Just wanted to share that my first first-author paper is now online! In the journal Stem Cells and Development, here’s my paper on “Roles of Integrins in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Growth on Matrigel and Vitronectin.”
So, I’ve been changing my eating habits lately, mostly in the hopes of getting a little healthier. I think my strategy has been working– I’ve lost 10 lbs since Thanksgiving. Moreover, I have more energy and feel better. My secret? Five little changes (motivated by many sources, but especially the works of Michael Pollan):
Those 5 guidelines, and I feel healthier than I have in years!
Just read a fascinating (if lengthy) essay on disruptive technology and the future of scientific publishing. Well worth the read!
Colin Marshall, a friend of mine who is a prolific interviewer, reviewer, and podcaster, recently invited me to participate in a podcast bookclub experiment he’s starting called Barely Literate. Colin and myself, as well as Mike Violette and Jim Dempsey, recently completed a podcast on Robert Pirsig’s classic Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (also available as the Barely Literate podcast on iTunes).
I feel like we meandered a bit; not wanting to deal with the philosophical issues raised by comparison of Pirsig to other contemporary thinkers. Nevertheless, it’s kind of neat. Give it a listen sometime!
I don’t profess to be an expert, or even an amateur, at Economics. But the bailout seemed (and seems) like a poor idea to me. Mostly, this is because it (a) seems to let the financiers who made terrible decisions get away without repercussions and (b) it seems to be treating a symptom rather than the cause. The cause, in my opinion, is an American way of life that’s out of touch with our economic realities. Especially in the housing market. I clipped a nice comment from Slashdot regarding the housing crunch, read on to see it. I’d love to hear everyone’s thoughts on the bailout/economy!
(continued)
Ever have a moment that really grabs you and makes you notice that time either seems incredibly slow or incredibly fast? I was just talking to my friend CloneBot, and I noted that I’d probably be out of graduate school in 90 weeks or so. Only 90 weeks! So many things in my life occur on a “once per week” basis– and those weeks pass so, so quickly. Read on for more analysis of my upcoming weeks. (continued)
Recently at work, I’ve had a lot of data files to go through– The instrument I’m using spits out data as a series of (hundreds of…) text files, each with about eighty pieces of data. Rather than go through that by hand, I sat down and wrote a little script to collate the data for me into one, organized file. A co-worker was amazed by this– which got me thinking: There’s only going to be more computers in the future. Should at least a little bit of programming be a required subject in school? What else could be revised?
(continued)
Saw a great signature quotation today:
There are 4 boxes to use in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo. Use in that order. Starting now.
(afidel)
At the Courtyard Cafe today, I noticed a small plaque which reads,
Even though they somehow manufactured that statement and went with it, it’s still blatantly false. If they used their “right” to refuse service to, say, all black people who came in to the cafe… Well, I don’t think that policy would fly for very long. Guess they aren’t right about their right. I recall some similar thoughts on signs in the Illuminatus trilogy, I may have to pull it out tonight and re-read.
That’s what this article claims, in any case. I tend to agree, being the meditative and leisurely guy that I am. What I found most interesting, though, was the throwaway line about the economist Keynes. Apparantly, he recommended shorter workdays as well… I may need to track this down.
No real story here, other than a mildly interesting article and my obsessive-compulsive nature.
A while back, a co-worker of mine posted an editorial they had clipped from Nature, which was the advice of an experienced researcher to potential graduate students in the sciences titled “What makes a good graduate student?”.
Now, either I’m a textbook example of a piss-poor graduate student, or the author is an elitist crazy and I’m sane. Read on to see snippets of her “advice”, and my incredulity and disbelief. (continued)
Welcome to Paradoxdruid's Rants... a community based webblog. Feel free to snag an account and post.
Contributors Login
advice animals books computers crafts environment family food gadgets games garden honeymoon Links linux movies pedagogy personal pets philosophy photos politics rpg school science travel tv weddings whining work writing
Just wanted to share that my first first-author paper is now online! In the journal Stem Cells and Development, here’s my paper on “Roles of Integrins in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Growth on Matrigel and Vitronectin.”
Just read a fascinating (if lengthy) essay on disruptive technology and the future of scientific publishing. Well worth the read!
Just wanted to share Mint.com’s Visual Guide to Deflation, which is quite explanatory.
Hey all Paradoxdruid readers! I recently started up a blog on stem cells that I’d love you all to take a look at: http://www.allthingsstemcell.com/
I participated in another Barely literate book review podcast, this time on Nicholson Baker’s “The Fermata”. Give it a listen!
Obama has outlined a strategy for America, in great depth. Read all about Change.gov!
Okay, I’ll admit that it’s entirely possible that I am the last person to learn about this website*, but it’s really addictive.Â
(continued)
Site best viewed in Mozilla Firefox. Site CSS template by Andrea Pitschmann. Banner photo by photocase.