Author Archives: Athene Donald

Loading the Women – or Not?

The question of what should the composition of any team ‘look’ like remains one I feel uncertain about. Whereas a list of a dozen invited speakers who are all males smacks of bias or incompetence rather than a true reflection … Continue reading →

Posted in gender balance, manels, Science Culture, Stephen Curry, Women in science | Comments Off on Loading the Women – or Not?

Being Resilient

Have a setback, bounce back. That is what all the self-help books would proclaim loud and clear. It applies as much in science as anywhere else, perhaps more so since the setback need not be in one’s career or personal … Continue reading →

Posted in Breakthrough Prize, Impostor syndrome, Jocelyn Bell Burnell, Science Culture, Women in science | Comments Off on Being Resilient

We Need to Work at Breaking the Barriers

Leaders in science are generally those who are excellent at their science, but no one may have checked their leadership credentials. Someone like Lord Rutherford may have got away with barking instructions at his underlings (for which loud voiced behaviour … Continue reading →

Posted in bullying, chemistry, Equality, Royal Society of Chemistry, Science Culture, Women in science | Comments Off on We Need to Work at Breaking the Barriers

Worrying about Deserts of Nothingness

Recently a website calling itself UKRI Observatory published two blogposts analysing information obtained by them under FoI regarding assessments of EPSRC Centres for Doctoral Training. The point the blogpost was making was that it appeared at first sight that many … Continue reading →

Posted in Centres for Doctoral Training, EPSRC, PhD students, Research, Science Culture, Science Funding, training | Comments Off on Worrying about Deserts of Nothingness

The Lure of Procrastination

Why do you procrastinate? Since most people are guilty of this failing at least some of the time, few readers are likely to say ‘what me, I never do!’ I believe the reasons are many and various but I must … Continue reading →

Posted in coffee, internet, Research, Science Culture, seminar, students | Comments Off on The Lure of Procrastination

To Be or Not to Be a Role Model

When you grow up what do you want to be? That is a familiar enough question but I’ve never heard of anyone who expected the answer to be ‘a role model’. Yet there are those who have an expectation that … Continue reading →

Posted in academic housekeeping, Donna Strickland, Equality, inspiration, Women in science | Comments Off on To Be or Not to Be a Role Model

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 →

Posted in conferences, display, Science Culture, travel | Comments Off on Will I not be ‘Important’?

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

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

What Does Creativity Mean to You?

When I was at school, careers’ advice – at least at my girls’ grammar school – was essentially non-existent. Perhaps boys’ schools did better; after all, for my generation of women, ‘careers’ weren’t a matter for serious concern. I certainly … Continue reading →

Posted in Career advice, education, Lord Aberdare, Science Culture, William Blake | Comments Off on What Does Creativity Mean to You?