sciencewoman | March 12, 2009When the Overlordz announced a pie contest in honor of Pi day, I thought that I might be able to muster something up. But after seeing Janet's seven(!) delectable pies, Maria's pie + cocktail, Jess's "yes pecan" pie, and Zuska's bird pie, I realized that I don't have the skills or the time to compete with these kitchen mavens. I'm a busy woman. Most nights dinner is done in a hurry and deserts are a rare luxury. Baked deserts even more so.
But I can make a mean pot pie. It's quick, it's easy, and it's comfort food. I got the original inspiration from Real Simple, but the recipe is…
skookumchick | March 12, 2009Just super busy in the 3D world, as Janet calls it. Burning the candle at both ends. But I have a little time carved out tomorrow morning and I hope to get a blog post written then. And next week is spring break for us, so I hope to have more time then. In the meantime, let me offer a choice of blog posts running around in my head - vote in the comments by Friday morning, and I'll write the one with most votes.
What microethics and macroethics are in the context of engineering education from my trip to Arizona State University 2 weeks ago
A beginner's guide to NSF grantwriting, from my…
sciencewoman | March 11, 2009Even though it's spring break, I'm in my office today because I need access to some software and datasets that I don't have at home, and because, frankly, I work more efficiently and with less guilt at school than at home. (Unless I'm blogging, that is!)
I didn't ask very many colleagues about their spring break plans, maybe because the internet consensus was that spring break was a time to recuperate from teaching and get some research done, and those were basically my plans, too. (Plus taxes, whee!) I assumed my colleagues here at Mystery U would do some variation on the same themes.
So…
sciencewoman | March 11, 2009I've been to another workshop presented by the same group and I highly recommend them.
Preparing for an Academic Career in the Geosciences: A Workshop for Graduate Students and Post-doctoral Fellows
July 16-July 19, 2009
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Application DEADLINE is March 18, 2009
http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/careerprep09/index.html
Preference will be given to those entering or soon to enter the
academic job market.
The workshop will include faculty panels on academic careers and the
academic job search, short presentations on various topics,
structured discussions, and…
sciencewoman | March 9, 2009President Obama's picks for science advisor (John Holdren) and NOAA administrator (Jane Lubchenco) are being blocked from receiving confirmation because of the anonymous holds of one or more Senators. Mike Dunford at The Questionable Authority has been following the story for at least a week and writes today that:
As I've already said - possibly to the point of inducing tedium - the scientific community needs to keep pressure on the Senate. There are so many other things going on in Washington right now that this issue is not going to get much more attention from the traditional media than it…
sciencewoman | March 7, 2009The Open Laboratory third annual compendium of the best science blogging is now for sale at Lulu.com. In it you can find 52 wonderful entries, including one by me. I can't wait to read some of the great stuff that I missed when it first came out - and having a dead tree copy will enable me to take my favorite bloggers with me even when I'm away from the computer. Proceeds from sales of the book go to supporting next year's ScienceOnline conference. So even though you can read all of the entries for free on the internet, if you've got $7.50 (pdf) or $15.50 (paper) burning a hole in your pocket…
sciencewoman | March 6, 2009Unbalanced Reaction ponders who really needs spring break more? Undergrads or faculty? Go cast your vote at UR's blog.
As for me, all I know is that I am ready for a break. Even if "break" translates into "a week of working on research and taxes without having to teach class."
Figure 1. A friend of the blog sent this to me and I decided it was quite appropriate for this time of year.
sciencewoman | March 3, 2009One of my favorite bloggers, with one of the best blog titles ever, has drifted on over to ScienceBlogs. Kim writes beautifully about geology and geosciences education, and occasionally about women in science. She guest blogged for us a few weeks ago, and now she's got her own well-deserved brighter spotlight.
If you are not yet reading All My Faults are Stress Related, you should be. Here's a snippet from a recent post to whet your appetite:
[M]y suggestion for the "100 great geologic places" list might surprise you:
Your own backyard. ...
But I'm serious. Every place has geology. Even if it…
skookumchick | March 3, 2009So I got back Sunday night from a workshop at Arizona State University on Engineering and Science Ethics Education. The goal of the workshop was to explore the possibilities for blending microethics and macroethics in graduate engineering and science education; we spent 2 days talking about the history of such efforts, what micro and macro ethics might mean in the context of scientific and engineering education and practice, and how we might operationalize these ideas into 4 formats: a 3-credit course, a 9-credit course, a lab-situated set of discussions, and some online formats. The…
skookumchick | March 3, 2009I'm excited that Kim Hannula, a geologist from Colorado who guest blogged for us in January and who used to blog at All of My Faults are Stress Related has moved over to Scienceblogs! Welcome Kim, to the Madhouse. :-)
In other news, as ScienceWoman has mentioned, Liberal Arts Lady has crafted a marvelous March Scientiae, which, should be noted, is also the 2nd anniversary of the Carnival. Woo hoo! Thanks, LAL for a great carnival, and the next one will be hosted by Candid Engineer -- the call for posts should be up soon.
skookumchick | March 3, 2009It's that time of the year again when folks may be thinking about graduate school opportunities, and what with the current economic climate, maybe more than possible. If you'd be interested in finding more out about what a PhD in engineering education might entail, my school is having an open house at the end of March, and it would be great if you came. More information below the fold.
