Latest posts

Choox

Posted on 17 April 2011 by Henry Gee

Regular readers (both of you) will no doubt recall the day almost two years ago when Mrs Crox and I rescued four battery hens and gave them new homes. But seriously, this is a somewhat Guardian Weekend form of animal liberation, packed to the brim with derring-don’t. No need for balaclavas, ski masks, night-vision goggles or wire cutters. All Continue reading →

Posted in chooks, Cromer, Domesticrox, erumpent, hieronymous bosch, i remember when we once had grass, sex | Comments Off on Choox

Weekend fun: my next tweet

Posted on 16 April 2011 by Cath@VWXYNot?

Many, many thanks to Kimli for alerting me to “That Can Be My Next Tweet!“, a tool that creates mash-ups of bits and pieces of your most recent tweets to create much hilarity.

My twitter stream is kinda schizophrenic at the best of times, but what with the ongoing NHL playoffs and Canadian election campaign adding to my usual output rel Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, communication, current affairs, cycling, English language, Politics, science, Silliness, technology | Comments Off on Weekend fun: my next tweet

Yet Another Mystery Fish For You To Identify

Posted on 15 April 2011 by Henry Gee

The deeps really are yielding their secrets at the moment. First there was this. Then there was this. And today there was this.

Continue reading →
Posted in beach, beachcombing, canis croxorum, Cromer, lobsterpots, mystery fish, rpg couldn't fight his way out of a wet paper bag | Comments Off on Yet Another Mystery Fish For You To Identify

Mis-shapes, mistakes, misfits

Posted on 15 April 2011 by Cath@VWXYNot?

I went to Whistler last weekend and it was awesome.

More on that later, but today I wanted to share some photos of a remarkable mural we saw in an underpass as we walked back to the car from the Merlins pub at the Blackcomb base. I was quite blown away by it, and yelled at everyone that they had to wait for me so I could take some photos for my blo Continue reading →

Posted in art, Canada, nature, photos | Comments Off on Mis-shapes, mistakes, misfits

Another Mystery Fish For You To Identify

Posted on 14 April 2011 by Henry Gee

Here’s a fishy tail I found on Cromer beach today.

Here’s a detail. The skin is very rough, and those spines are wickedly sharp – they look (and feel) like the thorns on a rose bush, and thereby hangs a clue.

I found a dogfish tail a day or so ago, and Canis croxorum sniffed out something similar this morning. I think they’ Continue reading →

Posted in beach, beachcombing, canis croxorum, chthonic, Cromer, dog, eldritch, lobsterpots, mystery fish, that ursula andress moment | Comments Off on Another Mystery Fish For You To Identify

Surviving the Postdoc Experience – or Not

Posted on 14 April 2011 by Athene Donald

Last night I talked at an RSC/IOP event launching a report (Mapping the Future: Physics and Chemistry Researchers’ Experiences and Career Intentions) based on a survey of 776 postdocs. The report illustrates some interesting differences between the cultures experienced in the two different disciplines and also between the sexes’ experiences. Howeve Continue reading →

Posted in Athena Forum, long hours culture, postdocs, Research, RSC, Science Culture, Vitae, Women in science | Comments Off on Surviving the Postdoc Experience – or Not

Guest

Posted on 14 April 2011 by Henry Gee

My friend Grrlscientist asked me to write a guest post for her at Punctuated Equilibrium. This is it. Meanwhile, here is a cute pet picture, for those who demand more from their reading than a blog the sole purpose of which is to link to another blog.
IMG_4971

Posted in Writing & Reading | Comments Off on Guest

Numb or Numbered?

Posted on 14 April 2011 by Stephen

It just doesn’t add up: why do so many people, including scientists, get stuck on the maths problem?

The subject is on my mind because it was raised at a departmental meeting last week where I tried to argue that A level mathematics (the qualification obtained at age 18 in the UK) should be an entry requirement for our degree programmes in bi Continue reading →

Posted in Hard-core, Mathematics, Maths, School, science | Comments Off on Numb or Numbered?

The dual nature of gender bias

Posted on 13 April 2011 by Steve Caplan

I wasn’t intending to write this blog. Not at all. I’d rather write about science–in fact I have two or three drafts that I have been thinking about for some time, and would much prefer to write. But like a moth drawn to a candle’s flame, here I go.

Continue reading →
Posted in beauty pageants, education, feminism, Israel, religion, society, values--or lack of them | Comments Off on The dual nature of gender bias

What is the alternative?

Posted on 13 April 2011 by Erika Cule

Next month, a referendum will ask voters in the UK

At present, the UK uses the “first past the post” system to elect MPs to the House of Commons. Should the “alternative vote” system be used instead?

Official Poll Card

Official Poll Card

Continue reading →
Posted in Alternative Vote, Life, No, Politics, Referendum, Yes | Comments Off on What is the alternative?