Ever on & on

Dreams of sushi… or science

Posted on October 19, 2012 by biochembelle

There’s a legendary phenotype in this business. It’s that person for whom what s/he does is more than a job, more than even a passion. It’s an obsession, a sort of calling almost. Consider this example. At 85 years old, he still lives and breathes his work, just as he has for decades. He made a name for himself, though perhaps not his intent. He has earned some of the highest accolades. Even now, holidays aren’t particularly relaxing because he isn’t working. And even when he’s not at work, he is thinking of it. He even dreams of it. He goes in every day, overseeing the work of apprentices, making sure things are done right, thinking always how to do them better. Some leave quickly, before their training is done. Others remain years, even close to a decade, striving to meet the demanding standard of their mentor in the hopes of finding independence. One apprentice has been there much longer, and he has slowly taken over many aspects of the day-to-day work and mentoring. He is ready, and one day, he will take over for his mentor. Already he’s been waiting for many years, but because of that promise and his loyalty to his mentor and the culture, he waits patiently in the wings. This is not the story of a well-known scientist. This is the story of a sushi master. Jiro Dreams of Sushi is a documentary, telling the story of a man whose obsession is sushi. His 10-seat restaurant in a subway station holds 3 Michelin stars, one of the highest honors in the culinary world. Yet as I watched, I could not help but note the similarities to some scientists who have gained notoriety, not only for their research but also for their behaviors, expectations, and attitudes. A few points struck me. First, at times, it seems we are convinced that this phenotype is unique to science. It is not. Second, it seems we are sometimes convinced that science selects for this phenotype. It does not. But as with many things in life, the extremes make for the most interesting stories, so we tend hear those more often. Finally, there are days it seems our culture promotes this obsessive nature as a key to success. It is not. Obsession does not always lead to success, nor does success depend on all-consuming obsession Never let anyone convince you otherwise. It’s the diversity of people and approaches that move science forward and upward and outward, whether by research or outreach or education or lobbying… Find the way that works for you. And sweet dreams this weekend, whether they are of science, sushi, or slumber.

Posted in attitudes, balance, passion | 1 Comment

Where the road has taken me

Posted on October 7, 2012 by biochembelle

You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no telling where you might be swept off to.

– Bilbo Baggins (The Fellowship of the Ring)

When I started blogging over 3 years ago (and tweeting sometime later), I had no clue where it was going to take me.

Today it takes me to new blogging lab/studio!

My ‘home’ blog, Ever On & On, will remain right here. And I will continue to post here about life as a postdoc, the culture of biomed research, and other miscellany. But…

I’m excited to join the Scientopia collective! Some ideas had been squirming around in my head, but I just hadn’t gotten around to acting on them here. I decided to use the Scientopia invite as nudge to experiment with new directions. At Transient Interactions, I plan to write more about biochemistry research and the communication of research.

A couple of other notes on where I’ve been…

I wrote an essay about science, scientists, and social media for ASBMB Today, a monthly magazine for members of the American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Check it out – The expanding multiverse of the scientific community: new media for communication.

And you can now find Biochembelle – along with 49 other awesome science bloggers and writers and 1 poet – in print! I’m both ecstatic and humbled to have my post on Fritz Haber and judging greatness in science featured in The Best Science Writing Online 2012, the sixth anthology of the Open Lab series (which you can pick up on Amazon).

When I started blogging, I didn’t know where it was going to take me. But I’m glad it did, and I look forward to all the other ‘places’ it sweeps me off to.

Cheers.

Posted in blogging | 2 Comments

Advising on the two-body problem

Posted on September 30, 2012 by biochembelle

Some of us choose partners with whom we want to share our lives. Partners may enrich our lives, providing support, keeping us grounded, encouraging us to dream.

But partners may also complicate our lives – and we, theirs. We may find this especially true when it’s time to plan the next career move.

A column in The Chronicle of Higher Education this weeks touches on this very topic, the infamous “two-body problem”. The piece, We Met in Graduate School, focuses on the increased number of grad students marrying fellow grad students (at least based on the author’s perception) and the idea that faculty aren’t doing enough to ~~dissuade~~ prepare them for the fire they’re jumping into.

The last few paragraphs offer some decent advice for mentors. The author writes:

Telling our stories might be the best gift our generation could hand down to the next. Indeed, an archive of our weird, inspirational, and tragic sagas would serve posterity well—as long as we adhere to some rules.

