Last Sunday, I celebrated the publication of “A Degree of Betrayal” by doing a book signing at Omaha’s best book store, “The Bookworm.” My son baked brownies, my editor prepared a short passage for me to read as an introduction, and I planned exactly what I would say. And I said none of it.
This week I attended ‘Circling the Square’ – a conference on science, science communication and science policy at the University of Nottingham (lovely Campus – well worth a visit). I certainly felt in the minority being a physical scientist rather than a social scientist. It was a very interesting conference but one of the Continue reading
This week I attended what was probably my first serious social sciences/STS (variously Science and Technology Studies or Science, Technology and Society) conference in my life. I was only able to attend the first day and I came away not quite sure what I felt about the experience. It was certainly interesting, but was I any the wiser? The conferenc Continue reading
Sometimes the comment thread is the best part about blogging for The Guardian:
The ultimate accolade
After much thought and changes-of-mind I have decided to leave OT and set up shop elsewhere.
I stress that my reasons for leaving have nothing to do with my friends and colleagues at OT for whom I have only the greatest respect and affection. Some of them I count among my closest friends and have been sources of a great deal of support at difficult Continue reading
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 warm outside to write a serious post, so I thought I’d just point it out in case you missed it, and mention that i Continue reading
Responding to the simplest questions about life as an academic scientist seems to pose me serious problems. I have written before about the difficulty I have in answering the straightforward question ‘who inspired you?’ because I don’t feel as if anyone did. It was books far more than any famous face that got me interested in scie Continue reading
“Well, if you knows of a better ‘ole, you go to it,” by the Cromer Poultry Great War Re-Enactment Society.
My car, Caroline the eVolvo 850, who is eighteen years old, has just celebrated an anniversary of sorts. This morning on the way to work she turned over her 170,000th mile. Now, this isn’t much in the great scheme of things, but it was fun to see five of the six figures on the the clock, turn over, at once, from 169999 to 17 followed by four Continue reading
Person throwing a bottle at a decerebrated dalek? At Victorian foundationwear? What? It’s all a matter of perspective.
