Category Archives: science

Money and the perversion of science

Posted on March 12, 2011 by Steve Caplan

Having just returned the grant review session at the NIH I thought that this would be a particularly good time to bring up something that has been bothering me for a number of years. It’s quite sad, but I’ve slowly … Continue reading →

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Postdocs treadmilling in science careers

Posted on March 5, 2011 by Steve Caplan

I recently read Jenny’s outstanding and insightful commentary entitled “Give postdocs a career, not empty promises” published on March 2 (in your nth favorite weekly science journal beginning with the letter N). First, I want to voice my absolute support, … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, research, science | Tagged , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Bad sports?

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Steve Caplan

When we first moved to Omaha, Nebraska some years ago, and settled into our new house, it was a Friday. By Saturday noon, we had made an initial stab at organizing a few essential boxes, and wanted to relieve the … Continue reading →

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I’d rather be blasting homeopathy…

Posted on February 24, 2011 by Steve Caplan

Although Austin has been doing such a great job in this area, and Cath’s defrocking of “horror-scopes” made a nice contribution, I would like to get my own claws on this matter. But alas, sadly, I have my own agenda … Continue reading →

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A working vacation

Posted on February 19, 2011 by Steve Caplan

Some time ago, one of my children asked me to explain what an oxymoron is, and I scrambled to find a good example. Well the title of this blog is a good one. Or is it? Years ago as Ph.D. … Continue reading →

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Regression to the “mean”

Posted on February 15, 2011 by Steve Caplan

They say that Steve Caplan is a mild-mannered scientist. But he pops into a phone-booth–no wait–that’s a thing of the past–he pops into the darkroom, and out comes Dr. Mean… Well, I do have a temper. Perhaps it’s slow to … Continue reading →

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The four Yorkshiremen at NIH…

Posted on February 10, 2011 by Steve Caplan

I said it. It didn’t mean to slip out, but it did. Well, I can’t cap the genie back in the bottle, can I? So here it is: “When I was at the NIH…” When I was a young student, … Continue reading →

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Which researcher is more likely to be “productive”?

Posted on February 8, 2011 by Steve Caplan

We all have our own styles and ways of doing things. What do YOU think? Is it the “cluttered” bench, or the “pristine” bench. Both photos taken (as a good control) at the end of a working day…

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Cheating in science

Posted on February 7, 2011 by Steve Caplan

When I was an undergraduate student in Jerusalem, I worked about as hard as humanly possible. We had a huge amount of “heavy” courses in the all-science ensemble, and they weren’t all that organized. For example, physical chemistry came before … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, science | Tagged , , | 14 Comments

Addendum-(chess) If you think science is competitive…

Posted on February 5, 2011 by Steve Caplan

Since joining OT, I have noticed that everyone has a specific “profile”, a style of writing and preferred topics. Readers come to know what to expect. They know that Cath’s blogs will often be hilarious, with a sharp eye for anything humorous. They know that Athene’s will always be deeply insightful, often related to women in science, and filled with wisdom that often has its comical twists.
Continue reading →

Posted in humor, science | Tagged , , , | 25 Comments