First rule: No varnishing. I am a firm believer in converting traumatic episodes into instructive anecdotes…

… Second rule: Be honest about the good stuff as well as the bad… we should count (and communicate) our blessings as well as show our scars.

Third rule: No pretending that we know how the stories will end—theirs or ours.

But the build-up to those last paragraphs struck me as patronizing. Perhaps it’s his use of youngsters to describe twenty-something grad students. Or the perplexing notion that the couple in question had not come to him for advice. Or maybe it’s statements like this:

If an alien landed and surveyed our program, the creature might assume that we were operating a dating service or a fertility clinic. What’s gotten into the youth of today?

Excuse me a moment …

OK. Now we can proceed.

There are a few points raised by the column and subsequent conversations on Twitter (which you can read on Storify, because I can’t figure out how to embed here) that I would like to address.

Juggling two academic careers is hard.

The column carries the tone that these young whippersnappers just don’t understand that trying to find jobs for two academics is hard. I do not disagree with that statement. But the column seems to imply that this is a unique problem for those residing in Academelandia.

It’s not.

I get it – there are only so many universities and colleges out there. But there are a number of other career trajectories with their own limits. Consider:

Non-academic science careers – There is not a pharma/biotech/engineering company in every town, and there’s a fairly limited list of cities where a scientist can build a career in policy or editing.
Military – And you thought academia was geographically constrained.
Licensed professionals – If your partner has a career that is dependent on a state-issued license, it may not be such a simple thing to put stakes down in a new town. Transferring a professional license is not as straightforward as your driver’s license.

Even outside of these examples, lining up two jobs in the same city is not simple, especially in the current economy. A partner’s present and future career should not be an afterthought. Telling someone s/he has it “easy” because hir spouse isn’t in academia or can “get a job anywhere” isn’t a response that invites discussion – neither does telling a couple how much harder they’ve made it for themselves by marrying another academic.

Balancing two careers is tough. Period. More eloquently put by Dr24Hours…

https://twitter.com/Dr24hours/status/250686783879249920

The ‘casualties’ aren’t invisible.

These academic youngsters need to be warned!

They don’t see the trailing spouses who never got hired, or the couples who divorced and moved on, or the full-time/half-time arrangements that collapsed, or the adjunct professors who worked so many jobs they had scant time to be a couple. They don’t see the partnerships torn apart by publishing demands, asymmetrical career prospects, or odious commutes. The casualties simply aren’t around to instruct them.

Emphasis mine. Perhaps things are different in the Yale history department, but I’ve seen or heard about the ‘casualties’. In fact, one professor – who I had only just met – sardonically wished me luck on staying married through grad school, based on hir own experience.

Again this is not a problem unique to young academics. Deals fall through. Promises are broken. One career is stifled to support the other. Commutes or work hours erode time together. Relationships fall apart. Not every relationship ends happily, regardless of what careers couples pursue.

Mentoring might not mean what you think it means.

Mentors, don’t be offended or perplexed if your trainees don’t consult you on every major life decision whilst they are under your professional direction.

Mentoring comes in many forms from many people, especially when it comes to personal matters. In many cases, it’s not about having a designated ‘talk’. It’s about seeing dual career couples who have made it. It’s about impromptu conversations over lunch or drinks. It’s about observing actions that support partners and families. Some of us don’t feel comfortable discussing very personal matters with someone who is supervising our work, someone who will be sharing hir opinion with potential/prospective employers or collaborators. We may seek out other mentors when it comes to person matters.

If young academics do seek advice, mentors might give them the benefit of the doubt that they’re not completely clueless. I realize the column was targeted at mentors, but the condescension toward students was a bit thick. I think few are blinded by youthful optimism, believing that life together is going to be all sunshine and unicorns and rainbows. We realize that there are going to be challenges and conflicts, calling for compromises and sacrifices. But it is our path to choose.

Posted in Uncategorized | 8 Comments

Favorite things: Technology for fitness

Posted on September 28, 2012 by biochembelle

Science keeps us busy.

Actually life keeps us busy.

