What's a blog? - A blog is a personal diary. Your pulpit every day. Political soapbox. News outlets. Collection of links. Your own private thoughts. Note to the world.
Your blog is whatever you want. There are millions of blogs, in all shapes and sizes,...
X-People
Perhaps you have heard the expression, "If you want something done, ask a busy person." Some people are able to get a lot done, and adding one or four more things to the list doesn't slow them down. Let's call this type of person Type W.Then there are...
Complaining Early & Often
While serving on a particular review committee at my university, I have seen many examples of negative comments in teaching evaluations for problems that seem like they could easily have been fixed during the course if only the professor knew there was...
Everything I Say Might Be Important
The other day, while working intensely on editing a document in a cafe, my attention wandered for just a moment (or two) and I tuned into a nearby conversation between two undergrads. One of them said something like this:I hate Professor X. He never...
Proto-Broader Impacts
As I've described in previous posts, I am on board with the mandatory "broader impacts" aspect of NSF grant proposals, and I think that activities beyond the basic doing-of-the-Science should be given some serious thought by researchers. I don't think...
May The Blog Be With You
For some reason that I don't understand but that I really appreciate, I've recently received a number of extremely nice e-mails from readers saying that they have "grown up" (professionally) with my blog and have found it useful. I find this fascinating...
Honestly..
Sometimes I forget that I also have a blog over in Scientopia. This is probably not a good thing. I am a bad Scientopian. But today I decided to post something over there. I have been mulling this one over for a while, alternately thinking "I'm not going...
Second Home
Not long ago, I was talking about University Stuff with a cousin-in-law who has a computer tech job at the same university at which I am employed. He was talking about how much happier he is now that he doesn't have to work in Remote Isolated Building...
Reorient Express/2
Does everyone have their Feelings Graph drawn? It's time to share them with the group. Are there any volunteers? No? If not, I'm going to start calling on you.OK, here's what we're going to do: you will each put your graph on the wall and then we'll...
Reorient Express
Fellow professors: In the past few weeks/months, days, I know that many of you have looked on with intense jealousy and longing as the first-year students on your campus have participated in a variety of fun and stimulating orientation activities, many...
Over There
For various nanosociologistical reasons, my family and I are temporarily living in a house that is not our usual house. Our usual house, which I adore, is over there, closer to campus. Our temporary house is over here, at a much greater distance from...
To Administrate: The Poll
Most of the comments on yesterday's post about whether someone should take on a temporary and challenging administrative position advised that the person in question not take the position, if offered.There weren't a huge number of comments, however,...
To Administrate or Not To Administrate?
A reader is contemplating taking on a temporary but time-consuming, challenging, and stressful administrative position. What are the pros and cons of doing so?Below I provide selected details of this particular person's situation, to help with this evaluation...
Unfacilitated
Can I just take a moment here and say that I hate how the "facilities" units of (some) universities gouge other units of the university, particularly when those other units are faculty with limited resources?Can I express my frustration with how (some)...
On Denial
A reader who was recently denied tenure at a major research university has some questions about how to deal with day-to-day life after the negative decision has been handed down; specifically, in the 'extra' year following the decision but before having...
Dealing With It
My e-mail inbox is piling up with questions and concerns, many from graduate (and some undergraduate) student readers with questions about dealing with those mysterious and possibly capricious creatures.. advisors.I am sorry that I can't give each e-mail...
Gender-directed Weirdness
During a recent bout of air travel, I picked up some magazines to read during the times when e-readers must be turned off and in an upright and locked position because things might shift during the flight, or something.I found this quote by Judith Herzfeld...
Author Credit Check
Today in Scientopia, I open discussion of a grad student's question about how authorship is decided on a paper, and whether a research group member who did not contribute should be included as a co-author because it seems to be the advisor's philosophy...
Tales from the Grad Advising Crypt
Did I mention that I am having a crazy-busy few months at the end of summer/beginning of the academic year? Yes, I think I did, and for that reason, I am going to be a lazy blogger today and post a recent essay of mine published in The Chronicle of Higher...
Loaded
Some colleagues and I were talking about teaching loads over dinner recently. First, let me say that I do not think that the word load implies that we find teaching a burden. It's just a term that means "how much one teaches per unit time" (term or academic...
Professor's Choice
Which would you find emotionally easier:having someone occupy your home while you are away for an extended period of time or having someone occupy your office?This question assumes that you have an office that has been 'yours' for long enough for you...
Teacher/Taught
At various times during this past summer, I had the opportunity to "teach teachers" (mostly professors) -- in both teaching (pedagogy) and research settings. These were mostly very positive experiences, but whenever I do this type of activity, I am reminded...
Ageing Out
Someone recently asked me if there is an age limit for getting one's first tenure track position. That is, if you follow a "non-traditional" path and/or spend a long time getting your various degrees and maybe also some time as a postdoc, is there an...
Check Us Out
Prologue. This post is motivated by the fact that I am already getting emails from prospective graduate students, so I started thinking about the graduate admissions process and remembered that there was a topic I have been intending to discuss well...
Ms Degree
Something happened this week that hasn't happened to me in a long time:I was asked if I am a Masters student.The person who asked is about 10 years older than I am (rough guess), is not an academic, and asked this question in response to my having shown...
Mrs Degree
In days of yore, when I was in graduate school, I was asked by a senior professor whether I was in graduate school because I couldn't find anyone to marry me.According to a recent e-mail message from a reader, some professors are still asking young women...
Non Stop?
If you are in a research group that has regular meetings, do you meet throughout the summer (or, at least, for most of it) or does your groups suspend regular meetings in the summer?There are different kinds of group meetings, of course. Some meetings...
My Answers
Recently, I was a virtual "panel member" for a post organized by The Hermitage, who collected and assigned 4 questions to different bloggers. I wasn't very inspired by the questions (through no fault of H's), so I didn't post my answers, forcing H to...
Opposites
A colleague of mine was recently asked to help organize part of the program of a conference, and was asked to recruit someone to work with him on this. This colleague was specifically asked to find their "opposite".THIS INTRIGUED ME.It intrigued me for...
NIH v. NSF
After reading the recent NY Times article (and associated commentary in the blogosphere) about discrepancies in proposal success rate of black vs. white PIs at the NIH, I tried in a rather feeble way to find these data for NSF. I know NSF collects demographic...
Dependent
From time to time, my husband and I have been been invited to be Visiting Professors (or Guest Professors or Visiting Scholars or various titles like that) at other institutions, for a sabbatical or for a shorter visit. Such invitations are always nice,...
Like a Business
Today in Scientopia, I discuss ways in which professors are/aren't like managers in non-academic settings (not that I know anything about being a manager in a non-academic settin...
In Loco Parentis
Last week's post about the sleepy undergrad inspired some comments that suggested (with varying levels of vehemence) that the professor involved should intervene in some way and facilitate medical treatment of a possibly serious condition. [In fact,...
The amino acid alphabet
Amino acid alphabet soupVia Astrobiology Magazine, 8/19/11All living creatures on this planet use the same 20 amino acids, even though there are hundreds available in nature. Scientists therefore have wondered if life could have arisen based on a different...
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