For those of us in the northern hemisphere, this weekend serves as the unofficial kick-off to summer. So pull the tarp off of the grill, dust off the cooler, and pour yourself a cold drink – it’s time to hit the outdoors. Of course, as the heat cranks up, we may opt to step away from the charcoal inferno in the Weber to eat something a bit more refreshing. So what better source for summer inspiration is there than the aptly named Barefoot Contessa.
Summer Essentials: Panzanella Salad and Herb Scissors
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Music in Lab: MyTunes, iTunes or NoTunes?
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Dear Dora,
We need a moderator in a debate that’s recently come to a head in lab: Should music be allowed in the lab?
-Anonymous
Jean Expression
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We all know that gene regulation is an important aspect for the function of the gene in a cell. Well, I am willing to argue that the regulation is equally important in the facilitation your own personal jean expression. How do you want to feel when you don your denim? Since you’re reading this article, then I suspect your answer is “confident and current.” It does not take a genius to incorporate these few jean inspired looks. Fortunately, you all ARE geniuses, so I am confident that you will remain current.
This is Not an Article About Running Viruses…
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…but when I saw the headline “scientists generate electricity from viruses” this is where my mind went:
Who’s Really Pursuing the Alternative Career in Science?
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These days it’s hard to escape the “alternative” label – alternative energy, alternative lifestyles, alternative medicine, alternative music, and of course, alternative careers. Prefacing a term with “alternative” implies those who find themselves in the “alternative” category have somehow strayed from the “normal” or “accepted” track. Nowhere is this stigma felt more than in science, where for decades researchers have been trained to pursue the “traditional” career path (aka, academics) or else risk finding themselves floating in the middle of the amorphous “alternative” pool (aka, all other careers). But does this perception accurately reflect today’s reality?
Cell Culture Derailing Your Vacation Plans?
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Dear Dora,
I maintain a line of particularly finicky cells as an integral part of my project. They need some kind of maintenance every 2-3 days, which isn’t a big deal other than the fact that finding vacation time is nearly impossible. I’m not sure I trust them to a lab mate and if I were to bleach them and go back to a frozen stock after the vacation, it would be about three weeks before I could start doing experiments again, which my boss makes me feel guilty about every time I bring it up. Any thoughts on how to get away?
Erin, graduate student
How is a Dormouse Like a Career Scientist?
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No it’s not predation by large owls, it’s strategic reproduction.
As anyone in academia knows, when to start a family is a really tricky decision. If you follow the traditional career path from college (4 years), to grad school (5-7 years), through a postdoc (3-6 years), perhaps another postdoc (3-6 years), into a tenure track position (5 years) which finally leads to a tenured faculty job (eternal) there really is no “good time” to pop out a baby or two.
PhD Tales from the Couch: The Age of Anxiety
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“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us …”
This quote from A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens can perhaps sum up the feeling of anxiety we all experience at certain times, when our life flip flops between complete despair and a promise of success. This may be especially true if you are a graduate student or a post-doc dealing with work-related stress brought about by a number of factors. As someone in a trainee position at the start of our scientific careers in the academic or corporate hierarchy, we are no strangers to stress. We work in the environment loaded with anxiety triggers: sometimes we feel powerless working in a state of perpetual uncertainty and lack of control, always exposed to extreme competitiveness and limited resources, long working hours, failed experiments, harsh criticism from reviewers or committee members, unrealistic demands from the adviser, and let’s not forget the “Publish or Perish” formula of the Ivory Tower. An article titled Grad School Blues published in The Chronicle Review reports that “Graduate school is gaining a reputation as an incubator for anxiety and depression.” As such, we are chronically exposed to anxiety triggers.
Sharing PhD Tales from the Couch with Yevgeniy Grigoryev
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Editor’s note: Obtaining a PhD is undoubtedly an intellectually challenging endeavor. However, many of us are unprepared for the extent of the mental hurdles we face on the road to our degree. Stress, loneliness, panic, anxiety, uncertainty, and depression are commonplace in most scientists’ career development at some point, yet these emotional struggles are rarely discussed openly. Couple this with the fact that many researchers find their work and sacrifices unappreciated by family, friends, and society at large and the strain can become overwhelming. At times it feels as though we’d benefit more from a therapist than from a PI.
Are Unlimited Online Backup Services Really Unlimited?
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Data storage and backup are becoming more and more important as our lives become more and more digital. The average computer user has at least a couple gigabytes of important data that mustn’t be lost. However, very few people actually think about backing up their data, let alone backing it up in the cloud. There is also a common misconception that it is enough to have a single backup on a secondary disk or external hard drive. While this is the first step it is like going to the doctor and only taking one of the several medications she prescribed.
