As I’ve mentioned before, one of the best things about doing a PhD is the opportunity to do overseas travel. I’ve just spent two weeks in Europe, presenting my research at the annual EGU conference in Vienna, followed by a week visiting universities in Switzerland. It’s been fantastic, with lots of excellent science and conversations as well as exploring some cities I’ve never visited before, even though the weather hasn’t been quite as nice as back home (I got snowed on in Zurich!)
EGU was probably the best international conference I’ve been to. Despite having over 13,000 people I didn’t find it nearly as overwhelming as when I went to AGU in 2014. I’m not sure if that’s because of a different feel between Europe and the USA, if it’s the conference itself, the fact that there were more people involved in my little sub-topic, or simply because I’m further along in my PhD and thus have more confidence/experience. But it’s definitely a conference I would happily come back to.
EGU was probably the best international conference I’ve been to. Despite having over 13,000 people I didn’t find it nearly as overwhelming as when I went to AGU in 2014. I’m not sure if that’s because of a different feel between Europe and the USA, if it’s the conference itself, the fact that there were more people involved in my little sub-topic, or simply because I’m further along in my PhD and thus have more confidence/experience. But it’s definitely a conference I would happily come back to.
Looking out over Vienna during a walk in the Vienna Woods
I was quite lucky and presented my research on the Monday, a whole day full of amazing presentations on Atmospheric Dynamics and Midlatitude Cyclones. This is the first time I’ve been at a conference with so many people working on similar problems, and I was able to have some wonderful conversations and meet a lot of interesting people. I also went to dinner with the European midlatitude cyclone community, which was really welcoming. I would feel very happy if I managed to get a postdoc working with any of those groups.
The rest of the conference was great too – some fantastic sessions on historical climate, climate extremes, and detection & attribution, as well as interesting posters (although the alcohol ran out faster every day) and a variety of short courses (although I sadly missed out on the best ones, about science communication). Plus I had plenty of chances to explore the lovely city of Vienna, and catch up with ex-Australians I haven’t seen in years.
The rest of the conference was great too – some fantastic sessions on historical climate, climate extremes, and detection & attribution, as well as interesting posters (although the alcohol ran out faster every day) and a variety of short courses (although I sadly missed out on the best ones, about science communication). Plus I had plenty of chances to explore the lovely city of Vienna, and catch up with ex-Australians I haven’t seen in years.
Watching paragliders over the lake and distant mountains from the top of Mount Rigi After the conference, I took the train through the Alps to Zurich, to visit ETH. There I managed to catch up with some recently-departed Australians, but also learn a lot more about all the excellent work done at ETH. As well as giving a longer presentation than at EGU, I had lots of opportunities to meet up with different professors and researchers to talk about my research and learn more about the science being done at the institute. And thanks to some new friends I made at EGU, I also was able to spend a day meeting people and giving another presentation in the lovely city of Bern, an hour away.
So it’s been quite a busy fortnight, involving a lot of talking to people. This can be challenging, but it’s also worthwhile – I’ve found out about some early or unpublished results that are very relevant to my work, and come back with a whole notebook full of things to look at and papers to read and concepts to think about. And maybe, if I’m very lucky, some of the people I’ve met will remember me when I start to look for jobs next year.
Still, it will be nice to be home. I’ve managed to teach myself the art of networking over time (which really just means having science conversations with strangers and getting to know them). Younger me would be so impressed with how 'easy' I find it to meet people now. But I’m not an extrovert by nature, so it will be lovely to just relax for a while and get back to the normal day-to-day of doing analyses, writing papers, and finishing my PhD.
Still, it will be nice to be home. I’ve managed to teach myself the art of networking over time (which really just means having science conversations with strangers and getting to know them). Younger me would be so impressed with how 'easy' I find it to meet people now. But I’m not an extrovert by nature, so it will be lovely to just relax for a while and get back to the normal day-to-day of doing analyses, writing papers, and finishing my PhD.
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