Latest posts

Will This Look Good on my CV?

Posted on 14 May 2013 by Athene Donald

This is a question I was asked recently in the context of outreach work (I answered yes), but it applies across the board. For those climbing the academic ladder specifically, it perhaps amounts to ‘does anything other than research count?’ I would again say yes. So what follows are some thoughts on career progression provoked by a variety of recen Continue reading →

Posted in career progression, commitee membership, Equality, experience, promotion | Comments Off on Will This Look Good on my CV?

Reinventing Excel

Posted on 14 May 2013 by Stephen

In Reinventing Discovery Michael Nielsen says that one of the great things about the Internet is the way it can connect problems with problem-solvers. Well, let’s see if that’s true.

I have a problem with Excel, or rather, with a particular spreadsheet that I would like someone to solve elegantly.

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Posted in administration, Excel, macro, Michael Nielsen, technology | Comments Off on Reinventing Excel

Seen in Devon

Posted on 14 May 2013 by Philip Strange

adders multiplying

On a recent family walk near Beesands in South Devon (in the fog if you look carefully), we spotted this sign on land behind the beach.  Perhaps we were all in a silly mood but it made us smile and lead my wife to sum up the mood: “I see the adders are multiplying”.

 

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Posted in adders, beesands, devon, Fun, Guest posts | Comments Off on Seen in Devon

On Biological Modelling

Posted on 12 May 2013 by Henry Gee

IMG_7106
No. 94. Coccoliths.
With apologies to rpg. But why should cell biologists have all the fun? Continue reading →

Posted in biological modelling, coccoliths, happy plankton, Nonsense, Science-less Sunday, Silliness | Comments Off on On Biological Modelling

My Life in Nebraska

Posted on 11 May 2013 by Steve Caplan

Years ago, when I still permitted myself a very tiny slice of time for television, I enjoyed the antics of Judi Dench and Geoffrey Palmer in the British comedy series, “As Time Goes By.” In particular, I wholly identified with the rather reclusive and mildly anti-social Lionel Hardcastle, author of the not-exactly-best-selling book,  Continue reading →

Posted in as time goes by, author, Books, libraries, Nebraska, norfolk, novels, promotion, science, self-promotion | Comments Off on My Life in Nebraska

I blame the parents

Posted on 10 May 2013 by Austin

From time to time, I am given to wondering why I have achieved so little in life generally.

Answers suggested by my friends and family have included ‘laziness’ ‘not trying hard enough’ ‘lack of confidence’ ‘too unfocussed’ ‘too much procrastinating’ ‘laziness’ (again) ‘no Continue reading →

Posted in Family business, Getting old, Grumbling, Humour, Procrastination | Comments Off on I blame the parents

Planes

Posted on 10 May 2013 by Henry Gee

When I moved from London to Cromer, colleagues were genuinely aghast, How, they asked, would I get to international meetings? “Norwich International Airport,” I replied. It’s 35 minutes’ easy drive from my door. Parking is plentiful, cheap, and all of a hundred-yard easy amble from the terminal. From Norwich you can get one Continue reading →

Posted in airports, Commutatis Maledictis, Cromer, Norwich International Airport, planes, Politicrox, Schiphol, travel | Comments Off on Planes

Science: better messy than messed up

Posted on 9 May 2013 by Stephen

I am fascinated by the psychology of scientific fraudsters. What drives these people? If you are smart enough to fake results, surely you have the ability to do research properly? You should also be clever enough to realise that one day you will get caught. And you should know that fabricating results is a worthless exercise that runs completely co Continue reading →

Posted in Diederk Stapel, fraud, Impact Factors, Norovirus, Scientific Life, Structural Biology | Comments Off on Science: better messy than messed up

In which things flow naturally forward

Posted on 9 May 2013 by Jennifer Rohn

I’ve been pondering the impermanence of things lately.

Maybe it all started with the departure of a well-liked clinical researcher from our lab, an OB/GYN with a sense of the absurd who never failed to make us laugh. Now when we walk by his empty bench, it’s a reminder of the absence in our close-knit team – an absence so strong that it’s almost a Continue reading →

Posted in careers, Nostalgia, staring into the abyss, The profession of science | Comments Off on In which things flow naturally forward

The Viva Experience

Posted on 8 May 2013 by Athene Donald

I’ve seen a few posts around recently from anxious PhD students approaching their vivas in fear and trepidation or discussing the experience in the immediate aftermath. For instance, here is @hapsci discussing things after the event in a state of post-exam exhaustion and fellow OT blogger Erika Cule sought advice from her OT colleagues over twitter Continue reading →

Posted in exam performance, PhD, PhD thesis, Research | Comments Off on The Viva Experience