Author Archives: Athene Donald

Lesser? Spotted? Well, that’s just the Professors

Posted on 23 February 2012 by Athene Donald

This piece first appeared in Times Higher Education on February 23rd 2012 in their Off Piste series. As a child and teenager, I spent many happy hours in cold, wet and uncomfortable conditions peering through my binoculars at small dots … Continue reading →

Posted in academia, birdwatching, Hampstead Heath, ornithology, Peoplewatching, Science Culture, subliminal messages | Comments Off on Lesser? Spotted? Well, that’s just the Professors

Quotas, Good and Bad

Posted on 19 February 2012 by Athene Donald

I have always felt that the idea of quotas –  for increasing the number of women on FTSE100 Boards, for instance – is a bad idea because it implies women need help in order to get themselves into positions of … Continue reading →

Posted in appointment committees, Equality, EU, Nicole Dewandre, positive action, positive discrimination, Women in science | Comments Off on Quotas, Good and Bad

On Geeks and Humanity

Posted on 14 February 2012 by Athene Donald

There has been a fair amount of self-disclosure on OT blogs in the last couple of weeks. Most recently fellow blogger Cromercrox described his painful battle with depression; over the past couple of weeks on my own blog many people … Continue reading →

Posted in Alice Roberts, Communicating Science, critical thinking, dweebs, education, geeks, George Monbiot, Gerald Warner | Comments Off on On Geeks and Humanity

Some Scores are More Equal than Others

Posted on 10 February 2012 by Athene Donald

Having committed to sit on an EPSRC panel for the first time in many years, I had my sights set on a post about the Shared Services Centre of the Research Councils. Clearly this is a popular topic for academics … Continue reading →

Posted in BBSRC, EPSRC, refereeing, Science Culture, Science Funding, SSC | Comments Off on Some Scores are More Equal than Others

Men Feel the Fear Too (but what do they do with it?)

Posted on 4 February 2012 by Athene Donald

My last post struck a chord with many. I was rather overwhelmed by the response, both in direct comments on the post and through the more ephemeral form of twitter. Two aspects particularly struck me: The reaction ‘I thought I … Continue reading →

Posted in alpha male, Equality, feelings, hierarchy, Impostor syndrome, Science Culture | Comments Off on Men Feel the Fear Too (but what do they do with it?)

What Am I Doing Here?

Posted on 29 January 2012 by Athene Donald

This past week reminded me of the seeming ubiquity of impostor syndrome, even in the visibly successful and apparently supremely confident. Or at least, this statement is true as it pertains to women. One outcome of what follows is I … Continue reading →

Posted in Frances Ashcroft, Impostor syndrome, Linda Partridge, Vivienne Parry, Women in science | Comments Off on What Am I Doing Here?

How Hard Do You Work?

Posted on 25 January 2012 by Athene Donald

Career progression and promotion require that you tick all the right boxes when panels scrutinise your CV.  If you are trying to optimise your chances of advancing up the greasy pole, this requires that you know what the boxes are … Continue reading →

Posted in Athena Swan, Equality, Outreach, promotion, University of Leicester, Women in science, women in STEM in HE | Comments Off on How Hard Do You Work?

The Dangers of Disciplinary Diversity

Posted on 20 January 2012 by Athene Donald

One of the curious facts about our scientific disciplines is that they do tend to have their own flavour and culture, with things that are taken as the norm in one discipline seeming very alien to another. There are a … Continue reading →

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On Versatility

Posted on 16 January 2012 by Athene Donald

I should start off by thanking CherishtheScientist  for kindly nominating me for a Versatile Blogger award (see the emblem). The Veraatile Blooger Award I hadn’t heard of these before, but I’m honoured – so many thanks. I find myself still … Continue reading →

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Conveying the Wrong Message [1]

Posted on 12 January 2012 by Athene Donald

This article first appeared in Times Higher Education as an Opinion piece on January 12th 2012. Our academic lives are strongly influenced by those individuals who write letters of reference for us as we aim to move up the career … Continue reading →

Posted in academia, Equality, gendering, hiring, leakypipeline, reference letter | Comments Off on Conveying the Wrong Message [1]