LSSTC Catalyst Fellowship Ideas Lab 2022 - Info Session
We invite you to participate in the Catalyst Ideas Lab 2022, an online informational and networking event designed to help you learn more about the Fellowship, meet the Rubin LSST community, and think about the research you would be interested in conducting as a Catalyst Fellow.
The event is optional and free for all attendees.
A primary goal of the Ideas Lab for astrophysics applicants is to give prospective fellows the chance to meet potential advisors at eligible host institutions. Senior scholars from prospective host institutions will participate in the Ideas Lab to meet with prospective astrophysics applicants. In the Ideas Lab, you will have conversations about salient questions in your chosen field(s) of astrophysics or social science and learn more about the unique opportunities presented by LSST data and the Rubin LSST scientific community. A modest number of other members of the LSSTC/Rubin community will be available to hopefully help applicants develop and refine their application ideas. The Ideas Lab is not an interview and is not part of the Fellowship selection process. (For example, likely members of the astrophysics selection committee tasked with reviewing and evaluating applications will not even be present at the Ideas Lab).
A primary goal of the Ideas Lab for social science applicants is to give prospective fellows the chance to learn about the LSST project and community. The information session will provide an opportunity to learn about the development of the Rubin Observatory, the scientific aims of the Legacy Survey of Space and Time, and the various organizations and entities involved in its execution. The networking session will provide an opportunity to meet with members of the Senior Social Science Team involved in launching the Catalyst fellowship and to network with astrophysicists involved with LSST. Attendance is not required, and a recording of the information session will be made available at a later date on the LSSTC website.
The Ideas Lab event on October 6, 2022, will consist of a three-hour session split into two parts.
Information session: 10:00am-11:00am PDT/17:00-18:00 UTC
Virtual Networking: 11:00am-1:00pm PDT/18:00-20:00 UTC
The first hour of the three-hour session will provide background on Rubin LSST, including the current state of the Rubin Observatory, the timeline for first light, and an overview of expected data products. The Info Session will also provide specifics on the LSSTC Catalyst Fellowship, including its goals and unique approach, its structure within the LSST Corporation and LINCC communities, and its application and selection process. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions. If you cannot attend in real time, you will have the opportunity to watch a recording of the session after the webinar.
The final two hours of the three-hour session will allow prospective applicants to have conversations with representatives from potential host institutions, which include LSSTC member institutions as well as expansion sites (for more information on potential host institutions, see: https://www.lsstcorporation.org/catalyst-fellowship/content/host-institutions).
We anticipate that discussions will cover topics such as:
What are the pressing scientific questions in this area of astronomy?
What are the major theoretical, methodological, and technical challenges in answering those questions?
What opportunities do LSST data present for answering these questions?
What resources exist at potential host institutions for conducting LSST research?
We will make every effort to ensure that representatives from participating host institutions will be present throughout the networking session. A list of participating host institutions will be available here before the Ideas Lab sessions on 2022 Oct 6: https://www.lsstcorporation.org/catalyst-fellowship/content/host-institutions.
