Author Archives: Athene Donald

Are Journal Editors Biased?

Posted on 17 January 2021 by Athene Donald

Last week a paper by Squazzoni et al appeared, which had analysed submissions to 145 scholarly journals to look for gender bias in acceptances and across the whole editorial process. They claimed not to find it. When I saw the … Continue reading →

Posted in publications, referees, Research, Royal Society of Chemistry, Science Culture, Squazzoni, Women in science | Comments Off on Are Journal Editors Biased?

Rethinking Qualifications? It’s About Time

Posted on 8 January 2021 by Athene Donald

For the second year running our school assessment system is up in the air, for totally understandable reasons. A Levels were explicitly cancelled but the Government seemed incapable of giving a clear answer about this month’s BTec’s, the vocational equivalent. … Continue reading →

Posted in A levels, BTec, Charles Clarke, David Goodhart, David Sainsbury, education, skills | Comments Off on Rethinking Qualifications? It’s About Time

A Playlist for Troubled Times

Posted on 2 January 2021 by Athene Donald

During the recent weeks and months of staring at a screen, when there is little variety of scenery or (physical) company, I have found music a comforting companion. When I say music, I mean classical music which has been a … Continue reading →

Posted in Desert Island Discs, Music, pandemic | Comments Off on A Playlist for Troubled Times

That Was the Year That Was

Posted on 29 December 2020 by Athene Donald

2020 is a year we are all likely to want to forget, and yet it is likely to be unforgettable. Some can make a little joke about that Does it bother anyone else that next year is pronounced “2020 won” … Continue reading →

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Memories of Trains

Posted on 23 December 2020 by Athene Donald

What a rubbish year this has been, on different fronts. We are in a far worse state than could conceivably have been imagined this time last year and, the start of vaccinations apart, there is little light visible to cheer … Continue reading →

Posted in Glenfinnan, health and safety, London, travel | Comments Off on Memories of Trains

Why Unicorns Aren’t the Answer

Posted on 15 December 2020 by Athene Donald

I’ve railed against pinkification, and the ‘gift of pink’ in the past – especially at this time of year when presents, notably toys and clothes, are to the fore for Christmas purchase. I hadn’t realised that books, too, come with … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, education, Equality, Fawcett Society, gender stereotypes | Comments Off on Why Unicorns Aren’t the Answer

The Need for Bounce

Posted on 6 December 2020 by Athene Donald

What would you feel if someone described you as a ‘demoralised pile of pulp’? I was distinctly taken aback by this extreme phrase, describing myself – by myself. It referred to the ‘me’ I had been a year previous to … Continue reading →

Posted in failure, pandemic, Research, resilience, Science Culture | Comments Off on The Need for Bounce

Sex, Gender, Research and Fairness

Posted on 30 November 2020 by Athene Donald

It is a daily matter to look around a typical laboratory and note the imbalance of the sexes in different roles. In a lab using animals, there may be a fair number of female technicians, but the PI is more … Continue reading →

Posted in cell-lines, ERC, Gendered Innovations, Londa Schiebinger, machine learning, Research, Science Funding, statistics, Women in science | Comments Off on Sex, Gender, Research and Fairness

Becoming a Leader

Posted on 22 November 2020 by Athene Donald

This week I took part in a panel aimed at young adults who see themselves as future leaders. An interesting, if slightly disquieting experience. My fellow panellists were two young men in their twenties, who had both already done amazing … Continue reading →

Posted in Equality, leadership, Michelle Obama, Simone de Beauvoir, Women in science | Comments Off on Becoming a Leader

Keeping On Keeping On

Posted on 8 November 2020 by Athene Donald

In the UK, as in many other countries, we have entered another lockdown, mysteriously assigned in some quarters a decimal point, as in lockdown 2.0. It’s a lockdown with a difference, in that the rules are not the same as … Continue reading →

Posted in Lockdown, nature, Science Culture, Zoom | Comments Off on Keeping On Keeping On