Monthly Archives: April 2016

Culture and Science

Posted on 28 April 2016 by Athene Donald

Culture arguably sits at the centre of our society, but what it means isn’t always clear. To many, too many I would say, it only refers to the ‘arty’ stuff: literature, films, art and music perhaps. That science could be … Continue reading →

Posted in AHRC, Geoff Crossick, Science Culture | Comments Off on Culture and Science

How to deal with delicate situations in the lab

Posted on 23 April 2016 by Steve Caplan

Welcoming diversity in the workplace has become second nature in the US, and I would venture to guess that the biomedical workplace has been paving the way for years. The reliance on international scientific talent in the US has truly … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, diversity, ethnic, graduate student, lab, laboratory, Music, nationality, personal hygiene, PhD, postdoc, postdoctoral fellow, Research, science, smoking, student, tolerance | Comments Off on How to deal with delicate situations in the lab

Unravelling Grant Success Rates by Gender

Posted on 22 April 2016 by Athene Donald

I first realised that the problems I was facing might just, possibly, not be down to my own shortcomings when I read the 1999 MIT report on the Status of Women. For the first time it occurred to me that … Continue reading →

Posted in Equality, funders, mentoring, old boys' network, Women in science | Comments Off on Unravelling Grant Success Rates by Gender

ICYMI No. 4: Books to read before university

Posted on 17 April 2016 by Stephen

This week’s Times Higher Education has a nice cover feature listing books recommended by various scholars to students preparing for university. More particularly, as the author of the piece, Matthew Reisz, explained to me in an email, “We are asking … Continue reading →

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RIP Sir David MacKay

Posted on 16 April 2016 by Athene Donald

Many people have been paying tribute to David MacKay, who died on Thursday, and I would like to add my own voice. He was an extraordinary man who contributed so much to physics and wider societal issues during his tragically … Continue reading →

Posted in academia, Cavendish Laboratory, DECC, energy production, Sustainable Energy | Comments Off on RIP Sir David MacKay

In which I feel a bit too old for this game sometimes

Posted on 15 April 2016 by Jennifer Rohn

Age is a slippery thing. Most days I still feel like that tentative new PhD student, pulling 80-hour weeks at the University of Washington Health Sciences Center in Seattle. By the red glow of the safelight, I’d feed dusky rectangles … Continue reading →

Posted in Nostalgia, Scientific method, students, The profession of science | Comments Off on In which I feel a bit too old for this game sometimes

On cooperation between dogs and squirrels

Posted on 11 April 2016 by rpg

Lunch I’ve had a lovely morning walking round Harris’s Copse; not shooting anything, but seeing a few wood pigeons who are too easily spooked. A baguette and a pint for lunch from the Robin Hood, and back in, this time … Continue reading →

Posted in Me, shooting | Comments Off on On cooperation between dogs and squirrels

What have I got to Lose?

Posted on 11 April 2016 by Athene Donald

‘Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose’ sang Janis Joplin, and working out what – if anything – there is to lose in general is frequently a good strategy. This was brought home to me recently in discussing … Continue reading →

Posted in careers, decision, opportunity, risk, Science Culture | Comments Off on What have I got to Lose?

Bibliotherapy

Posted on 11 April 2016 by Erika Cule

When in doubt, read the instructions is to productivity what aphorisms are to meaning.

Posted in aphorism, book reviews, doubt, facebook, instructions, Life, life story, meaning, short poem | Comments Off on Bibliotherapy

Heroines We Still Need

Posted on 7 April 2016 by Athene Donald

I have not been able to think much about blogging recently due to a variety of factors culminating in the wedding last weekend of my daughter. Not that I had much to do with the organisation of the wedding but … Continue reading →

Posted in biography, Florence Nightingale, Mark Bostridge, statistics, Vera Brittain, Women in science | Comments Off on Heroines We Still Need