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August 2026 S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Author Archives: Athene Donald
Just How Bad Is It?
It is easy to think that science is uniquely bad amongst the academic disciplines in the problems that some women may face. In the past few weeks I have visited various Universities to discuss some of the relevant issues and … Continue reading
Posted in Athena Swan, Jenny Saul, philosophy, Science Culture, sexual harassment, Women in science
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REF Nightmares
In a moment of frivolity I sketched out how a REF committee in a dysfunctional department might pan out. As chair of my own local REF committee, I am delighted to say my own experiences bear no relationship to this … Continue reading
Posted in Department of Paintballing Studies, impact, Research, Research Excellence Framework
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Being Distracted in Paris
It’s not so long ago that I wrote about the lack of opportunity one typically has at conferences to appreciate the interesting places one gets to visit. As a counter to that slightly depressed commentary, I should add that I … Continue reading
Posted in Cassini, ESPCI, History of Science, Paris Observatory, Principia
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To Blog or Not to Blog
The challenge of using social media as a way to overcome the frequent invisibility of women in science was at the heart of the recent #SoLo12 Women In Science session organised by Seirian Sumner and Nathalie Pettorelli (see the Storify … Continue reading
Posted in Blogging, Good Thinking Society Science Blog Prize, social media, SoLo12, Women in science
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Engaging the Public, Citizen Science and Imperialism
Last weekend I made my first foray to Science Online or, as it is now called SpotOn, in London. It doesn’t matter that I still regard myself as a novice in the world of social media (and yes, the words … Continue reading
Posted in careers, Communicating Science, Galaxy Zoon, History of Science, Joseph Hooker, Public Engagement, Research, SpotOn London
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To Begin at the Beginning
It seems obvious: any piece of writing should have a beginning, a middle and an end. But how often have I heard the lack of structure moaned about by those folk who have to read some prose, in particular supervisors … Continue reading
Posted in Communicating Science, Girton College, PhD, prose, Research, Thesis
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Classical Public Engagement?
One of the things I have noticed in the past couple of years is that all kinds of interesting and unexpected invitations come my way. I think this is something arising from the award of the L’Oreal/UNESCO Laureate in 2009 … Continue reading
Posted in Communicating Science, Essential Classics, Public Engagement, Sarah Walker, UNESCO
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From Invisibility to Power
What can be done to render women in science less invisible? A few women may stand out from the crowd, both historically and at the present time, but the list of women scientists most people – by which I mean … Continue reading
Posted in nature, Royal Society, Science Culture, SpotOn London, Woman's Hour, Women in science
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Risk, Education and Politicians
As usual I’m a trifle behindhand in my reading, so only now am I catching up with the Darwin Lectures on Risk, a series of lectures given in 2010 and now available as a book or on your Kindle). This … Continue reading
Posted in British Academy, Communicating Science, David Spiegelhalter, education, Mathematics, quantitative skills, risk, statistics
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What You Don’t See at Conferences
Academics get to go to conferences in exotic places, there is no doubt about that. But that is not the same thing as getting to see the exotic places in which the conferences are held. In my experience, too often … Continue reading
Posted in childcare, conferences, Science Culture, travel
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