Alchemists of the Middle Ages sought to discover the Philosopher’s Stone – a miraculous substance capable of transmuting base metals (e.g. lead) into noble ones (e.g. gold). Alchemy of a different kind goes on nowadays in scientific laboratories, but its goal is broadly the same – transforming undergraduates and postgraduates into mature scientists. Continue reading
A look back at TIR‘s first year of operations. Continue reading
Charles Dickens’ Yuletide classic “A Christmas Carol” is all about how the curmudgeonly Scrooge learns to lighten up and let the festive spirit in. But what would it be like if Scrooge was a scientist? Continue reading
For a bunch of people who are supposed to be really smart, scientists spend a huge amount of time feeling really stupid. Partly it’s a Socratic thing – the more you learn, the more you realise how little you know – but it’s also because there are few professions more in thrall to the notion of genius. Continue reading
Who decides who the recipients of postdoctoral Fellowships are?
Who decides who the candidates for junior faculty positions are?
Who decides whether or not someone gets tenure? Continue reading
In the Marvel Comics universe, Dr. Octopus is one of Spider-Man’s principal antagonists. But there are plenty of real-life Dr. Octopuses out there – they’re called parents. Continue reading
In the latest “How to…” post, TIR will be offering some suggestions for how to write a scientific report or manuscript. A longer and more detailed version is also available for download. Continue reading
Scientists looking to improve their sterile technique would be wise to study the precepts of Japanese tea ceremony. Continue reading
Protectionism is back in the news at the moment, so it seems timely to look back at one form of protectionism and its unlikely correspondence to science – the guild system. Continue reading
TIR‘s guide to asking questions in scientific seminars (“Catechism“) remains one of the most popular to date, and in a similar vein we’ll be producing a series of “How to…” guides to cover some of the essential but often counterintuitive skills needed by the modern researcher. First up: a short guide on how to write scientific English. Later on we’ll look at how to actually produce a full scientific report/paper. Continue reading
Total Internal Reflection 