Author Archives: Athene Donald

Keeping Track

Posted on 24 July 2016 by Athene Donald

I am a great believer in Post-it notes.  Every room in which I work (perhaps embarrassingly there are three: in the Department, the College and my home in the Master’s Lodge) has torn off Post-it notes scattered around and a … Continue reading →

Posted in office tidiness, post-it notes, Science Culture, to do list | Comments Off on Keeping Track

Why Side-line the Women?

Posted on 20 July 2016 by Athene Donald

‘I bumped into my supervisor on the stairs when I was with X [my fellow postdoc]. I might as well have been invisible, he didn’t address a word to me. It really hurt.’ So wrote a young female postdoc during … Continue reading →

Posted in job share, mommy track, motherhood, part-time, Women in science | Comments Off on Why Side-line the Women?

Politicians, Leadership and Academia

Posted on 14 July 2016 by Athene Donald

We now have a new Prime Minister. A woman. I well remember  a young relative saying to me as Margaret Thatcher stood down ‘Was it possible to have a male prime minister?’ Well yes, and history tells us this is … Continue reading →

Posted in emotional intelligence, interpersonal skills, leadership, Science Culture, TEF | Comments Off on Politicians, Leadership and Academia

Dressing for Success?

Posted on 9 July 2016 by Athene Donald

Women’s attire is so often the focus of media attention. I expect the relative merits of Andrea Leadsom’s and Theresa May’s wardrobes will be dissected as front page news for weeks, along with Angela Eagle’s. Focus on the importance of … Continue reading →

Posted in job interviews, professionalism, Science Culture, suits, Women in science | Comments Off on Dressing for Success?

Science Funding from Europe and Commissioner Moedas

Posted on 1 July 2016 by Athene Donald

I went to Brussels this week for a Plenary meeting of the European Research Council’s Scientific Council. It was a strange week to go. As I sat on Eurostar and stared out at the passing countryside I strongly felt, what … Continue reading →

Posted in Brexit, ERC, funding, Research, Science Funding | Comments Off on Science Funding from Europe and Commissioner Moedas

Graduation into Uncertainty

Posted on 25 June 2016 by Athene Donald

Graduation. That rite of passage that indicates the student moves on into the wider world. This past week has seen many hundreds of Cambridge undergraduates pass through the Senate House and emerge with their BA’s (or other appropriate degree(s)). So … Continue reading →

Posted in Brexit, Equality, EU Referendum, michael gove | Comments Off on Graduation into Uncertainty

Forgetting Compassion

Posted on 19 June 2016 by Athene Donald

Last Thursday I sat next to the Government’s Chief Scientific Advisor, Sir Mark Walport, at a College dinner. We discovered we were exact contemporaries in Cambridge, both coming up in 1971 to a world utterly different from the one we … Continue reading →

Posted in diversity, ERC, EU, Jo Cox, minority, Remain | Comments Off on Forgetting Compassion

In Memoriam

Posted on 14 June 2016 by Athene Donald

In Memoriam A few weeks ago I was reading Anne Marie Slaughter’s book Unfinished Business. This book builds on an Atlantic article she wrote about why she quit working for Hilary Clinton to return to engage more fully in her … Continue reading →

Posted in Anne Marie Slaughter, mothers, Nigel Clarke, Science Culture, Women in science | Comments Off on In Memoriam

What’s Missing from the White Paper?

Posted on 19 May 2016 by Athene Donald

This post first appeared on the Campaign for Science and Engineering’s website on 19-5-16 With over 600 responses to the Green Paper consultation, Jo Johnson and his team have had plenty of advice to consider. And some of the White … Continue reading →

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The Competitive Streak in Academia

Posted on 13 May 2016 by Athene Donald

Does being competitive necessarily mean foregoing kindness? In essence this was the question posed to Uta Frith at the end of her public conversation with me last week (you can hear the whole conversation here). Uta didn’t give a completely … Continue reading →

Posted in Carol Robinson, impact factor, Mary Beard, Meaning of Success, Science Culture, Uta Frith, Women in science | Comments Off on The Competitive Streak in Academia