Monthly Archives: October 2018

Tears for lives and an ideal lost

Mindlessly meandering down Dodge Tears flowing like blood oozing from an arterial wound Lies and lunatics, spiraling out of control And all decency unmoored, with no captain at the moral helm  

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Balancing science and the need to be politically active

Many fine articles have been written on the need for scientists to find the right “work-life balance.” Most of the time, the meaning of a work-life balance is equated with identifying a healthy balance between the need to dedicate significant … Continue reading

Posted in assassination, elections, murder, nationalism, racism, science, scientists, Trump, white supremacist, work-life balance | Comments Off on Balancing science and the need to be politically active

Will I not be ‘Important’?

This is the troubled question Jeremy Baumberg asks rhetorically in his recent book The Secret Life of Science when he discusses the vexed question of what happens if he decides not to attend some conference, along with ‘Will I no … Continue reading

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Rock Lobster

This list is written on a crumpled Post-It note. I like it. Crisp, business-like, no nonsense. Actually scrunched up to be discarded when it had served its purpose.

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In which we science the world

My son just can’t help it. He’s not even doing it deliberately: he’s just acting naturally. Curiosity combined with razor-sharp eyesight is a killer combination for the accidental scientist. He sees things that I miss, with my own failing ocular … Continue reading

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Our Bullying Culture

Many of you will have already seen the OpEd I wrote in the Guardian last week on the subject of bullying and harassment in our universities. I was heartened by the response it received, in so far as it was … Continue reading

Posted in Athena Swan, Equality, intimidation, power, Science Culture | Comments Off on Our Bullying Culture

Why women in science cannot achieve equality when the president presides over chants of “LOCK HER UP!”

By nature and training, most biomedical research scientists are reductionists. For those non-scientists who are reading this, what I mean is that organisms and cells are so complex, with so many things going on simultaneously, that it is extremely difficult … Continue reading

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Summertime

A year or more ago we were doing our weekly shop, and I found a shopping list in the trolley. Not ours—evidently somebody had been to the shop, got their stuff, and left their list behind (by design or accident … Continue reading

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Resilience and the Nobel Prize

In case you’ve been asleep, this week has seen the number of scientific women winning Nobel prizes spike: two won this year. I don’t consider this simply as a moment of pure celebration for the cause of women in science, … Continue reading

Posted in Barbara McClintock, Cold Spring Harbour, Equality, Evelyn Fox Keller, maize, Research, transposition | Comments Off on Resilience and the Nobel Prize

Diversity? Who needs your diversity, we already know we are the smartest people in the room.

I am a member of an exclusive club. We, in our club, decide who the smartest people in the world are. The club, naturally, only contains white women who are below 5 foot 3 inches in height; 1.61 meters for … Continue reading

Posted in CERN, sexism, Strumia, Women in science | Comments Off on Diversity? Who needs your diversity, we already know we are the smartest people in the room.