It’s easy to let one thing become so big and overwhelming that we allow it to monopolize every moment of our day. Some supervisors and head honchos even encourage this sort of single-minded “commitment” to work. (Note, I’m not singling out scientists here because the mentality is shared in other sectors – law, medicine, business…)

I’ve discovered, though, in order to maintain my focus in the lab, I need some things outside the lab. A major component for me is maintaining my health through what I eat and what I do. Food matters because I need the energy for activity – and because I don’t have the metabolism or stomach of my college years anymore. Activity matters because I can set goals independent of work, it gives me more energy for the week, and I can sink my frustrations over whatever into my workouts.

Ironically food and exercise have often been the first things to slide when life gets hectic. At the moment, I have a pretty good base level of fitness and consistency built, hopefully something that I can maintain, even when intensity in other areas of life begin to build.

In June, I started with the simple goal of getting into the gym and doing something 3 or 4 days a week. In July, I restarted my strength training program. Now I’m weightlifting 3 days a week and doing some form of cardio (at least 30 min but usually 45 to 60 min) at least 4 days a week. Another tweak to add is some sort of regular flexibility/stretching exercise (e.g. Pilates or yoga), so that, say, a tight IT band doesn’t stall progress.

It will probably come as little surprise that I am one of those people who believes in the power of data. Smartphones (and their apps) have made it easier to record data for everyday life, and now that I have a lovely Droid, I am taking advantage of this.

I use JEFit as my weightlifting log. JEFit is targeted for bodybuilding, but it’s simple to adapt for my purposes. There’s a built-in database of typical exercises (including animated illustrations), but I can also add custom exercises from my training plan (currently I’m using The New Rules of Lifting for Women). I can add supersets for alternating exercises, the built-in rest and interval timers keep me on track. The app is pretty intuitive, showing you weights and reps from the last workout alongside the current log as you work through the routine. If I want to look back further, I find the formatting a bit confusing but not unmanageable. I use the Droid appt almost exclusively, syncing to web account mainly to back up data. The big plus of JEFit – I no longer have to remember my paper log, pen, and watch – just my phone.

I’m also tracking calories using Lose It!. Yes, I’d like to drop a few pounds, but the real motivation of tracking food and exercise for me is figuring out if I’m eating an appropriate amount for my activity level, how it’s distributed through the day, and whether the split between macronutrients is reasonable. Lose It! is very intuitive and has a great food database. You can find food by searching or scanning the barcode on a food package. You can create custom foods and (one of my favorite bits) recipes, which you can share with friends on Lose It. The app provides a sleek home page with easy access to your calorie budget and expenditures, a weekly overview of calories and how they fit your budget, and a daily and weekly summary of nutrients. The web service provides even more info – charts for how calories are distributed across meals, tracking of calories burned… You can even download detailed food info for a given day as an Excel spreadsheet. Lose It! gives virtual badges for things like consistent data entry, exercise, etc., and you can join or create challenges, if you like to incentivize health. I am ambivalent on these (even though I found the app through a challenge); for me, the value is in the data. I had suspicions of patterns (e.g. not enough protein, too many carbs, too little food on workout days, too many calories on weekends), but seeing the data is great – and recording everything makes me consider choices more carefully.

Both apps have highly functional free versions (these are the ones I’m using). What are your favorite tools to help keep fit while staying busy?

Posted in balance, nonscience | 3 Comments

Obstacles in cancer research – funding, evaluation, & complex disease

Posted on September 26, 2012 by biochembelle

Yesterday morning, director of the National Cancer Institute, Harold Varmus, addressed the National Press Club on the achievements and challenges of cancer research. Varmus covered quite a few topics, but here are a few highlights that stood out for me:

If budget sequestration goes into effect, NCI may be facing a 40% reduction in new grant awards. When asked to elaborate, Varmus basically responded, You do the math; our objective it to stop this from happening.
Varmus (an NIH as a whole) is concerned about the issue of reproducibility in research. Is there a rush to publish in the current climate? Why are replicative experiments failing? But also how (and who) defines failure to reproduce?
Scientists need to rethink how we evaluate others’ achievements. Publishing in “particular journals” (he subsequently named Cell, Nature, and Science specifically) is being used as a marker of success, but important work is also found in other journals. It’s time to get back to judging the science by the research not where it’s deposited. (Related to this is an editorial by Ron Vale in the American Society for Cell Biology’s journal.)

You can watch the full videocast on CSPAN. It’s an hour long but worth a watch. I think it serves as a good primer for non-scientists on the way biomedical research works and why progress is often slower than we want.