10 things about the creative process that no one tells you
What do research, iteration, experimentation, and metrics have to do with the creative process? Probably more than you think.
Your creative contract needs to address these 3 things
Every creative collaboration should have a contract. Let’s talk about 3 options in your creative contract and the pros and cons to each option.
5 lovely graphic backgrounds to add simple texture to your design
Subtle texture can go a long way, so here are 5 graphic backgrounds that will add just the right amount of emphasis to enhance your design.
3 ways of using textures to enhance your next art piece
One of the best ways to add flair to a design is by using texture. Here are 3 ways of using texture strategically so that your work catches everyone’s eye!
3 Gorgeous Display Fonts That Are Actually Legible
Display fonts are tricky because they can sometimes be hard to read. Here’s a curated list of legible display fonts that you can use for your next project!
How an artist residency brings creativity to the laboratory
An artist residency such as that from Art the Science is an innovative way to bring creativity to the laboratory. Learn about how their first residency went!
Creating Dave, a Hero of His Own Immune Health
“How Can I Strengthen My Immune System?”Learn how I created the character for this course, and imagined Dave becoming an immune system “hero”!
How Does Cancer Grow? Behind the scenes of the course
Creating the visuals for a Lifeology course isn’t always a linear process. Here’s a behind the scenes look at my “How Does Cancer Grow?” course.
A COVID comic – “Coronavirus Needs You”
Crossposted at Lifeology.io Last week, I got a panicked text from a friend who has an autoimmune disorder and is increasingly worried about the novel coronavirus. They had received a package several days earlier and put it under the bed. Now, they were worried that the virus could grow off of the box and spread….
10 exciting design tips to make your infographic look more polished
You can make your infographic look more polished with a few basic principles of design. Here are 10 design tips to take your infographic from meh to amazing!
Feature: Agar Art with Sarah Jeanne Adkins
Drawing with bacteria? This is a super cool art technique called Agar Art, and I’m entranced by it! Meet Sarah Adkins, who uses Agar Art for biology education.
The secret to choosing infographic size
You’ve decided to make an infographic. But what size should you make it? Here, I answer some of the most common questions I get about infographic size.
Feature: Maria Magdalena Sandoval Donahue, PhD geologist & science fashion
A PhD geologist and entrepreneur shares her story about how data inspires her to create unique science fashion pieces.
Feature: Teresa Ambrosio on starting an Etsy shop
Creating art is one thing, but selling it is entirely different. One popular option for selling artistic products is Etsy, well-known for being home to handmade and crafty items. Teresa Ambrosio was kind enough to let me cross-post an article she wrote about starting an Etsy shop. I really appreciate Teresa’s openness about her journey….
2 Halloween Art Shareables for Your Social Media
Happy Halloween! Enjoy these social media ready shareables. They’re inspired by science, and adorable enough for your favorite science lover.
Feature: Briley Lewis, Zine Maker
Zines are short, self-published booklets. Check out my interview with Briley Lewis, a graduate student, zine maker, and science communicator.
How to improve videos right now with these 2 tricks
Today, videography is a part of our everyday lives. You can improve videos immediately with these 2 easy fixes. No fancy equipment necessary!
Know Your Audience: an interactive exercise to move your visual science forward
You must know your audience to create any form of visual science communication! Learn my go-to method for simplifying science for infographics.
Make your own infographic: How to use visuals to simplify science
Ready to make your own infographic? You’ll need visuals to go along with it! Use these visual exercises to bring your infographic to life!
Create Your First Animation Today!
Animation adds an interactive element to science communication. This is why I’m challenging you to create your first animation today!
Use science videos to improve your communication
Science videos add an interactive and visually stimulating angle to science communication. Let’s discuss how motion (and sound) can help improve scicomm!
Best Art Programs to Try Out Today
One of my most requested topics, the best art programs for illustrating and animating!
Tutorial: Navigating Your Art in Adobe Illustrator
Before you can start drawing in Adobe Illustrator, maybe you need some help figuring out how to move around the artboard or choose a layer to draw on!
Tutorial: Adobe Illustrator Pathfinder Panel
Learn to use the Adobe Illustrator pathfinder panel to combine and divide shapes.
Why I switched from Photoshop to Illustrator
Several years ago, I switched from Photoshop to Adobe Illustrator. If something isn’t working for you, perhaps a change of perspective is what you need.
Make infographics with these 2 essential skills
Two basic skills are needed to make infographics: simplifying science and artistic skills. In this post, we talk about how to get started on each.
Devaluing Art Hurts Our Ability to Communicate Science
Science art has the power to improve science, yet you haven’t yet hired an artist? The solution isn’t as complicated as you’d think.
