Journal Club Protocol

1. Week 1

1.1 Before meeting

1. Select a high impact, important research article. The paper doesn’t have to be related to your research.
   • Reviews are not allowed.
   • BioRxiv pre-prints are allowed ONLY IF: Supplemental files are available (not just referenced).
2. Add it to the appropriate folder in the “Journal Club” Zotero folder (with PDF).
3. Read the paper and summarize the significance and impact of it. Be prepared to discuss methods if that arises.
   • Why is the research important?
   • What are they trying to learn/solve?
   • What are their main results?
   • What comes next?
   • You may mention why the paper is a good fit for a journal club, or things that you liked/didn’t like.

1.2 At Journal Club

1. Each person takes 4-5 minutes to present his/her paper.
   • Begin with the title, the lab, and their funding sources.
   • Discuss points from above (items 1-5).
   • Add a brief description of your paper to the voting system.
2. Voting.
   • Vote for as many papers as you like (excluding your own).
   • The paper with the highest vote will be presented next week.
   • If there’s a tie:
     • Each person casts a single vote (you can only vote once).
     • You are allowed to vote for your own paper.
3. The person who brought the chosen paper asks for volunteers to help present a figure at next week’s presentation.
   • The number of presenters depends on the number of figures in the paper.
   • If there are not enough volunteers, they will be selected from those that voted for the paper.

2. Week 2

2.1 Before meeting

The winner/leader:

1. Read the paper very carefully. You will be expected to know all the details (methods, background, etc).
2. Create a presentation in Google Slides.
3. Grant the volunteers editing permissions (This sends an email to them). Include a link to the paper when sharing the Google Slides.
4. Prepare the bare-bones presentation:
   • Title slide
   • Background/introduction slide(s)
   • Each figure on a separate slide (along with the volunteer’s name).
5. Fully prepare the background and first figure slides in detail.

The volunteers:

1. Read the paper carefully. You will be expected to know all the details for your figure.
2. Edit your figure slide.
   • You may break it into multiple slides; provide details or explanations as needed.
   • You can also present figures from the supplement to help with your main figure.
   • You should make sure that all figure panels are large enough for viewers to see and understand. Add labels and rename axes if necessary.

All other lab members:

1. Read the paper beforehand.
2. Be ready to discuss personal points of interest or criticisms.

2.2 At Journal Club

1. The winner will set up the presentation.
2. The winner will present the background and first figure.
3. Each volunteer will present his/her figure in turn.

Possible discussion points:

• Methods
• Results
• Controversies
• Paper quality
• Clarity
• Future experiments