“Communicating Care Across Cultures: The Dynamics of Health and Medical Communication in Global Contexts” is the focus of the final installment of the 2019-20 Science Café series at 6 p.m. Tuesday, March 17 at Ruston Artisans.

The Ruston and Louisiana Tech communities are invited to the free event; a social with appetizers begins at 5:30.

Eunice C. Williamson Chair in Technical Communication Dr. Kirk St. Amant will be the presenter.

St. Amant’s research focuses on international and intercultural communication as it relates to international health and medicine, usability and design of technology for global audiences, and internationalizing online education. He is an Associate Fellow of the Society for Technical Communication, a Research Faculty member with Tech’s Center for Biomedical Engineering and Rehabilitation Science (CBERS), and on the steering committee for Tech’s Visual Integration of Science Through Art (VISTA) program.

A professor for the University’s Center for Biomedical Engineering and Rehabilitation Sciences, Health Informatics and Information Management program, and School of Literature and Language, St. Amant was awarded the Alfred N. Goldsmith Award for Outstanding Achievement in Engineering Communication from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Professional Communication Society. Recipients of the award have achieved “distinction in the field of engineering communication as evidenced by a significant reputation in a field associated with engineering communication.”

He also recently co-edited a book, Translation and Localization: A Guide for Technical and Professional Communicators, which examines how individuals in technical fields can develop materials for international audiences. 

The Science Café is a series of public “chats” sponsored by the Tech chapter of the Sigma Xi Research Honor Society, which earned the First Place Chapter of Excellence Award for outstanding chapter performance for the 2018-19 fiscal year at the national organization’s annual conference in late fall. The Science Café events are held during the fall, winter, and spring academic quarters where members of the campus and local communities can have a conversation with Tech faculty and researchers about their work. This year’s series is co-sponsored and hosted by Ruston Artisans.

The idea is for the Science Café to be less formal than a typical lecture so people can really engage and feel comfortable asking questions.

For more information, contact Dr. Terri Maness at tmaness@latech.edu.