Lawrence Livermore Research Slam! winners advance to Bay Area competition

The top winners of the recent Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Research Slam!, a speaking competition for postdocs, will advance to the Bay Area Research SLAM set for Thursday, Oct. 28.

The Bay Area Research SLAM! is a collaboration between the Bay Area’s national labs (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, LLNL, Sandia National Laboratories and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory). The SLAM is a competition where contestants are challenged to present a compelling three-minute presentation of their research in a language appropriate to a non-specialist audience.

The LLNL winners include:

1st Place: Rebecca Walton (Engineering) 

"From Blowpipes to Printing Nozzles: Our Continuing Glass Mission"

2nd Place: Sarah Sandholtz (Physical and Life Sciences) 

"A Shot in the Dark or a Surefire Hit?: Identifying Drug Targets for COVID-19"

3rd Place: Brandon Foley (Physical and Life Sciences) 

"Urgent Problems Need Fast Solutions: How Better Math Can Slow Global Warming"

People’s Choice: Mariana Desiree Reale Batista (Physical and Life Sciences) 

"How Would You Survive the Next Heatwave without Electricity?"

The top three will go on to compete in the Bay Area event.

The LLNL contest awards the best three-minute research presentation given by Lab postdoctoral appointees. Postdocs learn to clearly explain the motivation, results and significance of their research to a non-specialty audience and a panel of judges.

The panel of LLNL judges for this year’s competition included: Kim Budil, Lab director; Pat Falcone, deputy director, Science & Technology; Greg Suski, former associate deputy director, Science & Technology; Sheryl Hingorani, chief of staff; and Theresa Maldonado, University of California Office of the President, vice president for Research & Innovation.