Think outside the box using these 3 unusual tips
For most projects there’s a need to go beyond the obvious. This means we have to break free of common ideas and think outside the box.
The amazing world of SciArt Twitter
I wanted to share how I got into SciArt, some underappreciated artists, and why SciArt is an important part of science and science in general.
Master shape tools in Adobe Illustrator
Ready to start drawing in Adobe Illustrator? Take a look at the new tutorial on how to use ALL the shape tools.
How to use metaphors to improve your SciComm
Don’t be literal. Use metaphors to get your message across. But don’t make these common mistakes with your metaphors…
Understanding the Adobe Illustrator Interface
People often tell me they’re intimidated by Illustrator’s interface. So many buttons & options! In this post, I break it down to ease your mind about the interface.
Infographic Timelapse – Novel molecule may improve asthma
This infographic was created about recent research that may help patients with uncontrolled moderate to severe asthma. Check it out, and see the process of how the infographic was made with a timelapse video.
The Anatomy of an Infographic
It’s time to get started on making your first infographic!
3 surprising ways to battle creative block
We all go through a creative block sometimes. Win the creative battle with your block with these tips!
6 Science Valentine’s Day Cards Available Today!
GJA Valentine’s cards are here! Take a look and fall in love with one.
4 tips for breaking down complex topics
So, you’ve got a complex topic to explain and don’t know where to start? Or perhaps you’re already off to a great start, but could use some guidance. This post is all about how to communicate complex topics in simple ways.
New Year, New Who? How to make and keep resolutions you can actually reach.
It’s no secret that many people set unrealistic goals for the new year. Let’s talk about what a reasonable goal looks like and how to reach them!
Biology & Life – Today’s Science Word
Life is one of those things we often take for granted. But that may be because it’s just part of our existence every day. It might seem simple to define life as well, but it can be quite complex. There are several things that scientists agree are essential to call something “alive”. In order for an…
Distal and Proximal – Today’s Science Word
Have you ever had difficulty describing where something is in relation to others? When scientists discuss where things are on a person or other animal, they also need words to compare. Two such words are DISTAL and PROXIMAL. Distal means that something is further from either the center of the body or a point of…
The Building Blocks – Today’s Science Word
The most common product of a genetic instruction is the protein. Proteins are workhorses of the cell, helping reactions to occur and transporting things from one place to another. The building blocks of proteins are AMINO ACIDS. Amino acids are molecules that can link together like a chain. On one end is an NH2 (also…
Your Genetic Code Book – Today’s Science Word
Your codebook of DNA holds all the instructions needed to make your cells function. Each unit of instruction comes in the form of a GENE, a sequence of DNA that encodes for a trait. A given location (also called a locus) on a chromosome is home to a particular gene, which encodes for a particular…
Chromosome – Today’s Science Word
With few exceptions, each of us has about 3 billion bases in our DNA on 46 chromosomes (and 2 sex chromosomes). If you stretched out that DNA, it would be 2m long! How can something so long it fit into cells which need a microscope to be seen? Your cells package the DNA, allowing it…
Into your DNA – Today’s Science Word
At the very core of making living things work is DNA, which stands for Deoxyribonucleic Acid. DNA is just a molecule, made up of different parts held together in a ladder-like structure. We call this structure a double helix. DNA holds the genetic material that tells our cells how to make all the things we need…
Atoms and Molecules – Today’s Science Word
Would you believe it if I told you that you and I, the ground we walk on, the sun, and everything else is made of the same things? We are all composed of atoms. Atoms are the smallest thing that exists that gives a substance its chemical properties. Atoms are made of two main parts….
New global health guidelines may kill transgender people
I know that title sounds dramatic, but bear with me, because transgender lives are at stake.
If you aren’t aware, the World Health Organization (WHO) recently announced changes to gender non-conformity guidelines. These guidelines remove “gender identity disorder” (GID) as a “mental disorder”. Instead, the guidelines have been moved into the sexual health portion of global health guidelines.
At first glance, this seems like a good thing. There are more than a few trans* activist groups that have worked diligently for this move. However, I believe that this will make it harder for trans* people (especially people of color and poor trans* people) to access proper medical care.
A Day in the Life of a PhD Student
I recently shared what my day as a PhD student is like on Twitter. From fixing error messages to eating “grown-up” lunches, I think you’ll find that the grad school life is a bit different from what you might think. I’ve collected all the tweets in a Twitter Moment. Enjoy! [adinserter block=”2″] A Day…
5 Animation Tips You Need To Know When Sharing Your Science
Animation can help explain your science with step-by-step presentation and motion. Here are 5 ways to integrate animation into your presentations and social media.
4 BIG things I’ve been up to
It’s been a while since I posted but not because things have been slow. I’ve been hard at work on several new projects. I hope you’ll be as excited as I am to see all the changes.