On behalf of the School of Engineering Education at Purdue University, I invite you to attend our open house for prospective PhD students on March 26 and 27.
Our doctoral program, the first of its kind in the…
sciencewoman | March 2, 2009I recently had the privilege of attending a COACh workshop focused on developing the negotiating skills of women STEM faculty, and I highly recommend it and the other workshops they offer. Here are few nuggets I gleaned from the session.
Here's a sample dialog between a new faculty member and their chair:
"Why do you need fancy piece of equipment X? Can't you just go to nearby university Y and use theirs?"
"Umm, I think it will be faster to have it in my own lab and we won't have to travel back and forth so much, so..."
"The Dean's not going to like giving such a large startup package."…
sciencewoman | March 1, 2009 Liberal Arts Lady has ably hosted another fantastic edition of Scientiae. Head over there for some fantastic stories of role models and mentors, as well as some reminders that we have a ways to go before all aspiring scientists can find someone who looks like them.
I also wanted to draw your attention to an excellent post by Zuska. She says that "It's Difficult To Talk About Diversity When You Feel Ignorant And Are Afraid To Give Offense" but that it's really important to be an ally in practice and not just in (silent) principle.
sciencewoman | March 1, 2009Nothing to do with my age this time, just a quick note to say that I can now add 1 to my count on the BBC book lists. Two very enjoyable evenings were spent in the delightful society of Miss Elizabeth Bennett and company.
sciencewoman | February 27, 2009As Alice kindly announced, today is my 30th birthday. The day got off to a rough start, but a little time ignoring work, eating a lovely organic lunch, reading some Pride and Prejudice, and then eating too much ice cream has turned the day into quite a lovely experience. Anyways, before my natal day expires, I thought I'd seize the chance to wax on a bit about where my thoughts wandered as my third decade waned.
For months, I've been looking forward to my 30th birthday. I'm a mother to a two year old. I'm in my second year on the tenure track. I own my second house. That combination of…
skookumchick | February 27, 2009Haaaappy birrrrthdaaaay tooo yoooooou,
Haaaaappy birrrrthdaaaay toooo yooooou,
Haaaappy birrrrrrrthdaaaaay, deeeeear Sciiiiience Womaaaaan,
Haaaaaappy birrrrthdaaaaaay toooo yoooooooou!
(Aaaand many moooooooore!)
sciencewoman | February 26, 2009Wow. You all rock. You are good at so many wonderful things - I am impressed.
Yesterday's question was prompted by the introductory activity at a COACh workshop that I had the privilege of attending. The workshop focused on developing the negotiating skills of women in STEM, and I highly recommend it and the other workshops they offer.
After coffee and bagels, our facilitators asked us to stand up and introduce ourselves to the group by saying what we were good at professionally. And then they showed us how our answers were weak and could be improved.
Here's my response: "I think I'm good…
skookumchick | February 26, 2009So here I am in sunny and unsustainable Tempe, enjoying the warm weather and empty morning (the workshop I'm here to attend doesn't start until 1:30 local time). I spent this morning sleeping in (gasp!), chatting to my mom on iChat, calling a friend whose birthday it is (Hi, Sarah!), and -- even more shockingly -- beginning to read a new book.
The book is called Rethinking Faculty Work: Higher Education's Strategic Imperative, by Judith Gappa, Ann Austin, and Andrea Trice. I don't know Gappa or Trice, but Ann Austin is a truly marvelous human being -- I know her through my grad work at the…
skookumchick | February 25, 2009 Sorry for my blog silence -- I've been swamped in work, and then to top it off, I got sick yesterday and missed a day of work (!).
I'm heading to Arizona State University today to go to a workshop on engineering ethics, and to visit my sister-in-law and her family, so the blogging silence is likely to continue on my part. Looks like ScienceWoman will capably hold down the fort - she's a super-poster!
Until then, I've been walking around with a camera in my bag for the last 2 weeks with some random photos on it. It includes a photo of my office door, which is decidedly more bestickered…
sciencewoman | February 25, 2009You are in a room with a bunch of other female faculty/post-docs/grad students from your university. You know a few of them, but most of them are unfamiliar to you. The convener of the meeting asks each of you to introduce yourself by answering the following question: "What is one aspect of your professional life that you are good at?"
How do you answer the question? (Please do, in the comments.) Tomorrow, we'll discuss.
I'll go first. I'm ScienceWoman and, in my life as a blogger, I'm good at getting thoughtful discussions going in my comment threads. :)