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: Staring into the abyss
In which I run aground
It’s been a long winter, and the past academic term seemed to stretch on forever, a blur of stress and deadlines punctuated by good news and bad. My lab got another paper accepted, and my outline-stage grant was shortlisted. But … Continue reading
In which I see through other eyes
A few months ago I had a Twitter encounter with an American far-right Trump supporter. Unbeknownst to me, this man had been lurking and – as incongruous as it sounds – apparently enjoying my Twitter feed (which is largely, these … Continue reading
Posted in Politics, Staring into the abyss
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In which the unsaid gathers
It’s a new year, and the cursor blinks at me accusingly. It knows I have not written here for some time, and perhaps it wonders why, given that thoughts and feelings are gathering restlessly in my brain and need to … Continue reading
Posted in Gardening, Staring into the abyss, The ageing process, The profession of science
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In which I preserve
I often think about how ancient survival strategies are probably still encoded somewhere deep in our chromosomes, cryptic and dormant but with the potential to be roused by the faintest of stimuli. For me, recent unrest in the world has … Continue reading
Posted in Domestic bliss, Gardening, Joshua, Staring into the abyss, The ageing process, Work/life balance
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In which we ride the imposter rollercoaster – again
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
In which we are unlucky: on lab superstitions
I was thinking the other day that if academia were a mental illness, it would be bipolar. One day it treats me well: a student shows me an experiment that shows great promise. I have a spirited chat with a … Continue reading
In which I embrace the literature
I think I’ve earned a five-minute break. I’ve been working hard to ready myself ahead of a big interview for a significant funding scheme. I’m being subjected to a series of mock interviews, and I’ve been reading as much as … Continue reading
Posted in Careers, science funding, Scientific thinking, Staring into the abyss, The profession of science
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In which I lose my way
An autumn breeze flutters the paperwork on my desk: a credit card bill; a daily report from my son’s nursery (complete with meals, sleep times and nappy composition); a manuscript I’m proofing for a colleague – all held down by … Continue reading
In which I avoid the topic
I have been downtrodden this week, struggling to stay afloat in this erratic and stormy sea we call academic science. I suspect there is a post in there waiting to get out, but I am too blue (and overworked) to … Continue reading
Posted in Careers, Silliness, Staring into the abyss
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In which the small fish contemplates the bigger pond
The wandering path of my unconventional scientific life is about to shift yet again. It’s with mixed feelings that I report another lab move – same Division, another new campus. The retro digs in Bloomsbury, with its polished hardwood trimmings, … Continue reading
