Paper Unwind returned to the Institute this week with a session led by Andreia Sofia Teixeira, Associate Professor at NetSI London, who took us behind the scenes of her paper “Revealing semantic and emotional structure of suicide notes with cognitive network science”.

Started in 2023, Paper Unwind is an informal seminar series where NetSI community members can share the untold stories behind their research papers. Conceived by Moritz Laber, a Network Science PhD student in the &-Lab at NetSI, the project’s goal is to show the human aspect of doing research while also building a sense of community.  Rather than simply showcasing the final polished results, speakers choose one of their papers and share its backstory, such as the inspiration behind the project, uplifting or challenging moments during a peer review, or other setbacks and breakthroughs that shaped their work.

During her Paper Unwind Dr. Teixeira shared how she met two of her co-authors at the Winter Workshop on Complex Systems, a one-week interdisciplinary workshop where young researchers from around the world collaborate on complex systems projects. Without this chance encounter, the paper —now published in Scientific Reports—  might never have come to life. Her experience underscores the importance for young researchers to take part in Summer/Winter schools, as these workshops are often called, to expand their scientific networks and lay the foundation for lasting collaborations.

Now in its 13th iteration Paper Unwind continues to strengthen the culture of problem-sharing within the Institute’s community and to offer insights into other peoples’ strategies for tackling challenges. As a scientific side-effect, the series hopes to create an opportunity to get to know each other’s work better and spark possible collaborations.

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