Author Archives: rpg

About rpg

Scientist, poet, gadfly

On fungus

Posted on 15 November 2015 by rpg

As a cell biologist, yeasts spelt doom for crucial experiments. And as a gardener/amateur brewer, mildew and mould and other nasties can really ruin my roses/vines/beer. But there’s something about fungus, especially that not of the common or garden toadstool … Continue reading →

Posted in fungi, Photography, Shorne, woods | Comments Off on On fungus

On the cranes

Posted on 19 August 2015 by rpg

Apparently it’s (still) #WorldPhotographyDay. To celebrate, here’s a photograph from our bedroom window this morning, not taken with my iPhone.

Posted in Gravesend, Photography | Comments Off on On the cranes

On legends

Posted on 17 August 2015 by rpg

For most of my first 17 years I lived on, or very close to, one of a number of airbases in England and Germany. Just about every day was airshow day, at least for a somewhat limited and specialist class … Continue reading →

Posted in Airbourne, Eastbourne, personal, Photography, Spitfire, Vulcan, XH558 | Comments Off on On legends

On starting small

Posted on 31 May 2015 by rpg

We’re still here. No need to send a search party… yet.

Posted in Don't try this at home, personal, Photography, rose | Comments Off on On starting small

On immortality

Posted on 23 February 2015 by rpg

From the “Making dreams come true” department, we recently had a sauna installed at the new gaff. Warming up It’s very nice, and you should know that South Eastern trains have a special, hidden, weekend fare that lets you use … Continue reading →

Posted in immortality, Me, Nonsense, sauna | Comments Off on On immortality

On meetings

Posted on 5 January 2015 by rpg

Six years ago I found to relatively easy to tell my mother what I did for a living, if not exactly explain it. I could wibble on about actin polymerization and spaghetti, or messenger RNA export, or why I’d spent … Continue reading →

Posted in meetings, pharma, work | Comments Off on On meetings

On remembrance

Posted on 14 November 2014 by rpg

Thirty years ago—plus or minus a week—I visited Berlin for the first time. It was a school trip, organized by our physics teacher. We rode a train from Braunschweig to Helmstedt, where we picked up an East German engine and … Continue reading →

Posted in Berlin Wall, Friday afternoon, personal | Comments Off on On remembrance

On a hill

Posted on 12 October 2014 by rpg

Jenny and I took some friends around the Rotherhithe peninsula yesterday, cutting through Russia Dock Woodlands and finally climbing Stave Hill. From the top of Stave Hill you can appreciate just how flat London geography really is. The Hill’s not … Continue reading →

Posted in London, Photography, Walkie Talkie | Comments Off on On a hill

We strapped this baby into a chair. You won’t believe what happened next!

Posted on 7 September 2014 by rpg
Posted in caption competition, Don't try this at home, Nonsense | Comments Off on We strapped this baby into a chair. You won’t believe what happened next!

On biological modelling

Posted on 12 August 2014 by rpg

You can take the rat out of the lab… … but you can’t complete translation without a ribosome.

Posted in biological modelling, London, Nonsense, science, Silliness | Comments Off on On biological modelling