The monthly Slow Seminars that center around a central topic or author have been a vital component of AURA since the beginning of the project. The “Slow Seminars” bring together PhD students, post.docs and senior researchers from AU and University of California, Santa Cruz in cross-Atlantic videoconference calls.
Aimed to inspire novel insights for all, the Slow Seminars also have a strong educational component, allowing PhDs to take part in engaged and engaging scientific discussions at the highest level and thereby experiencing first-hand how scientific ideas form through trial and error. The suggested readings are introduced by one of the core members of AURA on a rotational basis and subsequently discussed with a view to mining their insights for use in refining the research questions of AURA. PhD students are also frequently asked to head the discussion. The discussions take up to three hours and are often followed by a social event in Aarhus.
The slow and international format of these seminars has proven very successful in attracting Master students and other interested parties to the project both in California and in Denmark. In Aarhus the seminars are attended by students from AU as well as other Danish universities and from a wide variety of disciplinary backgrounds.
