Author Archives: Jennifer Rohn

About Jennifer Rohn

Scientist, novelist, rock chick

In which life slips past

Posted on October 12, 2017 by Jennifer Rohn

Time is passing. My baby son has somehow turned four years old, and a very significant birthday approaches in a month’s time for me as well. The seasons are changing. We’ve stopped watering the withered tomato vines, seen the last … Continue reading →

Posted in Academia, Domestic bliss, Gardening, Teaching, The profession of science, Work/life balance | Comments Off on In which life slips past

In which I present my third lab lit novel, Cat Zero – out soon!

Posted on August 29, 2017 by Jennifer Rohn

I’m pleased to announce the imminent publication of my third lab lit novel, Cat Zero, with Bitingduck Press, a science-friendly indie imprint out of Altadena, California. I have always wanted to write a story starring feline leukemia virus (FeLV), the … Continue reading →

Posted in LabLit, Nostalgia, Work/life balance, Writing | 11 Comments

In which we are snapped

Posted on July 16, 2017 by Jennifer Rohn

Current Team Wee-Wee: Jane, Johannes, Dhan, Harry, Monika, Me, Kristina I’ve been meaning to make a lab website for a long time now, but you know how it is: ten million other things intrude, higher priority items forever bumping lower … Continue reading →

Posted in Careers, Research, Students, The profession of science | Comments Off on In which we are snapped

In which I hire

Posted on June 24, 2017 by Jennifer Rohn

A colleague I respect very highly once likened academic careers to a rocket launch: once you hit escape velocity, you’re safely in orbit. Problem is, achieving this state as a post-doc or untenured faculty is becoming increasingly difficult. Hundreds of … Continue reading →

Posted in Academia, Careers, Recruitment, Research, The profession of science | 1 Comment

In which we ride the imposter rollercoaster – again

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Jennifer Rohn

We often think of our personalities and tendencies as being immutable, fixed, typical. But the older I get, the better I know myself. And what I know is that I’m often no more in control of my perceptions of self … Continue reading →

Posted in Careers, Research, Staring into the abyss, Teaching, The profession of science | 5 Comments

In which we experiment

Posted on March 5, 2017 by Jennifer Rohn

My three-year-old son Joshua is a bright and curious boy, full of incessant questions and always wanting to get into everything. The other day he noticed that when he was sucking up juice with a straw, the level of liquid … Continue reading →

Posted in Domestic bliss, Teaching | 4 Comments

In which I make myself useful

Posted on February 12, 2017 by Jennifer Rohn

Two centrifuge buckets, both alike in dignity? It’s a truth universally acknowledged that an ageing group leader is, by definition, out of touch when it comes to the lab. After all, we spend most of our time writing grants and … Continue reading →

Posted in Kit, Research, Silliness, The profession of science | 2 Comments

In which we sort ourselves out

Posted on January 15, 2017 by Jennifer Rohn

Writing space: the final frontier When you move into a new house, you unpack about 90% of your belongings in the first months. And then, of course, there’s that lingering tail that seems to get put off indefinitely. This asymptote … Continue reading →

Posted in Domestic bliss, LabLit, Writing | 8 Comments

In which I bring Lego to lab meeting

Posted on January 7, 2017 by Jennifer Rohn

Our floor recently initiated a monthly lunchtime meeting as an informal feedback conduit. Although the individual labs all work in one mammoth communal room, the research that goes on is disparate. The key to propelling your project forward might be … Continue reading →

Posted in Research, Scientific thinking | Comments Off on In which I bring Lego to lab meeting

In which horizons expand

Posted on January 3, 2017 by Jennifer Rohn

Every career probably has a tipping point. Twenty-seven years after embarking on my PhD, a period riddled with false starts, uncertainties, twists and turns, I sense the shifting of weight beneath me and momentum gathering as I start to swing … Continue reading →

Posted in Academia, Careers, Research, The profession of science | 2 Comments