Species Distribution Modeling Software Survey

Posted on June 13, 2011 by rpg


Those of you who work with species distribution models might want to take this survey about the software we used to do the modelling. The ecologists at Microsoft Research in Cambridge want to know. The survey closes on July 1st, and only takes 5 minutes.

Continue reading →

Posted in Ecology | 3 Comments

Today is Hug a Climate Scientist Day!

Posted on June 10, 2011 by rpg

As declared by First Dog on the Moon:

I’m not a climate scientist, but will accept hugs anyway. For reasons to weird to comprehend, there are climate scientists along the same corridor as my office, so I might leap out and hug one of them.
If anyone’s in Frankfurt and wants to give out hugs to climate scientists, there will be some in the physical geography department on the Riedberg campus. But some will also be meeting in Jügelhaus (on Mertonstrasse, just down the side of the Senckenberg museum). If you’re not in Frankfurt, you’ll just have to find your own climate scientist to hug. I know there are a few in Norwich, so email them to ask when they’re free – you could also show them some magic tricks. They like tricks.

Posted in Silliness | 5 Comments

Species-area relationships don’t overestimate extinction rates from habitat loss

Posted on May 31, 2011 by rpg

This post was chosen as an Editor's Selection for ResearchBlogging.orgToday at work we had a journal club about a recent paper in Nature that had caused a bit of a stir. It had suggested that the reason we don’t see as many extinctions due to habitat loss as we’d expect from empirical relationships (which I will explain in a moment) is because we’re using the wrong ones.
Unfortunately0 I had to prepare a seminar for today, so I didn’t have enough time to read the paper properly, and only got as far as working out that I didn’t understand what the authors were doing. And when, in the journal club, the maths was mentioned they all turned to me for help. Eeek – I wanted someone else to explain it all to me! So after the journal club I decided to really think about the paper, and thanks to our new white board I worked out that it was wrong:
Whiteboard.JPG
And, thanks to RMV not coordinating their trams and trains during the afternoon commute, I worked out why it was wrong. Now read on…

Continue reading →

Posted in Research Blogging, Science Blogging | 8 Comments

Escaping the poverty trap

Posted on May 24, 2011 by rpg

(I conned GrrlScientist into posting this on her Guardian blog)

Migrant Mother, Nipomo, California (1936)
Image: Dorothea Lange (1895-1965)
Common domain.
ResearchBlogging.orgAs an old fashioned liberal, I want us all to be happy, and for the State to play a role by giving us the opportunity to accomplish that. One way to increase general public happiness is to help them to climb out of poverty, something the last Labour government in the UK recognised was important when it created the Social Exclusion Unit (which later became a Task Force. Even the best of intentions run foul of Government Shuffling). But can social policy really make a difference to people’s lives and make them more prosperous?

Continue reading →

Posted in Research Blogging | 1 Comment

You know it’s time for bed when…

Posted on May 16, 2011 by rpg

These two maps should look the same:
Aaagh.png
and they were last week too. Time to get some sleep, I think.

Posted in Silliness | 6 Comments

Synthese Editors in Chief diss their own journal

Posted on April 18, 2011 by rpg

And now for something completely different. Philosophers scoring an own goal.

John Wilkins give the full story, but here’s a summary, and then my own views.

Continue reading →

Posted in Science Publishing | 1 Comment

On the analysis of proportions in ecology, on a Friday

Posted on April 8, 2011 by rpg

Last year I published a paper with my friend Johan on the evils of log transformations in the analysis of count data. We went for the subtle title “Do not log-transform count data“. Now, I was aware that this wasn’t the only statistical sin perpetrated by ecologists (and other scientists), and there’s quite a seam to be mined if only you know a bit more than non-specialists.
Evidently, Dave Warton has decided to mine the same seam. And how can you resist this title for his new paper?

The arcsine is asinine: the analysis of proportions in ecology

If I had it on, I’d take my hat off to salute him.

Posted in Research Blogging, Silliness | 8 Comments

The Advances of Modern Technology

Posted on March 29, 2011 by rpg

This is a sign of how the web has changed research. Today I was reading a paper that used a technique that goes by the name of “linear model of coregionalization”. No, I didn’t know what it was either. The paper didn’t explain it very well, but gave a reference … to a book.
Yes, one of those things (youngsters may wish to follow this link to know what I’m writing about). Not much use, when I’m sat at my computer is is, thought I. How am I meant to follow that reference up?
Fortunately, what technology taketh away, technology giveth. After I had vented my frustration, I used google to search (my elder readers may wish to follow this link to know what I’m writing about) for “linear model of coregionalization”. After a couple of false starts, I found a paper that described it well enough for my needs. So it turned out well in the end.

Continue reading →

Posted in Silliness | 9 Comments

π Day

Posted on March 14, 2011 by rpg

Those wacky Americans have decided that today (14/3) is Pi day, thereby proving that they are inferior. Over in Europe, we’ll celebrate Pi approximation day on July 22nd (22/7). But I’ve decided I’ll celebrate pie day on the 8th of May (8.5). Ideally I suppose I should wait until 3973 to do this, but I’m a bit impatient.

Continue reading →

Posted in Silliness | 11 Comments

Top Tips for Dealing with the Press

Posted on February 15, 2011 by rpg

Some things just get funnier and funnier. On Sunday, Ed Yong (who is not exactly a rocket scientist) put something up on Posterous recounting an exchange with a Press Information Officer. Ed had seen a press release, and wanted to write about the story. When he asked the Press Information Officer (PIO) for the scientist’s contact info, this is what he was told:

I think you have all you need for a blog.

From where things when downhill. Embargoes were involved, so Ivan Oransky posted a follow-up on his Embargo Watch blog, in which he named and shamed the PIO as Aeron Haworth, of the University of Manchester. Haworth turned up in the comments, at which point hilarity ensued. Seriously, read through the comments thread: there’s so much comedy gold from Mr. Haworth, like this:

I will be letting every UK press officer know about his [Ed Yong’s] antics and he is unlikely to get cooperation from this side of the Atlantic in future. It’s a shame, as the UK produces some of the best science in the world.

and this:

Ed deserved what he got. A jumped-up arrogant journalist wannabe. I stand my ground.

and this:

‘Real journalists’ on the ‘cutting edge’. And you’re training would be?

which was followed by this from Damian:

“your”
bites knuckle

Much laughter all round.
Well, this morning I checked my email, and found a message from the Royal Statistical Society, send on behalf of Sense About Science. Sense About Science are holding a Standing up for Science media workshop the March 11th, and Manchester University. Hmm, I thought. That’s where Mr. Haworth works. I wonder….
And yes, this is part of the flyer (pdf):
SciComms.png
Wow. Top tips if you come face to face with a journalist. Will it include “insult them, and then threaten to excommunicate them from science communications”? Or how about “don’t worry – your press officer will make sure you never have to communicate with them”?

Posted in Science Publishing, Silliness | 8 Comments