67099 - Professional Activities

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, each student gets familiar with a series of professional software packages (graphics, text-writing, maths, data reduction packages) widely used also beyond the astronomical field. The student will also be able to efficiently write and present projects, produce professional plots and presentations, allowing an effective description of the scientific problems both in a professional way, and in an outreach mode.

Course contents

The course aims to provide students with the necessary tools for writing and orally presenting projects—both scientific and non-scientific—in both Italian and English. To this end, the main features that characterize effective written projects and presentations will be discussed. The course will provide the fundamentals of selected software packages for creating plots from data files (e.g. TOPCAT) and of software for preparing multimedia presentations (PowerPoint, OpenOffice). It will also introduce the Overleaf web platform for the collaborative preparation of LaTeX documents, together with the main conventions for citing sources in the text and compiling bibliographies. Finally, the course will cover methods for searching the online scientific literature and datasets, and will discuss the key principles for the critical, informed, and responsible use of Artificial Intelligence tools.

 

Readings/Bibliography

Teaching materials are provided by the teachers and made available through the UniBo Virtuale website. These materials include the lecture slides, as well as scientific articles and projects suggested by the teachers. Manuals for the software used in the course can be found online; however, the in-class demonstrations of their usage are not documented.

Teaching methods

The course will take place in the computer lab, with the use of a whiteboard and video projector. It includes 2 CFU of lectures delivered by the teachers, and 2 CFU dedicated to hands-on work, during which students will complete assigned exercises in small groups under the teachers guidance.

In-person participation in the course activities is strongly recommended.

Assessment methods

The knowledge and skills acquired during the course will be assessed through the three assignments described below, together with participation in classroom discussions. The proposed activities will be carried out in groups of 3–5 students in order to develop and strengthen teamwork and collaborative skills. At the end of the course, students who have satisfactorily completed all assignments will be awarded a pass/fail qualification (no numerical grade will be assigned).

The three assessment tasks are:

1. Critical evaluation of a scientific proposal

Students will prepare a critical and analytical comparison (in Italian) between the preliminary and final versions of a telescope observing-time proposal (written in English), highlighting differences, strengths, weaknesses, omissions, redundancies, and structural issues. They will also write (in English) an appropriate title and abstract for the proposal. The proposed titles and abstracts will then be discussed collectively in class, with attention to their respective strengths and weaknesses.

2. Summary of a scientific paper using the collaborative Overleaf platform

Students will select a short scientific paper or press release (from a list provided by the instructor, all in English) and prepare an appropriate summary. The document must also include references, tables, figures, and graphs produced by the students using the software introduced during the course.

3. Development and presentation of a project

Students will design a project on a topic of their choice, either scientific or non-scientific, and present it to the class using presentation slides. The presentations will be followed by a collective discussion of their strengths and weaknesses. The assessment therefore includes both the presentation of the student's own project and the critical evaluation of the projects presented by the other groups.

Students with learning disabilities or temporary or permanent disabilities: please contact the relevant University office promptly (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/it ). The office will advise students of possible adjustments, that will be submitted to the professor for approval 15 days in advance. He/she will evaluate their suitability also in relation to the academic objectives of the course.

Regarding the use of AI, only iimited, declared, and non-substantial use is permitted. Substantial use of AI to complete any part of the assessment is not permitted.

 

Teaching tools

Course materials are made available to students on the course page of the Virtuale platform (https://virtuale.unibo.it ). The computer lab is equipped with individual workstations for each student.

Office hours

See the website of Francesca Pozzi

See the website of Barbara Lanzoni