About Jenny
By day: cell biologist at UCL. By night: novelist, broadcaster, science writer, sci-lit-art pundit, blogger and Editor of LabLit.com. I blog about my life in science, not the facts and figures.
Category Archives: Silliness
In which I become Justin Bieber
Sometimes the comment thread is the best part about blogging for The Guardian: The ultimate accolade.
Posted in Silliness, Stereotypes
5 Comments
In which my language becomes everyone’s – for a moment
Following on from my piece in the Guardian this week about the chickenpox vaccine, my friend Buffy clued me in to this clever little number in the Onion that had been published the day before. It’s too gloriously sunny and … Continue reading
Posted in LabLit, Scientific thinking, Silliness
4 Comments
In which we feel the force
It’s amazing what you can buy off the internet these days.
Posted in Silliness
5 Comments
In which I admire their honesty
Kudos to Mateja Erdani Kreft of the University of Ljubljana and Horst Robenek from the University of Münster for telling it like it is: You don’t often see such candor in the methods section of your local journal article – … Continue reading
In which baking imitates science
It’s Friday, and Richard and I couldn’t help noticing that this croissant looked as if it were about to extravasate and transmigrate to the bottom of the oven, in search of…invading micro-organisms? Damaged tissue? Jam? We’ll never know, but check … Continue reading
Posted in Scientific thinking, Silliness
1 Comment
In which I yearn for retro lab chic
They don’t make ’em like they used to. Or at least, they don’t name ’em. Harry and I recently stumbled across this beauty when we were clearing out some of the side rooms in our new lab space. Allow me … Continue reading
Posted in Nostalgia, Silliness
13 Comments
In which self-help goes all Jurassic on your ass
I don’t even know where to begin. How is this analogy even remotely helpful to those of us currently living in the Cenozoic Era?
Posted in Silliness, Writing
17 Comments
In which nature imitates science
On the walk from my house to Russia Dock Woodlands, you have to pass by a particular hedgerow. Like all good hedgerows, it’s thick and impenetrable and rustling with unseen bird life. And it produces lots of bright-red berries, which … Continue reading
Posted in Domestic bliss, Scientific thinking, Silliness
2 Comments
In which it all goes a bit Hitchcock
As I approach the door and reach for the knob, I find that my heart rate has accelerated. Behind me, one of our research nurses cowers a few paces back: she needs to get inside, but – quite understandably – … Continue reading
Posted in Silliness, The profession of science
12 Comments
In which we make a mess of things
As a rule, when I’m trying to be creative, I have a hard time focusing if my workspace is not pristine and well-ordered. This holds true whether I’m working on a novel at my desk or performing an experiment on … Continue reading
Posted in Nostalgia, Scientific method, Silliness
6 Comments
