Posts filed under “Uncategorized”
Commenting code
I was digging through some old code this morning when I came across this snippet from what was clearly not a good day of data analysis: I may want to check comments more carefully when I share code.
Science-ese (slight understatement edition)
From Sambaraju et al. 2011: Abundant availability of host trees due to altered disturbance regimes has facilitated an unprecedented, landscape-wide outbreak of this pest in British Columbia and Alberta, Canada, during the past decade. Translation: ALL THE TREES ARE DEAD. ALL OF THEM.
Dealing with rejection
A few years ago, I applied for and received a really prestigious fellowship. I had to turn it down because they don’t let you take it out of the country (GRRR). But I didn’t give up. I took that application, made it even better, and applied for a similar fellowship in my new country. I […]
Science-ese
From a description of methods for testing pollen viability: It is postulated that membranes change from a continuous state when hydrated to a discontinuous state when dried. As pollen moisture content is reduced, membrane structure alters; in effect, becoming more porous Translation: Pollen membranes crack when they dry out.
Bus stop reading
Mathbabe takes on two articles inthe Economist about why women don’t get married and why more women aren’t running companies. Short answer: it sucks. Also, I’d like to see another article come out where the Economist asks the question, Why are smart men willing to spend their lives in the quest of leading these companies, considering […]
Trees are good for more than timber
Alberta should stop digging up the oil sands and build a nanocrystalline cellulose factory instead – turning trees into a light, strong, transparent material that conducts electricity. Sensible forestry practices are far less environmentally damaging than oil sands development. Plus, if we’re clever about it, using trees for NCC could help slow climate change by […]
What I read on the bus this week
A fellowship I’m applying for wants people who’ve “developed their own vision for the future that defines a bold change for the community or a group, cause or organization.” Of course, people with truly bold visions will have their applications tossed in the garbage. Whenever I get frustrated with my application, I like to picture […]