Understanding Pipeline is Essential for Success
My art career was shaped by my lack of accessibility to a pipeline that would have led me to a job. The same can be said of my scientific career. In this post, I discuss what an ideal pipeline looks like.
Our sexual harassment problem from the eyes of a transman
I was born female and transitioned to full-time male in my 20s. I think people would like to believe that society treated me the same, but that’s absolutely not true. I’m treated very differently by men, by women, by almost everyone. This is why I felt this post on sexual harassment was important.
5 Tips to Keep Moving Forward
Some days are really tough. Sometimes those days stretch out to weeks or months or more. Here are 5 tips for moving forward during dark times.
Science communication: 5 new frontiers
Science writing allows us to communicate science to the general public, but we can do more. Science art and other fields are moving us into a new revolution of science communication. Read on for the next frontiers of science communication.
UA Cancer Center Team Identifies a Switch that May Help Target Dormant Cancer Cells
Cells can enter a dormant state called quiescence, and dormant cancer cells are resistant to chemotherapy and other treatments. A team led by UA Cancer Center researcher Guang Yao, PhD, has identified ways to regulate cell dormancy and “wake” these cells from their “slumber” to make them susceptible to cancer treatments.
Alternative careers in science, Part 3
In part 3 of this series on alternative careers in science, we’ll focus on science communication. From public relations to medical writing, get all the details.
Learn Logic the Practical Way
When I started graduate school, I understood the science well, but was struggling to understand how to interpret results. Learning logic through programming helped. Here’s how.
Stand Up to Authority with These 3 Steps
Afraid of authority? Stand up to authority with 3 steps to empowerment!
This piece of advice changed my life, but not in the way intended
I had a past that told me that I had to do whatever it took to reach the end of the road I was stuck on. But this piece of advice helped me realize that I can veer off course to find the path that’s right for me.
Mental Health: Silence When Things are Bad
Mental health issues impact my life as a PhD student as well as my future life as a scientist. Let’s talk about the impact these issues have and how we can create a community that fosters scientists who have chronic depression and anxiety.
What you need to know about failure in science
In science, we fail all the time. But we don’t talk about it nearly as much. Here’s what you need to know about failure in science.
Alternative careers in science, Part 2
In a previous post, I talked about academia not being designed for people who have depression, anxiety, etc to succeed. I also spent some time talking about imposter syndrome. This particular post is the second in a series about careers other than being a research advisor (PI) or even being a researcher in industry. Part 2 in a 3 part series.
Redefining Diversity in Science
There is a lot of discussion in science right now about diversity (though not nearly enough). I’d like to focus today on, 1) how I define diversity and 2) what diversity does for science.
Alternative careers in science, Part 1
In a previous post, I talked about academia not being designed for people who have depression, anxiety, etc to succeed. I also spent some time talking about imposter syndrome. This particular post is the first in a series about careers other than being a research advisor (PI) or even being a researcher in industry. Part 1 in a 3 part series.
Creativity is essential to scientific inquiry
When people hear about my art life, they always say “Wow, that’s a big jump. How did you move from art to science?”
My answer is usually simple, “They are the same thing, and I think the best scientists have amazing creativity.”
Not being the “perfect” scientist
I was talking to my advisor that day about these vague plans of mine, and he said something along the lines of “Don’t discount doing research. There aren’t enough researchers who think about science like you do. Think about becoming a PI.” I did think about that, and it became my new plan. But did I really understand what being a PI meant?
Communication with the non-scientific community
When I was in film school, I remember one class being asked “Why do we make films?” and hearing many different responses. “But what about the audience?” my film professor asked. Many of the students in the class were baffled. They had never thought about important it was to effectively communicate their vision to the audience.
The erasure of race in genetics
“Race doesn’t exist.” I remember the first time I heard this. I was in my evolution class in undergrad. My professor pulled up a picture of two subspecies of bird. They looked exactly alike, and my professor mentioned that there is less genetic diversity between humans than between these two identical looking subspecies of bird. Then…
Why science is political
That Profound Moment I was late that morning to the Precision Health Symposium, having slept in and missed my train, but the first speaker was still talking when I arrived. Instead of pushing my way around round tables that didn’t quite make sense for a day of presentations, I chose to stand at the back…
Who is this Gaius Augustus?
When trying to decide on a first post, my list of topics was long. After all, I started a blog because I feel like I have a lot to contribute. But after sitting down and going through my list of every topic that needs to be discussed in depth, one thing came clear. You need…
A new blog
Hello, and welcome to The Process of InQUEERy. I’m looking forward to sharing my thoughts on many topics including science, art, and social justice. If you haven’t already, take a look at my About page, which will give you a good understanding of who I am and what I’m hoping to convey in these posts….