Essential skills for today's researchers

Series description

• Organisation & Requirements

  • Each module is offered at all main sites of the 4RIs: Eawag-Empa Dübendorf, PSI Villigen and WSL Birmensdorf, either in spring or in autumn. All venues are open to all members of the 4RIs.
  • For the registration you will be forwarded to lead campus, the joint education and training platform of the 4RIs. Registration closes a few days prior to each event.
  • All modules are held in English. No course fees apply.
  • Presentations/Workshops with examples and exercises. Course notes, presentation slides, and other course material will be available a few days prior to the sessions.
  • Max. 20 participants (please bring your laptop).
  • On request, students attending at least four modules of this series (also over several years) will receive a recommendation for 1 ECTS credit point.
  • For module 3: Depending on the venue an expert from Eawag, Empa, PSI or WSL will be joining.
  • For module 4: Please create an Apertus (https://chat.publicai.co) and a (free) ChatGPT (https://chatgpt.com) account before the lecture.
  • For module 5: Please bring your laptop with a working LaTeX installation. Brief instructions for example installations can be found below a few days prior to the course. Contact us should you require assistance with your installation.
  • For module 6: Please bring your laptop with the latest Zotero release installed. Brief installation instructions can be found below ca. 1 week prior to the sessions. Contact us should you require assistance with your installation.
  • For module 7: Please bring your laptop with a working Git installation and have an account created for the Git service Codeberg. Send us your username to @email. This is needed for the exercises. Contact us should you require assistance with your installation.

• Module 1: Searching Scientific Information

  You will become skilled in finding relevant scientific information using suitable tools offered by Lib4RI.

  • Using available resources (including AI assistants) for quick information retrieval
  • Formulating systematic search queries including Boolean operators, wildcards and truncations
  • Setup your own bibliographic topic search with Scopus and Web of Science

  Trainers: Stephanie Hofmann, Bobby Neuhold

  See Organisation & Requirements for additional information!

   

  Optional Venues	Date & Time	Registration
  Eawag-Empa Dübendorf Forum Chriesbach Room FC-XXX	Xxx, xx.xx.2026 09:00-12:00
  PSI Villigen PSI Education Center Room OSGA/XXXX	Xxx, xx.xx.2026 09:00-12:00
  WSL Birmensdorf Flurysaal	Xxx, xx.xx.2026 09:00-12:00

   

• Module 2: Scientific Publishing - From Writing to Sharing

  You will be guided through the scientific publication process from start to finish.

  • The paper submission journey: From draft to publication
  • Writing a paper: Structure and content
  • Getting published: Find your journal and share your knowledge
  • Your research profile, impact and visibility
  • Copyright and Open Access – What to be aware of and how to use it to your advantage

  Trainer: Ellen Knappe, Michael Bachmann

  See Organisation & Requirements for additional information!

• Module 3: Research Data Management - The Basics

  You will learn core concepts and practical approaches for research
  data management.

  • Apply Research Data Management across the data life cycle and learn FAIR data principles
  • Document, organise and publish data and code using metadata, READMEs and data repositories
  • Develop Data Management Plans and work with institutional research data services
     

  Trainers: Moushumi Ulrich-Nath, Fabian Felder, Felix Moerman, Chase Núñez; institutional experts (venue dependent): Christian Förster (Eawag), Anusch Bachofner (Empa), Carlo Minotti (PSI), Ionut Iosifescu (WSL).

  See Organisation & Requirements for additional information!

• Module 4: AI in Research & Scientific Writing

  You will receive a brief overview of LLM usage in the scientific process from research to writing to publishing. The course includes hands-on elements to gain experience with LLMs and to share experiences. It is suited for beginners, both in scientific writing/publishing and regarding LLMs.

  • Technical basics and key concepts of LLMs
  • Prompting and testing of LLMs for research, writing, publishing
  • Literature search tools and AI tools beyond LLMs
  • Current guidelines from most common publishers

  Trainer: Michael Bachmann

  Important:
  Please create an Apertus (https://chat.publicai.co) and a (free) ChatGPT (https://chatgpt.com) account before the lecture.

  See Organisation & Requirements for additional information!

• Module 5: LaTeX - Getting Started

  You will be guided through your first document, with special attention to scientific writing and templates. This course gives you an entry point to LaTeX and enables you to go further from here.

  • A not so short summary of LaTeX basics
  • Tables, figures and formulae
  • The LaTeX error log and common errors to avoid
  • BibTeX and citation styles
  • Finding and using journal templates for your manuscript

  Trainers: Janina Radny, Frank Hösli

  Important:
  Please bring your laptop with a working LaTeX installation. Brief instructions for example installations will be available here a few days prior to the course. Contact us should you require assistance with your installation.

  See Organisation & Requirements for additional information!

• Module 6: Literature Management with Zotero

  Scientific literature management is more than collecting papers. You will receive valuable tricks and tweaks for using Zotero efficiently.

  • Retrieving the content you need
  • Transforming your collection into a clean library
  • Citing and referencing on the fly for your manuscript

  Trainers: Janina Radny, Stephanie Hofmann

  Important:
  Please bring your laptop with the latest Zotero installation. Brief installation instructions are available below. Contact us should you require assistance with your installation.

  • Eawag: Zotero 7 is available in Baramundi.
  • Empa: Download Zotero 7 and the Zotero Connector from Zotero.org. If you encounter problems or require an admin account to correctly install Zotero, get in touch with your IT department.
  • PSI: Download Zotero from the institutional software list (Zotero 7 is available from late February on). Make sure the plug-in for your text processor is working correctly. Go to Zotero.org to install the browser connector if this is not automatically included in your download.

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  System requirements for Zotero 7 can be found here.

  See Organisation & Requirements for additional information!

• Module 7: Git Into Version Control: an Introduction to Git for Scientists

  You will be introduced to the concept of version control and learn how to implement it using Git, the de facto standard software for version control. The course will focus on using Git locally.

  • Version control: what it is and why it will make your life easier
  • Git, the most widely used version control software
  • Tracking changes
  • Concurrent changes with branches
  • Merging branches

  Trainers: Federico Cantini, Frank Hösli

  Important:
  Remember to bring your laptop with a working Git installation and have an account created for the Git service Codeberg. Please send us your user name to @email. This is needed for the exercises.

  Contact us prior to the course should you require assistance with your installation. Course slides will be available here a few days before the course.

  See Organisation & Requirements for additional information!