed description in the abstract to be approved:

“The purpose of this project is to utilize artistic skills and knowledge to visualize scientific research, thus providing an enhanced method for researchers to communicate with their audience. The process of this project involves the cooperation with Sarah Auer who researches medieval gynecology from ancient Greek scripts, focusing on Soranus’ studies about female reproductive organs. In this project three organs are illustrated digitally according to Soranus’ scripture: uterus, placenta, and didymi which are in pairs with three objects that Soranus uses to describe each shape: kylix, egg, and silphium seeds. Each illustration is artistically interpreted to assist readers’ understanding of the texts without distorting the original content. The process of visualizing science also involves a research poster design in which artistic principles are applied to direct the viewers’ eyes for a better reading experience. With texts, illustration, and design combined, Auer’s research poster is to stand out from traditional research posters.”

The work was supposed to be shown alongside other posters in the “Seeing Science” interdisciplinary research section, but Ms. Auer’s work was moved the night before without notifying her, and she was excluded from this area of recognition, and from her fellow interdisciplinary student researchers.