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Congratulations to Athene

Posted on 6 May 2011 by rpg

On behalf of the entire Occam’s Typewriter crew, I’d like to extend congratulations to Athene Donald for her Lifetime Achievement Award from the UKRC:

Professor Dame Athene Donald of the University of Cambridge was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award for her services to women in SET. Professor Donald has worked at the University since 1983 and has been a pioneer in soft matter and biological physics within the UK. Her work has been recognised by numerous prizes, including the 2009 L’Oreal/UNESCO Laureate for Europe. On a national level she also chairs the Athena Forum which deals with issues around career progression for women in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine (STEMM) subjects in higher education.

The award is splendidly deserved and we’re pleased as punch to have Athene blogging at OT!

[Updated to add: see pics at the Grauniad.]

Posted in Women in science | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

Ph.D. survival: is a jack of all trades a master of none?

Posted on 6 May 2011 by Steve Caplan

Over the years science has changed a great deal. In just the last 50 years or so we’ve seen a major revolution in scientific research, due primarily to our understanding of DNA and ultimately how it codes for protein. But there have been quite a few changes even in the 12 or 13 years since I received my Ph.D. One of these changes, which I wou Continue reading →

Posted in biochemistry, cell biology, coffe bean (just checking if you are awake), detergent, DNA, education, gel electrophoresis, graduate students, immunoprecipitation, jack of all trades, kits, lysate, mentor, Ph.D., PI, postdoc, protein, Research, science, students | Comments Off on Ph.D. survival: is a jack of all trades a master of none?

Let there be lights!

Posted on 5 May 2011 by Cath@VWXYNot?

I’ll take even the smallest of victories in this benighted week…

Way back in December 2007, I wrote to the city to request a stop light at a dangerous intersection on my bike route; the Ontario Street bike route crosses 16th Avenue on a stagger, with no lights or stop signs to protect the cyclists who have to cross and then ride along t Continue reading →

Posted in activism, cycling, Politics, Vancouver | Comments Off on Let there be lights!

Managing and sharing data

Posted on 5 May 2011 by Frank Norman

The UK Data Archive (UKDA) has published the third edition of its guide Managing and sharing data. The 36-page guide is available as a free pdf download, or you can request the UKDA to send a print copy. Although written and published by the UKDA – an archive for social sciences – it is mostly generic and has been endorsed by BBSRC, NE Continue reading →

Posted in Research data | Comments Off on Managing and sharing data

Measles

Posted on 5 May 2011 by Henry Gee

When I was about five or six I came down with measles. I can’t remember if it was the first or second time I had it (yes, I am one o’ them okkered buggers to have caught it twice), but I do remember a great deal about it. It was winter, and there was snow on the ground. By the time the daft GP was convinced I was suffering from more tha Continue reading →

Posted in isolation, Larry The Lamb, measles, Medicine, Norman Lamb, Politicrox, Research, syringe | Comments Off on Measles

You should have seen the look on her face

Posted on 4 May 2011 by Stephen

The last king of England to lead an army on the battlefield was George II, at the Battle of Dettingen in Bavaria in 1743 during the War of the Austrian Succession.

The last President of the United States to serve in wartime was George Bush Sr., a Naval pilot during World War II. He flew many missions and was in fact awarded the Distinguished Flying Continue reading →

Posted in Hilary Clinton, Obama, Osama bin Laden, Science & Politics, Tech, technology, video, war | Comments Off on You should have seen the look on her face

Open season in biology

Posted on 3 May 2011 by Frank Norman

On Thursday my colleague alerted me to a new open access journal from the Company of Biologists called Biology Open. Today, after a four-day long weekend (thanks to the Royal Wedding and Mayday celebrations) one of the first emails I opened was an announcement about a new open access journal from the Royal Society called Open Biology. I thought I& Continue reading →

Posted in Journal publishing, Open Access | Comments Off on Open season in biology

In which I confront a domestic mystery

Posted on 2 May 2011 by Jennifer Rohn

Some late nights in the lab, that vending machine chocolate bar just can’t fill the snack hole that only a truly grueling experiment can induce. You need something hot, salty and preferably dripping with fat.

It’s no surprise, then, that microwave popcorn is the scientist’s best friend. It ticks all the boxes: flat-pack construction for easy stora Continue reading →

Posted in Domestic bliss, Nostalgia, Scientific method, Silliness | Comments Off on In which I confront a domestic mystery

Get out and VOTE, CANADA!

Posted on 2 May 2011 by Cath@VWXYNot?

Later today I will vote for the first time in Canada, and for the first time anywhere since a Glasgow by-election almost 11 years ago.

Anyone who knows me even a little bit knows that voting means an awful lot to me. I’ve been fascinated by politics ever since I first listened to my parents talk about it around the family dinner table when I Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, current affairs, personal, Politics, rants | Comments Off on Get out and VOTE, CANADA!

Getting Philosophical

Posted on 2 May 2011 by Athene Donald

A month or two back, in the editorial for the edition of Eureka discussing science and the media on the back of an event at the Royal Society, it was written

We should send chemistry graduates to poetry slams, physicists to literary festivals, while the non-scientists should be welcomed on to lab benches until we all learn to speak the same languag Continue reading →

Posted in alternative medicine, Communicating Science, Hay Festival, Human enhancement, Interdisciplinary Science, John Harris, Mary Warnock | Comments Off on Getting Philosophical