Latest posts

ehCloud: why Canada (and every other country) needs its own cloud computing tools

Posted on 2 June 2013 by Cath@VWXYNot?

I recently helped one of our scientists put together an application for an industry-partnered bioinformatics grant. I understand the company in question to be more or less universally recognised as the leader in its field and therefore the obvious partner for this grant, but because it’s based in the US we had to complete a one-page justifica Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, communication, genomics, grant wrangling, science, technology, the wonders of technology | Comments Off on ehCloud: why Canada (and every other country) needs its own cloud computing tools

In which the data get an outing

Posted on 31 May 2013 by Jennifer Rohn

For the past few weeks I’ve been traveling the globe at back-to-back conferences – hence the silence here. The conference universe has its own natural laws, and time flows differently as its strict routines overwrite all of your own normal ones.

ConferenceAuditorium

Instead of thinking about experiments, papers and grants in the familiar environment of you Continue reading →

Posted in careers, Scientific method, Scientific thinking, The profession of science | Comments Off on In which the data get an outing

Advice from the Great and Good

Posted on 31 May 2013 by Athene Donald

Not so long ago I stumbled across a very enthusiastic review of a new book by the renowned entomologist EO Wilson. The book was not about ants as such, his speciality, but its content can be deduced from the title: ‘Letters to a Young Scientist‘. With such an elegiac review to encourage me, I bought the book (to read on my iPad) and loo Continue reading →

Posted in advice, book review, career progression, EO Wilson, Peter Medawar, Science Culture | Comments Off on Advice from the Great and Good

Alfred Russel Wallace – the forgotten man of evolution?

Posted on 29 May 2013 by Philip Strange

Following on from Sylvia McLain’s recent post on Richard Dawkins, here is more on evolution. My piece concerns Alfred Russel Wallace, who was intimately involved in the early thinking on this topic. The timing of the two pieces is entirely coincidental.

 

Continue reading →
Posted in alfred russel wallace, Bill Bailey, centenary, Charles Darwin, dorset, evolution, Guest posts, natural selection, wallace 100 | Comments Off on Alfred Russel Wallace – the forgotten man of evolution?

A few weeks in May (condensed version)

Posted on 28 May 2013 by Richard Wintle

Gosh, it’s been a while. Things have been happening, but blogging has not been one of them. In recent memory, I’ve said I intend to post about more of my recent film camera acquisitions, and additional delving into local history. I’m not sure this post is going to satisfy either of those promises. Not much, anyway. Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, cemetery, Doon, drivers, Hobbies, Honda Indy Toronto, IndyCar, King City, media, Photography, racing, travel | Comments Off on A few weeks in May (condensed version)

Tsundoku II

Posted on 27 May 2013 by Henry Gee

For some reason a post I did a while back on tsundoku seems to be attracting some attention, so I thought I’d cash in expand on this after a recent trip to one of my favourite secondhand book stores.

Tsun-do-ku (n.) the act of buying books and not reading them and/or letting books pile up unread on shelves or floors or nightstands.

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Posted in Blickling, Science-fiction, sf, tsundoku, Writing & Reading | Comments Off on Tsundoku II

The week in review

Posted on 26 May 2013 by Steve Caplan

I just returned home from a 2 h walk, using my new pedometer app on the iPhone: in all 1:55 minutes with an average pace of 4.7 mph and a total of about 8.7 miles. What I forgot to do was to bring a bottle of water, and I found myself slightly dehydrated as I downed 2.5 L of water upon returning home. Continue reading →

Posted in dehydration, dissertation, excercise, graduation, papers, Ph.D., Research, science, walk | Comments Off on The week in review

Richard Dawkins – man of literacy (you only need the special key)

Posted on 25 May 2013 by Sylvia McLain

Dawkins

I try to ignore Richard Dawkins, I really do. I think his stance on religion vs. science is a misinterpretation of how science works – apples and oranges and all that. This week on Twitter, the man had some sort of word meaning argument concerning racism. Continue reading →

Posted in evolution, Evolutionary theory, richard dawkins, Stephen J Gould | Comments Off on Richard Dawkins – man of literacy (you only need the special key)

The Hunters

Posted on 25 May 2013 by Stephen

I had never heard of James Salter till I read a profile of him in the Observer a couple of weeks ago, on the occasion of the publication of his latest book, his first in a long time. Salter is 87 and has produced only six novels, two collections of short stories and a memoir in a writing career that has spanned six decades.

He wrote his first novel Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Scientific Life | Comments Off on The Hunters

Impact for Women

Posted on 24 May 2013 by Athene Donald

Next week I am due to share a platform with Dave Delpy, CEO of the EPSRC amongst others, discussing the ‘Impact of Impact’. This is an event organised by a new student body, the Cambridge University Science and Policy Exchange. I will not (I am rather pleased to say) be discussing that controversial topic of impact as implied within Research Counci Continue reading →

Posted in career progression, child care, Equality, promotion, Science Funding, Women in science | Comments Off on Impact for Women