A Natural Scientist

Dear Readers: I am extremely bad at people's names.  No, worse than that.  I can meet someone once and, six months later, tell you whe...

Here is a piece of advice that never occurred to me before the whole job-application mess this year: If you are a visiting professor or in...

Although I have not been a postdoc (you couldn't pay me enough... ha, ha) I did get to play along for five years while Dr. S enjoyed a p...

Belle once told me that the voice of her conscience sometimes spoke to her in my voice, saying "And people in Hell want ice water !...

Part 1 (FDA Categories) Part 2 (So What Do I Do, Then? Eh?? EH?) So 2/3 of drugs are Category C and, according to the FDA, the average woman...

Part 1: FDA Pregnancy Categories: Who Made These UP, Anyhow? Part 2: What to do, what to do? Drugs in pregnancy! One of my favorite topics ...

How To Run A Lab (As) Cheaply (As Possible) I encourage commentary; additional suggestions will be appended. Part 1: Recycling and Repair Pa...

How To Run A Lab (As) Cheaply (As Possible) I encourage commentary; additional suggestions will be appended. (Please only comment on the th...

A while ago, Flicka Mawa posted about research at small colleges . (I respond to external stimuli with exquisite slowness.) Naturally, I ...

Edited: My expand-post script isn't working. Here's the whole thing. A correspondent, Nice Post-Doc, writes (I summarize): 'I...

Choosing a Lab 3: Personal Factors 1) Advising Availability. You will occasionally want to consult your advisor. Is the PI always off in Gr...

(Since I regularly repeat this whole thing to new students- sometimes without being asked.) Choosing a Lab: The Personal and the Professiona...

I write this not in the expectation that any of my dear readers need my unsolicited advice, but from the need to get it off my chest. Beside...

Public Speaking, Or: How to be an assertive bitch and make people listen. Stand up for yourself verbally. If you're talking, you're ...

Or: Not That You Asked (But Bad Experiences Are So Educational) Personal Assertiveness: Common Traps to Avoid Assert your professional compe...

Or: Years of Anger Are Converted to Advice *** Now announcing a new feature: Friday Advice! My epic-proportioned frustration with students ...