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David Willetts and the Round Table

Posted on 31 October 2011 by Athene Donald

Last week, fellow OT blogger Jenny Rohn and I were among the attendees at the roundtable discussion headed up by Paul Nurse (President of the Royal Society) and David Willetts (Minister of State for Universities and Science), held at the Royal Society. The basis for the discussion was the postdoctoral career path. Questions posed up front included:

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Posted in careers, industry, internships, postdocs, research careers, Science Culture, Science Funding, Teaching | Comments Off on David Willetts and the Round Table

The Missing Link

Posted on 30 October 2011 by Cath@VWXYNot?

Man, I love Hallowe’en.

Apparently I freaked a lot of people out… and some people asked to get their photo taken with me! But the best part was when I ran into a guy dressed as a gorilla and we both nodded very approvingly at each other. Continue reading →

Posted in apes, freakishness, furry friends, personal, photos, Primate Party, Silliness, Vancouver | Comments Off on The Missing Link

Meet your density

Posted on 30 October 2011 by rpg

Now witness the firepower of this fully ARMED and OPERATIONAL battle station!
Now witness the firepower of this fully ARMED and OPERATIONAL battle station!

Posted in Death Star, pumpkin, Science-less Sunday | Comments Off on Meet your density

Kittehs To The Rescue

Posted on 30 October 2011 by Henry Gee

I was going to discuss politics and religion in this post, until I remembered (1) a promise I made to myself at Yom Kippur not to get embroiled in such discussions any more, as they only seem to cause anxiety and distress, and (2) the tradition some of us used to have when we were on the Nature Network, in which someone posted a picture of one of t Continue reading →

Posted in Domesticrox, Downton Abbey, erumpent, kittehs, pets, Silliness | Comments Off on Kittehs To The Rescue

Stem cells to the rescue

Posted on 29 October 2011 by Steve Caplan

A short time ago, I found myself in a conversation with someone who began to ask about my work in the lab. Unlike many scientists that I know, who feel uncomfortable and even unable to explain what they do on a daily basis in layman’s terms, I feel that it is part of my mission to make an effort to really help people understand what I do. Aft Continue reading →

Posted in bored-meetings, embryonic stem cells, faculty, Politics, religion, Research, save me, science, senate, stem cells, university | Comments Off on Stem cells to the rescue

The Trouble with Women

Posted on 28 October 2011 by Athene Donald

A couple of weeks ago I took part in a debate organised by the local chapter of the Triple Helix Society given the provocative title of ‘The Trouble with Women’, designed to debate why women are still found in such low numbers in the upper echelons of science. No doubt this title was meant to pull the punters in, and indeed we had about 100 people, Continue reading →

Posted in classroom, education, Equality, expectations, Maths, physics, teachers, Women in science | Comments Off on The Trouble with Women

I am proud to be one of them. [4]

Posted on 26 October 2011 by Richard Wintle

On futzing around, looking for something else, I came across a letter to the editor of The Times, written by the redoubtable Lt. Colonel Alfred Daniel Wintle in 1946. Wintle, a fabulously eccentric yet quintessentially English gentleman (and yes, I recognize that those two things are not necessarily mutually exclusive) had a colourful life. Among h Continue reading →

Posted in eccentricity, family, Guest posts, Secret Service, WWI, WWII | Comments Off on I am proud to be one of them. [4]

RBO Lab Meeting

Posted on 25 October 2011 by Cath@VWXYNot?
  • Our lab manager mentioned that some journals are starting to ask for certification to prove that the cell lines described in submitted manuscripts have tested negative for mycoplasma contamination during the course of the study (for the uninitiated, mycoplasma are bacteria that can seriously interfere with the interpretation of any data generated Continue reading →
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In praise of bike room buddies and other secret societies

Posted on 24 October 2011 by Cath@VWXYNot?

“I just found out who you are!” announced my buddy-whose-name-I-don’t-know. “There’s a photo of you on the alumni wall of my lab! You have different hair and a different name, but it’s definitely you!”

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Posted in career, cycling, personal, publishing | Comments Off on In praise of bike room buddies and other secret societies

The Maison Des Girrafes Caption Competition #401

Posted on 24 October 2011 by Henry Gee

Greetings from a litl ‘lotl.

Posted in axolotl, Domesticrox, pets, Silliness, Squirty Benson Wilberforce III | Comments Off on The Maison Des Girrafes Caption Competition #401