Latest posts

PLoS ONE: from the Public Library of Sloppiness?

Posted on 1 April 2012 by Stephen

I had an argument with my colleague in the tea-room the other day. Gratifyingly, I learned he had been reading my blogposts on the subject of open access, but it soon became clear he did not entirely share my enthusiasm for the topic. Specifically, he criticised open access journals such as PLoS ONE both for their lack of sub-editorial services and Continue reading →

Posted in Academic publishing, Arguments, Open Access, PLoS, science, Scientific Life | Comments Off on PLoS ONE: from the Public Library of Sloppiness?

Quantitative Skills for All

Posted on 31 March 2012 by Athene Donald

What do social scientists need to know about science and maths? What should schools and universities be doing to make sure they have the necessary skills? This was at the heart of a recent meeting at the British Academy, where I found myself sharing a platform with colleagues from the CBI and ESRC, who are not my usual bedfellows as it were. The BA Continue reading →

Posted in 1958 cohort, British Academy, education, John MacInnes, social science, statistics, Wolf Report | Comments Off on Quantitative Skills for All

One step beyond

Posted on 30 March 2012 by rpg

What did I really think when I made the decision to leave the lab and pursue a career using my other skills?

To be honest, I don’t really know. I don’t really remember. “It seemed a good idea at the time,” is probably closest. Continue reading →

Posted in Friday afternoon, Me, new job, work | Comments Off on One step beyond

For whom the NHL polls

Posted on 30 March 2012 by Cath@VWXYNot?

From the NHL website* today:

NHLpoll

Well I don’t know about you, but I’m convinced!

Looking forward to watching the Canucks-Flames game dahn the pub with Modscientist, Lavaland and Beth on Saturday… 40% of hockey pool contestants agree that it will be AWESOME! Continue reading →

Posted in blog buddies, hockey pool, photos, screenshots, Silliness, sport | Comments Off on For whom the NHL polls

Doing stuff with Ecological Networks

Posted on 29 March 2012 by rpg

A few months ago one of my former post-docs mentioned that he had been thinking about ecological networks. One common type of network is a bipartite network, for example a plant-frugivore network, where members of one group (e.g. frugivores) may interact with members of the other (e.g. Continue reading →

Posted in Ecology, Research Blogging, statistics | Comments Off on Doing stuff with Ecological Networks

CATH GRUMPY

Posted on 28 March 2012 by Cath@VWXYNot?
  • Our home internet’s down. It went down on Saturday, and came back on for a few hours on Sunday before the blessed “online” light on the modem went off again. It’s done this a few times before, and always switched itself on and off every two or three hours for a couple of days before sorting itself out – but this time Continue reading →
Posted in cycling, first world problems, personal, photos, rants, technology, whining | Comments Off on CATH GRUMPY

Radical reform of peer review and research support, or rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic?

Posted on 28 March 2012 by Cath@VWXYNot?

OR More on the proposed reforms at the CIHR, which I first blogged about last month after taking my first look at the discussion document they published. I’ve since read the document in much greater detail, and also attended an informational / feedback forum held by CIHR at UBC, the university with which my research organisation is affiliated Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, career, grant wrangling, Politics, science | Comments Off on Radical reform of peer review and research support, or rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic?

Fabulous night

Posted on 27 March 2012 by Stephen

Tonight, at the end of an exhausting day, I have few words, but it was beautifully clear so I have taken some pictures of the night sky. And made a short film.

The photographs are by no means exemplary. The shots of Orion are not pin sharp. Continue reading →

Posted in Astronomy, Jupiter, Moon, Venus | Comments Off on Fabulous night

Is (or was) your PhD an Ordeal?

Posted on 27 March 2012 by Athene Donald

If you answered yes to the question in the title, a recent report suggests you may be a chemist, and more specifically a female chemist.  A study carried out by the UKRC for the RSC about the PhD experience for chemists reveals some fairly unattractive facts that should give heads of chemistry departments serious pause for thought. In particular i Continue reading →

Posted in career intentions, macho culture, Research, RSC, Science Culture, UKRC, Women in science | Comments Off on Is (or was) your PhD an Ordeal?

Hockey Pool, Week 25

Posted on 26 March 2012 by Cath@VWXYNot?

Well, with two weeks remaining, it just got very interesting! My goalie-fu deserted me last week, and ditching Malkin after his disappointing week 24 proved to be a big mistake as his points contributed to excellent week 25 scores for Ricardipus and Modscientist:

week25points

At the end of week 25 I was just clinging onto the lead by the skin of my teeth, but Continue reading →

Posted in hockey pool | Comments Off on Hockey Pool, Week 25