3MT (Three Minute Thesis) winner

As an archaeologist, Christie Vogler says it's important for people to have a true picture of what she does for a living.

"Archaeologists are fantasized and represented in media in ways that are not very accurate," says the University of Iowa doctoral candidate in Classical archaeology. Too often, she says, the traditional portrayal of an archaeologist's life is one of swashbuckling adventure, a la Indiana Jones. While her professional life is often an adventure, it's rarely swashbuckling.

"It's important to explain to people what it's really like," says Vogler.

To help change peoples' perceptions of her field, Vogler participated in this year's Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. The annual event, sponsored by the UI Graduate College, encourages graduate students to learn how to clearly and concisely articulate their research to non-specialist audiences by explaining what they do in three minutes or less.