Epiphany

Statistics is awesome. 

Why the hell did I resist for so long?

Pasteur's insight

Listening to the Science Friday podcast this morning I was drawn to a Louis Pasteur quote: 

"Chance favors the prepared mind."

Ira quoted Pasteur when introducing a story on recent amazing observation of the early stages of a supernova.  What a fantastic description of how most great scientific discoveries occur.  We train ourselves, believe in our instinct, and use science to discover the why behind our luck.  What a brilliant man Pasteur was.

Blind leading blind?

This afternoon I got a call from a young woman who is finding herself in the same position I was in a little over a year ago.  She's considering graduate school, studying in my area of research, and was looking for advice and help making contacts.  I tried to help, I can remember so many seemingly futile efforts at making first contact.  I still feel like I got here simply by luck and a series of chance happenings, so I don't feel completely qualified to offer advice.  I also feel a little guilty about having gotten this opportunity.  Let me explain, one of those chance happening was being introduced to my current advisor at a meeting just over a year ago.  The young woman who called me today was also attending the meeting and also introduced to my current advisor.  Somehow, almost magically,  a year later I ended up here - hence the guilt.  I don't know, I guess I just feel unqualified to advise someone on how to get your foot in the graduate school door.

TGINFW? Thank god it's not finals week!

A recent post from ScienceWoman has me relieved that I'm not dealing with finals right now while my focus is trying to be productive in the research arena.  It's interesting to hear the finals stress from the point of view of the professor.  I've often wondered about the effect this stress environment has on professors and students like.  Though I must admit that reading her blog was the first time I truly considered exam stress from a professors point of view.  I've heard professors describe stress dreams they have about still being a student and missing exams.  But the stress of being a professor sounds equally awful, if not worse.  Fear of being unprepared to give an exam to all those students must be so much worse than our fear of being unprepared to take the exam.  As students there is some small measure of anonymity when taking exams and being graded, but professors have none.  Some times I wonder why we chose this academic life?

other College activities

So, I spent a few minutes this morning filling out a departmental scholarship form.  There was a spot on the form for College activities, clubs, offices held, honors, awards, etc.  I had nothing to put.  I work 10-12 hours a day, most days of the week.  If I find free time I try to spend it cleaning house, doing laundry, or sleeping, not on any extracurricular activities.  And I know that is also true of all the other grad-students in my lab.  As far as honor and awards go, that was why I was applying for the scholarships.  I have to start building the CV if I want to get any where in this academic life.  

So, I finally stretched a bit and listed a few activities from my undergraduate career just so I didn't leave the section blank, but that was 4 years ago, and even then I spend most of my time working and doing research.  I always assumed my lack of a social life and dedication to my work would be an advantage in the professional/academic world.  Now I have to wonder if I'm wrong.  Are great there professional benefits to extracurricular activities?

Scientists and cats

I've been catching up on some of my favorite blogs this morning and came across a wonderful post from GrrlScientist with an adorable video about engineers and their kitties.  I had a really good chuckle and my husband and I are convinced that our young male orange-tabby guest starred in the video

Finding inspiration in an eppendorf tube

I finally feel like I did more than just go through the motions today.  In the end I even feel a little inspired.  I spent all my free time between and after classes re-learning how to run a PCR and subsequently running a few this evening.  

In the past I've always thought of the molecular work as a slightly amusing but extremely informative part of my research, but that all the fun stuff happens in the greenhouse and fieldwork.  But today I found the little joy and motivation in the molecular work that I had been seeking all week in the greenhouse.  

I've been thinking that the rhythmic lab work can be somehow soothing and regenerative.  Sort of like the rhythm of rocking in a rocking-chair. Changing pipet tips, drawing-up buffers, dispensing to tubes, and repeating the process.  It must be true that it's the little things in life that bring you joy.