Tag Archives: ideas

Is Wikipedia anti-intellectual? Compare athletes to academics and the answer is yes.

Posted on February 4, 2017 by

Recently some of my students have been writing biographies of scientists for Wikipedia. They wrote one for a research scientist who made a discovery so major she was on the phone with reporters for a week. The discovery was that … Continue reading →

Posted in Wikipedia | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

The best way to summarize your research on your webpage

Posted on June 7, 2016 by

Will people smile when they go to your research web page? Will they immediately know what you do, broad and narrow? Do you delight? I certainly hope you don’t overwhelm with words. I just opened an investigators web page to … Continue reading →

Posted in Communication, Presentations and seminars, Public Communication | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

How to collaborate successfully

Posted on June 21, 2014 by

Successful collaboration is essential for a productive research career for most people. With collaborators we can tackle bigger problems. With collaborators we can see old problems in new ways, or find a path where before were only cliffs. With collaborators … Continue reading →

Posted in Collaborating, Collaboration, Mentoring, Scientific community, Teaching, Workshops | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

What to do when a postdoc isn’t working out

Posted on April 23, 2014 by

Your postdoctoral years should be glorious. You’ve proven yourself with a Ph.D., showing you can master your field and find something new to solve, often in collaboration with an adviser, solve it, write it up, and publish it. You have … Continue reading →

Posted in Collaboration, Managing an academic career, Postdocs | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

How to avoid choosing vampire professors for graduate school

Posted on February 13, 2014 by

A vampire professor will suck you dry. They will rob you of your life essences. Exactly which essence they will remove might vary with professor. Some will suck away all your time. Such a professor will notice when you arrive … Continue reading →

Posted in Graduate school, Undergraduates | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

How to solve hard, important research problems

Posted on August 3, 2012 by

People keep talking about low hanging fruit, but the low hanging tomatoes in my garden are the first to rot. Maybe other people can find easy and amazing things to study. I don’t think there is much hope for that. … Continue reading →

Posted in New ideas, Scientific methods and pitfalls | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Do you have your list of things you are interested in?

Posted on July 12, 2012 by

One of the things my creativity course emphasizes is paying attention to other people and what they are thinking about, or what they might think about various ideas. One person that is worth paying attention to is Cin-Ty Lee. He … Continue reading →

Posted in Managing an academic career, New ideas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments