Author Archives: rpg

About rpg

Scientist, poet, gadfly

Days

Posted on 6 November 2017 by rpg

Joshua is at that delightful age when he is yet too young to be able to reliably, unaided, clean and dress himself, yet old enough to resist getting ready to leave the house in the morning. When he was younger, … Continue reading →

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Weather with you

Posted on 21 April 2017 by rpg

Even before we moved to Gravesend, we knew of its “dodgy thermometer” from the weather forecasts on TV and radio. Gravesend was consistently the warmest place in the country, bucking the nation’s trends by a degree Celsius or two. In … Continue reading →

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Back in the USSR

Posted on 30 March 2017 by rpg

Last time I was here, I made a comment about how I hoped things were going to get less busy. Yeah… that didn’t work out too well. Since January, I have been on six overseas work trips. The most recent … Continue reading →

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Hard Day’s Night

Posted on 3 January 2017 by rpg

Last year was mental. Back in December 2015, with about about 10 days’ notice, a colleague and I flew to Orlando on a Sunday lunchtime, ran a meeting Monday morning, and flew home Monday night. That was just the start. … Continue reading →

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What are science?

Posted on 29 October 2016 by rpg

Apparently we all fucking love science, or at least we love pretty pictures, anecdotal facts, chemical explosions and slightly preachy environmentalism. However, science is none of these things. Science is the generation and testing of ideas; normally disproving them, in … Continue reading →

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On cooperation between dogs and squirrels

Posted on 11 April 2016 by rpg

I’ve had a lovely morning walking round Harris’s Copse; not shooting anything, but seeing a few wood pigeons who are too easily spooked. A baguette and a pint for lunch from the Robin Hood, and back in, this time via … Continue reading →

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Get off of my cloud

Posted on 26 January 2016 by rpg

In my previous life, I pontificated on the etiquette of iPods and in particular the signals that earbuds send out. My central thesis was that if you were foolish enough to approach someone at the lab bench who was wearing … Continue reading →

Posted in Ill-considered rants, Office life, The stupid, it burns, Work | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

On the troposphere

Posted on 15 December 2015 by rpg

The second best thing about flying to the US on business is the views you get on the way. The best thing about flying on business to the US is, of course, coming home

Posted in Art, Work | 1 Comment

On fungus

Posted on 15 November 2015 by rpg

As a cell biologist, yeasts spelt doom for crucial experiments. And as a gardener/amateur brewer, mildew and mould and other nasties can really ruin my roses/vines/beer. But there’s something about fungus, especially that not of the common or garden toadstool … Continue reading →

Posted in Photography | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

On the cranes

Posted on 19 August 2015 by rpg

Apparently it’s (still) #WorldPhotographyDay. To celebrate, here’s a photograph from our bedroom window this morning, not taken with my iPhone. In fairness to Stephen it was taken in ‘P’ mode, but I’m going to start experimenting with ‘M’. And yes, … Continue reading →

Posted in Photography | Tagged | 3 Comments