Rugby and motorsport are taking head trauma seriously – will science do the same? Continue reading
Protect your head
academia
Your postdoc questions answered (an EMBL Careers Webinar Q&A)
On 11th September, TIR writer Brooke Morriswood participated in an EMBL Careers Webinar with Kristina Havas-Cavaletti and Mariana de Niz on “how to choose a postdoc position”. Some of the questions asked by webinar attendees, and the panel’s answers, are below. Continue reading
Black Lives Matter – an interview with Professor Derek Applewhite
Derek Applewhite is an Associate Professor in the Biology Department at Reed College in Portland, Oregon (USA), and a longstanding advocate for Black/Indigenous/People of Colour (BIPOC) in academia. He joined TIR writer Brooke Morriswood and our first interviewee and discussion leader, Calvin Tiengwe, to continue the conversation about the BLM protests, racism in academia, and positive contributions that individual scientists can make. Continue reading
Life membership
The attempted student ban enacted by the Trump administration was wrong. Denying students their university places because they were not physically present misunderstood so much of what university membership really embodies. Continue reading
Bolton’s book and Goodhart’s law
Donald Trump’s obsession with re-election illustrates the problems caused by metrics becoming targets. Continue reading
The 9 types of academic authors
Nowadays it’s pretty standard for an academic paper to have a long list of authors – but who are those authors anyway? Continue reading
Black Lives Matter – an interview with Dr. Calvin Tiengwe
The Black Lives Matter protests have shone a light on the systemic racism present at all levels in developed countries, including in academia. TIR spoke to Dr. Calvin Tiengwe of Imperial College London to get his perspective on the protests, the problem, and possible solutions. Continue reading
Graves’ inversion
A thought experiment: what if career security in academia was inverted, and the positions of junior and senior faculty were reversed? Continue reading
It couldn’t ever happen to me
Academics always need a Plan B, because career longevity is never guaranteed. Continue reading
Vital statistics (a guide to preparing CVs for academia)
TIR offers a few pointers for young scientists on how to brush up their curriculum vitae… Continue reading
