Dear Dora,
We always seem to be competing with this one lab, but they do really good work and I like them a lot. Is it acceptable to do a postdoc with a competitor’s lab?
Gena, graduate student
Flyceum: Your Science. Your Career.
We’re following in the tradition of open discussions among scientists that has resulted in important advances in both science and society.
Meet Your Search for Research Microgrant Winners!
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Last week the inaugural Search for Research competition came to an exciting conclusion. While there was movement all across the leaderboard, the eventual top two finishers battled it out for the top spot with over 1000 votes between them in the final 24 hours! Luckily, thanks to all of your support in downloading and using the toolbar, we raised enough money to fund both of them! So let’s meet the first class of Microgrant award winners.
Choose Your Microgrant Winners While You Still Can!
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It’s like we’re at that point in a book where we’re dying to skip the last 20 pages to find out what happens. Or that part in a Keanu Reeves movie where you whisper to yourself “I can’t believe I seriously just sat through that.” That’s right, we’re at the end. At 11:59pm EST tonight, this competition will be history, so take one last minute to support your favorite proposals.
You’re a Grad Student: You Shall Perform, Even When Sick.
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My project is one of those studies where not coming into work is just not an option. I am looking at a phenomenon that requires me to make observations over time, and missing any of those time points introduces a serious gap in my data. Although it is a good project, there is one major flaw in the design: no back-up plan in case I get sick.
Full-time Student (and Part-time Employee?)
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Dear Dora,
I’m having a hard time making ends meet and am considering taking a part-time job in the evenings to help keep me afloat. If I’m enrolled full-time as a grad student, is that legal? I’m hesitant to ask our graduate coordinator since I don’t want to anyone to get suspicious.
M.J., graduate student
11 Days Left to Make Your Votes Count!
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Lately, there’s been a lot of movement on the Search for Research Leaderboard. Not the kind of movement caused by prunes – we’re talking about the kind caused by votes. So coming into the homestretch, we’ll keep a close eye on how many votes separate the top contenders so we can help give our favorites the final pushes they need to win.
Search for Research: The Race for a Microgrant is On!
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There are exactly three weeks left in Search for Research and the proposals are fantastic! It’s going to come down to the wire so we’ve listed the top 20 entries to encourage people to vote for proposals they think deserve the money and to inspire them to submit their own ideas. The titles alone could be the names of books, Hollywood movies, kids toys or country songs, and the research proposed is even more interesting!
Isn’t Reviewing Papers My Boss’ Job?
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Dear Dora,
My PI asked me to start reviewing papers that are sent to him by journals- is this allowed? Isn’t that part of his job?!
– Suspicious in San Fran, Grad student
Back-of-the-Envelope-Calculations (Should be on the Front of Our Minds)
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Science is an incredibly precise profession. Adding two, ten, or twenty times the amount of a reagent could be plenty to ruin an experiment. Yet despite the importance of details, calculating everything to the third decimal place can cause us to lose focus of the bigger picture – and losing perspective in science can be a very dangerous proposition.
My Labmates Want Me to Be Their Dealer
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Dear Dora,
I have a great relationship with my boss, but others in lab aren’t so fortunate. Now, many of them expect me to use my relationship for their benefit (ask him to move group meeting, ask him for a new vacuum pump, etc.). I’ve worked hard to foster the relationship and am not crazy about the idea of doing the labs’ bidding. However, I feel like I’m in a bit of a pickle.
– Anna, Postdoctoral Fellow
